Desktop Linux for small business

[netfreak]

As desktop Linux becomes ever more professional, and with Microsoft still a year away from shipping its new Vista version of Windows, could now be the time to go open-source on the desktop? Of course, circumstances will vary from company to company, but if you're ready to make the move, there's a good crop of Linux distributions ready to accommodate your needs.

What we did

We set ourselves the task of installing and configuring various desktop and notebook systems with five of the leading Linux distributions: Mandriva Linux 2006, Novell Linux Desktop 9, Red Hat Desktop 4, SUSE Linux 10 and Ubuntu Linux 5.10. We then attempted to implement some basic business tools for each distro: connect an email client to Microsoft's Exchange server; print on a networked printer; and set up instant messaging.[/b]

http://reviews.zdnet.co.uk/0,39023100,39237495,00.htm

 

[max]

Hehe. Looks like Ubuntu is going reign supreme! 😀

 

[prathapml]

Well.In the linux communities of REAL professionals, Ubuntu is looked down upon, as a dumb distro. 🙂

 

[netfreak]

Originally posted by prathapml@Nov 25 2005, 11:23 PM
REAL professionals......
[snapback]33218[/snapback]

[/quote]

Use Solaris 😉

 

[prathapml]

Solaris is not open-source, btw. 😛

 

[netfreak]

Solaris was not open-source, btw. 😛

It now is 😀

 

---

[popcorn]

looking at that link i found ubuntu 5.10 is best for small business.what about the best distro for home user?any suggestions?

 

[aniketvb]

well i think Fedora 4 is good for the desktop home users. I have been using it for the past 4 months. If you cut down the server packages and install just the basic packages and multimedia its quite nice. Only thing is that you have to setup multimedia codecs separately from the internet. Its a very stable distro.

 

[popcorn]

can any thing beat linspear? in terms of comforts....

 

[max]

For home user, Linspire, Lycoris, SuSE and Ubuntu are best.Prathapml, I dont agree that Ubuntu is looked down upon. It's a very good effort and best of all it is inherited from Debian 😉

 

[popcorn]

suse and ubuntu are best..... i also tried suse64 & ubuntu 64. ubuntu64 worked with my digital camera!! i was surprised!

 

[uthfull]

Ubuntu is nice... but still a lil buggy!!SUSE LINUX... is simply outstanding.Linspire... it has all the comforts... but its more like Windows n not like Linux. N im seriously bored of windows or ne of its clones. n also... Linspire is way slow. Ubuntu has some probs with playin mp3z n u hve to download codecs. SUSE plays em without a prob.

 

[prathapml]

Fedora Core4 is fine, but too sluggish & bloated!

Originally posted by netfreak@Nov 26 2005, 11:07 AM
Solaris was not open-source, btw. 😛

It now is  😀[snapback]33239[/snapback]

[/quote]Nope, is not.
Proof?

Originally posted by max@Nov 26 2005, 01:48 PM
For home user, Linspire, Lycoris, SuSE and Ubuntu are best.

Prathapml, I dont agree that Ubuntu is looked down upon. It's a very good effort and best of all it is inherited from Debian 😉[snapback]33263[/snapback]

[/quote]And you proved my point.
Ubuntu is geared for the softened-down, windows convert.
And anyways, if debian heritage is what you want, then why not as well go for the true-blue parent, Debian, which still is a good option!

 

[max]

Firstly Solaris ISNT Open Source. Open-Solaris is open source. It's called Nexenta and it's based on debian. It's basically GNU/Solaris. Meaning, it has all the utilities of GNU while Solaris provides the kernel.

http://www.gnusolaris.org/gswiki

Prathapml, can you tell me how I proved your point? Ubuntu is a great distro. No doubt about it. The reason why newbies prefer it over vanilla debian is because it has a heck lot more features than Debian. It is tweaked for the newcomer. Infact, experienced linux users wont think twice while installing plain old debian. But its a nightmare for the newbies. Debian's installer just sucks. It's too cryptic for the newbie. Thats where Ubuntu steps in. Also, if you read many reviews of Ubuntu, you will find it's not just a polished version of debian. It does install seamlessly where many distros fail...including debian 🙂

 

[prathapml]

For starters, the Ubuntu testing process is too lenient.Their compulsion of needing to have a new release every 6 months, pushes in packages which should not have been there. Leading to instability.And the package composition is geared to home use - ubuntu is not very suitable for the office. And the base CD misses many of the tools I'm used to on Debian (yes you CAN get it off the net, but then anything CAN be got off the net - its just that the base CD is no use if you're offline).