Some observations ...

Recently, my trusty old WinXP installation on my even trustier Sony Vaio laptop went South. The NTFS file system crashed. At first, I thought the hard drive had given up the ghost. In fact, I was so convinced that the hard drive was bad that I ordered a new hard drive for the computer. But it turned out that the file system had become corrupt. My, oh my! What about all the files I had yet to archive and back up?! (Yes, I routinely back up my important files and photos ... and so should you!) And all of this happened with NO warning whatsoever!

I put in my WinXP installation disk (commercial copy, not one of those recovery disks that comes with your computer), and managed to run chkdsk.exe in an attempt to clean up the errant file system. I had hoped that merely running the chkdsk program to clean up the bad, bad file system would allow me to again boot my computer, that was not to be so. The computer remained "un-bootable."

Having ventured into the land of Linux (as you know from my previous blog entries), I decided to use my PCLinuxOS 2007 Live CD to boot my laptop and see what I could do from there. The forums are full of stories of how others were able to use their Live CD to resurrect lost files, if not the operating system itself. I was initially skeptical that this would yield any appreciable results. But not only did PCLinuxOS boot my laptop, but even from the Live CD the computer sprang to life and ran faster than it ever did! Plus, PCLinuxOS allowed me to access my previously lost files on the Windows disk. Using a SD memory card reader, I was able to transfer all the files of importance to me, 2 GB at a time, and move them to my 500 GB external hard drive (attached to another Linux computer in the house). And, before you say anything ... yes, it might have been easier to simply hook up the external hard drive to the laptop, but because it is formated with NTFS, PCLinuxOS was not able to write to that drive from the Live CD. So my only other choice was to use some form of a USB drive to move the files. Hey, I was happy to at least have access to my files!

In the course of moving these files, I discovered how fantastically well my laptop ran with PCLinuxOS. As my previous work with PCLinuxOS had demonstrated, everything about my laptop was immediately recognized and properly set up. Joyously, I even had wireless internet access ... and it was set up with a minimum of effort on my part!

Afterwards, I figured since I had a new (and larger) hard drive on the way, and since the Windows installation was toast, I was going to have to reformat the hard drive and re-install whatever operating system I chose to go with. So once I got done saving my files, I hit the "Install" icon on the PCLinuxOS Live CD desktop and reformatted the "old" hard drive to use only PCLinuxOS. The installation of PCLinuxOS took only about 20 minutes, and after applying all the updates from the repository, less than an hour had elapsed.

PCLinuxOS literally hummed and sang on this laptop! Under the previous Windows XP installation, WinXP would routinely "thrash" my hard drive for no apparent reason. It would just sit there and have all kinds of hard drive activity, even at times when I was doing nothing on the computer. One of the first things I noticed was that under PCLinuxOS, the hard drive light scarcely came on ... regardless of what I was doing!

Finally, my ordered hard drive came, but it was DOA. I sent it back, and while waiting on the replacement to arrive, hummed along with PCLinuxOS without any of the usual problems I was accustomed to under Windows, but also at a greater speed. I had already made up my mind. Since the new hard drive was more than twice the storage size of the older one, I was going to "dual boot" the laptop with Windows XP and PCLinuxOS.

When the replacement arrived (Whew! The new replacement worked perfectly), I used GPartEd Partition Editor to partition the new hard drive into two fairly equally sized partitions. GPartEd made this exceptionally easy, especially since this is what it is designed for. I attempted to install Windows XP Pro on the Windows partition. It was successful, in that it ran, but unsuccessful from the stand point that not all of my hardware was properly installed. And, due to procrastination, I never got around to creating the Vaio Recovery Disks, as I should have done when I initially got the laptop. And the crash of the file system also took the Recovery Partition right along with it, so those could not be accessed any longer. I ordered the Recovery Disks from Sony (bravo to you Sony ... I had those in only two days!), then proceeded to install PCLinuxOS on the remaining partition. Installation of PCLinuxOS went totally without a hitch, and once again, all my laptop hardware and features were properly recognized and set up, with scarcely any input from me. The installation of PCLinuxOS was sooooooooo much easier than the installation of Windows XP! And the total time of installation was, again, less than one hour from installation to applying the updates from the PCLinuxOS Repositories.

Once the Recovery Disks arrived from Sony, I proceeded to finish a "proper" Windows XP re-installation from the Recovery Disks. After about an hour to an hour and a half of repeatedly swapping Disc 1 with Disc 2 and constantly rebooting the laptop, Windows was finally re-installed and all my laptop hardware was finally working. Then, Windows spent the next four (4!) hours applying all the updates from Windows Update. One thing that I stood out during this process was that 90% to 95% of those updates were "Security Updates" to plug security holes in Windows XP. As soon as one round of updates were complete, it would come up with more updates to apply. I have never experienced anything like this with PCLinuxOS.

