PCQ Linux 2009 : Live on your machine

PCQuest has had a long tradition in bringing you the latest and greatest in

technology. One of the endeavors that we have is also to make technology

accessible not only by technical experts but also by people who would like to

make better use of their time and learn how to use these new things. PCQLinux

has been one such initiative that has endured over many years and has always

been at the cutting edge of what can be offered to both novice and experienced

Linux users. The philosophy of PCQLinux is that it offers something unique and

cutting edge (such as the first distro to have a Super Computer install option

to being able to install and customize your setup in the fewest clicks and

more). But PCQLinux also offers something else - a detailed set of articles that

explain everything that is unique and interesting in the distribution and how

you can go ahead and make use of them. We take care to cater to the novice user

of PCQLinux as well, so that they can try out the flavors without affecting

their work.

Keeping up with this tradition, we bring to you the latest version of

PCQLinux this month. PCQLinux 2009, as it is called, actually is very different

from what we have offered you before. This time we offer you PCQLinux as a live

DVD — in fact, FOUR live distributions. There are many reasons for doing this.

Try Linux out



The average computer user is usually quite resistant to working with

anything new — especially something that feels as scary as Linux. So getting

someone to install and use Linux by repartitioning their hard disk, running an

OS install, figuring out Logical Volume Groups and other such scary sounding

terms, and being extremely unsure whether the data on their hard disk has

vanished or not is quite a task, and virtually impossible. This is why PCQLinux

2009 makes a lot of sense — people can try out a customized version of Linux

targeted at the Indian audience without having to worry about all of this.

Scenarios



Over the many years of coming out with PCQLinux distributions, we realized

that a one-size-fits-all type of distribution does not really make sense in the

kind of stuff we were doing. Different people require different sets of things

and need to be able to try them out without any hindrance. Installing a Linux

distribution and getting your particular set of applications to work correctly

can be a lesson in frustration sometimes. This time we wanted to give something

that is already configured and running out of the box for different sets of

target users so that these users will not need to do anything other than booting

off the DVD. They will then get a distribution that makes most sense to them and

can start working immediately with it. We've more-or-less achieved this other

than in a single instance — which we will talk about in detail further down the

line.

Portability



We also wanted to make PCQLinux 2009 portable. That is, you can use the Live

distribution of your choice anywhere by simply taking the DVD with you. Any

machine can be transformed magically (and temporarily) into a PCQLinux 2009

workstation by simply putting in the DVD and booting off it. Since the installs

are customized for different segments of people, you can even convert the one

that you want into a single CD or USB live and use only that anywhere and get

access to the applications and desktop that you are used to — no matter what OS

or applications are installed on the machine itself.

A gateway to the OSS world



For organizations that are considering using Open Source Software, the PCQLinux
2009 flavors provide an easy way to use and get used to the open source software

world. Pilot groups of users can try out PCQLinux 2009 on their machines without

disturbing what they have. Organizations can then get feedback from the users

directly on the usage and decide whether they should use OSS (of course with

many other considerations as well).

Linux has indeed come a long way and we strive to make it accessible to more

people around the country. PCQLinux 2009 is the latest step in this task and we

hope that you will not only find these flavors useful yourself but also make

sure that others who may find it useful try it out too.