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%

One of my pet peeves with operating systems has been the Microsoft domination of the OS market. People just dont seem to realize that they have so many things around them for free. There has been a research on how people tend to pay for something advertised rather than use something which is free and might actually work much better than the one paid for! Linux is one of such ‘geeky’ operating system termed as geeky due to its non GUI mode of functioning with its roots firmly entrenched in the best OS the world has ever known, Unix.

Such ‘terms’ usually mean the alienation of the crowd in general and for people who find the ‘point and click’ interface of Windows so easy in comparison would never think about transitioning to something as robust as Linux. If you think point and click gets your goat, then go for Ubuntu 8.04. You get support, you get a lot of beauty (even on a low end computer), you get a lot of things you never have to pay a penny for, and you get a 3 year security update cycle.

There are some things you might not know. MP3 as a technology is licensed, so when you encode music from your CDs make sure you encode it in FLAC or OGG VORBIS. The sound clarity is better and ofcourse you are in a way contributing to the open source movement. So whatever you pay for and whatever you don’t, the ROI calculation would be very different when you look at it from the open source angle.

I made the transition around 2 years back and love every moment with my Ubuntufied (Mint 4 currently) computer. No viruses, no hangs, no spyware/adware. Though there are somethings for which I would need to revert to Windows XP (would be a sycophant if I won’t). My office work has to be done on the legendary MS OFFICE (Open Office jumbles my formulae up). I would not get into the technicality of things at this juncture. You need a HD Video Player Linux (read Ubuntu) has it, you need a browser (Firefox), you need a CD/DVD burner linux has it. There are many more such reasons why a regular/advanced joe would want to go for Ubuntu. Give it a whirl and believe me this is one OS you can never have enough of.

More about this…later !

Popularity: 9%