MESSAGE
| DATE | 2004-03-15 |
| FROM | From: "Ruben I Safir - Secretary NYLXS"
|
| SUBJECT | Re: [hangout] My Linux Desktop Odyssey, 2004
|
There are so many distortions in this article that I can't even begin an
evaluation. You can start, however, with XP being 100% hardware compatable.
I nearly choked on my coffee. Check out comp.os.windows for a reality check.
Ruben
On Mon, 15 Mar 2004 13:57:18 -0000, Inker, Evan wrote
> My Linux Desktop Odyssey, 2004
> by Michael Barnes
> http://www.desktoplinux.com/articles/AT5886901845.html
>
> Michael C. Barnes updates his in-depth review of Linux desktop operating
> systems. In this exclusive article at DesktopLinux.com, Barnes
> examines how far the Linux distributions have come over the past
> year, updating his popular first article and evaluating the current
> versions of leading Desktop Linux desktop options including Ark
> Linux, ELX Linux, Lycoris, MEPHIS, Vector Linux, Xandros, as well as
> Live CDs including Puppy Linux and Flonix ....... . .
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
> ----
>
> Last year, I wrote an article about the state of desktop operating systems
> where I compared Microsoft Windows and various Linux distributions.
> At that time, I concluded that if cost is not considered, Microsoft
> XP was the best desktop operating system for business. I also stated
> that most Linux desktops distributions were better than Windows 98.
> Windows 98's one advantage was that it worked on a 32 MB 133 Mhz
> computer with only 1 GB. At the time, I was unable to find any
> featured desktop Linux that would run on such a modest configuration.
>
> Vector Linux, was the first fully featured Linux that I tested that
> ran very well on modestly configured computers. Vector Linux is a
> full blown workhorse distribution. Vector Linux can be expanded to
> be a complete and fully featured desktop distribution.
>
> There are now several other modest distributions to choose from that
> can provide a complete environment on even smaller systems. Puppy
> Linux, is the definitive example of a small Linux desktop. Puppy
> Linux is available as a live CD (meaning the OS boots directly off
> of a CD) or in a version that can be copied onto a pen disk or other
> flash disk. Puppy is unique because all the applications and the OS
> load into RAM. This has the disadvantage of a longer boot time, but
> the advantage of blazing fast operation. It is simply amazing how
> much utility is available on Puppy.
>
> Flonix is another hyper-small Linux desktop distribution. Flonix is
> based on Damnsmall Linux that is based on Knoppix which is based on
> Debian. Knoppix is responsible for some of the best work done in
> Linux today. Many developers have used Knoppix as the foundation to
> distribute specialized Linux distributions. Flonix is such a distribution.
>
> Flonix is ultra small, but it has a lot of flare. Flonix is a
> complete desktop that is also small enough to fit in a pen drive or
> boot off a business card sized CD ROM. Flonix can download
> additional applications. This gives the user a great deal of control
> over the final product. Flonix also features a full multimedia
> playback system. Flonix is small enough to download even using a
> dial-up modem. Flonix supports wireless modems, and ADSL; has an
> integrated firewall; and a built-in utility for motion detection so
> you can easily set up a security system.
>
> Except for Vector Linux, these smaller distributions are not really
> replacements for Windows 98. They are however, ideal starting points
> to create a complete solution that runs out of Flash or a way to put
> a very old computer back to work.
>
> Taking on Microsoft Windows 98 on the desktop is one thing, but
> taking on Windows XP is quite another. Microsoft XP is a magnificent
> piece of work. We have all heard the arguments about viruses and the
> arguments about costs. Microsoft Windows XP will certainly run on
> 100% of the new computers on the market and it will support 100% of
> the new peripherals made for computers. No Linux distribution can
> make this promise.
>
> It is also possible to run most major Open Source applications on Microsoft
> Windows XP. Open Office, GIMP, Mozilla, and many other Open Source
> applications are available for Microsoft Windows XP. A very good starting
> place for Open Source software for Microsoft Windows is TheOpenCD. A
> copy of Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition and the software contained
> on TheOpenCD is another way inexpensively introduce Open Source.
>
> Linux does have advantages over Microsoft XP. Linux is more secure
> and it requires less resources than Microsoft XP. Linux
> distributions also allow for faster installs as most distributions
> install the applications as well as the operating system. The best
> of the Linux distributions preconfigure everything for the user.
