steven36 Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 Imagine what the Linux landscape would look like without Ubuntu. Jack Wallen does just that and the outlook isn't even remotely pretty. For many in the Linux community, the topic of Ubuntu brings up ire and, in some cases, nothing short of rage. Why? On the surface it's easy to point to the likes of Unity and Mir as the primary reasons for the criticism and hatred. If you look deeper, however, I think it's much more complicated. I think Ubuntu faces this petulance because: Many users hate that Ubuntu is a commercial product Many "hard core" Linux users look at Ubuntu as "Linux lite" Many don't see Canonical giving back enough to the open source community I'm not here to negate those concerns (though I do not share them). Instead, I wanted to take a moment and imagine a world without Ubuntu. At first blush, one might think that world wouldn't change much from where it is now...there'd just be a different distribution in Ubuntu's place. Or would there? And therein lies the key to this line of thought. No matter how you feel about Ubuntu, it has managed to do something no other Linux distribution could pull off: Become a commercially viable desktop alternative. Ubuntu came out of nowhere in 2004. This was a time when there were already thousands of variations on the Linux desktop operating system. In fact, upon the release of this Debian derivative, very little changed. Ubuntu was quietly released and the landscape hardly shifted a byte. Now? Ubuntu holds roughly ninety percent of the Linux market. That's a fairly remarkable number, considering Ubuntu's primary focus has largely been new users. And so now, we borrow the chains from the Ghost of Christmas yet to come, strip the landscape of Ubuntu, and examine where things could be. Put on your imagination caps and take a walk with me. A bit less distros First and foremost, the Linux community would be without the following distributions: Linux Mint Kubuntu Edubuntu Xubuntu Ubuntu Studio Crunchbang Linux Ubuntu Kylin Elementary OS Freya Ubuntu GNOME Netrunner Deepin That's a fairly notable list of distributions to be missing. Especially important in that list would, obviously, be Linux Mint. No Ubuntu...no Mint. Considering Mint currently sits atop the Distrowatch's page hit list (and is often ranked at the top of everyone's "Best of the best"), the Linux community would most certainly miss out had Ubuntu not existed to inspire Linux Mint. A bit less cloudy At the moment, seventy percent of public cloud workloads run on Ubuntu. On top of that fifty-five percent of OpenStack clouds depend upon Ubuntu. Businesses like Time Warner Cable, Yahoo Japan, Bloomberg, Bestbuy, Cisco, Samsung, Ebay, AT&T, Walmart, and more depend upon Ubuntu for their cloud presence. That is significant. And certainly Red Hat and SUSE would easily have taken over that workload. But the truth is, Ubuntu makes deploying clouds easy (which is part and parcel to their entire business model...making Linux easy). A bit less friendly This one might be cause for some to toss down the gauntlet and shout "j'accuse!" No distribution of Linux has, in the history of the platform, made the open source operating system so easily accessible to new users. Not Mint, not Deepin, not Elementary OS, not Solus...none of them. From the very beginning, ease of use and user-friendliness was at the heart of Ubuntu. Strip Linux of Ubuntu and the platform becomes increasingly less likely to attract new users and far less user-friendly. But this isn't just about the UI or UX. Over the years, Ubuntu has worked hard to make Linux a household name. Has it achieved that lofty goal? Not to the extent we'd like; but it has made great strides. Consider the likes of System76 - a company that does an outstanding job of selling hardware pre-installed with Linux. Their OS of choice? Ubuntu. Imagine how much more challenging that prospect would be if System76 were faced with selling hardware running Fedora? or openSUSE? My guess is that they'd sell considerably fewer desktops and laptops. NOTE: That is not to ding either platform...as both are outstanding distributions. Ubuntu is truly Linux for humans. It's not only open source, it's open arms. Cheesy? Yes. True? Also yes. A bit less graphic-y One of the less discussed improvements Ubuntu helped to usher in was that of graphic installers, configuration tools, and UI polish. There is little doubt that Ubuntu helped turn up the heat on UX and UI improvements. With that added heat, Ubuntu demonstrated just how clean and professional a Linux interface could be. Consider that Linux might not even enjoy high quality font rendering without Ubuntu. Even in recent releases of Fedora, fonts don't render nearly as well as they do in Ubuntu. Even though Microsoft holds the patent for subpixel rendering until 2019, Ubuntu has been, since inception, the distribution best capable of a polished desktop from fonts to titlebar. A bit less edgy One thing Ubuntu has done better than any other distribution is push the limits on boundaries. Prior to Ubuntu, Linux happily existed in a bubble. Sure there were battle cries of "World domination", but those cries were silenced simply because no other distribution was willing to violate many of the taboos held by the Linux faithful (such as dropping Wayland for their in-house Mir or the unveiling of Launchpad) - taboos keeping Linux from achieving the greatness it has always been capable of. Edgy became the calling card for Ubuntu when Canonical released Unity. This was the first true modern take on the Linux desktop. To this day there are a great many haters of Ubuntu's default desktop. Without