Linux XP 2006 - From Russia With Love????

So the other day I was reading the Weekly review on distrowatch.com and was checking out a recent tidbit on Linux XP that seems to have caused quite a stir on their site. Seems that for the past 7 days, Linux XP has surpassed Ubuntu for number one on their list. To quote Ladislav

"So why did so many of you click? Is it the catchy name or the attraction of a Linux system resembling a more familiar environment? Or maybe just plain curiosity? And if you downloaded and tried the new release, what do you think of it? Is Linux XP likely to remain on your computer? Have any of you paid the license fee? If so, why?"

So I decide to download and see what I think of it. Personally, something this hyped has a lot to live up to, so let's see how they did.


Details:

Website http://www.Linux-xp.com/
Download Here
Kernel - Kernel 2.6.15
Desktop - Gnome
FAQs - http://www.Linux-xp.com/index.php
Cost - FREE to try, doesn't work very well, 30 boots then it crashes, so really $39.99 for Key ($39.98 in Canada)
Special Features - Look and feel of Windows, LDAP support, full media support out of the box and that's about it really

Nitty Gritty:
Installation ( )

Since this is really a repackaged version of Fedora, it is no surprise to see Anaconda used to install. Nothing new here, so if you have ever installed Redhat or Fedora you will see some familiar things. First thing I did note was that the splash screen was fuzzy. Not a great start folks.



Next the splash screen is nice and colorful, but reminds of my neighbors in Redmond. I mean I know you can try to make software look like what people are used to, but to really try and steal a name comfort like this too, splash screens and everything, does this mean there is no unique look and feel to this?



Ok, so we are right into Anaconda here, same silly logo.



So the first thing here is to setup my disk, which you can do automatically and then manually with disk druid. Now, I absolutely hate disk druid for many, many reasons, but again being a Fedora clone, this is what you get. For my VMWare install I used the automatic, but for my personal laptop I used disk druid since the auto didn't work. So far negative two on this so far, not going so well.



So even though you select Automatic, the tool then goes and asks me a question. Hmmm, not very automatic, more like manual with no chance of....no wait, I can delete everything here. Not the best option for a newbie. So for those who don't know, what you want to do here is based on what you already have on your system. If you have windows, you will likely need to select use free space, which will resize windows and create a Linux partition next to it. If you already have a multi partitioned drive, then you can use Keep all partitions and use existing free space. The others are just stupid, as they will either wipe out the entire hard drive, or wipe out all the Linux partitions (non NTFS ones), which both are going to end whatever might exist already. Three negative, one cute logo....



Now, I don't exactly get where this was automatic on anything, minus that it took my VMWare drive and created a EXT3 partition for my main, created a small boot partition and then a swap drive. But in my case, none got labeled, so I had to manually edit each and assign their relative usage. Big gets "/", little gets "/boot" and medium gets "Linux-swap". Arrrgggg....



So here you need to select/set up your boot loader. In my laptop it did see my Windows partition and add that, but it didn't see any of my other Linux distros. I did add them and used what it calls "default boot" for each, but that just added a chainloader line to grub. Um, that really doesn't cut the mustard folks, so only my windows partition worked. Now, most newbies only will have the one probably, so this isn't a killer, but for anyone with a debian Linux distro, this means your system will have to be reconfigured after you get into this one. Minus four, and I am really starting to hate that logo.



So now on to network, where my options are to do DHCP (which 99% of you will need) or Static IP. You can edit the configuration of your NIC, but not many will need to do that. However, this did not see my wireless or make any attempt at configuring. Minus 5. Logo sucks.



Ok, I know where I live on the pretty map....make sure you select UTC if your machine is set that way.



Pretty basic here, root password. But wait, the dialog on the left says that "once the installation is completed, create a non-root account for my general use...are you kidding me? I will need to create my user account after I log in as root? Um, did these guys miss the class on Linux Security 101? That means unless you directly take them to this, the likelihood of someone creating a separate user account is about a snowball's chance in Miami. Minus 6.



