Slashdot Mirror

Likewise, you've probably never seen the speed at which my parents can type.

Then Linux isn't for your parents. Don't try to make Linux into something it isn't.

Sure, it CAN be made into exactly that (i.e. Lycoris), but it isn't like that out of the box. Linux should never be "dumbled down" by default to satisfy a minority of a minority of Linux users. There are Linux distributions for elementary school children, and the same distribution can be made into a powerful developer workstation.

Its not the OS that matters, its how you configure it.

Give your parents an OSX machine or XP Home Edition and they'll be fine; they're all about the mouse.

Lycoris (I know, *grown*) has a Linux release for a tablet pc. Though this press release is dated 2003.... hmmm...

Well, Mandrake was on those Wal-mart computers too. I tried Lycoris and it had less usability than Ubuntu. If the default install was not good enough and Linuxconf couldn't configure it, then it was to the commandline you must go.

They did not have any specialized config tools like DrakeConf or Yast. This is the same failing I have heard others complain about thier golden child Ubuntu. You even have this problem with Linspire and Xandros.

Lastly, Lycoris susposedly came out with a pocketpc device distro. Last I heard it was vapor, and was just Opie with a few different icons and background. You can still find the page on thier server but it should only take a cursory glance to see it was vapor. If you search for it you will find some screen shots. Take it from a Zaurus owner, it is just OpenZaurus.

What is with the flower stuff. