| A quick take on Ubuntu Linux |
May 03, 2005
If you're a watcher of the world of Linux distributions, you've likely been hearing about Ubuntu, a relatively new entrant that's managed to win the devotion of many Linux users by augmenting the solid and popular Debian GNU/Linux with up-to-date software components and slick packaging.
eWEEK Labs tested Ubuntu Linux 5.04 (which became available last month under the colorful code name The Hoary Hedgehog), and we can report that the buzz surrounding this distribution is well-warranted.
Ubuntu is an excellent choice as a desktop or notebook operating system: It includes the latest GNOME and KDE versions, and it requires less post-install configuration than does Fedora Core or Debian on its own. For instance, we found that, unlike with Fedora, laptop hibernation worked out of the box.
Like Fedora, Ubuntu enjoys the sponsorship of a corporate entity -- Canonical Ltd., which sells paid technical support for Ubuntu. However, Ubuntu depends most heavily on its association with Debian: Ubuntu releases begin as snapshots of a core portion of the unstable branch of Debian, and undergo testing and tweaking before they ship.
The Ubuntu project plans to ship a new version of Ubuntu every six months and provide security updates for at least 18 months after each version ships. Ubuntu 5.04 (the version numbers refer to release year and month) is only the second release so far, so time will tell how well the project executes on its road map.
Ubuntu supports Intel's x86, AMD's AMD64, and IBM's PowerPC architectures.
We tested the x86 and AMD64 versions of Ubuntu with success, but we found that Ubuntu doesn't provide as seamless an experience managing and running 32-bit code on its 64-bit version as SuSE does.
Ubuntu's otherwise very good graphical software package management application, Synaptic, doesn't do a good job of supporting multiple architectures.
With the assistance of a how-to from the Ubuntu Web site, we set up a separate environment for 32-bit applications using chroot, which worked well for us.
Multi-architecture issues aside, Ubuntu's software package management is a real strength of this distribution. Debian's apt-get application does a good job of resolving package dependencies, and Debian's dpkg component -- which underlies apt just as Red Hat's Red Hat Package Manager underlies Red Hat's up2date tool -- provides for install-time package configuration.
If you found this eWEEK.com article by Jason Brooks informative, be sure to check out eWEEK.com's Linux & Open Source Center for the latest open-source news, reviews, and analysis.
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