Yo Mamma Likes Ubuntu

Actually, my mom loves Ubuntu. My mother is like most parents these days – they buy a computer at Best Buy or Walmart and they take it home, plug it in and start using the web. The computer they bought usually has Windows on it and some form of AOL. After about 8 months of using the computer is becomes “slow” so they begin asking around for help. Usually some “helpful” person tells them that their computer is “just too old” and so rather than fixing the whatever is wrong, they need to buy a new computer.

My mom now owns 3 laptops and two desktops (one I’ve been using for a couple of years) – none of which are older than 5 years. Sound like your parents? This is great for computer manufacturers that make money off selling new computers to people. It’s not great for my mom who’s got 5 computers that all are in terrible shape but could be working perfectly, if they just were set up correctly. Click “continue reading” to find out more!

Tired of this trend, I decided to install Ubuntu on my mom’s new laptop. The only problem I had was with the network card – both Toshiba and RadioShack had the wrong drivers for it. Good job, guys. Once I nailed down that issue, though, Ubuntu worked perfectly. I sent the laptop home with my mom and she’s been chugging along nicely with it since. No slowdowns. No viruses. No spyware. No… ahem… AOL. It works so well, I’m now installing it on her other “broken” computers and am amazed at how they scream along, booting in no time, and just working the way they’re supposed to.

My mom’s become an evangelist to some of her friends. She told me that last week she and her lifelong friend had been on the phone talking about how they love their new Ubuntu systems and comparing cool features they’ve discovered. I think it’s fair to say that Linux has come home.

Haven’t tried Ubuntu? Give yourself a break and download the CD image off their site, burn the installation CD, and try it out. It’s worth the effort and you’ll be amazed at how great many of the photo management and editing tools are.

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