Ubuntu 10.10 or windows 7

[pcbeginner]

right now i have windows 7 and my teacher keeps telling me that i shoud get ubuntu 10.10. i thought about it but am wonder is this operating system is better for everyday use and school?
and is this operating system is more reliable and less complicatied?

i have heard that there are issues with this operating system and do not what to install it if it could mess up my system.
any feedback would be helpful
thank you

 

[etk]

If your computer does not have problems running windows 7, I would stick with it. The world revolves around windows, so drivers and such are incredibly easy to find, and incompatibilities are addressed quickly. Ubuntu is free and requires less overhead, both of which mean nothing to you if you already own win 7 and do not have performance problems.

 

[wombat_tg]

You can try Ubuntu with a live CD/DVD.

Question is why is your teacher suggesting you try Ubuntu? Do they have some reason for doing so?

It's a really fabulous OS, and in my opinion, superior to Windows (don't beat the newbie :lol but nothing's perfect and it's not for everyone. For the most part Ubuntu (and Linux in general) will do everything Windows will do, and will probably do it quicker and leaner. There are two things (off the top of my head) it will NOT do, or will potentially require herculean efforts: playing PC games and iTunes.

If you do not play PC games, use something like an Android and you're confidant with turning to Google for tech support, Linux may be for you.

 

[pcbeginner]

my teacher had told me that ubuntu was better than windows. he got me started on building my first computer last june. he said that i have a less chance of getting a virus and that i did not need to pay for internet security.
i do not play games or use itunes. i just want some thing that is reliable
could i have problems with wubi? or
if i dual boot it. could i have problems?

i downloaded ubuntu and burned my own cd. i clicked on try ubuntu out and nothing happened. I gave it 15 mins. and nothing happened i could move the mouse around but that was it i could not even get out i had to restart my pc to get out of the it. should i reburn the cd?

 

[pcbeginner]

i have my computer set to boot from CD/DVD. it will boot into the cd but when the window comes up to try ubuntu or install ubuntu i clicked try ubuntu. i gave it 15 mins. but nothing was happening

 

[Timop]

I actually have a dual boot win 7/Ubuntu system, both runs great but I still like windows better. Its just more polished, straightforward, and software compatibility (for my needs) is much better (wine sucks). For security, MSE is a great piece of software, and its free.

Ubuntu is a decent OS though, pretty snappy and hardware support is great. It will do everyday tasks (Web surfing/document editing/video watching) perfectly fine, and I doubt you'll notice a difference.

However, it is pretty finicky could potentially involves lots of terminal work and endless typing of the phrase "sudo". It also has lots of rough edges, sometimes you'll have little annoying notifications that wont go away, weird updates, and the package manager is a pain. Even-though 10.10 cleaned it up alot, UI inconsistencies are still there and sometimes stick out like a sore thumb. And in my opinion, it still looks pretty bad without some major tweaking even with full compiz effects (desktop cube is amazing though).

Honestly just try it out, verify the disk after you burn it then do it again after you boot, when it hangs, press esc and see whats the problem. Once you get into the live desktop see if you like it and install it on a tiny (~25GB is more than enough) ext4 partition if you want.

 

[pcbeginner]

i reburned the cd i got to the "try ubuntu" but it freezes up after i click on an application i do not know if i want to install it because i can not every get to try it out i have already reburned it 6 times to get to this point. should i reburn it again.
i use nero's 10

 

[Timop]

Try imageburn.
How much RAM do you have though?

 

[yanike]

Ubuntu 10.10 CRUSHES Windows. I moved to it to finish work and now have completely left Windows to work on Ubuntu 10.10 full time. You get everything you need for free and it's heaven for tech people. I code with Geany, video editing with Kdenlive, image editing with GIMP, vector editing with Inkscape and Xara Extreme, iTunes alternative Rhthymbox (Able to move music from iPod Touch to PC and vise versa not a feature given by default on Windows or Mac) and OpenOffice (LibreOffice when it releases) for office work. Ubuntu comes with all sorts of education stuff and it's security is awesome.

Here's my Ubuntu 10.10 desktop: (the website is my family corporation, my bookmarks are blurred out of course and my browser is Firefox 3.6.12 with Foxdie theme)

Recommend Ubuntu 10.10 100%

If you want to keep Windows around for whatever reason, use Wubi install. Wubi doesn't require a disc. You download Wubi Installer from here -> http://www.ubuntu.com/desktop/get-ubuntu/windows-installer

run the installer, do the step by step, and let it do it thing. I use my Wubi installation for personal and work (web design, image/audio/video editing, documents, etc..) and have no problems. I do plan on moving to a complete Linux install soon away from Windows. Linux does have a great selection of games off and online. To each their own. I own Ubuntu 10.10.

I used to maintain a GIANT information thread here I started -> http://www.winmatrix.com/forums/index.php?/topic/12163-the-linux-thread/

I'm a member of this community and we help all who needs help with Ubuntu and others. LinMatrix community website is in the making which will be completely Linux dedicated. You can see development here -> http://www.winmatrix.com/forums/index.php?/topic/29917-linmatrix/page__st__75

I'm working on designs for it now and I'm also making a theme for Ubuntu as well.

Your teacher deserves a raise by the way. His teacher grade should be A++++++++

------------
Yanike
http://www.yeoworks.cz.cc

 

[pcbeginner]

since ubuntu is less likely to get viruses i thought about installing it because i like to research stuff online.

would the problems that come with ubuntu be worth it if i was just looking to use it for researching stuff on the internet?

 

[wombat_tg]

since ubuntu is less likely to get viruses i thought about installing it because i like to research stuff online.

would the problems that come with ubuntu be worth it if i was just looking to use it for researching stuff on the internet?

If all you're doing is surfing the net reading documentation you won't run into any problems at all. I handed my mother my Debian "Lenny" laptop to surf Ebay while she was visiting, introduced her to FireFox (she was used to Safari) and she was good to go. If my mother can use it, anyone can use it.

Unless you are into PC gaming OR use highly specialized software, Linux will work just fine, as there is probably a Linux option for whatever you care to do.

There really aren't many "problems" that come with using Ubuntu. The Ubuntu community is very helpful and welcoming, and there's a ton of documentation online. Occasionally you'll run into things that don't quite work right (eg, installing GnomeColorChooser the "usual" way did terrible things, but if I dropped out of the GUI and to command line, installed and restarted the GUI, presto. Worked like a charm) and you have to tinker with it a little bit to make it work for you.

 

[Timop]

For simple web use, Ubuntu/Linux would work like a charm.

But for the Photoshop-accustomed, obscure foreign software user who also does PC gaming, Ubuntu/Linux/anything that's not windows sucks real bad.

 

[pcbeginner]

thank you