Unity, however, we wouldn't have beared witness to the massive improvements of GNOME Shell or possibly not have ever enjoyed the release of the Mate, Cinnamon, Budgie, or Elementary desktops. A bit of a conclusion No matter where you stand on Ubuntu, it cannot be denied that the distribution so many like to hate has brought about or inspired some of the most important milestones for the Linux community. Without Ubuntu, we'd be a few rather large paces behind the competition at this point. Do you agree? Has Ubuntu been a harbinger of "do" or "die" for Linux? Source Side note: I agree even though I dont like Ubuntu's gui I'm really grateful we have it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SURbit Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 Most of the Links I click on to see how much Ubuntu costs are dead. Then I ran across this from 2014 - Facebook To Buy Ubuntu For $3 Billion / http://itsfoss.com/facebook-to-buy-ubuntu-for-3-billion/ Does Ubuntu have like versions (distro's) as in Linux has in general ? Some prices I've seen seems almost cheap with the highest so far I've seen under $50.- (amazon - not sure what else was included with it) I found some other information on Ubuntu /ʊˈbuːntʊ/ - Ubuntu is an ancient African word meaning ‘a shared humanity’. An expert global team of thousands have made this software free for you to use, share, study, modify and distribute. / http://shop.canonical.com/product_info.php?products_id=1146 So is it free or costs ? and again different variations (flavors) of the same ? Ubuntu 14.04 LTS Desktop - Loved by millions worldwide, Ubuntu is a secure, stylish operating system that couldn’t be easier to use. With no unnecessary trial software and clutter, it’s fast and it stays fast. It has amazing support for the web, thanks to the best, most secure and fastest browsers. And you can choose from thousands of free applications in the Ubuntu Software Centre. System requirements / This edition will run on most PCs. To use Ubuntu, you should have a PC with at least 768 MB of RAM and at least 5GB of disk space. Security and maintenance updates will be provided for this release for 5 Years. Explore and install / Try Ubuntu before you install it – simply boot your computer from this DVD. You can install Ubuntu alongside Windows or Mac OS X, or you can replace your current operating system entirely. Just back up your files and follow the installation instructions carefully. Pick - Ubuntu 14.04.3 LTS / years of security and maintenance updates, guaranteed. ($3.00) or Ubuntu 15.10 / nine months of security and maintenance updates. ($3.00) DOWNLOAD: http://www.ubuntu.com/download/desktop (this link requires a payment/see torrent) Guide Installing Ubuntu Desktop: http://www.ubuntu.com/download/desktop/install-ubuntu-desktop Community: http://community.ubuntu.com/ Alternative downloads : (torrent also) http://www.ubuntu.com/download/alternative-downloads Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven36 Posted January 19, 2016 Author Share Posted January 19, 2016 18 minutes ago, SURbit said: Ubuntu 14.04 LTS Desktop - Loved by millions worldwide, Ubuntu is a secure, stylish operating system that couldn’t be easier to use. With no unnecessary trial software and clutter, it’s fast and it stays fast. It has amazing support for the web, thanks to the best, most secure and fastest browsers. And you can choose from thousands of free applications in the Ubuntu Software Centre. If you count Linux Mint 17x witch is based on Ubuntu 14.04 LTS Desktop maybe so .. Linux Mint has been the top dog every since Ubuntu moved away from Gnome . Ubuntu use to be number 1 at distrowatch it moved to 4th place now its moved up in to 3rd . 1.Linux Mint 2.Debian 3. Ubuntu I'm not much for numbers that companies give out for there own PR . I feel more comfortable going by Distrowatch witch is actual user hits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SURbit Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 So for a first timer which one would advise, to have the most enjoyment of an experience. Please don't base on cost but, enjoyment ok... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven36 Posted January 19, 2016 Author Share Posted January 19, 2016 11 minutes ago, SURbit said: So for a first timer which one would advise, to have the most enjoyment of an experience. Please don't base on cost but, enjoyment ok... What cost Gnu Linux is free . Ive never tested Linux that cost me anything i would just stay with windows before id go that route. For beginners its according to are you a real beginner or are you just switching from windows . If switching from windows 1.Linux Mint 2. Netrunner 3.Linux Light 4. Zorin O/S 5. Xubuntu But a real beginner it should pretty easy to adjust to any of them because they never been depended on windows . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SURbit Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 That's a big 10-4 breaker, breaker, I see if one has used Windows you can't be a beginner I mean BSOD's and Boot files messing up, driver problems, updates fail, you name it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karamjit Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 i first time used Ubuntu in 2010. and the version was 10.10 Maverick Meerkat. i still use 14.4 when Windows deceives me in someway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven36 Posted January 19, 2016 Author Share Posted January 19, 2016 BSOD never happen in Linux . But you can mess up you're boot doing things you know nothing about like updating kernels before proprietary drivers are patched for you're o/s . that's one of the 1st I learned about Linux dont do every update you see. I got a portable hard drive i test new O/S on before I install them as my main o/s to make sure everything works as it should. