Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last 5 years, you’ve heard of Ubuntu, the popular Linux operating system distribution. The Linux version of the board is by far the easiest to use. But how does it stack up against Microsoft Windows?
The best thing about Ubuntu, or any version of Linux, is that it’s free. There are a few things that Microsoft Windows has that Ubuntu doesn’t have. The start menu is missing in Ubuntu. That start menu has been replaced by an interface known as Unity, where the Canon logo sits in the left corner. screen, icons for programs and services towards the left side of the screen and the time, power icon, volume, internet connectivity, and other items appear in the upper right corner of the screen.
icons in Ubuntu are not on the actual desktop. There is no quick way to see what applications you have installed. As with all versions of Linux, you can use any number of different package managers to install the software, or use the command line. Windows users might be intimidated by the command line, but for most software on Linux there are articles that explain exactly what steps need to be taken to install the software and via the command line. Windows users may not know that the command line is also used to download and install files as well as run programs and execute scripts; this is the norm on Linux, but the exception to the rule on Windows.
In Ubuntu, click on the logo and search for everything. Unlike Microsoft Windows XP, Vista, or 7, search returns results on the Internet found for software, multimedia and products, as well as results were found in hardware and multimedia software. So a search for Eminem will give you the results of his album which can be obtained through Ubuntu’s Music-stores and also the actual songs you have on your hard drive . This takes some getting used to, but in time, you’ll learn to appreciate the simplicity of the interface.
You can access the computer settings in Ubuntu by clicking on the key on the left side of the screen. Linux doesn’t show you every setting, like Windows. Linux shows only basic settings; installed printers, screen resolution, etc. There is no manager in Linux, no “network connections” or any of the other places in Windows. If you want access to the entire computer, you can access it from the command line or download software that allows you to tweak the computer< /a> performance . The command line can be pulled up by Ctrl-Alt-T. The task manager for Ubuntu is more confusing, so I installed another task manager that shows me exactly which programs are running, rather than which processes are running. Ctrl-Alt-Del asks if you want to log out of the system; the power button asks if you want to shut down the computer. He will complete each desired task in 60 seconds, whether you respond to him or not.
Mac OS X users will find that the look and feel of Ubuntu is very similar to what they are used to. The reason is that these working relatives are distant; Ubuntu is based on Linux, which is based on Unix, Mac OS X is also based off Unix. The learning curve from Mac OS X to Linux is not as steep as for a Windows user.
In Ubuntu the default method for installing software is the Ubuntu Software Center. This program takes up a lot of system resources. You can use it to find out what software is already installed on your system, and you can also use it to find software and pay for free software. Most of what you want is free software, advanced users are looking for ways to interface Linux with Windows, and other difficult, grueling tasks that they will have to pay for their own software, or learn to use the command line. These things make it hard. Unless you’re a programmer and like to write your own scripts, I’d go ahead and spend a few bucks on software that can make your life a lot easier.
Programs like Google Music Manager and Dropbox are available for Ubuntu. The default browser is Firefox, and Ubuntu allows you to “install web apps”, which are like mobile apps, but only on the desktop. I installed the Gmail app, and I get a small box that appears on my desktop whether Firefox is open or not. I prefer Google Chrome to Firefox though. It’s usually better off trying to decompress the .deb package for the software you want to install and using a command line or program specifically designed to install .deb files than trying to install everything using the Ubuntu Software Center.
Another area that can confuse Windows users on Linux is security issues. In Windows, the patch to the operating system basic security level antivirus software always runs in the background and provides a higher level of security against to carry out more urban attacks against the operational system. In Linux, vulnerabilities within the operating system are found by software on a continuous basis, and users are given the opportunity to update their version with patches to the operating system. Linux prevents the execution of software that can be used to compromise a remote system in the background, and software programs are generally used to combat malicious attacks. Antivirus software is not used; is available, but the chance that the user will always need it is rather small. Mac OS X, and any other Unix-based operating systems, work on the same principle.
The need to run an antivirus program adds some overhead to the Windows system and at some level requires more computational power than would otherwise be needed. A huge issue in older, 9x versions of Windows, and in Windows XP. In Windows Vista, 7 and 8, the sophistication of the user interface requires a lot of computing power, and users can never see their performance being fooled by a slow antivirus program. The same can be said about Linux operating systems like Board, which can provide a very elegant experience.
You can make your swap file as big or as small as you want it to be on Linux.
