My six year-old HP laptop has never failed me. But lately, it has been making me wait.
It’s running Windows XP, and even after a clean install – once its 512K MB of RAM was burdened with service packs, security updates, anti-viral software and a modern browser – it becomes the Little Laptop That Can’t.
At least not quickly.
It’s not the end of the world; I run my company on a fast new laptop. But I keep the HP upstairs, so I can surf and check email without heading downstairs to my office.
Was I screwed? Time to shell out for another laptop?
Maybe. But when you’ve got nothing to lose, you’ve got nothing to lose by trying something new. I went looking for a faster alternative. And found it.
The Linux Story
Linux is an operating system that runs many of the servers on the Web (this blog’s server runs Linux).
Linux is also available for the desktop, yet it’s rarely found on the information worker’s PC (desktop market share has grown to just over 2%).
A free version of the age-old Unix operating system, Linux is considered an operating system for techies, scientists and cranks. It’s fast and powerful, but often labeled “user unfriendly.”
Yet recently I’ve heard the rumblings. The newer versions are “friendlier.” Easier to install. Cuddly even.
True? Or false?
I’m no propeller head. But I am a good test subject. I’m a marketer, copywriter and online guy. And I don’t mind tinkering (a little).
In short, I use a PC the same way most online-savvy folks use PCs. And here I sat with a slow laptop; a perfect test bed for a Linux installation.
The Ubuntu Effect
Among all the Linux distributions, Ubuntu has been called the friendliest, easiest-to-install Linux distribution. That made it my starting point.
Which is when I experienced my first Linux Surprise.
Ubuntu isn’t one system; it’s many of them.
Several flavors are available, including a server version, an education version (Edubuntu), two “standard” desktop versions (Ubuntu & Kubuntu), an interesting studio version for multimedia types (Ubuntu Studio), a mobile version, and yes – a small footprint version for slower PCs (Xubuntu).
Bingo.
Installation was straightforward; I downloaded an Xubuntu CD image, burned a CD, and rebooted from the Xubuntu CD.
Expecting a painful confrontation with an extraterrestrial installation process, I was pleasantly surprised. Instead of indecipherable choices, I faced four installation options:
- Install the Linux operating system over the old system (reformatting your drive and destroying all your old data)
- Install Ubuntu in its own partition (it divides your hard drive into separate virtual disks; you decide which operating system boots at startup)
- Install it on on your Windows disk (maintains all your Windows data and system; Linux runs a little slower)
- Run it from the CD (quite slow, but you can test-drive the system without altering one byte on your Windows disk)
Because I didn’t care about maintaining my old Windows XP installation, I went with option #1.
And gritted my teeth.
This was where it was going to get messy.
This was where I was going to meet the Linux Monster head on.
This was… done already?
Installation went smoothly. Very smoothly.
The only holdup? The wireless card didn’t work, so I had to plug my laptop directly into my router. It connected immediately, and automatically downloaded the driver software for my wireless card.
Done. Finished.
Ready to compute.
In other words, installation was easy. Damned easy.
In 40 minutes, I was looking at the Xubuntu desktop, complete with open source (free) word processor (Abiword), spreadsheet (Gnumeric), Pidgin all-in-one IM software, and plenty other goodies.
Still, I’m a fan of OpenOffice (an open source, MS Windows Office equivalent), and installing it was a snap.
I simply ran the Package Manager, which automatically downloaded and installed software for me.
Fast. Simple. Easy.
What was I afraid of again?
With a little configuring (the browser had to download some non-open source plugins to run flash), my old laptop was once again a useful Web surfing tool.
It isn’t blazingly fast, but it is faster than when running XP, and Xubuntu handled my laptop’s limited memory far better.
The interface is clean and simple. Upgrades and updates are automatic. And yes, there was much rejoicing at the Underground.
The End of the Story?
Not quite. Running (and yes, enjoying) the streamlined version of Ubuntu forced me to ask the question: would I prefer the full-featured desktop version of Ubuntu to the copy of Windows Vista running on my business laptop?
I’ll be blunt. I don’t much like Windows Vista. It makes my fast new laptop run like my old slow desktop. In fact, it feels like little more than a slow, tarted-up version of Windows XP – and many of the interface “improvements” leave me scratching my head.
It doesn’t feel like an upgrade worth waiting years for. And I have zero interest in moving to the latest version of MS Office. In fact, my daily software set is already largely open source.
Wtih that in mind, was Ubuntu a faster, updated-more-often, better-designed choice for my everyday work computer? Was it possible to find out in a relatively painless fashion?
The Ubuntu Project: 30 Days of Linux
Turns out it was. I installed the full-blown glossy version of Ubuntu in a partition on my new Dell Inspiron laptop (total: two hours).
