Ubuntu 8.04 has disappointed me

[elirarey]

I read the Linux is NOT Windows article, and I have to say, I was expecting Ubuntu to be different from Windows -- in fact, I really LIKED the ways it was different, initially. The disappointment I'm talking about I think may have something to do with specifically Ubuntu 8.04 ...

I'm new to linux, and started out very excited about the prospect. It took me a few weeks to get the kinks out of my system, to get the wireless working, to get flash working so that I could watch clips on youtube, but eventually I got it up and running.

Now I'm not sure if I ever should have. I liked how easy it is to choose what software runs on startup -- it was the stupid dock slowly loading a bunch of programs I never use that finally did in Windows for me -- but Linux doesn't seem much faster than Windows at launching individual applications ... and as far as overall stability, it's a step down.

At first I thought I had gotten too carried away with the novelty of new software in moving from Firefox to Opera, as Opera gave me problems with flash websites, and occasionally would lock up wither permanently or temporarily when trying to watch a youtube clip. (I'm a filmmaker and video artist, thus the youtube obsession.) But when I switched to Firefox I found that it reacted similarly, except the program would just close unexpectedly instead of locking up.

When I researched the problem on the web, I found that the problems I've been having are problems that many Hardy Heron users have been up against, and that I'm actually doing better than most.

All of this is not just to complain, but to pose a question: Did I choose the wrong distro to try Linux? Or is my overwhelming desire to be able to access the same websites that I used to when I used Windows just more than Linux has to offer. I'm wary to change distros because of the big time investment that is required to get the machine up and running to begin with. I can google for tech support with the best of them, but I doubt I'll ever be comfortable with the command line.

I'm interested to hear what more experienced Linux users and other newbies have to say about this. 8.10 is coming out soon, and I'm hoping that some of the issues I have will be addressed... but I really don't know.

Maybe I should save up and buy a Mac,

[Dann]

That problem is across most distros. The issue isn't with Ubuntu, or linux, but rather with Adobe's flash plug-in for linux. I think they just kind of hurried it out there to shut us up.

I posted a couple "fixes" for it a week or so ago. If you check my other posts, you'll see it. They aren't the best fixes though. I think firefox with the 'restore previous session' button is the way to go.

[aluminumspleen]

Hey elirarey, I hear you. I just started learning Linux recently, with a dual boot of Kubuntu 8.04 and Vista in July. It's been an interesting road, I may say, as I've encountered many of the problems and had many of the questions you had.

When I first got firefox, and tried to go do anything on the internet (like youtube), i found out i needed a special "plug-in" for flash, PDFs, all the stuff that makes the internet interesting. So, I went and got the plug-ins off the site, all the while thinking "When I was using Internet Explorer (shudder) I didn't need to do these things."

Then, when I installed Ubuntu, and the KDE desktop for Kubuntu (because I was used to a "windows-esque" setup), it didn't do a whole lot for me. First of all, I accidentaly deleted my whole hard-drive filled with music when I attempted the dual boot, so already I wasn't too hot for the whole thing. When I finally did get everything up and running, I went and played with all the little customizations that Windows doesn't offer to make the system my own. However, it still did feel fairly unstable compared to Windows, and certain programs would crash repeatedly.

In my opinion, us users who were good with computers and liked to work with them, to play with them, got frustrated with Microsoft Windows. We saw all these people who we could relate to on some level using Linux, and were so happy they ditched Windows. So Linux to us (or at least to me ) seemed like this perfect solution to our frustration.

Needless to say, once we got here, we realized it was even MORE frustrating at times than Windows. But if we take a step back and look, we see that we can DO something about it. We have these forums where people can talk to real people who've had the same problems, and where we can get (or try to get) answers to these problems.

That's what I think is the biggest thing about Linux, for me. It's a constant learning experience. With windows and other commercial OSs, if there's a bug in the program, all we can do is call Microsoft, stay in queue for an hour, and yell at someone on the other side of the world. (I guess email works too, unless there's a bug in outlook ). With Linux, we can learn by experimenting, by asking those more experienced than us and pursuing this learning as far as it will go. It's a completely different process.

I don't know. I didn't really answer any question or say anything, but that's how I feel, and I can relate to your feelings about Ubuntu.

If you really don't like Ubuntu, Live CD's are the greatest thing ever. You can download ISOs for live CDs off of many distro's websites. I've done this, and have found many other distros I prefer to Ubuntu.

As for the command line, you learn it faster than you think. I used to know nothing four months ago, now I can do a bunch of things from the command line. For very easy lessons on using the shell,
LinuxCommand.org: Learning the shell.

Thanks for your time, and I hope I didn't say anything offensive or dumb.

[elirarey]

Thanks for your thoughts on both posts, much appreciated.

It is true that I've enjoyed learning about Linux ... I just wish the reward for my learning were a little more exciting. The upside is that, at least partly due to my switching to Linux, I've also gotten into bittorrent and learned python scripting -- both things I had always meant to do before but never got around to. I think I will stick with Ubuntu, for a while at least. I like the little sound it makes when it turns on, even if the Windows sound was composed by Brian Eno. (This is true!)

As far as Live CDs, possibly due to some hardware problem (or just poor quality) running an OS off a CD on my laptop is sort of the most painfully slow and loud and bad thing ever. Otherwise maybe it would be great.

[br0ken]

Companies don't have the same motivation to make quality Linux equivalents of their Windows counterparts. They (Adobe, etc) know that a program they make for Windows will be used by millions of people. So they actually put the effort (which usually means time and money) into working out all of the bugs. Linux on the other hand, relies on regular users like you and me to come up with a program that has the same functions as a given program for Windows. Windows requires plug-ins for browsers, just they mostly come pre-installed and with much more testing before it is released. As far as programs crashing, Linux will log somewhere WHY that program crashed or whatever the problem may be. Windows, for the most part, does not. The program dies and you see a generic error message and it's gone. It is kind of hard to do something to fix a problem when you don't know the cause of it. IMO, Linux has come a very very long way as far as the range of programs available. The first time I installed Linux, you had to put in a particular hex number for the type of partition you were creating (ie. swap, native, etc). I am a mildly advanced Linux user (if there is such a thing) but I know that as long as I live and use Linux, I will continue to learn Linux. It's not for everyone just like Windows or Mac OS isn't for everyone.