Image Credit: Twenty5pics

I have been thinking of getting rid of Windows from a long time, but I must admit that I’ve been so used to it that I didn’t have the patience to switch over to Open Source and start afresh, all the more because it would affect my day-to-day life in terms of usage of yahoo messenger, skype, webcam, mp3, movies, MS word, ppt, excel etc, etc. The list just goes on.

As a first step towards moving my OS (Operating System) from MS to OS (Open Source) I encountered a bunch of failures. I had now tried my hands on unix, redhat, fedora, etc. Somehow I just never got them right.

A few months ago, a couple of my good friends got to dirty their hands as well in a bid to get me started with Ubuntu 8.04 (the latest operating system from the linux world). Even this attempt turned out to be futile. Apparently some problems with the hard disk.

Just a week ago, I bought a new 320 GB hard disk (for 3k) and got started myself, of course with much help from my friends – the open source lovers. I did the following, you could do it too if you like to get the beautiful ubuntu on your desktop:

1. Download Ubuntu 8.04 onto my cousin’s system from http://www.ubuntu.com/getubuntu/download (This is a .iso file that gets downloaded with a size of 694mb)
2. Burn this .iso file onto a CD as an image file (You could do this using Nero or any other cd burner software)
3. Change your system’s boot priority to CD
4. Insert the CD into the CD drive and get started
5. A few questions such as the language selection, partition, time zone selection, etc need to be answered during the installation.

Just these five steps and your Ubuntu on your desktop is ready to use.

A few points to remember are-

• As soon as you install and connect to the net, download all the latest updates. There could be about 125 updates (takes approximately an hour if you have a decent net connection).
• There is something called the Pidgin that takes care of the IM – be it yahoo or msn or google talk or AOL or anything.
• Rhythmbox for the playing music, a movie player, a cd burner, etc.
• You need to download Skype separately
• To play music and movies, you would need to download 2 more files called Gstreamers, which will be prompted when you try to play mp3
• The open office will take care of your MS word doc, ppt and excel requirements.

You dont need to install antivirus separately. With the updates, you are good to get started with the Heron ((ubuntu 8.04 is a Hardy Heron variant) )

These will take care of your basic needs from an operating system point of view.

Time to throw Windows thru the window

Popularity: 27%

The tag line says it all. Borrowed from the movie Spiderman, it is true for any linux/unix operating systems. Commands on the CUI (character user interface) though tough at the start (for users transitioning from Windows) works like a charm, but with it also comes the risk of some rank newbie deleting any system file. For the uninitiated, everything in Unix is a file and I mean E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G.

But before I tell you on some of the nitty gritties of the stuff that Ubuntu is made off I will head over in the direction of getting you a working and virus/spyware free HD (avi, mkv etc.) file player, gaming rig, music jukebox and all in one Entertainment box which will fulfill your love for something very solid with practically all tools which are free of (m)any proprietary headaches (read Windows!) which would run for aeons (if you have uninterrupted electricity which these days is rare in India) that would bring a smile on your face.

1. Installing Ubuntu

2. Enabling third party repositories for using plugins

3. Installing Audio Applications

4. Installing Video Applications

5. Installing Games (Open Source + Some Proprietary)

6. Setting up Ubuntu for your Network Needs (Samba, FTP)

7. Pimp your Ubuntu

8. Securing Ubuntu

For now what I have for you is just the tip of the Ice Berg

Popularity: 19%