Whether you are fed up with your current operating system, you’re sick of paying money for an O/S, or you just want a powerful operating system to toy around with, Linux can be a lot of fun. Of all the hundreds of Linux distributions out there, Ubuntu is the king for those who don’t want to do a tedious, difficult, command-line install. Most would say that Ubuntu installs just as easily as Windows does, and only takes about 25 minutes to complete. Ubuntu gives the power of Linux, with unsurpassed easy of use.
Just like the operating system itself, updates are always free and readily available for download over the internet. Since Ubuntu is open-source, there are developers working around the clock who are volunteering their time to finding problems, and providing solutions to them. Since there are always so many people working on fixing issues and improving the code, the releases are fairly large and feature filled.
Ubuntu offers a complete suite of applications - everything from browsers, to word processors and 3D games. If you need a program that’s not included in the standard pack of applications, the application management tool has access to literally thousands of programs on tap to download as soon as you click OK. If you can think of a program, it’s available right there. And best of all - it’s all free! If you have a programming background, you can even customize any program or just about any aspect of the operating system. It’s very easy to write scripts to automate tasks and do your bidding for you.
To get Ubuntu on your own system, you can download the ISO (CD image file) over the internet. Ubuntu’s official website has links to several mirrors of their latest version. After obtaining the Ubuntu CD image (around 700 MB), you’ll need to burn it to disk using a somewhat powerful CD burning program such as Nero.
The finished CD will be the setup disk for the operating system. Don’t forget to label it with the version number and date it was burned for future reference. Since the disk you just burned is now bootable, you can simply place it in your CD drive and restart. Though by default Ubuntu doesn’t delete any files of yours, it’s always a good idea to make backups of all your important files before making any major system changes.
When your system finishes restarting, you should be at an Ubuntu install screen. If your computer ignores the disk and boots straight into Windows as usual, you’ll need to change your BIOS settings to allow the system to boot from CD before hard drive. From there, simply follow the prompts. Ubuntu’s included partitioning utility is very powerful, and can automatically handle dual booting your existing Windows installation and your new Ubuntu installation! When starting, you’ll be presented with a prompt, asking you which O/S you want to load. Then you just select one (or let it time out), and you’re taken where you want to be.
I just recently made the switch from Vista to Ubuntu 8.10 on my laptop. If you go to Ubuntu's website and print out the install instructions and follow those as you install, it's about as easy as it gets. All my fears of incompatibiliy and user-unfriendliness were driven out within a few days of using the system. I am a complete "noob" and a user with an average understanding of operating systems. One of the best things about the Ubuntu is the wealth of literature out there for just about anything that you want to accomplish the the OS or have yet to figure out. Within hours I set up Compiz-Fusion, had network sharing working, had installed all the applications and addons that I wanted... all with the help of the Ubuntu community. Just like you said, if you're tired of Windows, want something new, and are looking for an alternative... I HIGHLY recommend giving Ubuntu a shot. I think you'll be very pleasently surprised at all that it has to offer. Oh yeah, and it's free! You can always go back to Windows if you want... but I don't think you will.
Very nice detailed explanation on Ubuntu... thanks...
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