Seven Minutes in Ubuntu

Thomas Park tries Ubuntu. I'm using Slackware with my Linux administration class. I agree that Linux has come a long way. Slackware is a more "old school" distro of Linux, particularly when compared to Mint or Ubuntu, but still demonstrates a polish and user-friendliness that belies the longstanding reputation of Linux as an OS for geeks and hobbyist. Someone like my mother is not going to switch to Linux, but presented with a modern Linux desktop, she would find a familiar desktop metaphor and be able to navigate the user interface.

Seven Minutes in Ubuntu: A Mac user's first impressions:

What follows are my first impressions of Ubuntu 11.04. And I mean my very first impressions, after using it for just a few minutes.

And these impressions come from someone who’s used mostly Windows at work and Mac at home. Sure, there’s a sprinkling of Solaris, IRIX, and Linux mixed in there, but I’ve never used Ubuntu, haven’t used any distribution of Linux in quite some time, and haven’t had to adjust to the changes that Unity brings (such as moving the window controls). So I’m probably just the user that Ubuntu is targetting.

I hope you find this perspective of interest, whether you’re curious about an alternative operating system, or are a seasoned Linux user, developer, or advocate who wants to see things through a fresh set of eyes.

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Despite these issues, I give the designers major props. Open source software has a reputation for being ugly and catering only to the power user. But based on my initial experiences, they’ve created a polished user interface that’s both beautiful and user friendly in Ubuntu.