Ubuntu is a very nice operating system, based on Linux and Debian. It is probably the perfect entry level into Linux we ever had - and I am happy about it. I recommend it to everybody who is interested in leaving Microsoft's operating systems for the better.

That said, I hate Ubuntu for it's strategy of making everything simple to understand by reducing choices and freedom. That's why I don't recommend it to anybody who is looking for a serious operating system.

Greetings,
Chris

Ubuntu is a very nice operating system, based on Linux and Debian. It is probably the perfect entry level into Linux we ever had - and I am happy about it. I recommend it to everybody who is interested in leaving Microsoft's operating systems for the better.

That said, I hate Ubuntu for it's strategy of making everything simple to understand by reducing choices and freedom. That's why I don't recommend it to anybody who is looking for a serious operating system.

Greetings,
Chris

It's fast, but I seriously think it looks horrible Both the boot- up screen and the wallpaper look very amateurish.

I was just going to try it but the homesite scared the hell out of me...I think I will stick with Knoppix.

there's quite a bit of ignorance about kanotix, especially when it comes to...

What ubuntuers think of Kanotix,
from http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=263691:





Interesting stuff, there's quite a bit of ignorance about kanotix, especially when it comes to it's advantages over knoppix. Having said that, they may have a point about kanotix.com looking scary ;P

there is still no competition I know of except for debian itself.

I'm kinda surprised that reviewers aren't tooting this horn more loudly.

that's funny, but my guess is that really kanotix is much better off leaving ubuntu fans to use ubuntu, that's perfect in my opinion, takes some pressure off of kanotix and the web servers here.



[...]
The funny thing is that now that mepis is kubuntu, [...]

I used Mepis long time before there was Ubuntu , and I used it before I found Kanotix (2 years ago) - it was a nicely done polished & user friendly distribution those days. Now it is just Warren fishing for $$ =

Huh? You can download Mepis for free. Why the bashing? We have 2 Laptops and 2 PCs in the family. My wife and my jounger daughter are happy with Kubuntu, and - yes - I installed Mepis 6.0 Rel on my elder daughter's laptop because she studies 100 miles away in Exeter and I'm not around to help her when "Sid" behaves like "Sid" again (Toy Story...). Kanotix is a great distro for more advanced users but can be too unreliable for rather computer illitarates who only want to work, surf the net and have some fun with games.

Greetings
@jens

Kanotix is a great distro for more advanced users but can be too unreliable for rather computer illitarates who only want to work, surf the net and have some fun with games.

"Free-software fundamentalists and practicalists often loudly disagree whether encouraging proprietary software on Linux is irresponsible or essential. It is either misguided or arrogant, however, to think that all users’ needs can be met by a central software repository, even if all software were open-source and free. Some of the best software available today started out small, was distributed on the internet, and made popular by word of mouth. The impetus of “Download Now” is strong, and promotes healthy competition and diversity. Whether a video player by a startup company or a newly-released version of Firefox that hasn’t yet made it to the central repository, stumbling blocks in the software distribution process caused by this centralization will reduce the ability for small projects to promote new software through viral marketing.

This is not an absolute restriction. Authors could provide the download as a .tar.bz2 archive or even .deb package, but those types of packages require the user to perform complicated actions such as opening a terminal and knowing the magic incantation."

"If application developers can’t attract users to the desktop, the only alternative is for new applications to be deployed entirely on the web. Although some people believe that the trend of applications moving onto the web is irreversable, I’m more optimistic. There is value, power, and security in the desktop. But without cooperation, I certainly wouldn’t plan to deploy my next application on Linux.

Allowing users to install their own software does have some consequences. Unfortunately, the discussion of how the software should be packaged and distributed quickly devolves into flamewars over the relative merits of RPMs, dpkg, or <insert technology here>. This is counterproductive, ignoring the fundamental issue: Linux software is typically not a self-contained package that could be placed in a single directory. A collection of files that are variously placed in /usr/bin, /usr/share/man, and perhaps many other locations, making it very difficult to relocate binary software because library dependencies are resolved to a fixed set of paths, and never relative to the binary location."