That is it folks. No place to select what packages, or system type. Now, for a newbie this might not be so bad if they have never install Linux before. But, what is the goal of this install? No user account? Didn't find my wireless card? Cannot select any package type for desktop or laptop? Compared to other products similar in class, mainly Linspire and Xandros, this install really is overly basic and extremely dangerous. This is my first 2 Pennie install, in that it doesn't do what it needs to do and can do too many bad, bad things. Some people may like it, but for me this doesn't do what it needs to do, nor what it should do, or instruct people on what it could be doing along the way. But they do have pretty screens to watch while it installs.



Based on how many packages need to be installed? Don't they know, they restricted me from selecting any....



We will learn that this is very misleading once we launch the program. Seems you get a 20% ride on the free bus, and if you want any packages you need to pony up $40.



Ok, so I am not pleased with what I have seen so far, but things can only get better, right? I am afraid I won't ever know. Why? Read on....



Starting ( )


So there are about 500 distros out on Distrowatch.com. Some charge a fee like Linspire, Xandros, Novell, Redhat, etc...but even those have demos that allow you to install for a short period of time, say 30-60 days. This one is supposed to be the same. It states that you can boot for 30 cycles, which is odd because if one never reboots, they get the system forever. Free Beer, right? Wrong.

The look and feel is very similar to Xandros for me, however they are using Gnome and not KDE. On their website they state...
"Forget about KDE. KDE is for hackers and that is why it sucks in end-user oriented distribution.We are not supporting it in any way. You can install it from Fedora repositories and use it on your own risk."

Hmmm, ok. Guess we see how they feel.



When I clicked on the Start button and then selected Office, I was surprised to only see Dia there. There is no Openoffice as claimed by the website and then even in the install pretty pictures. Where is it I wonder. Well, it isn't there. Period. It didn't get installed. So I then go to the control panel to install it.



When you click on the pretty Application icon (this is very well laid out, but honestly I am not going to make a big deal out of that) you get the option for Install or Update.



Um, not to be picky, but you cannot select Next. So party is over folks. Sure, I am more than positive I could take the time and download RPMs and install them manually, but obviously they don't want me to have a fully functional machine until I cough up the money. Now, I realize that people want to earn a living. But if you want to compete in Linux offerings one has to give away Free as in Gratis, not Free as in Beer. Sure, keep your 30 boots for the trial version, but let me be fully functional without having to hack my own Linux system. What is the point then, I am worse off than I am with Windows.

I can honestly say this is the most disappointed I have been with a distro for a long time. You may love it. It might jump right out and get you to pay the $40 and use this. But there are so many better options out there where I could give $40 to any distro and know that my contribution is for something I like, rather than something I might like.

Bonus Stuff ()

Um never got anything bonus minus the loss of a $0.50 blank CD, an hour downloading the distro (use torrent or you will wait until the Soviet Union comes back to power). Sure it looks like windows XP. I hate windows XP. I am the guy that makes my XP on my work laptop look like Windows 2000.

Overall ( )

Well folks, if you want to give this a shot, be my guest. If you speak Russian, you got a great package to play with. But in my opinion if you want to spend $40 for an OS, this is not the one to invest in. Xandros offers so much more, so does Linspire. What they are trying to do I am not sure. Why there is so much activity on Distrowatch for this, I really don't know. I do know that the hype is not worth my time, nor will this be spending any more time on my hard drive. Anyone want to buy my CD? Click on about 4 of my adds, do some searches and follow threws and email me and I will send it to you =)

Cheers

KnoLinuxGuy (Kevin)

A new beginning

Hello to all who may have stumbled onto my new site. Well, as a frustrated Linux enthusiast who hates the searching and searching to find out what distro I should be using, testing and testing hours on end (which does not bode too well with my wife) I thought I might offer some help with taking my knowledge of Linux to the masses. I am not out to rule the world, offer incite not found on other sites, but rather a simpler way to communicate what each of the masses of distributions of Linux in the world down to a more usable format. This is only my attempt at bringing what I think is a great way of ensuring you are in control of your computer rather than it, or other people, ruling your PC world.