>
> I own a laptop that is particularly Linux hostile. The laptop uses an
> integrated SiS chip and few Linux distributions want to support all the
> features in the chip. My desktop rejected almost all the Linux distributions
> I tried to install. Redhat based distributions turned the LCD screen
> white. I was able to complete the install using the command expert vga=0x310.
> Slackware distributions such as College Linux, Vector and Slax had no
> problem. Debian wouldn't install nor would SuSE. Knoppix based
> install required that I use a kernal without USB support.
>
> My desktop computer was far easier to support except for the VIA
> based audio chip which was hit and miss. Once again, Slackware based
> distributions were the most dependable. Knoppix based distributions
> worked except for sound.
>
> My laptop worked without a hitch with Lycoris Desktop LX/3, Vector
> Linux and ELX BizDesk 4.0, so long as I used the expert vga=0x310
> command to get things started. In the end, I decided to use ELX
> BizDesk 4.0. Xandros 2.0 installed on my desktop without any
> problems but would not install on my laptop.
>
> None of the distributions that I tested convinced me that if money
> were no object, desktop Linuxes can replace Micorsoft XP as the best
> operating system for the desktop. If money is a factor, there are
> some desktop operating systems that are standouts. It should not be
> surprising that the distributions I liked last year are the same
> distributions I like this year.
>
> Last year, I gave Lycoris a bad review. I thought that given it was a
> commercial product, it was not complete enough and I encountered problems
> installing it on several systems. In one case, the OS crashed
> because there was no floppy. I gave up on Lycoris but I did order
> the latest version version which is Update 3.0.
>
> Lycoris is a very good looking desktop. The look is strongly
> influenced by Microsoft XP but the execution is more refined. From a
> users point of view, Lycoris is probably one of the friendliest
> Linux distributions available. The new version installed without a
> hitch and did a very good job of recognizing hardware. It is very
> frustrating trying to match the right Linux distribution to a
> specific hardware configuration. I do not understand why some
> distributions such as Lyrocis or Slackware based distributions seem not
> to have any problems while other distributions won't work at all. Lycoris
> installed on every system I tested without a hitch. I do not know why
> Lycoris does not install Open Office by default. It is easy to
> install Open Office but it would be nice if it were included as part
> of the standard install.
>
> Slackware, Arch Linux, and distributions based on Slackware
> installed easily on my Linux hostile laptop. None of the Slackware
> based distributions installed as easily as Lycoris.
>
> After installing Lycoris, I was once against confronted with a Linux
> distribution which was much more sparse than what I would want.
> However, I had to consider for a moment that I am not the target
> user for Lycoris. Lycoris can be the foundation for building a very
> strong distribution. Lycoris teamed with Codeweavers' Crossover
> Office would be an excellent upgrade for users moving off of Windows
> 98. Adding Open Office to Lycoris increases its functionality quite
> a bit.
>
> If you are the type of person who is turned off that Lycoris is
> still based on KDE 2.2, then this is not your distribution. If you
> have no idea what KDE is, then Lycoris is probably the right
> distribution for you.
>
> I have changed my mind on Lycoris. Lycoris is probably a better candidate
> for "My First OS" than "My First Linux". Lycoris should be
> considered on its own rather than being compared to other Linux
> distributions. Lycoris is the the operating system I would put on a
> computer for my grandmother.
>
> There are two commercial distributions that stood out in my previous
> evaluation. These were Xandros and ELX. I believe that these remain
> the best two choices. Each is different and each is targeted to a
> different class of users.
>
> Xandros Desktop OS version 2 is a beautiful distribution. While Lycoris's
> look and feel is based on Microsoft XP, Xandros has its own look and
> I like the look better than Microsoft XP. Xandros' file manager
> remains the very best Linux file manager. I purchased the deluxe
> edition of Xandros. The deluxe edition includes Codeweavers'
> Crossover Office and Crossover Plugin. These two programs are well
> worth having. I purchased Crossover Office primarily to add Internet
> Explorer and Microsoft Media Player to my Linux distribution. I have
> tested all of the supported applications, that include Micosoft
> Office, Adobe Photoshop and Microsoft Visio. All of these
> applications and more work fine. Codeweavers' Crossover Office and Crossover
> Plugin are available separately and it will work on virtually any Linux
> distribution.
>
> Xandros has much going for it. The look of the install is the only Linux
> distribution, other than Lycoris, where I don't go directly to
> www.kde-look.org and start changing out the icons, desktop
> background and theme. Xandros look great just the way it is.
