A week on Ubuntu

It's now been a week on Ubuntu for me.

First off. Ubuntu does not work off the CD. Or it does but not as well as it should. I had real problems on my vaio getting wireless and wide-screen working.

Although I was able to resolve these problems the solution was far from easy for someone with no knowledge of Linux. The difficulty arises from the fact that all Ubuntu support either assumes that Ubuntu works perfectly for everyone because it is such a fantastic OS (which it is) or is written for and by Linux geeks (this is an honorific) who do not realise that some of us have never seen a terminal.

Despite all this I love Ubuntu. I don't know precisely why. I think the community is fantastic, the fact that add/remove puts a whole host of applications at your fingertips instantly.

The biggest part of my new found love for the system is the difficulty in using it. Under windows a wireless connection never made me jump up in the air screaming like a little girl, seeing wide-screen didn't prompt cheers of victory.

The fact is that all relatively intelligent computer users should know what the command line is, should understand the commands and structures that make their computer work. Ubuntu and the community that back it up make this learning process possible.

A week on I've resolved all my teething problems (although world domination has not yet been realised).

For the next week I'm focused on:

1. Getting some decent media playing capability
2. Find some decent blogging tools for Ubuntu
3. Customise my desktop with some handy productivity apps.

Later peeps.
Tom