I welcome any and all feedback to what I am attempting here, which for me is a first. First of all, I love Linux and what it (for the most part) is trying to do. I am not a FSF Bible thumper who thinks that all software should be free, but rather that the owners of the hardware should be free to choose. Would I like to be able to get everything for free? Sure, I love free beer, but I also like things to work and hate when that beer is flat, bitter or plain crappy. I subscribe to the idea that there really is no such thing as a free lunch.

Remember that things found on my site here are simply my humble opinion, not intended to sell anything or get you to go along with my ideas, thoughts or rants. Have fun looking and let me know what you think. Also, I don't mind if you steal (borrow) my images, just be thoughtful enough to say thank you!!!!

My rating method will be based on Pennies (Short for Penguins, cute huh???)

1 Pennie - Basically one step above DOS 5.0

2 Pennies - Basically two steps above DOS 5.0 (hah, won't be that easy) but allows some Linux function but not to the level one would expect. Most Alpha builds and some Betas would likely be here

3 Pennies - This is where I would put the bar, the place most distros will fall into. Pieces of individual packages might get placed into higher levels, but for the most part this would be the average system. A package might get this today, but as time moves along, they

4 Pennies - A package might get this today, but as time moves along, they will likely become the 3 Pennie package. This distro has something special to it, either in feature, ease of use, feature rich, or just something that sets it apart.

5 Pennies - Simply put, this is the Windows Killer, Nirvana, the end all-be all OS that meets all needs wants and leaves no doubt that MS is on the way out. Do I expect many scores of this? Not really. Again, one might get 5 Pennies today, but tomorrow it will likely become normal, as is the true idea behind Linux.

Xandros 4.0 Review - How to do a entry level distro almost right

When I first played with Xandros back a few years, it was being touted as the distribution that actually worked and could be a Windows replacement for new users. At the time, I was new to Linux and willing to take that risk and well, wasn't impressed. I then got a hold of a 3.0 distro and loaded it on my wife's laptop so she could stop getting killed by malware and popups. She liked some things of Linux, but by no means is interested in her laptop being either Windows or Linux. Well, the wireless never worked, so she never used it. It was extremely difficult to even attempt setting up NDISWRAPPER, which is by far the easiest way to get wireless working IMHO, so I quit and now it just sits there idle.

So Xandros now has 4.0, which really is nothing super special, mainly upgrading pieces to more recent/less buggy with many of the latest (operational) offerings on the kernel, KDE and other aspects. With their "Making Linux work for you" tag line, lets see how they did...

Details:

Website www.Xandros.com
Kernel - 2.6.15 or higher (I love how they at least tell you what comes out of the box)
Desktop - KDE 3.4.2 Xandros Enhanced
Specs - http://www.Xandros.com/products/home/home_edition/specs.html
Cost - Home $39.99 Premium $79.99 (30 day free Trial) $129.95 Business
Special Features - Included Code Weavers (in Premium version), NTFS Read/Write Support

Nitty Gritty:

Installation ( )

With a distro that is touted as being a Windows replacement for newbies, the first test for me is how much gray matter does it take to install. If I have to call upon knowledge via another computer googling this and that, it will get a 1. A 5 is reserved for the fact that I don't do anything and it can read my mind on what I want.

So the test starts for Xandros and quickly it is a clean looking boot into the installer. You know what is happening all the way up to the first screen. You are welcomed in a with a very simple screen telling you what you are doing today. One thing I really like on this is that it keeps you informed all the time of where you are in the process and keeps the option of going back for the user. If you have any questions during this, there is a nice resource located here.



The next screen is the lawyer speak for this is yours and not mine, but I reserve the right to change what is yours and make it mine again. Really, the EULA here is pretty basic and nothing in there scared me.



The next step is important for new installs, in that it allows the installation to continue is newbie mode or in a mode more advanced, but not too nuts that you need a PhD in cyber speak in order to succeed.