>
> The two complaints I have about Xandros is that its base install is
> a little light on applications. Xandros is far more heavy weight in
> applications than Lycoris, but there are many applications that I
> would expect that are not installed. However, if your main purpose
> is to buy a Linux that supports existing Microsoft applications,
> there is no better Linux distribution.
>
> The Linux distribution that I previously liked the best was ELX. ELX
> is an RPM based distribution that is fully compatible with Red Hat.
> ELX has two versions. They offer a heavy weight version called Power
> Desktop and a lightweight version called BizDesk. I prefer the Power
> Desktop, but most of ELX customers are businesses and prefer the
> lightweight BizDesk.
>
> Where Xandros has created a Linux that looks professional from the moment
> the disk starts to install, ELX has a far less polished look. ELX is
> very easy to install. During the install, I encountered my first
> problem. During the install, only a root user is installed. This was
> not the case with previous versions of ELX. While it is easy to add
> other users, it is far better to make this part of the install so
> that users do not make the mistake of operating under root.
>
> The second problem I found was that Java was not installed by
> default. I contacted ELX about this and they said that the Power
> Desktop version installs Java by default. I believe that all desktop
> Linux distributions should install Flash, Real Player, Java, and
> Samba as part of the default installation.
>
> The strength of ELX, other than not installing Java, is that once the
> installation is complete, there is very little else the user has to
> do. If ELX changes the install to add a user and adds Java, then I
> believe ELX BizDesk is the best desktop Linux for doing business.
> Note: ELX Linux wrote to me a letter telling me that they will
> change ELX Biz Desktop to add a user during the install and include
> Java in the base distribution. I can not confirm these changes at
> this time.
>
> The main reason why ELX BizDesk is so good is that it is more tightly
> integrated than any other Linux desktop distribution. Some distributions
> throw everything but the kitchen sink in and then it is a matter of
> the user to figure out where everything is. ELX organizes
> applications in what they call 'launchpads.' These launchpads group
> applications by function. As BizDesk is geared towards business, it
> has only two launchpads. One launchpad is a favorites launchpad
> where the users simply puts their favorite applications and the
> second is a control panel.
>
> ELX has implemented the Microsoft Windows "Mind Map" on their Linux Desktop.
> If a user wants to change the screen resolution, they right click on
> the desktop just as they would with Microsoft Windows. If the user
> wants to zip and e-mail a file, the user right clicks on that folder
> and the menu provides an option to zip and e-mail. For someone who
> is used to using Microsoft Windows, using ELX will be very easy.
>
> Another major strength for ELX is that it tightly integrates Webmin
> onto the desktop. This allows an administrator to access every
> desktop from anywhere on the network.
>
> Because ELX is strongly based on Red Hat, it is easy to migrate just
> about any application or driver onto ELX. I was able to support my
> wireless PCMCIA card. BizDesk is a very good starting point for
> someone wanting to deploy a customized Linux distribution.
>
> ELX does not include Codeweaver's Crossover Office or Crossover
> Plugin. It does come with an open source alternative called Wine
> Tools. Wine Tools is a front-end to Wine that makes it easy to
> install some existing Microsoft applications. I was able to easily
> install Adobe Photoshop 7.0 and Autocad 2000. For more information
> on how to install existing Microsoft applications on Linux, visit
> this link. You will find advice on how to install many Microsoft
> Windows Applications.
>
> Since my first article, Xandros, Lycoris and ELX have all gotten
> better. I still believe that Microsoft XP has the advantage, but
> that advantage does not take cost into consideration. Xandros and
> ELX both are better than Windows 98 and both provide support for
> many existing Microsoft Applications. I believe that ELX has the
> edge for installed applications and the completeness of its
> integration. Xandros is more polished looking and offers the
> advantage of including Codeweavers Crossover Plugin and Crossover Office.
>
> In addition to testing commercial distributions, I also tested free
> distributions. Many of the free distributions are surprisingly good.
> Among the very good distributions that are available for free, the
> best two I tested are MEPIS Linux and Ark Linux. Very close behind
> are PCLinuxOS and Alt Linux, both of these based on Mandrake.
>
> MEPIS Linux is based on Debian. MEPIS compares very well against Xandros.
> MEPIS is a live CD that has the option of installing onto the hard drive.
