Switch to Ubuntu 9.04

So I’ve been running Ubuntu 9.04 for just a few weeks now and have been really impressed. Not only is it faster in booting up, but everything has been polished.

The first Ubuntu that I tried was version 5.10. Since then things have changed rapidly and Ubuntu has become one of the most popular and mainstream linux disros in the world.

If you ever need to find any information on ubuntu, just google: “ubuntu <info needed>” and will most likely find more than enough information you need.

I’ve always liked the idea of open source and a community of sharing and helping. Ubuntu really is a shining light in this regard. Having tried many distros in the last few years, I can safely conclude that Ubuntu has the best chance of taking linux mainstream.

As you can see from the screenshot above, I’ve tweaked the appearance just a little to suite my needs.

Usually I try a distro for a few months and wipe out my Windows partition so that I move completely over to linux but always fall back to Windows. However, this time I have installed Ubuntu inside Windows and therefore will hopefully make moving to linux more easier even though it may take some time.

Thus far I am pleased to say that things have gone relatively smooth and I am fully productive. I use Firefox for my web browsing, Audacious for playing my music, VLC for videos, Brasero for disc burning, Open Office for office productivity, NetBeans for software development, and lets not forget the trusty terminal for everything

That is bascially all I need to do in any OS. Plus there are plenty other applications for whatever job you need to get done. If you are a graphic designer then you can use Gimp and Inkscape. There is Blender for 3D rendering and QCAD if you need a CAD appliaction. Dia is pretty useful for diagram creation and there are plenty of audio creation applications such as Ardour.

If there is a Windows app that you must have then WINE may be able to emulate a Windows environment for that application. There are regular OS updates and a massive repository of applications for just about anything. Every 6 months Ubuntu goes up a version and gets even better. The next release is 9.10 Karmic Koala which is a long term release (LTS), meaning that you get three years support on the desktop, and five years on the server. Hopefully by then I will have enough experience to move completly over to linux using Ubuntu.

So if you are ready to take the plunge into a world where you will learn more than you could ever learn, having a cost effective solution while running world class applications with an explosive growing and helpful community (phew), then now is the time!