Since installation of the new hard drive, and the subsequent installation of both operating systems, I've spent most of my time (including the time writing this blog entry) under PCLinuxOS. I've only booted to the Windows partition a few times, mostly to finish setting things up or to try out a new piece of freeware. This laptop runs so well under PCLinuxOS that I have yet to find much reason for booting to Windows XP. Most of the programs that I routinely run under Windows XP, have counterparts under PCLinuxOS that usually do the job just as well and just as easily ... and sometimes even easier!

Goodbye, Microsoft Monopoly???

I've been a "die-hard" Microsoft Windows user for many, many years, starting with Windows 3.1. I "graduated" to Windows 3.11 for Workgroups, Windows 95 (beta tester), Windows 98, Windows ME, Windows 2000, then Windows XP (Home & Professional, original, SP1, and SP2). In fact, I "got into" teaching by teaching a Windows 3.1 class for a local school district's Adult Continuing Education program. For me, nothing else was much of an option since nothing else had achieved the market penetration of Microsoft Windows in it's various incarnations.

Now, that is starting to change (are you listening in Redmond?). Faced with the eternal and never-ending updates, "planned obsolescence," security issues, viruses (and increasing costs of defending against them), and shelling out $300 every four - five - six years for a new operating system -- and perhaps even a new computer to handle the new operating system with it's ever-increasing hardware requirements -- I decided it was time to look around and see if something else might exist that I was possibly missing on the landscape. I'm not about to pour another wad of money into Bill Gates pockets. I've done enough of that over the years.

As I started looking around, one possibility kept being mentioned ... Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon, a Debian-based Linux operating system. I had tried Linux (specifically, Red Hat Linux, purchased from the evil-empire of Best Buy for $59) several years ago on an old 486-DX100 with an 800 MB HD, 256 MB of memory, and a CD-ROM drive. It just wouldn't run "as advertised," and I decided then that Linux just wasn't "ready for prime time," even though the Red Hat box stated that I had more than met the hardware requirements. So now, almost 8 years later, I thought perhaps it was time to give it a second look.

Guess what? I've been way more than satisfied with Linux this time around. I've been literally blown away! Here's a run down of what I've discovered in the little-more-than-a-week use of Ubuntu.

• Live CD: you can download a "Live CD" version of Ubuntu. Simply download the 695 MB disc image and burn it to a CD. Pop it in and start it up from right inside Windows. Within a very short time, you can run Ubuntu straight from the CD to see how you like it. I actually like this idea. If you don't like it, there is no commitment, and no having to uninstall one OS to try another, then having to undo it all if you don't like it.
  
  
• Stability: This thing is STABLE. Granted, over the years, Microsoft has greatly improved the stability of the Windows OS's, but is constantly plagued by security holes and issues, and is the target of an endless stream of viruses and other malicious software ... so much so, that they have come out with a "Malicious Software Removal Tool" that gets installed with the IE7 update. And I have to admit that my computers running Microsoft Windows XP are the most stable Windows releases that I've ever seen. But my copy of Ubuntu never flinches, never falters, never blinks. Security is one of the cornerstones that Linux is built around. The worry about viruses and other malicious software attacks on your computer virtually disappear. WOW! What a nice peace-of-mind! And no more shelling out annual "renewal" fees to the likes of Norton or McAfee for virus protection. Ahhh ... I see the price of personal computing falling already.
  
  
• It runs ... well! After all, the OS of a computer should run reliably and run well. Without it, you aren't able to do anything else ... period. Without it, your computer is just a heavy paper weight of metal, silicon, and wires. The OS allows your computer to run all your favorite programs, allowing you to be as productive (or unproductive) as you wish. Ubuntu satisfies the requirements on all fronts. And it runs well on OLDER computers with modest hardware that you just very well may have laying around. I've seen "posts" of people describing their experience running Ubuntu with hardware as modest as a Pentium II processor and 256 MB of memory. I'm currently running it on a refurbished computer I purchased from an online auction site for under $150. It's a Pentium 4, 2.8 GHz processor with 512 MB of memory, and a 40 GB HD. I took out the CD-ROM drive that came with it and replaced it with a DVD +/- R/RW Dual Layer drive from an old computer that was having power supply, hard drive, and motherboard problems. Although I have an assortment of unused computer monitors scattered throughout the house, I also found a 19" flat panel monitor on another auction site for $150. I added an old Tandy MMS-10 computer speaker system I had laying around in the basement to supply sound. I also put in my older ATI TV Wonder Pro tuner card, in the hopes that I could get Ubuntu to recognize and use it (since ATI ONLY makes Windows drivers for that particular tuner card).
  
