Linux is most often misunderstood as an OS meant primarily for enterprise usage. With its gnome and kde desktop versions; its great to experience Linux on home PC as well, giving stiff competition to Windows. I had read of Linux as free-source, open source and highly customizable operating system; and am finally having hands-on experience with its amazing flexibility. Getting ready to move to Linux is just three simple steps away. Hassles free download, simple installation procedure and quick exploration; is all what it takes.
Download
Linux being free and open source, you can easily download and use any of its variants, namely Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Lubuntu and so on. Decide on for your suitable variation and get the boat sailing. We chose Kubuntu 10.10 (64 bit) for that matter. You can grab your copy at Get Kubuntu. It is available in two versions — 32 bit and 64 bit. It will only be a download of 700 MBs to give it a try. Download the Kubuntu installer and create the installation CD; to experience Linux on your system. The download is available via the website and also as a torrent.
Installation
As we already mentioned, repeating it again, the installation process for Kubuntu is fairly easy and simple. Just boot your system from CD / DVD and follow the instructions of the installation wizard. You can choose to either install Kubuntu occupying entire disk space or mention the disk partition (going in for dual boot). Dual boot is preferable, so that you can easily switch back to your other operating system; Windows 7 (or XP or anything else for that matter). We were using a Vostro 230 Dell machine which is an entry level desktop. We booted off the CD by hitting F12 and selecting the CD drive. Next we provided a username and password for the system and clicked through another few screens asking for our tiemzone, keyboard layout etc. We waited for the isntallation to complete and it took about 20 minutes. We were given the instruction to restart the system. Meanwhile we were also searching Google for dell wireless card D1525. It returned one result which didn’t solve the issue. Anyway the OS booted the first time then.
Exploration
Switching on the system with Kubuntu installed on it is like entering a new world — a world which welcomes you whole-heartedly to explore new and exciting features; distinct from Windows environment. It is cool and refreshing surprise; over the regularity of Windows. Its plasma desktop, glassy effect and default desktop effects are enough to keep you by its side.
It was fascinating to come across features we had never heard of in Windows environment. Desktop folder view, multiple desktops, scores of desktop effects, numerous customization options and so on. We had a pleasant surprise when we discovered the wireless network icon in the taskbar and we discovered that the wireless network was working right out of the box (no hassles of installing drivers for wireless connectivity). That justifies why Google just returned one result and an irrelevant one at that. It was the kick-start for exploration. The default browser is Reconq. We opted to install Google Chrome’s developer version (for linux users) to make web-surfing easy (to get hold of a worthy friend in the deserted island).
Kubuntu is licensed under GPL and so are most the applications and utilities, it comes bundled with. It has all the bells and whistles; it offers you multiple options for same tasks. It comes packed with all the necessities — OpenOffice as the default office suite, Kontact for personal information management, Kopete IM, Amarok audio player, etc. The best part of Kubuntu is that it acts as the repository of free and open source applications; featuring one-click install.
It features entirely amazing concept for desktop; to keep your desktop neat, clean and elegant. It comes with the concept of desktop folder; which avoids you from cluttering the desktop view with icons. Decorate your desktop windows with widgets or plan to add panels. We tried out the bouncy ball widget. Set its gravity, friction and other properties and have fun controlling the bouncing ball. Once the ball starts to bounce its really difficult to control it (take our word). Its really really difficult to control the bouncing ball; until you lock the widget and remove it off your desktop.
Kubuntu is a great learning experience, you will get to learn the Linux terminology and some Kubuntu specific names for various applications and destinations. Moving from Windows to Kubuntu is like entering a foreign country. Windows Explorer is known as Dolphin and command prompt is called Konsole. You can easily get addicted to “K” with Kubuntu.
We (for a first-timer) also noticed that executing any system tasks requires the user’s password which is more secure than the UAC prompt of Windows.
All we have to admit is that, Kubuntu is addictive(ly) enticing. It actually makes learning a fun experience. You can keep aside your work and get involved in its aesthetics. It is like saying the more you learn the less you know. The urge for learning grows forever. So what are you waiting for. Just switch to Kubuntu and play around with customizations and learn & explore new applications (in the open source niche). And there if you don’t like the changes you can easily revert back to the default settings.
