A Travel Guide for Visitors from Windows
If you, the wise Windows traveler, have decided to visit the world of Ubuntu Linux for the first time, breathe a little easier. What appears to be a daunting task will be made just a bit easier by perusing this page. You are not the first visitor to this strange land, and I will try to present a bit of wisdom gathered from those who have walked this path before you.
This post, and the posts to follow, will be a living document, updated as I receive feedback and as I find new information. I will concentrate on the latest stable release of Ubuntu (currently 8.10, or Intrepid Ibex) as the primary distribution, but that may change in the future if another, more Windows-user-friendly distribution comes to the forefront.
The first thing that you should know is that Ubuntu (or any distribution of Linux) is not Windows. It may at times appear to be like Windows, but it is not, nor does it try to be. Luckily, the developers of Ubuntu have focused on providing features that are designed to help you as a Windows user be more at ease with Linux. You should be prepared to unlearn some old habits and discover new ways of accomplishing tasks.
Let’s talk a little about definitions and differences. Technically, the term Linux refers to a “kernel;†the core or nucleus of the operating system that provides other parts of the operating system and applications the ability to communicate with and utilize the computer’s hardware. On the other hand “Ubuntu†is a “distribution;†an operating system which is built around the Linux kernel.
This is less confusing than it sounds. Every program that you run sends information to the computer at the machine level, giving the computer’s processor tasks to perform, and telling the computer’s memory what information it needs to store, or retrieve. Windows is no different – it too is an operating system built around a kernel, or core. For instance, Windows Vista is the name of both an operating system and the kernel at its core. The next generation of Windows, currently called “Windows 7,†is to be based on the Windows Vista kernel. So in equivalent terms, Linux and Vista are kernels, and Ubuntu and Windows 7 are operating systems, or distributions, built on those kernels.
We, as the end users, will normally be working with an operating system’s “shell.†The shell provides us an interface for users to communicate with the operating system’s kernel. It is what you see on the screen and how your input (mouse, keyboard) is captured by the computer and sent to the kernel. In modern versions of Windows the shell is Windows Explorer, which provides familiar elements like the Start Menu, the Taskbar, and the file browser. The Windows shell is a Graphical User Interface (GUI), as opposed to a Command Line Interface (CLI). Older versions of Windows had both a CLI and GUI available. Modern versions of Windows are GUI only through Windows Explorer.
Because Linux is a kernel, you have many different ways of installing and running Linux. If you chose to do so you could create your own version of a Linux operating system from scratch, adding components as you go. Luckily for the vast majority of us who are not developers, companies like Canonical have recognized that creating distributions that have packaged software is useful to non-technical users. Ubuntu is packaged with both a Command Line Interface (called bash) and a Graphical User Interface (called GNOME, based on the X Window System). Many experienced Linux users prefer the CLI, as it can be much quicker and more efficient to perform tasks. People familiar with Windows generally like to work within GNOME, or another X Window-based desktop manager.
You may have read about Kubuntu, or Xubuntu; these are very similar to Ubuntu, but the GUI will be different. Kubuntu’s desktop manager is called KDE (which looks and feels a bit more like Windows Explorer than GNOME), and Xubuntu’s is called Xfce. There are many differences between them, but as a new user I advise you to pick one and learn it before trying a new one. My experience is primarily with Ubuntu and so the help I provide will be based on Ubuntu/GNOME. Though if I am able I will provide assistance regarding other desktop managers as well.
Hopefully this gives you a brief overview of some of the terms that Windows users will be confused by when first evaluating what version of Linux to install and try. I will update this post as I receive comments, to be more useful.
Next up: GNOME vs. Windows Explorer, and terms that will help you as you first view Ubuntu/Linux.
Ubuntu sucks. I hate Linux! (Ok, not really…)
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