For the sake of keeping the windows easy, I went ahead with the Custom install, but remember one can always go back and choose Express if they get lost.




What I like here is that you have two methods of playing in the Custom sandbox: One click grab it all; item by item. This allows the really picky people to hunt and peck if they like, or for the more simple minded folk like me, you can just grab the whole bag at once. The difference in the Express and the Custom Complete seems to be only a few items such as Organizer, Drivers, PIM devices (such as Palm), and the media player. While these are not all critical items to run, I would think that media player would be nice to have as a default, but with the silly licensing issues with that, once can easily tell why they kept it clear from the Express.

The next screen really is what I know is critical for folks who plan on Dual booting with Windows still alive on their PC. This is the disk screen, and it allows the user to determine what partition, if any available, to install Xandros onto. It evens tells you that trying to modify these partitions now is really something that an expert should try, rather than mere mortals. By giving the options of using free space (you won't break a thing), taking over (say goodbye to the old, hello new), resize a Windows (move over Bill, I coming in), Replace Xandros (thanks for coming back home) and then expert (Look out momma, trying to fly) I think that they simplified a step that can really put off the newbie. Again, this option is not available for the Express install, that just makes a decision based on what it could find. Using the option of Free Space is also the default if the partition is blank as in the case of my trial for the Express installation.



Take over disk still allows the user to choose where they want to install. On advanced machines where there are several partitions, this is important so that you don't over write the wrong one (been there, done that). It also asks where you wish to over write the master boot record, which is also extremely important so that you know how your system will boot. Typically I place this at the MBR rather than on a partition if I am going to be dual booting with windows.



Networking is next and Xandros found my network card and then allows me to tweak what it thinks I should be doing. I didn't have wireless on the machine I tested this with, but will test that later on and update the site with any findings (Have to get permission to break my wife's laptop 8-S)



So that concluded the Custom options on the installation and the fork in the road brings us back to where the Express would have already taken us. The only real change we made was to do a complete installation rather than the default, but realistically that would have not been noticeable in any way once we completed.




The Admin screen is extremely straight forward, providing options for the password (you can't leave it blank for the lazy people out there), a computer name for use on networks primarily, and then options for user password strength, and home folder being private (stay out of my stuff mom). I am not a huge fan of the strength option as it just makes your day longer in the end on remembering passwords.

The next window gets us to the user additions, which one should always do. By not creating a user account, and only running Linux in Admin role, well that would be like having a diamond store full of the most high tech security in the world, and not locking the front door. Just create a user account and be safe all the time. I know it can be a pain, but really, is typing SU that hard????



As always, the user name is lower case with no funky stuff, and you then can create the real name along side and the default password.

And then that is that. One Linux distro ready to be installed. Note how nicely the system warns you on a Take Over Partition option that you could be doing some nasty things, so make sure you know what you are doing.




I can honestly say that Xandros does have one of the cleanest and easiest installations on the planet. I would have to say that they are the closest to getting a 5 out there, and would probably if this wasn't my first review.
Nothing in the installation is above any user who has done anything close to install any software. I commend the Xandros team on creating a distro that can truly get off the ground running in limited time and no excess gray matter usage. Thank you, thank you and thank you for that.



Onto bigger and better things; she is quick out of the gate, but how does she corner???

Starting ( )

Well, I am not a fan of their boot selector, I mean this is exactly the same as 3.0, and doesn't do much for the eye candy appeal, and really no excitement or incite for the newbie on what is even happening. However I think I might be looking too hard for an issue as the install happened a bit too easily.



One thing you quickly notice when firing up Xandros the first time is pretty nice graphics. Nice in that they don't try and go over the top, which could slow down the process on older systems.




The boot screen is equally simple and clean, allowing the user to choose to login as the user created during installation, or the evil Admin login. Please note I am not a fan of the admin option of logging in, as it eventually makes newbies login as root, making their systems more susceptible to intrusion.



Like many KDE based distros, there is a nice First Time Run utility that allows you to setup time zones, printers, affects, etc...but is nothing new.