Just get hold of Kubuntu and you will definitely fall in love with it! What have your experiences been with Linux?
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{ 6 comments on Linux — A First-timers Experience Installing Kubuntu 10.10… read them below or add one }
“We (for a first-timer) also noticed that executing any system tasks requires the user’s password which is more secure than the UAC prompt of Windows.”
Well have you tried using a Windows NON-administrator account? It has the same behaviour.
The advantage of Ubuntu/Kubuntu is that they are great out of the box.
A few days of use, and I was quickly turned away. Why you ask? Here goes:
1) Try connecting it to an external Projector (For giving presentations etc.), in Windows I have done this countless times, different laptops, different projectors, never had a problem.
Ubuntu: Never worked properly in my 3-4 embarassing attempts in front of a large audience.
2) Google for KDE and you will realise that it is the most buggy desktop in the Linux world. Beats something like Windows 7 in bugginess all out.
First few days it works, then you hit the wall. Try Ctrl+Alt+Del to get task manager…. you won’t find it, the shortcut is different….in different linux flavours…. great.
3) One click install… wonderful actually. But only for software that the maker’s decide is important. for most of the rest you got to compile from source… try it a few times, then you will realise what a pain it is!
4) After a few weeks of use, do a system update… a kernel patch will come, that will break some or the other software/configuration. Nothing serious, but you will need to install some or the other of your software/config after each kernel update… because it is essentially a monolithic kernel (people will argue that is has modularity… but that is only for experts..).
Yeah. It’s difficult to use them as production desktops. I just installed it on my laptop and then had to install in safe mode, install Nvidia driver, edit grub to start without the splash etc.
In the morning when I updated Ubuntu, I had the same story again and had to uninstall and reinstall the Nvidia driver. Now I’m trying to set up an extension development environment to see if I can do my design and development on Ubuntu. Linux certainly has a learning curve.
As for the UAC prompt, I’ve not seen it asking the user to type in the password like Linux, though the lightbox effect is nice.
@Outspoken
Why on earth would you try 3 to 4 times using Kubuntu in front of a large audience before you even successfully tested it out? Sounds to me like you should not be using Linux. Stick with Windows.
lolz
when I was trying to install Kubuntu alongside my Windows 7, something was wrong with this: No root file system is defined, please correct this from the partitioning menu?
How to deal with this problem?
@Outspoken
“Well have you tried using a Windows NON-administrator account? It has the same behavior.”
Are you seriously comparing UAC with sudo? Windows ‘security’ with Linux? Are you really sure you want to board that train?
“Never worked properly in my 3-4 embarrassing attempts in front of a large audience.”
Why would you use something “in front of a large audience” if you didn’t know if it would work or not?
“Google for KDE and you will realise that it is the most buggy desktop in the Linux world. Beats something like Windows 7 in bugginess all out.”
This is simply false. Right now I’m using KDE SC 4.6.1 and it’s absolutely fantastic. It is simply the smoothest desktop I have used. Windows 7 still has bugs carried over from Vista that Microsoft simply has not fixed.
“Try Ctrl+Alt+Del to get task manager…. you won’t find it, the shortcut is different”
It’s NOT Windows, so get over it. And is Ctrl+Esc really too hard for you? But if you really want Ctrl+Alt+Del, you can change the shortcut in System Settings > Shortcuts & Gestures > Global Keyboard Shortcuts > use drop down window to select Run Command Interface > click on Show System Activity, and change it to whatever shortcut you like…
“One click install… wonderful actually. But only for software that the maker’s decide is important. for most of the rest you got to compile from source… try it a few times, then you will realise what a pain it is!”
When was the last time I had to compile anything from source? Gee I can’t even remember…
“After a few weeks of use, do a system update… a kernel patch will come, that will break some or the other software/configuration”
The only time I’ve ever seen this happen is with graphics drivers. But this doesn’t happen either if you installed from the repositories. But countless times I have seen Windows allow a program to install with its own installer, breaking other programs with dependencies on the same backend or libraries which the new program has changed. The user is left wondering why other programs have stopped working properly…