In the world of open-source operating systems, first impressions count

Note: Here's another "old" entry, written on 1/23/08 but not published until today, which should be 4/25/08. I'm trying to clear out the backlog, as you can see. This is pretty much in the "strident opinion" category, and I thought it should see publication.

The entry begins here:

One of the reasons the Ubuntu project is doing so well is that it puts a cleaner, slightly more polished face on what starts out as Debian.

The new user doesn't know that Ubuntu pulls a lot of packages from Debian Unstable. Instead, they think of the Canonical-run distribution as "a Linux for the rest of us." Sure, marketing is involved, but at the core, Ubuntu is a fairly solid system -- mostly because it's based on Debian.

It's not even all that much easier to install Ubuntu than Debian, but having a live CD with which to try out the system, and then install if desired, goes a long way toward getting users to cross over from Windows.

Sure, a desktop installation of Debian contains more packages than Ubuntu, with more in the menus to choose from, but Ubuntu is limited by the size of the single CD, and the people behind Ubuntu have chosen to give users the basics of what they need, with everything else available in the repositories to be installed later, if desired.

And the Ubuntu project is committed to pushing as much additional hardware detection into the system as they can. Other distros like SimplyMepis and PCLinuxOS also do this. I don't know how far behind Debian is on this count, but I think the solution to configuration of new peripherals -- especially wireless networking devices -- is a continuing problem for the entire Linux and BSD community, and I wish there was an easier, more standardized way for users of all distros to get their problematic hardware -- whether connected to PCMCIA, PCI, USB, and even the serial port -- working as quickly and as well as possible.

So with Ubuntu you get a more manageable menu, which is great if you're not a "power user." I guess I want it both ways. I love the Debian menu, with its many layers opening up dozens of applications. And I pretty much prefer the Epiphany browser over its close, but way more well-known cousin Firefox (the latter renamed Iceweasel in Debian due to restrictive copyrights on the Firefox name and image).

I appreciate the solid nature of Debian Stable. I can install it and know it will be supported a couple of years down the line. It's not quite like the multiple years of support that Red Hat/CentOS gets, but it's more than enough. And sticking with the same frozen applications for five years -- especially on the desktop -- might be more frustrating than not.

As I watch the Linux "scene," I see that Debian is a lot bigger in Europe than it is in the United States. And overall, Linux has a bigger footprint in Europe, a continent less enamored with Microsoft than many of us over here are. Nothing wrong with that. And there's nothing wrong with Ubuntu, Mepis and others taking the work of Debian (as Wolvix, Vector and Zenwalk do with Slackware) and moving it in one direction or another. That's what FOSS -- free, open-source software -- is all about.

Openness breeds innovation, but there's an argument running through all of this over whether the FOSS community is blunting its impact by having hundreds of Linux distributions rather than a few biggies. In my opinion, that couldn't be further from the truth. In fact, limiting ourselves to Linux alone isn't even wise. I'd like to see us all encourage the development of new distributions based on the various BSDs, and even the seemingly stalled GNU/Hurd.

And if there are other candidates for the next big open-source operating system, at the kernel level and above, I'd like to see them grow and develop. We don't need to put all of our collective eggs in any one basket, even Linux's. That's how we got into this mess (read: Microsoft controlling an overwhelming majority of the world's desktops) in the first place.

I know that Ubuntu is doing a great job marketing itself to the "casual" geek who might not be a Linux expert, but is anybody really conveying to users who know nothing about FOSS or Linux what they're missing? I don't think we have to grab Windows users off the street, install Debian on their box and hope they'll figure it out. Wouldn't want to do it with Ubuntu, either, although the dozen or so current books on running the brownish desktop do nothing but help spread the word about the distribution and educate users on how to get the most out of it.

And while the Ubuntu system is pretty solid, there's plenty of marketing afoot. The Ubuntu Forums, the Ubuntu Web site itself, the free CDs, a plan to deal with restricted media formats, deals with Dell to include the OS on selected boxes, optional paid support. It all adds up.