@cheski: Most of what you say is either already there in Ubuntu, or an issue of Microsoft products willingly locking people into using their applications by making interoperability hard.

Note that:
- Evolution has better Exchange support in the version included in Gutsy.
- MS Office import is better in OpenOffice.org than it is in MS Office, and I'm not even joking. I work helpdesk, and OpenOffice just treats slight errors in MS Office documents much more gracefully than Office does. Not only that, but Office's compatibility between its own versions is just abysmal.
- I'd like to note how horrible, horrible Windows Media Player is. The best media player for both Linux and Windows is VLC, and while it's not installed standard in Ubuntu, Totem is at least heads and shoulers above WMP when it comes to "just working".
- For the TV tuner and webcam support, I agree. Although that again is more a concern for the manufacturers of these devices than Linux. My TV Tuner DOES work in Linux, but it cannot recognise the NTSC tuner part of my dual ATSC/NTSC tuner. And when I have the driver for the TV Tuner installed, the webcam won't work. So in essence, that's a point I'll concede.
- System/Preferences/Session will allow you to set startup applications
- USB sticks are just as hot-swappable as they are in Windows; that's not an issue with Ubuntu or Windows, rather an issue with flash media needing a write buffer
- There is a virtual clone of the XP control center, but you'll need to edit the menu to make it visible first. Still, you'll find all you need in System.
- More an issue with how software providers make their apps available. Apt-get based installers are much much cleaner (Windows regularly leaves messes in the registry, a splatter of files still stuck in key directories and such), but commercial software usually come in Windows-like installers. I'm thinking here of Introversion games for instance.
- Works very well on my laptop
- Citrix worked right out of the box, and I'm not making this up. It's been a smooth ride.

I also totally agree with Sam Glover, just because most tutorials and guides tell you to use the command line doesn't mean that you need to understand it to run Linux. The commands you are suggested to use are being suggested like that because it's much easier to tell someone over the Internet what to type in a box than to describe to him every friggin' icon, button and tell him each time if he has to right click of left click. Case in point: Which requires more thinking on the part of the user?

1. Open a terminal
2. Copy-paste: "cd /etc/directory/ && wget ftp://myserver.server.com/somedirectory/afile.list && mv ./file.list ./file.list.BACKUP && mv ./afile.list ./file.list"
3. Press enter.

OR

1. Right click on THIS link
2. Select save to disk
3. Find C:\Directory\
4. Find "file.cfg" and click on it
5. Click once on the filename, rename to "file.cfg.bak" and press enter
6. Find "afile.cfg" and click on it
7. Click once on the filename, rename to "file.cfg" and press enter

For the troubleshooting, it's also much easier to just ask what was the output on the terminal.

Guizzy

I, personally, love ubuntu, but I had a hell of a time trying to get it installed. I first did an upgrade from my feisty system, which left the machine nearly unusable. Then, I did a fresh install. It would not boot into the live dvd, so i ended up doing the text-mode install. after that, it was pretty much the standard drill. The display config tool is nice, but be warned, it may fubar your xorg.conf file. Not to mention, I have an nvidia card, which uses TwinView for dual monitors, and the display tool set it to xinerama, and did not add the "AddARGBGLXVisuals" option, which caused desktop effects to stop working. Overall, it was ok, but I doubt i will be using the display config much. I was disappointed that I still had to configure my mouse's forward/back buttons manually.

JMC

I love Ubuntu, but I went back to 100% Windows for a couple of niggly little things. My webcam never would work in Feisty no matter what packages or updates I tried, stuff like that.

I'm also gaming more right now than I have in years, so going 100% *nix isn't really an option (I don't want to have to run VMWare to game, and I don't really want to jump back and forth between OSs again.)

Still, I'll be making a live cd and trying it out.

Grungydan

@alienhead: Have you even looked into ATI driver support recently? I'm running a Radeon 9500 Pro that worked without a single problem on the default installation and I found ATI drivers in Synaptics Package Manager that unlocked all of the capabilities of the card.

yachius

Another version of Ubuntu coming out already? I'm amassing quite a collection of Ubuntu install discs that I haven't gotten around to...

edosan

I recently switched my laptop to Ubu (from Gentoo - I got tired of the all-night compile sessions!), and I have to say I'm disappointed:

With Gentoo, no matter how much trouble you were having with (hardware/software/etc.), you could always go on the Gentoo forum and post your problem, get flamed for not posting your logs, and get an answer. After installing Feisty, I've had a niggling but *crippling* bug with Network Manager that causes a complete Gnome lockup.

