I also got a number of emails about Xandros. Xandros 1.0 was VERY Windows-like in many ways. The file explorer was almost identical to Windows Explorer. It was super easy to use and configure, more so than any other distribution I've tried. It was also the fastest distribution I've tried, easily beating out Red Hat. Xandros installed easily and once it was up, I had this eeire feeling of "I just installed Linux but I don't have anything to configure... weird." It was that easy to use. I really hope this company is able to stick it out and come out with version 2.0 and so on because I really think Xandros has a LOT of potential, but is quickly becoming dated. I didn't play around too much with installing software, because truthfully, I was too excited to try out the Technology Preview CD. Version 1.0 is Debian based so I'm guessing that had I decided to try to install apps I would have found the process similar to my experience with Lindows. For someone who needed basic, word processing/email/Internet functionality that will run well on older hardware, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Xandros 1.0.
At the moment, I'm using Xandros Technology Preview or at least that's what this was before I tweaked it so much it no longer even says Xandros at startup. Basically I think that the price you pay for Xandros 1.0 is worth it even if you never install 1.0 because the Tech Preview that comes free with it is an easy to install, fully functional version of Debian. Using ONLY apt (NO RPMS and never typing make install) I've successfully installed KDE 3.1 and pretty much all the software I have been trying to install on other OS's without a hitch...(notably Rhythmbox) Ok, that's an exaggeration, I've had plenty of hitches but that, I suppose is part of the process of learning to effectively use apt and the sources.list file correctly. I've had to configure Samba and other services manually, but I expected that and after the the other install experiences I've had, this isn't too much of a problem anymore. I still can't get Gnome2.2 working in the login menu and ctrl+alt+f* shows gibberish instead of terminals but I imagine I'll get these things working soon enough.
I would NOT recommend Xandros tech preview to someone who has little or no Linux experience. There are simply too many things that are not pre-configured, however for anyone who wants to get Debian working without the install difficulties, it's perfect. Personally, I find myself having to choose between the giving up using apt, having the biggest and most current software archive available to install very easily or choosing a distro such as Red Hat which has a lot of the configuration tools I really like. Apt is available on Red Hat, but in my experience, there are not nearly as many packages available and those that are there are not always the most current versions. I use the unstable sources in Debian. As I mentioned earlier, I'm excited to see the next version of Xandros which will hopefully include the ease of use and configuration of Xandros 1.0 combined with the power of apt and Debian.
I gave Mandrake another try and installed a 9.1 preview release--the Galaxy theme for Gnome is beautiful. It features (ironically) a lot of blue curves. I was disappointed not to be able to get online. Mandrake 9.0 didn't give me any problems with getting on line at all. Netconf didn't work in the preview release and since I had no connection and not much patience for such a large problem, it didn't last long. I'm sure that that 9.1 will resolve this problem. I wouldn't mind seeing Galaxy ported to KDE also. I still fully intend on giving Mandrake another chance someday.
Red Hat 8.1 beta was great. The samba configuration tool that is included solved my networking problems. I also took some time with it learning about some of their other configuration tools--there is a graphical configuration tool for pretty much any problem you might have if you look hard enough for it. I liked the minor changes to the Bluecurve interface as well. Do the title bars remind anyone else of worn blue jeans? Despite the beta status, I found no problems or bugs with RedHat 8.1.
In my last article I mentioned I'd like to install Knoppix on my hard drive. It turns out this is very, very easy and I was able to do it (a couple times actually.) Once it's installed, you have a fully functional Debian install, similar to that of Xandros Tech Preview. My biggest complaint was that I was unable to upgrade to KDE 3.1 using APT. No matter what I tried, it always wanted to remove KDE entirely. I read somewhere that this will be addressed in the next version of Knoppix. I'm looking forward to it. Once that is out, there will be a free, easy to install, fully functional Debian distro available--I think that will be great for Linux in general.
Just to mention briefly, I tried another Knoppix based live-eval CD called Morphix. Morphix is modular which from my understanding means you can burn different versions of it based on your needs. I chose the most useful one (the one with all the games). It's fun, easy to use and does what it sets out to do well.
Finally, and this doesn't necessarily have anything to do with choosing a Linux Distro, but while I have my soapbox, I'd like to mention how cool the thumbnail features in KDE 3.1 (and many are also in Gnome 2.2) are. I think it's amazing how you can see the contents of text documents in a thumbnail, extremely useful to be able to browse to a fonts folder and see what the fonts actually look like before you open them, mouse over an mp3 and it starts playing--this is brilliant. This is usability. This is an area where Linux clearly outshines any other OS I've seen. From the perspective of someone who is very visual, these are features that make Linux worth the extra effort required (in most cases) to get it configured.
This article (like the last) didn't focus much on my experiences actually doing my job in Linux, I plan to address this in a separate article. As of now, I haven't had enough time to use the available software and give it a fair test. On a similar note, my experimentation with Linux distributions is not scientific or even uniform, it's based mostly on my whims and fancies. Please do not take criticism of your favorite distribution harshly, these just my impressions.
I appreciated all the helpful feedback and courteous corrections I received after the last article. This, to me, was one of the examples of a time when the Linux community really showed its best side.
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Marcus Vorwaller - Silverfish Solutions.
- "Choosing a Linux Distro II, Page 1"
- "Choosing a Linux Distro, Page 2"
