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arvevans
April 25th, 2012, 07:40 PM
After recently building a new computer it occurred to me that there may be an interesting opportunity available for Linux, and specifically for Ubuntu/Canonical.

Nearly every new motherboard, and nearly every new computer, is delivered with an accompanying CD that contains a backup copy of the BIOS, board specific drivers, and other info provided by the board and BIOS manufacturers. Might it be possible for Ubuntu/Canonical to provide these manufacturers with a free copy of R_Ubuntu (Recovery_Ubuntu) as a run-live boot-able file on this BIOS disk? That way every motherboard could come with a run-able and install-able OS.

This could serve two purposes...(1) The system owner would have access to a board-ready OS for testing and operating new systems without the cost and effort of purchasing "that other popular OS", and (2) the run-from-CD OS could be used to debug and repair crashed systems, no matter what the installed OS might be.

Going a step further with this,...if that Live CD version included support for Cloud Computing, there might be less need for "that other popular OS" to ever be purchased.

If Ubuntu/Canonical is not interested in doing this, then it is highly probable that Google will do it with their Android OS...maybe soon.

Arv

sanderj
April 25th, 2012, 10:08 PM
Yeah, nice idea. It has been tried, even in a bit more beautiful way: Linux available - probably in flash memory - on the motherboard itself. It provided Internet, Mail, etc.

This was done two years ago. I've not heard from it since then.

But ask yourself:
Would it be good/nice for you and me. Yes, probably.
Would it be good/nice for your neighbour, father/mother, etc? Hmm, probably not relevant or useful for them: yet another OS wouldn't make their life better.