Most the software I wanted was already in place, but I quickly downloaded the few bits that weren’t (the big list looks like: OpenOffice, Firefox, Thunderbird, Evolution, Audacity, Kompozer, Scribus, Gimp, gTwitter).
Ubuntu running all the usual suspects: OpenOffice, Firefox, gTwitter, IM manager…
Some are simply Linux versions of the software I already use. Others (like HTML editor Kompozer) replace commercial Windows products.
Meanwhile, Vista – and all my old software – reclines on my hard drive, ready to boot if needed.
Like Morgan Spurlock of “30 days” fame, I’m going to live with Ubuntu Linux for the next month.
If I like it, I switch. If I don’t, Vista stays.
First Impressions
Ubuntu is faster than Vista. Not by a factor of several times, but noticeably faster.
The interface is (to my eye) cleaner. And I’m already using mostly open source software, which means I barely notice the switch.
There have been glitches.
Playing a standard commercial DVD wasn’t possible without messing with indecipherable command lines. It’s an easy fix, but it’s clumsy. And while there’s a lot of open source software available, Linux currently lacks a killer blog editor.
I loved Windows LiveWriter on Vista, but have been relegated to using the oddly designed ScribeFire (Firefox-based Java app) for blogging. (Don’t Linux people blog?)
I already miss some of the peripheral software available in Windows. Like the Twhirl Twitter editor and the Q10 “dark screen” text editor.
And moving contact data from my Windows PIM (Time & Chaos) and into Evolution (the open source equivalent of Outlook) has been a surprisingly painful experience.
Outside of the few glitches, I’ve enjoyed an easy move. And with Web-based software becoming more common, the application barriers to moving to Linux are going to come down (in most cases, they already have).
Of course, larger questions of availability, scalability, compatibility and even philosophy are at work here, and I’ll get into those during my month-long Ubuntu test.
Until then, keep writing.
Technorati Tags: ubuntu, xubuntu, linux, linux for copywriters, vista, windows vista, windows xp, trying linux, trying ubuntu, testing ubuntu, open source, openoffice
I figured I’d make mention of the “indecipherable” commands you mentioned. Just as a little more information about the commands listed on the page:
Ex. sudo apt-get install libdvdread4
The way to understand this command is that sudo makes you root user (administrator) which will allow you to modify files outside your home directory. apt-get is simply the program you are running, the same thing as if you had typed firefox at the command line, it would run the application entered. install is an option that can be used by apt-get to install software, pretty straightforward. Following install the packages that you wish to install are listed, in this case libdvdread4. So for instance if you wanted to install firefox and thunderbird you could use the command
sudo apt-get install firefox thunderbird
In my opinion it is much faster to do it this way than with the package manager GUI but I mainly posted this just to say that if you ever see the command apt-get, you can simply use synaptic package manager and skip the command line. Also, the only reason you see the command line versions of this is that the developers and forum members find this a much simpler way to give help than to navigate you through the GUI, one command versus click here, then here.
I just figured I’d give you a reason why you can still find commands listed as help even on a user-friendly distro like Ubuntu
Realise this is an old post, but thought you’d be interested in this. I was after a linux version of Q10 as well and found one called textroom. You can download it at http://code.google.com/p/textroom/
(direct link to download is http://textroom.googlecode.com/files/textroom_0.5.3-0ubuntu1.deb
I’ve linked the second newest version because the newest has a bug that means you don’t get the typewriter sound effects.
Hey, that’s cool. I just installed, and plant to compare it to PyRoom (my current Linux cleanscreen editor).
Thanks!
I’ve been using Ubuntu off and on since 2005. Since Fall 2008, my laptop has been either open source or as it is now and will stay, Xubuntu. Works better and has kick bum battery life on my 4yo dell inspiron laptop. Trust me anyone with an old machine who wants to run linux go with ubuntu. Even if you have a top of the line machine, xubuntu is a good choice still.
I’m now running Ubuntu on all three machines, and the only time I think about Windows is when I’m forced to boot it on my laptop, and I’m reminded how much stands between me and my work when using that infernal operating system.
It wasn’t true five years ago, but today’s writer can run their business entirely atop Linux/open source solutions, and never really feel cheated.
Welcome aboard!
I started using Linux after having “Blue screen of death” Issues with “Windows 95″. ALSO in the early days of the InterNet text based Unix was a requirement.
So I new Windows was NOT my only option, so I quit drinking their “Koolaid”.
I started with RedHat 5 ??? Then Mandrake (now Mandriva) and for the last few years OpenSuSE.
Currently using OpenSuSE 11.2, KDE desktop.
