Ubuntu, for those of you who may not know, is a flavor of Linux. There is no one single Linux, but a zillion varieties. Ubuntu is one of the most popular distributions (if not the most popular). For the fearful Windows users out there, let me tell you: it’s graphical, it has windows, and it is not like using DOS. (Although it can be if you want).
It is hard to express my multifaceted love, so instead, I’ll make a list.
1. What got me thinking about Linux in the first place was frustration with Windows XP Pro’s file sharing. Sure, it’s simple enough to share files, but in the small non-profit environment I was working in, we butted our heads into the little known brick wall that is the 10 user file-sharing limit. Meaning, the maximum number of people that can share files from a computer is 10. There’s no real reason for this to be the case, except Microsoft trying to force you to spend a lot of money for server software. XP Home - even worse! 5 users is the limit. Over the years, the file-sharing feature has become more and more restrictive with each release of Windows.
Long story short, a friend of a friend came to my office and introduced us to Ubuntu. Our file server runs Ubuntu like a champ, with no limits on file sharing. For free! I have since wiped my personal laptop’s hard drive of Windows and rely soley on Ubuntu. With no regrets.
2. Ubuntu opens you up to a world of amazing free and opensource software. Some of it is available for Windows, but much of it is not. It’s mind boggling. Finding software, installing it, and uninstalling it is a breeze - Windows users wouldn’t believe it.
3. You can back up everything. Not just your files, but the operating system, all the software you have installed, your settings - everything. If my computer were to die, I could be up and running on a different one with everything there.
4. Speaking of pdf, I can print anything & everything as a pdf.
5. GTKpod (alternative to iTunes), lets me take songs off of my iPod and onto my computer!
6. You can take screenshots like the wind.