Would Sheldon of 'The Big Bang Theory' really use Ubuntu?

Why not Ubuntu? He's a very logical guy and would probably not want to screw around with every little setting he can. He probably just wants to get his work done and would find it inefficient to have to fight his operating system for every little thing, no matter how much control it gave him.

I agree, Sheldon would be all over BSD, although he might use Slackware.

Actually, he would probably be using Shelnux compiled from his own hacked Minix kernel.

I'm glad I wasn't the only one to think of this. My guess would be Slackware or Debian Stable. Something that doesn't change much and he can stick with, with a userbase that tends to be slightly elitist. Ubuntu is much too populist for Sheldon's character, although I can see how it would appear otherwise to a writer who doesn't use Linux.

Sheldon should be able to do an OpenBSD install without any of
the issues shown in XKCD http://xkcd.com/349/

Actually they need to have an episode with a good long (i.e. not a cameo) appearance of Randall Munroe.

Sheldon uses Plan 9 from Bell Labs!

http://plan9.bell-labs.com/plan9/index.html

I have to tell, in an episode I watched he was very happy with his Windows stuff. He even used some fancy words to make it look intelligent to the untrained ears... I guess writers have to stick to what most of the audience will half understand to make it funny...

If he was not just an actor playing "nerd", I also think he would be using Slackware or a BSD version

@Anonymous: Actually the operating system that makes you fight for every little thing is Windows.

Tin foil OpenBSD advocate? Haha nice slander there.

The real question is, did the show writers put this in themselves, or did Canonical pay for a well placed promo? With Ubuntu One now in place, it wouldn't surprise me if this was a paid spot. +1 for Linux regardless of distro.

I would have to say scientificLinux for his daily use and Mint for gaming...
Most likely - roll your sheldon's own. With a spash of gentoo's source software install capabilities?!?!?!

I only mention OpenBSD in that vein because I'm a former and most likely future user.

Surprised no one mentioned Linux From Scratch, whats more geeky than rolling your own. Maybe he dual boots to obscure Solaris projects, like Nexenta.

I would have thought that a Geeky fella like him wouldn't be using Noobuntu but Debian instead!

I like that people think he'd use Slackware but I doubt it. It would have to be Shelnux (could catch on)or Linux from Scratch with references to heated arguments with Gerard Beekmans.

I absolutely love the idea of being part of The Big Bang Theory having heated arguments with "Sheldon" about Linux and what is considered the best distribution.

I wonder if the writers of this show would take suggestions...

A recent show had Sheldon talking about a tour of locomotive/train history in Los Angeles, and there were many geographical cues that L.A. residents (but not the rest of the world) would get.

I also think Sheldon would rather use his own Linux distribution / Linux from Scratch, OpenBSD or something no man has ever heard of before (maybe even his own OS). But since the series is very popular among a much more varied audience than just nerds I understand it to be more useful in spreading free operating systems as a whole to make people try Ubuntu. Chances are much higher with it, that some of them will stick to it, that they'd be with more difficult OSs/distros. Hence, it was probably a good choice!