Dvorak Likes Linux, Mar 11, 2009

Every so often John Dvorak takes a stab at Linux, to see exactly what he likes and do not like about the OS.

Microsoft's rivalry with Google heated up considerably this past year when rumors surfaced that Google might release its own operating system to compete with Windows. Has Google finally jumped into the fray with its own OS?

Due to be released on December 11th, KDE 4.0 is bringing exhilarating graphical, usability, and functionality improvements to the Unix-like systems it is designed for—and Windows users will get a taste, too.

In this review we'll take a look at Ubuntu 6.06 LTS (code named Dapper Drake). Ubuntu come in builds for Intel x86, PowerPC, and AMD64-bit processors and community support via web forums is also available.

If you are like me and do all your video recording in Linux, you may wonder how you can share the TV shows, personal videos, and other multimedia content with friends and family who don't use Linux. How can you get the video from your hard disk to the people you care about in a way that you know they can play it?

The next release of the Ubuntu free Linux distribution, dubbed the "Hoary Hedgehog," now will be released on Friday, according to new messages posted on the Ubuntu site.

Version 5.04 of Ubuntu's free Linux distribution -- dubbed the "Hoary Hedgehog" -- is scheduled to be published on Wednesday, according to Mark Shuttleworth, who runs the effort.

When the topic of Ubuntu Linux came up in our weekly ExtremeTech conference call, there were chuckles and guffaws after my colleagues heard the name of the distro. It didn't help that the current release is codenamed "Warty Warthog." Ubuntu is actually a word from the African Nguni language family, meaning "humanity, caring, and harmony"--a fine sentiment to be sure.

The Ubuntu Project is sponsored by Canonical Ltd., a company owned by South African entrepreneur Mark Shuttleworth. Canonical has vowed to keep Ubuntu free: Its business model focuses on selling services rather than selling the Ubuntu distribution itself. Ubuntu is on the bleeding edge of Linux development, incorporating the 2.6 kernel, Gnome 2.8, and Evolution 2.0.

As an operating system, Linux has many things to recommend it over Windows. Gaming, alas, is not one of them. Compared to Windows, Linux just doesn't have anywhere near the same level of good games. Yes, there are a few here and there, but overall, Windows continues to dominate as the PC gaming platform of choice, with the widest array of content and the most up-to-date graphics and audio drivers.