OSNews

I've used both the 1.0 and 2.0 editions of Xandros. The version 1 product I used had the CodeWeaver's plugins, the newer version was the desktop edition that was released before the business edition. I had a very favorable impression of both of them, but the new version 2.0 software is definitely an improvement. Version 1.0 was very conservative and dated. By the time the software was released, quite a bit of it was well out of date. In contrast, version 2 comes with reasonably current stable releases of many software packages.

Others have noted that Xandros does not include every possible title. Note that by using the freely available Debian mirror sites, you can freely obtain thousands of additional software packages. Xandros includes software that's fairly well integrated with their desktop offering, and is stable.

I've found that I can immediately use Xandros right after installation, using only what's provided, yet if I'm so inclined, I can also transform the system into anything that's needed, including a bleeding edge development system. That's all because of the great Debian packaging infrastructure that's beneath the Xandros veneer. I've also found, however, that simply using the Xandros provided software update tools, you can also nicely customize and configure the system. Therefore, Xandros is both solid and flexible, yet it's easy to get started. That's why I give it a very good rating. I'd give it a 9/10 on my own rating scale, dinging it only slightly for the font issues mentioned by others. Highly recommended!