How many of you completely switched to Linux?

[XBMC old School]

I try to use Ubuntu for most stuff. I was never a Windows user really however - I have a five year old MacBook that I now use for recording TV programmes and films which links by wifi to a Sony Media server connected to the TV.

I will probably try to move this to Linux in the future, though so far the functionality and ease of use of the purchased Eye TV software for the Mac is superior to anything I have found on linux. So having bought it some time ago, I will keep using it for now.

Linux is great for mainstream desktop stuff (by which I mean email, browsing, office, playing music and so on), but once you go away from this there always seem to be under the bonnet issues that require investigation to make them work. And there isn't always time or the necessary knowledge. For example I can't get Me-TV to work on Ubuntu 12-04 and in any case editing out commercials is a real struggle in Openshot. I will have a look at Lightworks when that arrives on Ubuntu, but I wonder if that will be overkill when all I want to do is edit out commercials from recorded films.

For me Ubuntu is the most rounded linux version available - and I have introduced a few people to it. They would probably run a mile if confronted with the command line - but these are the kind of people that Ubuntu needs if it is to outgrow the hobbyist/enthusiast sector or the corporate/supported sector.

So I think more of the software needs to be accessible for these users and work out of the box. It sounds good to have thousands of programs included in the software centre, but the core of things that "just work" and which are supported directly by Ubuntu developers maybe needs to expand. The software centre is often more than not just confusing without some technical understanding - and it should be possible to set it up so that CLI programs can be hidden.

Importing CDs is another case in point. Sound juicer is the recommended program for ripping CDs, but it can only get data for less than 50% of my CDs (whether or not you are a fan of iTunes, its online database gets a 100% hit when retrieving data). So I use Asunder to rip CDs as it uses a different database and has a better hitrate for retrieving data. But Asunder can't (as far as I can see) be set up as a preferred application. There is always some little thing...

Hard not too iBash that but try this one out

[Erik1984]

@ld114

My preferred application for ripping is K3B. Maybe not ideal on Ubuntu because it's a Qt app but I find it superior in album information retrieval. So far it could classify nearly all of my albums.

[ld114]

Thanks XBMC Old School and Euroman - I shall look into those suggestions.

I should note that I have now got Me-TV running on Precise. There is a development repository for it on launchpad which provides a recent build of version 1.40. You need to remove any old versions of Me-TV including config files (and delete ~/.local/share/me-tv) before the install. This recent version doesn't create a channels.conf however, so you have to do that with w-scan (sudo apt-get install w-scan). The command I used in a terminal is:

$ w_scan -c GB -x >channels.conf

I have a Hauppauge WinTV Nova-T usb tuner - I plugged it in an then ran Additional Drivers from System Settings which installed the right DVB driver. Rebooted with the tuner connected, ran Me-TV, selected the channels.conf file and it worked. You can delete channels but not re-order them. However it works. I like Me-TV as it is a lightweight program if you just want to watch TV.

[Deepblue3]

I am in the market for a new laptop but hate to think I will be paying for an operating system (MS Windows) which I will bypass and install Ubuntu on my first day of use.

There are online companies who will build you a box or laptop OS-free from the ground up, at least there are here in the UK. I would imagine that's the case in the US too. I bought such a box a year ago and installed Ubuntu, my favourite Linux OS, which I've used happily now for the past two years - as many have said, it just works!

[buckyaustin]

I have completly switched to Linux, used Fedora,Ubuntu,Xubuntu,Lubuntu,Puppy,DSL and currently using Kubuntu.

Since your are a gammer I recommend installing wine,playonlinux, this will allow you play some games that are only available to M$. Also steam is comming to Ubuntu. I think you can download the beta.

Good luck gamming on Linux.

[cariboo]

I replaced my network adapter in April, and just booted into Windows 8 for the first time since then, and found the network wasn't automagically supported like it is in Ubuntu. I downloaded the driver software from the manufacturer's web site, and tried to set it up in Windows, and the software tells me I have to install it before inserting the adapter into the computer.

I'm not going to pull the adapter, just to install the driver software. I guess this ends my Windows usage on this system (which is my main computer) until I build a new system next spring.

[sammiev]

I replaced my network adapter in April, and just booted into Windows 8 for the first time since then, and found the network wasn't automagically supported like it is in Ubuntu. I downloaded the driver software from the manufacturer's web site, and tried to set it up in Windows, and the software tells me I have to install it before inserting the adapter into the computer.

I'm not going to pull the adapter, just to install the driver software. I guess this ends my Windows usage on this system (which is my main computer) until I build a new system next spring.

Be a sport, I want to know the rest of the story!

[djibrilcoulibaly]

I still using Windows becoz most of my stuff suported only Windows ...
but sure it's not for long Because folks here will help me to write a petitions against my stuff Devs . before that I walking through in some Linux wiki these days . to up my linux knowledge . before the fight with windows an my stuff developers

[rickyrockrat]

There are online companies who will build you a box or laptop OS-free from the ground up, at least there are here in the UK. I would imagine that's the case in the US too. I bought such a box a year ago and installed Ubuntu, my favourite Linux OS, which I've used happily now for the past two years - as many have said, it just works!

Zareason is an excellent company. I've bought a laptop from them that is still a great box. System 76 is also good. I bought one from them that didn't boot, and they took it back no questions asked. Both good companies.

[Starynite]

I want to erase Windows but unfortunately, I'm still a gamer at heart.

I am totally switched. I hated the viruses and Antivirus programs that slow you down. I liked the Gnome desktop and want to go back to it. I have 12.04 now. I have done all I have read and still see no choice at startup near my name in the right top corner.