Linked by Adam S on Wed 25th Sep 2002 02:21 UTC
The Linux community has been buzzing about LindowsOS since its original announcement over a year ago. With Michael Robertson, founder of mp3.com, at the helm, it was heralded as a Linux that could seamlessly run all of your Windows applications. As details became available, the skepticism of the community grew and with the LindowsOS general release only months away, no one is quite sure what to make of Lindows.com and their product, LindowsOS. We tested Lindows 2.0 and we today present the most in-depth review ever written for this much-talked OS, accompanied by a number of shots.
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In addition, not many people have mentioned that although the root user is created and used by default, you are certainly capable of creating and modifying users. LindowsOS is Debian underneath it all and it fully supports permissions and profiles. As seen below, adding a user is a simple process and assigning permissions can be done with a right click in the GUI or the chmod command at the prompt. Will most people know how to do this? No. But I'd ask - do most people want to?
Okay, firstly notice that you have to use command line to make a new user, something you DON'T have to do with Windows. Microsoft have been touting multiuser computers since the dawn of Windows 95. In fact, it is hyped a lot with Windows XP.
What is needed is something that isn't fully root as the default user account. That means the user CAN'T delete any system files. Why you ask? It is after all hidden by the file manager - what about viruses? Lindows, if it gets famous, would be a big virus target.
Users don't WANT to be root. They want to just on their computer and install apps via CNR or run some apps. You DON'T need full root permission for that.
So, it is quite ironic that while Windows and Mac OS X is pushing "Don't Run as Root", Lindows pushes "Run as Root" :-)
Now, about the look and UI:
The LindowsOS desktop is not radical. It's KDE, plain and simple. It's got a kicker with custom icons, a desktop with useful icons, and a super logical menu.
The menu structure is only something thing to shout about. When Mac OS X and Windows XP tries to get rid of desktop icons, why does Lindows push them on the desktop? :-) As for the icons, most of it is Crystal. It is in fact a modified Crystal theme, probably to follow the Aqua-ish look, which brings me to my next point:
LindowsOS uses the Keramik theme by default, which is gorgeous.
Actually, it is a modified Keramik theme. Notice the titlebar, for example, uses a Aqua-like button? Speaking of Aqua, what is Lindows' fetish with Aqua? People connect Aqua-looking things with Apple. And for Lindows, that is damaging. As a current almost-full time Windows user, this pass them off as completely unprofessional. How about making a look for themselves?
I find the KDE defaults to be generally unattractive and tough to use.
For unattractive, KDE is using Keramik and Crystal for KDE 3.1, and it looks more gorgeous than Lindows, no offence Michael :-) As for tough to use, Lindow modified KDE a little bit, what it exceled in was the distribution part (like the menu structure), not KDE's part.
Besides, remember once Windows used single click? I happen to use that Windows (Windows 98?) before switching to Linux with KDE 1, and until now I can't get myself to use double clicking. :-)