> MEPIS allows you to fully test out the system and then decide if you
> want to install it on your unit or not. Some Linux distributions
> cause me to panic because I am not sure that I am wiping out my
> other partitions or not. MEPIS is very kind and gentle and does a
> very good job making sure it doesn't wipe out your hard drive during
> the install.
>
> MEPIS Linux gives up nothing to its commercial counterparts. MEPIS
> is a free Linux that is equal to Xandros. MEPIS is superior to
> Lycoris. MEPIS installs more software than Xandros by default. I
> prefer the look of Xandros to MEPIS but a trip to KDE Look can
> easily fix that problem.
>
> MEPIS has a facility that allows you to synch data with your pen
> drive. This allows you to easily move data back and forth between
> computers. As MEPIS is a live CD, I strongly encourage everyone to
> try it out.
>
> MEPIS Linux installs with KDE as the standard desktop. However,
> users can choose ICEWM. I tested MEPIS Linux to see if I could get
> it to run in 64 MB with ICEWM. I got a message stating that 108 MB
> of RAM is required.
>
> The other standout free Linux distribution that impresses me is Ark Linux.
> Ark Linux compares very well with ELX. I believe that Ark Linux is
> based on Mandrake. Ark Linux's major weakness is an install that
> gives me three scary options of how to install. I believe that with
> the current installer, I would only install Ark Linux on a fresh
> drive or on a system where there is not important data. For my
> evaluation, I installed on a fresh hard disk.
>
> Ark Linux is one of the best looking Linux distributions. Ark Linux looks
> polished and is very complete. Ark Linux is aggressively developing
> and they warn that the distribution is still alpha quality. Ark
> Linux is clearly a winner and I am quite excited to seeing where
> this project goes.
>
> One more free Linux that I would like to recognize is Arch Linux , A
> live CD version of Arch Linux is available. It is called AMULG and
> can be downloaded at Arch Linux should not be confused with Ark
> Linux. Arch Linux worked very well on my Linux hostile laptop. Arch
> Linux is a lean Linux distribution based on Crux that allows the
> user to easily build their own system using a package management
> system called pacman.
>
> Ark Linux's developers state clearly that Ark Linux is still Alpha
> and that development is proceeding at a rapid pace. Even so, Ark
> Linux is one of the best desktop distributions available. One of the
> list of "things to do" is improving the installer. I can personally
> recommend Ark Linux without reservation for anyone installing on a
> new hard disk.
>
> Conclusion
>
> In conclusion, Microsoft XP remains the best desktop operating
> system if price is not a factor. Every desktop I evaluated in this
> article is an upgrade from Windows 98. There are now Linux
> distributions that will run on older hardware supported by Windows
> 98, but not Microsoft Windows XP. Vector Linux is probably the best
> of these. Flonix is also an option.
>
> Xandros and ELX remain the best of the commercial desktop Linux
> distributions. I prefer ELX. This is not a quality judgment but one
> based on personal preference. ELX still has room for improvement.
> They need to polish up their look, add Java and add users other than
> root during the install. With these changes, I believe ELX will be
> the best commercial Linux Desktop.
>
> Finally, there are two very exciting free Linux distributions to consider.
> MEPIS Linux is the more polished of the two and it gives up nothing
> to any commercial Linux desktop. Ark Linux is amazingly good but is
> less mature than MEPIS Linux.
>
> nd the verdict is: If cost is not a concern, Linux is not ready to go
> head-to-head with Microsoft Windows XP. The best Linux distributions
> are better than Windows 98. Hardware and peripherals must be
> considered, but users resistance should not be a problem.
> Organizations can save substantial amounts of money moving to Linux
> and the new distributions will allow a migration to Linux with
> minimum impact on the organization.
>
> ELX Linux and Xandros remain my favorite commercial Linux
> distributions. I generally prefer the Power Desktop version of ELX
> Linux. I only reviewed the Biz Desktop version.
>
> MEPIS Linux and Ark Linux are two free Linux distributions that are among
> the best distributions for the desktop available. All of these distributions
> will work with 128 MB RAM. Other distributions, to include Flonix
> and Vector Linux will work with even less RAM.
>
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> NYLXS: New Yorker Free Software Users Scene
> Fair Use -
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--
NYLXS - New Yorks Free Software Scene
____________________________
NYLXS: New Yorker Free Software Users Scene
Fair Use -
because it's either fair use or useless....
NYLXS is a trademark of NYLXS, Inc
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