I first searched the Ubuntu Forum: I found other people posting the same problem - yay! But - no answers. I posted my own question - no reply. I filed a bug with Ubuntu a month ago, and I don't think anybody's even looked at it!

The gist of this is - if you can't provide boring commercial bureacracy to answer questions and bugs, you better have a good community. You can't buy a good community - it needs to have equal parts pasty noobs and grey-haired crusty gurus. If its all new users, its a bit like "ladies night" at a monastery.

severnclay

WPA support is huge! WEP is useless and everyone should be using WPA...I had to go wired at home because of that problem. Thank you Ubuntu!

My quick note about Linux as an OS especially Ubuntu. If you haven't tried it in a while do so; you can't go wrong with at least trying the livecd. And I would say Ubuntu is a very good choice...I run a server cluster for a research group at a University and we are an all Ubuntu shop and everything works great. (file server, mail server, 4 workstations, cluster, backup)

mrosedal

Until they get ATI cards working correctly and support for linksys wireless cards, I'll pass.

alienhead

I have been waiting for this! I have been wanting to get totally rid of Microsoft ever since I upgraded MS Office 2000 to MS Office 2003 and lost features that were in 2000. I finally might be able to get rid of the "partner" that hogs my laptop.

Bobg

Included WPA support is enough for me to try bringing my aging notebook back to usefulness :)

War-N

@Hackoff: .... Take cd, put in computer and click on install... It's a wizard, pretty self explanatory

-emory-

I have played with all the popular linux distros. I personally feel feel they are way before it's time. the OS is solid but many other factor makes linux not a preferred all around OS. I learned it's probably a good idea to be a late adapter when it comes to OS. I think if enough of you started using them, maybe software developers would start writing softwares for it.

kenlee514

I've been playing around with Gutsy for a couple of weeks, and I really like it, but to me, it still seems like more of a 'hobbyist' system right now. Too many hours configuring basic things like MP3 playback, searching out hacks to get some of my hardware (printer, webcam) working and no decent iTunes replacement for properly handling my iPod with video, podcasts, music, and syncing (with sync options for each.)

I tried setting up an Ubuntu machine for my sister-in-law who's not very computer-savvy, but the lack of a decent and stable P2P program kinda soured the experience for her. Other than that though, she's generally happy with it because her needs are basic. But someone who has more needs but isn't savvy enough to play in the command line or hunt around the forums I think will not be impressed with it.

That being said, Ubuntu and Linux have made huge strides over the past couple of years. I'm totally dedicated to being a hobbyist and helping people with their installs, and if I had a small company or ran the IT department for a small company, I'd totally make the switch to Ubuntu workstations (and craigslist computers) to save money and increase security, and install Windows only when a custom application is needed that won't run on WINE.

tommertron

Two quick notes, based on comments here and on Digg:
- The deskbar search applet that's a new default on the top taskbar is indeed Tracker, not Beagle.
- The user indicator I pointed out my dislike for is also a user switcher. I still don't like seeing my username printed out on the taskbar, and think it's not something that people use enough to warrant a "button."

Therevan

Hurray, a '[Distro name here] screenshot tour' that isn't just a bunch of Gnome screenshots with a certain theme.
The display configuration looks great. it's something that should have been implimented years ago, the settings to change screen resolution have sort of been there, but in Fedora 7 for example, it's hard to find where you add other screen-resolutions, and in the versions of Ubuntu I've used, I ended up doing it via dpkg-reconfigure, which is a bit archaic.

dbr

"i'm just worried about losing features with the upgrade. I went through hell customizing hte hell out of my computer."

in responce to that, I didn't have any issues with my customizations, when I did the "upgrade" in the update mamager, everything statyed. (however I will be doing a reinstall this weekend, now that I know how awesome gutsy really is.)

"Driver support is always my biggest concern." that really isn't a big issue anymore, and testing it out without installing it is the whole point of the live cd. i really suggest just burning the cd and trying it out, you don't have to install anything and you can see how your hardware works. and at this point I expect most hardware will work just fine.

aliencam

Driver support is always my biggest concern. I would love to install a few linux distributions, but it can take hours for setups. Its not even it case that I'm using anything out of the ordinary. Linux just leaves me frustrated if I get stuck on a piece of hardware. Who really wants to troll through forums looking for what to install to get your dell wireless card to work.

jackquack

One correction:
The Deskbar applet doesn't use Beagle anymore. Gutsy changed the default search client to Trackerd, written in C and significantly easier on system resources than Beagle (a mono app) was.

