Review: Ubuntu for Non-Geeks

For those who tire of a Microsoft hegemony on their laptops and desktop PCs, there is another choice: Linux. This open source and essentially free version of Unix has the reputation of being for the über-techie, but if you want to give it a shot, there's a version called Ubuntu (a South African terms that means "humanity towards others") that may be up your alley. The book Ubuntu for Non-Geeks (2nd. edition) claims to be "a hands-on, project-based, take-it-slow guidebook for those interested in - but nervous about - switching to the Linux operating system."

I'd largely agree with this, and at $34.95, which includes a CD with the operating system (you can even try it before fully installing it on your hard drive), it's a cheap experiment. However, depending on what you want to do, it may be a bit trickier, technically, than the book implies.

Trying the oeprating system was as easy as putting the CD into my drive and rebooting. I had a problem with my laptop, whose hardware required me to press the F12 key to pick the booting device. (Typically the PC will first try to boot off the CD, if there is one present, and then the hard drive.) But it passed quickly enough.

The operating system is reasonably easy to learn, is much faster than Windows given the same hardware, and comes with a complete suite of software that includes spreadsheet, database, presentation creator, and word processor. You can save out in Microsoft-type formats, so you get compatibility. (I didn't try this with complicated documents, as I've seen such "save as" features in other packages to be restricted in what they could do.) There is even a version of GIMP, which is a full-featured image editor that some people use instead of paying for Photoshop.

I did eventually install Ubuntu onto the hard drives of both my computers, though as a dual boot: when the computer starts, I can choose either Ubuntu or Windows. But getting everything to work can be a little tricky. For example, many modems depend on leveraging the processing power of Windows and the PC's hardware, and that doesn't necessarily work well with Linux. The book has directions of where to look on the web for help in configuring a modem, but it can be a complex process. (It's a big thing here, because I'm so far out in rural area that we only have dial-up.) To get it to work, you hneed to be online, but to be on line you need it to work - a telecommunications Catch 22. I've copied the files I need (I think) to the Windows part of my hard drive, and when I have time I need to copy it to a CD to then make it available to Ubuntu when I boot that up. You see what I mean - this can take patience. But working with wireless appears that it might be easier, although I haven't had a chance to try that, as my laptop is now in the shop for an unrelated problem.

Overall, I like the book, but if you're interested in giving it a shot, be sure to treat it as an experiment until you have the chance to see how easily you adapt to the system, and run it for a while from the CD to get your C-legs. (Sorry, that's a joke for the true techies.)