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Do you Ubuntu? If the answer's "Yes," then you probably installed the operating system yourself, using an .iso image and a little keyboard finger-grease. Congratulations! You're the One Percent of the computer world; most users, especially everyday users, would never even attempt to load a Linux variant on a PC. If they want to go truly mainstream, Ubuntu and its Linux brethren need to come preinstalled on OEM-built computers -- and that's why the numbers and news tossed around at yesterday's Ubuntu Developers Summit are so heartening.
First up, some actual penetration numbers: Canonical VP Chris Kenyon said that somewhere between 8 and 10 million PCs and laptops worth about $7.5 billion in total shipped with Ubuntu preinstalled in 2011. That's still chump change compared to the units shipped with Windows installed, but Phoronix reports that Canonical expects over 18 million Ubuntu-packin' units to move in 2012, a figure that Kenyon claims would give the OS a 5 percent stake of all global PC sales -- and that doesn't even count manual installations.
Of course, if you're going to have more users, you're going to need more developers toiling away at Ubuntu-based applications, and along those lines, Dell and Canonical have announced that they're working together to create a developer-friendly version of Ubuntu made specifically for use with the Dell XPS13 Ultrabook. Project Sputnik, as the project is called, is a bare-bones install of Ubuntu 12.04 LTS (Precise Pangolin) that includes full support for the XPS13 hardware and a couple of useful utilities but little else; the two companies are working on including a native github repository that would include preconfigured "developer profiles" that pack in utilities for specific development environments, such as Ruby, JavaScript and Android.
The guys at DevOpsAngle talked to Barton George, Dell's lead on the project, who said that the company hopes to ship XPS13 Ultrabooks with the bare-bones Sputnik configuration preinstalled sometime in the future if the project proves successful. For now, however, Ubuntu devs who already own an XPS13 can snag the Sputnik .iso over on the Ubuntu website.
Comments are closed on this article
keno
May 14, 2012 at 7:56am
Left the windows Operating system starting January 2012. loaded Linux on one of my 6 home computers. Following a short time of learning, I removed windows from my home computers.
Enjoyed the ride with MS but they have cut so much out of their operating system it will not operate my programming equipment. Linux is much like the old days of DOS.
keno
QuadraQ
May 09, 2012 at 3:24pm
I think Windows 8 may represent an opportunity for Linux. Some people that are super turned off by the WinRT stuff in Win8, may be tempted to give Linux a try. Plus Linux has reached a level of maturity in which if you just need a workstation for typical tasks, it's a great and inexpensive choice.
ApathyCurve
May 09, 2012 at 8:29am
They'll need some more streamlining of app and driver installation. It's much better than it used to be, but you still have to dip to the command line interface on a more frequent basis than the average off-the-shelf user will be comfortable with -- or even capable of.
Engelsstaub
May 09, 2012 at 12:45am
"My love for Ubuntu and Linux. / My hatred for Dell."
...I'm conflicted :P
maxeeemum
May 08, 2012 at 8:50pm
If Project Sputnik removes "Unity" it could have some success. Just like with Windows 8 Metro Canonical has lost its way and is losing many users in its new direction.
Dell would probably do better with Linux Mint.
chop_slap
May 10, 2012 at 12:58am
I play Crysis 2 regularly on Ubuntu with PlayOnLinux (WINE). Here is a list of supported games:
http://www.playonlinux.com/repository/?cat=1&type=0
Eagle70ss
May 08, 2012 at 9:36pm
Yes,
if you have Win 7 running on Virtual Machine inside Ubuntu. But I'm pretty sure the performance will be garbage.
bganse
May 09, 2012 at 7:25am
I do believe there is a program called playonlinux that allows you to install games like crysis cod etc.
DocBogus
May 08, 2012 at 6:01pm
Ubu is the natural choice. Best support, Largest community. A solid company behind it. My grampa bought an eeepc with it last week, with a nice orange sticker, preloaded with Ubu 10.04 (?). Had to upgrade it to 12.04. And he's a very happy customer [please, MaxPcTeam, check the spam on this page]
loozer
May 08, 2012 at 2:48pm
Out of all the different distros--ubuntu
That's probably a bad choice....
USraging
May 08, 2012 at 8:00pm
i prefer fedora to ubuntu, ubuntu feels like its trying to be like windows but its not.
0ly1r3m@1ns
May 08, 2012 at 2:51pm
Sorry to say this but I have done ALOT of distro hoping and Ubuntu/Ubuntu based distros tend to be the most stable, easy to use and user friendly. they are just as fast as any other distro. Also Ubuntu 12.04 has been the fastest OS I have EVER used its fairly stable but still needs a few bug fixes here and there (nothing serious) so I feel this is a good choice