  
• Price: The price for Ubuntu is EXTREMELY attractive. IT'S FREE! Yes, you heard me right. All you have to do is track on over to their website and download it. Of course, you can buy copies on CD or DVD for a modest price (most under $60 ... far less than the $300+ it will cost you to buy Windows Vista). And here's something else to consider. Every two to four years, Microsoft comes out with a new, "improved" version of Windows. And every release of Windows ups the ante on the minimum hardware requirements to run it. With Ubuntu, you get updates every day (if you desire) as they become available, very similar to Microsoft's Update Manager. So if you are connected to the internet with an "always on" connection, this occurs very unobtrusively. But here's the real kicker ... you can also upgrade to the latest release of Ubuntu when it becomes available ... also FOR FREE! The Ubuntu folks plan a new upgrade every 6 months, to keep the latest version of the OS in their users hands (if they so choose). Of course, you are not obligated to update if you don't want to.
  
  
• Ease of use: If you can run Microsoft Windows (any version), you can run Ubuntu. All the familiar items are there ... windows, title bars, wallpaper, sounds, etc. You name it, it's there.
  
  
• Software GALORE: There are more software choices than you can shake a stick at. And the nice thing is ... they are free, too! Well, most of them. Yes, there are commercially available programs for Linux that you can buy, but most of the software offerings for Linux are free (probably over 95% of the software titles are free). That's right ... free for the download. Out of the box, Ubuntu comes with Mozilla Firefox web browser, Open Office 2.3 (a MS-Office clone that is free -- and it will even read and write MS Word, Excel, Access, and Power Point files), an email client called Evolution Mail (very similar in functionality to MS Outlook), music players, CD players, video players, and a good assortment of games (Mahjongg, Solitaire-type card games, and a Tetris clone to name a few). If you want more, simply select "Add/Remove" from the "Applications" menu (similar to the "Start" button in Windows), and select the programs you want to install. It's THAT easy!
  
  
• Easy installation: Installing Ubuntu is very easy. The last time I installed my copy of Windows XP, it took over an hour. And that was just the installation from the CD and didn't account for the other hour and a half to download all the Windows "critical" updates ... after getting the internet connectivity set up. Ubuntu installs in 30 minutes or less (usually less). And Ubuntu recognized ALL my hardware without any difficulty ... including my previously mentioned tuner card that ATI only makes Windows drivers for. Just like with Windows, Ubuntu has an installation wizard that walks you through the steps.
  
  
• (Fairly) simple network setup: Ubuntu is fairly easy to set up on a home network or to connect to the internet. I say fairly simple, because there's not a lot of support for Linux systems by the manufacturers of wireless network adapters (the route I chose to try initially). While there is a Linux solution that utilizes the Windows driver information (.INF) files, it's a crap shoot on whether or not the wireless network adapter will work properly. But once I abandoned the "battle" to set up a wireless network adapter and opt for a "hard wired" solution, Ubuntu recognized the connection immediately and made most of the necessary settings on its own. I simply bought a 50 foot length of CAT-5 cable, and ran it from one of the four ethernet ports on the back of my router to the ethernet port on the computer. Little else was required. It took me more time to drill two small holes in the floor, and run the cable through the basement than anything else. After all, Ubuntu, like every other "flavor" of Linux, is built from the ground up with networking in mind.
  
  
• Run Windows programs: Yes, that's right. You can also run the vast majority of your favorite Windows programs. There are quite a few "Windows Emulators" out there that allow you to run your favorite Windows programs with minimum hassle. Probably the more popular one is called "Wine." Via Wine, you can run your MS Office programs or most any other Windows program you have become accustomed to using. However, I doubt that you'll find much need. I know I've been able to find more than adequate and suitable replacement programs from the Linux software offerings for all my "favorite" Windows applications. Nonetheless, this is an option for anyone who wants or needs to run Windows programs.
  

Overall, I can see Microsoft's monopolistic grip on the computer operating system market beginning to slip away. Increasingly, the various flavors of Linux are gaining converts ... and at an increasing rate. Many people I talk to (and I talk to a lot of people) have grown tired of the hassle of running a Windows based computer and would welcome a good, stable, inexpensive alternative. Compared to the "closed" nature of the programming source code of Microsoft products, Ubuntu and the other Linux distributions (they are called "distro" in the Linux community) are open source. If you are not familiar with the term open source, it means that the programming code is open for any and all who wish to modify it or add to it to increase its functionality. Anyone can contribute, from programming code to writing program documentation.

If you have, as I have, tired of adding to the Gates family fortune by purchasing a new operating system every few years, you should give Ubuntu a try. I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

BTW ... I've written this blog while running on Ubuntu. Proof positive that Ubuntu just works!