"I do not pretend to have a solution in hand for installing software on Linux. I think that Mac-style application bundles could be made to work, but supporting them would require additional features in the dynamic linker, along with something like mac Launch Services to provide good cross-application integration. In addition, since regular software updates are an essential part of modern system security, it is important to have a good and simple way to update software. If distributing software in relocatable packages is completely impractical for technical or social reasons, the same problem could perhaps be solved by allowing users to easily install packages from non-default software repositories."

"Free-software zealots may be also to blame: “users have the software source code, they are free to compile and install it themselves!”, mixing a philosophy and a technical decision which are not inherently related. Human nature wants software that works, and this includes software which can be installed and tried without the technical prowess needed to unpack software and run “configure && make && make install” and interpret the resulting console spew to figure out whether it succeeded or not and then figure out that you really needed make 3.80, and your gnome headers are too old, or too new, etc.. The issues of licensing software freely should be divorced from the ability of users to install and use the software."

I can't more than strongly disagree. I have installed and support Kanotix on hundreds of different machines, with users more different in their computer literacy than you can imagine. There is not one single client complaining about the choice I did for them - and no, I don't shoot them before they can complain.

Among my clients there are moms and dads who have never used a computer before, there are kids and teenagers of all age, students and musicians, lawyers and consultants, managers and tax advisors, IT-professionals and programmers, people from many different countries speaking different languages, ....

Oh I'm pretty sure that's 100% okay. And easy! The point is, if you leave a working "Kanotix-Snapshot" as it is, okay, no problems. Well, in this case you installed Kanotix in a so to say "Mepis-way". Or did you really suggest to do a d-u every week or so to your "mums and dads" clients?

Greets
@jens

What I don't understand is, I did not post this as flamebait or whatever, I wanted feedback on some issues here

I disagree, however, with the article author, and I have to say, I disagree completely. All in one packages ala windows software installs create bloat, invite insecurity into the system, and in general, simply recreate windows in all its glory.

This seems to be a seriously fundamental flaw in how many people view linux, they simply do not seem able to escape the notion that linux should be windows except in price.

I have tryed several including kunbuntu..But when mepis forked,forked ,forked... enought of this forkin around..found Kano it ROCK'S....if it fork's I will drop in a quick fdisk to something else...


PLEASE KANO... I BEG YOU DON'T FORK!!!!

I can't pass up this opportunity to add my comment. I read most of the article and quit after I realized he didn't really know what he was talking about. But that is not the reason for my post. I am one of those that got caught up with windows and MS. It was easier to go along and use the norm.

I wasn't really happy but wasn't overly concerned. After I retired and had more time to devote to playing on my computer I discovered that I really didn't like windows. I tried, over a couple of years, to find a linux distro that I could use.

Most were confusing to me and most of the forums I found were almost hostile to someone new.

Kanotix was pointed out to me and I tried it. I really like it and use it as my main computer. I use windows for quicken and a couple of recipe programs and to hold open instructions sometimes while I do something in linux (like the first time that I ran h2's script.) I have found this forum to be pretty good in answering questions and not trying to talk over someone new but there is an underlying theme in this thread that bothers me.

Am I ignorant because I don't know Linux?

Conversely, are you ignorant because you don't understand the workings of your car, lawnmower, microwave, television, dvd player, etc.?

There are a lot of people who don't want to ticker with their os, they just want it to work. Windows, for the most part fills this bill.

Linux could do it better. Look at AOL and how many people use it. Do I have to be able to program to like Linux, no. or to use it, again no. There are a few things that I need to know to make it work and that is fine to learn. Kind of like putting gas in a car or air in the tires. I don't want to be able to rebuild the engine, just drive it. The same goes with linux. I want to be able to use it and keep it working.

Actually this is easier than with windows. But again back to the point. I am not ignorant. I am learning something new. From the thinking that I have read here, if it were applied across the board to different areas auto mechanics would think anyone that drove a car and couldn't overhaul an engine or repair their brakes would be ignorant. We new guys are not ignorant, just haven't learned everything yet.

John

The only thing I know, is that I know nothing.

The more I learn, the more I realize I don't know.