Both my Intel 64 laptops have removable/swappable hard drives. At work I’m required to use XP, for EVERYTHING else (OpenOffice, Gimp, Kaffeine, VLC, Digikam, Skype, Evolution, Amarok, K3b, etc, etc, etc.) I love Linux
Yes, I also have a drive just for Kubuntu, another for Debian and who knows what OS I’ll try out next.
Yes, live is full of and your computer you do have a choice.
Thanks,
Rr
It’s nearly two years after the original post, and I’m still using Ubuntu Linux – which has grown up some in the interval (more than I can say for Windows).
At some point, I do want to experiment with a couple other distros, but at this point, getting stuff done is paramount, and I feel that’s happening more quickly on Linux than it would in Windows.
For playing encrypted dvds I usually install libdvdcss from the Medibuntu repository https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Medibuntu. Or you could also just install VLC from your package manager. it plays DVDs ‘out-the-box’.
It’s relatively easy to do, but the kicker is that someone new to Linux wouldn’t know to do it.
Still, I’m running Ubuntu Linux exclusively these days – almost two years after the original post – so something’s working.
Just upgraded to 10.04, which is working nicely. My Ubuntu experience is clearly worth another post.
Thank you for a great blog article!
I will use this any time I need further proof to convince someone to give it a try.
Ubuntu is getting more and more end user friendly every day. I am a huge fan of linux over windows, any day! I just don’t get paying high prices that is so insecure and having to wait for microsoft to fix a problem when I or the help of the community could solve it in a few minutes.
I can’t imagine going back to Windows – especially after working on my wife’s XP, Vista, and Windows 7 laptops. Ick.
I’m a full-time writer, and I’ve lived on Linux for about two and a half years. I use Linux Mint. I’ve found OpenOffice to be useful for some types of projects, but by no means all. The Track Changes feature in OO is severely broken – with changes hidden – the only way to edit – the PC slows to an unbearable crawl after 6-7 pages. And much worse, OO tends to garble the hidden tracking verbiage with the displayed text, a fatal error when editing client documents on deadline.
I have not found an acceptable Linux alternative to MS Word for my client work. Thus, I’m forced to use Word to edit all complex Word docs, and not only those that require tracking changes. (OpenOffice makes a complete mess of Word docs with complex formatting – and, yes, I’m using the latest version of OO.)
That said, I do love Linux. It feels so light and fast. I’m much more focused when I work in Linux – no need to respond to an ongoing series of nags from antivirus software, system updates that require logging in as admin and rebooting, etc., etc. I do use OO for everyday stuff, just not for anything where my living is at stake.
I’ve used PCs since 1982. I’m an old curmudgeon, and I KNOW that the last true word processor for end-users was WordStar. Every word-processing app since WordStar has taken us a step farther away from real word-crunching power. WordPerfect was fine, very powerful, but it just didn’t let a writer crunch words as effectively as WS did.
Lately, I’ve discovered that I can easily install, under Linux, both VDE (a WordStar clone) and WordPerfect 6.1 (downloadable for free on the Web, though I had the 3.5″ disks). It’s quite easy – you can find directions for installing WordPerfect in Linux on the WordPerfect for DOS website (http://www.columbia.edu/~em36/wpdos/). Follow the directions, and you’ll have a copy of DOSEMU on your system that you can use to also install and run VDE.
Haven’t done much with them, and may never do so, as I’m busy with work that I can do in OpenOffice and Word. But it’s nice to have the option.
p.s. Fine point: I CAN do client work in OpenOffice, just not documents that require Track Changes or that have complex formatting.
Have you ever tried the Softmaker office software? It’s not open source, but it does run native on Linux, and they’re claiming almost perfect MS Word file compatibility.
It looks a lot like Office 2003 (if it were run on Linux). I bought it but rarely use it since I just haven’t hit the “track changes” wall very often.
30 day free trial, and the price is very reasonable (less than $100, though I downloaded the trial version and two weeks later got a lowball email offer in the $39 range).
As for modern word processors, I’ve come to the conclusion they’re more layout software than text editor – and that a lot of writers aren’t particularly well served by their paper metaphor and bloated feature set.
And while I don’t know if Wordstar was truly the last writer’s word processor, I do know that WordPerfect’s “Reveal Codes” brilliance has been stricken from modern word processors, and it’s a damned shame.
I delve into my thinking around the modern online copywriter’s text editor – and how we’re simply not getting what we need from the tools available to us.
Give that post a read; I’d love to hear your comments about my (perhaps surprising) conclusions.
One more thing; I believe there are Wordstar modes or keybindings available for some of the bigger editors (VIM or emacs). Obviously not a fit for MS Word compatibility, but for online stuff (where all the damned formatting codes are a pain anyway), one of those might be worth a look.
In any case, I agree with you; Linux just gets the heck out of the way, essentially saying just that in my latest post.
Thanks for commenting.