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Linux for the Desktop

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PCQ Bureau
New Update

Gone are the days when Linux sported only a spartan command-line interface, and was branded a ‘techie’ OS. Today, a Linux desktop lets you do everything you can do on other GUI desktops. We take you through some of this, from installing Linux on a workstation to playing audio and video. Most of the required software is in the PCQ Linux 7.1 distribution which you’ll find on our last month’s CDs, and some of it is on this month’s CD

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This issue will probably surprise a lot of you (especially if you belong to a certain mailing list :-), given the amazing amount of FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt) that you may have been subjected to by various articles in newspapers, websites, mailing lists and other media, many of which grandly announced the death of Linux on the desktop!

As we will proceed to prove in this issue, Linux is alive and well on the desktop, and maturing faster than you can say “subscription licenses”.

Modus operandi

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Computers, as we all know, exist to perform certain functions. A non-functional computer would, therefore, be deemed dead. It is therefore in the function of the computer that we must look for evidence. And we shall do so by examining the typical usage of a computer user in this day and age, and see if he or she is being served in the Linux world.

Meet Joe Ramaswamy. Joe Ramaswamy is a typical computer user. He bought his first PC a while ago, and wishes to use it to perform certain tasks, the primary ones being:

  • Use a word processor to write letters and reports
  • Use a spreadsheet to calculate his taxes, forecasts and other calculations
  • Use a presentation package for presentations at meetings
  • Use a standards-compliant Web browser 
  • To send and receive e-mail, complete with attachments
  • To chat online with friends and family using an instant messenger
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At home, he also has some other requirements:

  • View movies off VCDs (and DVDs when they become more easily available)
  • Listen to music in audio CD or MP3 format
  • To create MP3s from CDs and other sources

And he has one more requirement, which he finds to be the most important one of all:

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He should be able to do all this on an ordinary PC, without having to worry about a certain industry body sending him letters accusing him of being a criminal because he didn’t buy the software from one of its patrons.

And yes, he would like to do all this without having to mortgage his house and pledge his firstborn.

Given all of the above, Joe does have some limitations as well:

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  • He is not a technical person. He has used computers, but would definitely not describe himself as a “guru”. In case of problems, he wouldn’t know what to do anyway, so he would call in a support person. He knows this is OK, because he sees the same thing happen in his office every day.
  • He is very comfortable with graphical interfaces, as he sees no reason why he shouldn’t use one. None of this minimalistic text-interface that he saw some people use in the 1980s. What did they call it? DOS?
  • He likes getting new software every now and then, but he only has a dial-up Internet connection, which is not exactly ideal for downloading huge software packages.
  • His budget does not allow him to upgrade his PC every three to six months just to keep up with the latest release of operating system or application suite.
  • His machine is used by other people as well, so he really would like some sort of security so that other people cannot see his files or modify his desktop settings.

Well, it looks like we have our work cut out for us. What follows then is a series of articles that address each of Joe’s requirements, leading him through a journey of discovery of what a Linux desktop has to offer. And don’t take our word for it. Follow Joe on his journey, by installing a PCQ Linux 7.1 workstation from PCQuest July 2001, installing the additional software from this month’s CD, and learning just how useful Linux can be.

Then, when you have it all in place, why don’t you tell your friends and collegues about it? Show them what you can do! Join the millions of people across the world who already use Linux this way.

Atul Chitnis is CTO of Exocore Consulting

www.exocore.com

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