One new item in the First Time Run is the Registration with Xandros, which tells the user in order to get new software and updates they MUST register. Now, I am not opposed to this, and is pretty simple up front, but I do like the idea of me being anonomous to the OS provider. Do they really need to know me, especially if I paid $40 to get their OS to this point??? Getting a code is pretty simple, but I am giving a bit more data than I really would want too. Whether or not this still supports Apt-get is to be seen, which I will update later.



And honestly, that is a pretty common theme with Xandros: nothing new. It is a very vanilla distro in that there are no real bells or whistles, but I think that is the true intention. It is really designed as a packaged Linux distro that newbies can enjoy, get a PC up and running with in minimal time and effort and do what people want to do on computers, surf baby, surf. It allows for quick support with iPods, music, media and NTFS systems with Read/Write support, so you have a new Linux system that can talk to your older Windows boxes as well. It is truly a product that they intended it to be, and for that I give them credit. I doubt it will ever win over the hearts and minds of true Linux fans who live for the challenge of it all, but for mom and dad who are retired and can barely tell the difference between a mouse and a keyboard, this is definitely an option to look into.

Bonus Stuff ( )

So why should someone put out $40 for a distro when there are others that are FREE???? And realistically the only configuration that makes any sense is really the Premium at that gets up to $80. So what do you get for that? First of all (and most arguably what sets Xandros apart from the crowd) is CodeWeavers. In a nut shell, codeweavers is Wine tweaked to really work better and with a cleaner front end. So what is Wine then? Well, it stands for Wine Is Not An Emulator, and basically allows programs for Windows to be run within Linux. Do all work? Not really. So CodeWeavers has tweaked and pulled Wine for specific packages, mainly Microsoft Office, iTunes, Adobe packages and some other software that just doesn't exist in the forms Windows users would want. It is a bridge for the Windows users that just can't get rid of Word, Excel and Outlook and are affraid to work in OpenOffice, or simply don't want to try.

CodeWeavers alone is $39.95, so that covers the delta between the basic and premium costs, but there are other packages and a link in Xandros explains that. There are several key product differentiators for the $40, but the base cost of Xandros is still a mystery to me. Again, I don't mind people trying to make money in building a superior product, but the cost here is really for a convenience over superior and there are other packages out there today that offer the same level of support, quality and ease for FREE.

One feature that I am not fully in tune with is a nice to have package called Versora, which is a migration package from Windows to Linux. This type of application would work well for most newbies getting their key documents, settings, and attributes over. How well it works would really depend on the user's expectations and details that they are moving.

Another nice package in the distro is the Security Center, which really pulls together all the issues a newbie might be concerned about. Again, there is a for sale security package with Virus Checking, Firewall services (which are going against one of the current strengths of Linux) but I understand the concept in providing this in a user friendly way and applaud the centralized control and visibility of the product.



Overall ( )

So what do I think overall? (if you care, right ) Xandros has a really strong product, but I think they outprice their market. At $80 for a package that delivers what people would want, they are too near the cost of Windows which also does everything they do(and some a bit better). If they are after the orphaned Win 98 and ME consumers who are scratching their heads now that support is over, they missed by about 100 yards. I love the ease of the product, the great look and feel that KDE provides and how Xandros is sticking to what works in packages, kernels and simple software bundles. CodeWeavers is good for those who want to have the Windows packages, but Wine is also a viable option and again there is a pricing issue as to the value of what this really provides today when OpenOffice is gaining strength on its own for an Office package, reducing the need for Wine. If most of these came in a cheaper package, where it was not basically as much as MS, then no doubt this would be a 4 Pennie package. As it sits, 3 Pennies is all I can give until they offer a FREE base package similar to what Freespire is to Linspire, which to me is a direct comparison product offering (and also our next package to be reviewed)

So I will be probably deleting my install and moving on to keep the lookout for the Nirvana, but would recommend this strongly to any newbie who is tired of Redmond ways and wants the control that Linux provides back to the user, but not to my Linux friends looking for that thrill of the compile and having the cutting edge.

KnoLinuxGuy