Looking forward to the release, just as most people are.

Daeng Bo
[ibeentoubuntu.blogspot.com]

Daeng Bo

compiz ran flawlessly on my laptop and ol' desktop from the live cd... so that was cool. I never was able to get it running on feisty, so that was neat that it worked by its self.

@ hackoff- this might help:
[help.ubuntu.com]

maybe this might help too:
[friendlylinux.org]

You will probably want to use apple's bootcamp to dual boot between osx and ubuntu.
the ubuntu comunity website has some stuff. I've never installed ubuntu on a macbook, but hopefully that guide will help you. good luck!
-bryan

bryan139

Can someone please....please help me install Ubuntu 7.04 on my intel iMac? I have seen hundreds of forums on the subject, but they are so technical... talking about grub and efi and special this and that.

Can't someone tell me... create a partition, install disc, click here, click that... done!? Is this a super complicated thing to do?

Hackoff

I would add that when I installed Feisty Fawn and came to the slider part where you set the size of the "new partition," I assumed they meant a new Ubuntu partition, but they mean the new Windows partition, so I ended up with two thirds Ubuntu and one third Windows when I really wanted the reverse. Ha, ha. Didn't hurt anything, but just in case there are other dummies out there.

All that cutsy-poo stuff really turns you off Ubuntu, doesn't it? Feisty-Fawn, Gutsy-Gibbon, indeed. Next will be Aero-Ape as they get more like Windows Vista.

Capone

@HEBLACKCAT

Yeah, I figured that's what happened. I was hoping to get into KDE, because I never really managed to get into what I call the "KDE groove." I come from a mainly Windows and Mac background, and GNOME really hit it well with mean in regards to user-friendliness. So I've been waiting for 4.0 to give KDE another shot.

PyroRaver

@-emory-: If you are running Feisty Fawn, you can do an upgrade without losing any customizations you have done. If you are using a different distribution and want to reinstall using Ubuntu Gutsy Gibbon, simply backup your home directory in its entirety and restore it to the new system.

Upgrading from Feisty Fawn:
[help.ubuntu.com]

Backing up user home directory:
[ubuntuforums.org]

Joshua Timberman

"Printing to PDF is now a default option" - nice.. that's something I've always wanted, but didn't know there was enough of a demand for it.. guess I wasn't alone :P

wuziq

I will be interested in seeing if this version recognizes my laptop's Atheros wireless card while using the live CD (i.e. not installing anything to the hard drive). I have wanted to play around with Ubuntu for a while but have never gone very far because I didn't have wireless Internet access using the live CD. Here's hoping...

bbqsandwich

@massysett: one of the reasons i will be dumping OS X for ubuntu on my Macbook within two weeks (have to finish an important project i started in Pages and Numbers) is because the eye candy is so much prettier with Compiz-Fusion.

i haven't had a single hiccup with CF on my core duo macbook.

twins8791

"there's a lot that's new (or at least now included by default)"

hit the nail on the head. i'm pretty exited about his release, and have been using gutsy on my laptop since tribe 3 (the older kernel didn't support my hardware), but save the graphical x tool, i already have almost all this functionality in feisty via stuff that was easy to install. It feels like a system update more than a new distro.

oh, and also, check out the other default wallpapers, the elephant desert one is awesome!

BackDoorAngel

i'm just worried about losing features with the upgrade. I went through hell customizing hte hell out of my computer. Wireless was a bitch to get working, what with my weird wireless card. and compiz runs beauuuutifully on my laptop and my desktop, even with it's only 512 megs of ram.

-emory-

I was hoping they would delay their release and wait till KDE 4.0 was released. But I forgot that Kubuntu is a different branch and that they delayed their release (i think). Anyways, I gotta get my hands when it comes out.

PyroRaver

@pdok: Same thing Sam Glover said, the command line is just something that is quicker, and takes up less space. This Screenshot Tour is already pretty long, adding a screenshot of the synaptic package manager would just take up more space :P

edythemighty

@pdok: You could always just install it using the Add/Remove programs and searching for "compiz settings manager". Command line is just shorthand, since it takes longer to write out specific steps to install something using the GUI.

