British Royal Navy Submarines Now Run Windows

babybear writes: "By computing standards 2 years is old!"

Yep, and it gets even worse. Every brand-new computer on store shelves right now is obsolete. Every one of 'em. By Computing Standards those computers are already Over Thirty (anyone here over thirty? Didn't think so. )

Kubuntu is a flavor of Ubuntu Linux that runs the KDE -- the 'K' Desktop Environment -- instead of Gnome, the other DE. Both are nice DEs, so it's a matter of preference. The preceding, of course, doesn't tell you a dang thing about Linux, but now you know a tiny bit about KDE and Gnome. That is, you now know they exist.

Linux is the brainchild of Linus Torvalds, (LINUs' uniX = LINUX) who years ago started writing his own tiny version of UNIX; a very powerful operating system which, at that time, ran only on mainframes and minicomputers. Torvalds had no idea that Linux would turn out to be a huge hit, and today it is maintained, debugged, enhanced and used by millions of people worldwide. You can find it on everything from the tiniest of systems to huge supercomputer clusters and everything in-between.

Unlike Windows, Linux scales well. I've seen it used to run a single-chip web-server (also running Apache) that fit on a circuit board the size of a postage stamp. On the other end of the scale, IBM uses a special flavor of Linux to run its series of Blue Gene supercomputers. The L-model, for example, runs at a cool 750 Teraflops (that's 750 million million floating-point calculations per second). There are now even faster supercomputers, also running Linux.

The nice thing about Linux is that it's free (as in free beer). Can't beat that price! Better yet, there are no a$$holes in Redmond telling you what you can and cannot do with your computer and its software. That's even more freedom; the best kind of all.

You can even run a submarine with Linux (somebody probably is, somewhere). If you can't afford a submarine, then you can prolly find a free Linux submarine simulator on the 'net if you look hard enough.

So hey, download Kubuntu and burn it to a CD, then boot off the CD (if your BIOS isn't configured to boot off of a CD/DVD, let me know and I'll tell you how to change it). You can test drive Linux and WinDoze won't be any the wiser.

The best way to find out about Linux is to play with it. Think of it as The Ultimate Play-Dough. What kid doesn't like Play Dough?

Hello europium:

See you done it again, just so kind!............

It sounds interesting. I have read the odd bit about Linux and the inventor of it. But not Kubuntu. Not in those circles I guess?

And, you are right, every computer out there is 'old hat' now. It actually makes you wonder if we should not go for an almost completely different outlook. Have 'disposable' computers, because it costs me about 130 pounds a year to run mine just counting security software mainly. It gotten to the point where I spend longer taking care of my computer than I do using it! Yesterday was really bad, nearly 5 hours to get it through to where the desktop is ready to use. The icons all have little dots and lines over them and where there is normally black screen as it shuts down or starts up, it now has electric blue lines of 5mm squares going across the screen. I guess I do use it a lot, maybe 12 hours or more a day. But I do not have a printer because I could not afford one, or a scanner. There is just a computer and monitor.

I have two HDD each with two partitions. Total of 300 gigs.I may well put the Kubuntu on the slave and it wont get in the way then.

I have Restored my system three times in a week. It says there graphics are up to date, which I renewed last year anyway. But I cannot figure what is cause the icons to corrupt as they are. Any ideas?

With the memory problem caused by epilepsy and medication for same, I have to choose a 'good time' to work on something like taking stuff off and switching things around. I can't just do it, like that. I need to write it all down so I know where I am, how far I have got you know? It takes a while just to write that out. But I get there.

It would be nice to have a 2 MAC's though. I can get one, but I want to see whats available first. I may get a small laptop and use the desktop MAC as a storage and organising sort of centre? MACs are elegant inside and out! But I have not seen one in more than five years.

Hey, I am going to leave it there.

Take care and I hope you have the most wonderful holiday you can!