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karamjit Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 .........and one month ago something happened to my system's Hard Disk. windows was unable to even recognize my HD. i then tried HBCD 15.2 and ran Windows xp from my pen drive. even it didn't recognize my HD. a friend of mine suggested me to attach my HD with an another pc and reformat this. i then ran ubuntu from flash drive and it successfully recognized my HD and all of its partitions. i copied all my precious data to another 1TB flash drive with the help of Ubuntu and reformatted HD. though i use windows........but i trust ubuntu when systematic things are done.............and it never deceived me till now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SURbit Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 6 minutes ago, steven36 said: BSOD never happen in Linux . But you can mess up you're boot doing things you know nothing about like updating kernels before proprietary drivers are patched for you're o/s . that's one of the 1st I learned about Linux dont do every update you see. That's good advise, what about tethering from Linux / possible? - I guess I should read and look but wouldn't like that to be a bummer and halt my parade. So you know if one is able to tether off phone for internet with Linux? 13 minutes ago, pamadhilwankalan said: i first time used Ubuntu in 2010. and the version was 10.10 Maverick Meerkat. i still use 14.4 when Windows deceives me in someway. I'm wondering why Linux isn't a daily drive for you ? Got any tips to throw my way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven36 Posted January 19, 2016 Author Share Posted January 19, 2016 1 minute ago, SURbit said: That's good advise, what about tethering from Linux / possible? - I guess I should read and look but wouldn't like that to be a bummer and halt my parade. So you know if one is able to tether off phone for internet with Linux? It can be done is all I know . I'm on a network were I simply just plugin WiFi adapters in to my computers and they work expect for my windows 7 one i have plugged into my router. http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-tether-your-smartphone-in-linux/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
straycat19 Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 I have been using Slackware for over 20 years and still use 13.37 on old computers running as print servers. It's all command line and separates the men from the boys. It was hard to learn and I had many attempts to do things before I got it right. Fortunately I had a couple friends who, together, knew almost everything there was to know in configuring it to do what we wanted. But it taught me the software that lays under all the GUI interfaces today, the only purpose of which is to draw windows users into linux. Some of them I find useful but they will never take the place of command line when it comes to security and tweaking the OS. There are just things you cannot do in a GUI that can only be done by knowing the underlying code and configuration possibilities. I ran Mandrake for several years and it was an acceptable development of Linux. I have used commercial Linux distros at work, such as Red Hat and SUSE. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SURbit Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 2 hours ago, pamadhilwankalan said: .........and one month ago something happened to my system's Hard Disk. windows was unable to even recognize my HD. i then tried HBCD 15.2 and ran Windows xp from my pen drive. even it didn't recognize my HD. a friend of mine suggested me to attach my HD with an another pc and reformat this. i then ran ubuntu from flash drive and it successfully recognized my HD and all of its partitions. i copied all my precious data to another 1TB flash drive with the help of Ubuntu and reformatted HD. though i use windows........but i trust ubuntu when systematic things are done.............and it never deceived me till now On windows I don't use sys restore anymore and turned it off - now using Aomei Backupper - http://www.nsaneforums.com/topic/251975-aomei-backupper-serverprotechtechplus-320-multilingual-technician-winpe5-x64-bootable-iso/#comment-981563 and put backups on another drive off sys drive. I hate when drives aren't recognized and you have important stuff on them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven36 Posted January 19, 2016 Author Share Posted January 19, 2016 2 hours ago, SURbit said: On windows I don't use sys restore anymore and turned it off - now using Aomei Backupper - http://www.nsaneforums.com/topic/251975-aomei-backupper-serverprotechtechplus-320-multilingual-technician-winpe5-x64-bootable-iso/#comment-981563 and put backups on another drive off sys drive. I hate when drives aren't recognized and you have important stuff on them. I dont go on windows enough anymore to worry about that anymore . Just kidding If it fails me i would just reformat as i back up anything important to other drives and just make a system restore about once a month . I try to switch back and forth every so often from windows to Linux that way I dont get behind on updates lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holmes Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 This is a very good guide for linux beginners check it out: I would choose ubuntu or linux mint for my first linux to try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.