Sam Glover

I apologize, because I meant to moderate my negativity with a kudo for a good post on Ubuntu. Somewhere along the way I prematurely submitted...heard it happens as you get older...

pdok

"sudo apt-get install compizconfig-settings-manager"

Thanks! You saved me a download by reminding me why Linux still ends up being a slight disappointment overall.

Ubuntu is an awesome distro, and I've come very close to dedicating machines to it. From my perspective, it's as close to mainstream as any Linux distro has gotten--in terms of load and go usability.

However, I spend so much time on computers in general, that when I'm faced with the choice between the artless functionality of a Windows machine (save your breath, naysayers, I've heard it all,) and the unique blend of pain and pleasure that Linux offers, I have to choose Windows. (Mac loses due to compatibility with customer applications, though I truly enjoy using them.)

If I ever have to type "sudo" again it will be too soon, thanks, and I've been in and out of Linux since the 2.0 kernel.

pdok

OH MAN, I'm anxious to try this - but will probably wait until the release. Thanks for the great shots and review.

invid

I just bought a Macbook and really liked Expose. I tried Compiz in Feisty but it was unstable and buggy. I upgraded my Feisty system to see if Compiz would be better, but it still is quite buggy for me. I think turning on Compiz by default is a mistake.

On the upside, the upgrade process was trouble free for me.

massysett

Hey everybody -- Apologies if the full-size screenshots aren't loading when clicked on. We're aware of the issue and working on it.

Therevan

@saxifrage: great username...I completely agree! Playing follow-up to Windows and Mac in hopes of making it comfortable for users to switch is ridiculous, and totally alien to our whole culture of branding and advertising. I don't want Windows-Generic or Mac-ish, I want something better, that fixes the reasons that I left Windows in the first place!

The taskbar defaults don't bother me, though. I rearrange them immediately (and frequently), because that's how Linux rolls.

I think the next GUI innovation would bring all the snap and flexibility of the command-line to a graphic interface... I think bulletproof and eminently extensible is the way to go.

severnclay

@Pete: I wish Songbird was two years futher in development, because I think it will eventually be a replacement for iTunes, but it's definitely not there yet.

@williambertram: As was mentioned earlier in the comments, there is no point in Ubuntu copying Windows and copying their interface and functionality. It's much better for Ubuntu on focusing on creating a functional and clean OS. If that means doing things radically different than other OSs, then so be it.

Ubuntu can never come into it's own if it plays copycat. If you want something that is like Windows, use Windows, if you want a fast, free and more intuitive OS, use Ubunutu.

eyeRmonkey

@pdok: I honestly don't get all the command line mystification that goes around these days. Not just under Linux either; whenever I work with the sysadmins in our other offices, who've worked with and around Windows for years, they seem absolutely slack-jawed at the concept of batch-scripting.

Maybe you can explain it to me, since you're the one who brought it up in this thread: What exactly is it about command prompts that is so damn hard, anyway? I can understand if you had to do everything by command prompt, like the days of DOS, but you tell people to go to the command prompt once in their lives, and they panic!

HeartBurnKid

I tried xubuntu gutsy, and found that the iso I downloaded for the desktop install is corrupt. I then tried the alternate install, and it worked like a dream. xubuntu is 10x faster than ubuntu was on my 256MB 800 Mhz Duron play box. A great surprise was printing and samba worked out the box. I had a windows-compatible print server running in 5 minutes after the install completed. I haven't yet got all my apps set back up again, but I intend to get my home firewall and web filter up and running (dansguardian) shortly.

englishman

Just want to say that I have just installed Ubuntu 7.10 and I am extremely pleased. This is what I have been waiting for. It works flawlessly. Recognised my Canon MP530 all-in-one printer straight off. And best of all if finally recognised my Linksy wireless card. Boy, am I happy. We're rollin'.

n17man

@eyeRmonkey:
You want Amarok. It's basically iTunes, only better in every way, and does everything you say (including as far as having a stupid "move your MP3 collection" everywhere option), inbuilt last.fm support and more. Only downside is that it may look a bit funny if you're using GNOME as it's a KDE application, but it's not a big problem. When it's released, Amarok 2 will even contain a Coverflow clone and look even more like iTunes. It's the best MP3 player on Linux by a huge margin.

bluhdebluh