Since January, I’ve been almost exclusively using Ubuntu. Before that, I knew absolutely nothing about using Linux. I was a Windows/DOS user for 12 years, and even a Microsoft Beta Tester and TBED engineer for 18 months.

At the same time as switching to Ubuntu on my home desktop, I also started a new job, and all the computers at the office are Windows. As a result I’ve spent the last eight months feeling uncomfortable using a computer between the hours 9-5.30 Monday to Friday.

It’s been an interesting opportunity to compare Linux and Windows, with only the last one not being novel to me. The rest of the post addresses making the switch, including a run down of the handiest things I’ve found and the biggest problems I’ve dealt with.

Over the past few years a lot of what I do has been shifted online rather than sitting on my own hard disk. This makes it easier to play with operating systems, because I don’t generate and store so much personal data to backup and be wary of erasing. I’d noticed frequent Windows reinstalls were becoming less of a pain because of this, but that made me less inclined to stick with it because I thought it would be just as easy for other OSes. It is.

I held out with Windows XP for a long time. But all of the “user friendly” obfuscation in XP makes me shout obscenities and bang my fist on the desk. However, after being made a beta tester for Microsoft I have been using Windows Vista ever since the beta stages. During the beta stages I liked Vista, but as features dropped and performance never greatly improved I grew more and more tired with the glass-like OS and craved an alternative altogether; inspiring me to try Ubuntu. I kept a Windows installation as I did not know what to expect.

So I installed Ubuntu, and after two weeks realised I hadn’t booted into Windows once. I liked it a lot, and got Beryl running with functionality and visual effects better than any aero theme. If these terms are baffling you, don’t worry. If you get into Ubuntu you’ll soon learn all about them.

I’m impressed with the security on Linux and Apple OSes. They don’t just accept your initial login as validation to make changes to the system, instead they demand your password every time anything attempts to change system files. Vista does this also, but it feels sluggish and can be turned off which I think defeats the object.

This does feel a lot more secure than Windows, though I’m absolutely sure there would be ways to punch through it. However, another reason I like it is that encourages the separation of system/program files and the data they use. Furthermore, all of this is done via your home directory, with your personal data and application configs all stored there.

There are a few things I’ve carried from my use of Windows into Linux. Because it’s open, I have it functioning somewhat like a hybrid of both, which is making it better than either.

A few months after installing, I formatted and reinstalled my EXT partition with Ubuntu Fiesty, and everything worked a little better. However, there are a bunch of useful things I’ve learned and problems I’ve dealt with, detailed below.

1. Terminal, run program, and force quit:
These are things you’ll likely use all the time if you become a regular Ubuntu user; it’s handy to have them in your panel (like stuff in Windows quicklaunch or the OS-X dock).

You can drag and drop terminal to your panel from Applications > Accessories. You can add run program and force quit by right clicking on a panel and selecting “Add to Panel…”. I also added a drawer and shoved system monitor, synaptic, and lock screen in there.

2. Search is OK:
Search does work properly in Nautilus, it may just seem like it isn’t to a long time Windows user, because it doesn’t immediately cause massive hard disk activity. Search from “file system” rather than “root” if you want to look at a whole drive. Or install Beagle, a fantastic search program.

3. Hide and Find:
CTRL + H unhides all hidden files and folders in a Nautilus window (hidden items begin with a dot, e.g. .icons)

4. Backups:
There’s a proper way to back up data via the terminal rather than moving icons around in Nautilus. See, for example, the procedure for Evolution. I grumbled at this initially, but by the first time I’d done it I realised why it was better: Not only does it preserve all your file permissions, but you can put all of the commands into an executable script and thus make things very easy whenever you backup in future.

5. Windows Flattens GRUB:
It seems by far the easiest way to set up dual boot is to set up partitions, install Windows first, then install Ubuntu, which drops GRUB in, allowing you select from your OSes on boot.

G-Parted is a great way to set up your partitions (I have: 80gig HDD for Ubuntu, 2 gig swap for Ubuntu, a 40gig NTFS hardrive for XP which I’ll probably make much smaller next time I reformat, and a 25gig NTFS partition for games. Partition Magic is what many would choose, but apparently it can’t handle Linux partitions properly.

The reason to install Windows first is that, if you install Ubuntu beforehand, Windows later shits its vile, inconsiderate spoor all over your MBR and gets rid of GRUB. Of course! If someone is installing Windows, they won’t want to use anything else, right? Hah.

To fix it, the best way is to boot from a live CD of Ubuntu and reinstall GRUB. It’s easy. Various instructions are here, there and everywhere.

Also, if you’re using any flavour of Ubuntu, sign up at the forums! They’re an invaluable learning resource, and so might you be if you’re the first to solve a problem.

Ubuntu is open enough and has enough of a culture around it that I can fix things myself, and in so doing learn a hell of a lot about it. OS-X is still better than Windows in terms of security and aesthetics, but even more closed. I can go a lot deeper into Ubuntu, and as a result it feels like my operating system rather than somebody else’s.

For ideological reasons, I’d like to be able to switch to entirely open source software, and I did. I ditched gaming for a while and I am left with a fantastic OS and just a slight craving to play counter strike. In fact, one of the reasons I started a blog was something to do instead of gaming, so it seems linux can help unleash your creative side also Hopefully, as Linux distros become progressively more user friendly there will be more demand for Linux support in terms of games and hardware. I certainly make sure to fire off emails whenever I’m struggling to get something working with Linux, just to let people know that there are Linux users who are trying to use their products or would like to.

The indicators are clear: Just like the browsers, email clients, and media players I switched to in the past few years, Open Source Operating Systems are almost there and steadily getting better.

In contrast, closed source OSes have been getting worse in many respects for a long time, and I suspect not many years hence will have to do quite a bit of backpedaling to become competitive.

Switching to Ubuntu was easy, fairly trouble free and a refreshing experience. Every time I hear of another switch I grin from ear to ear. Because of what I’ve learned and what I can now do, it was well worth it!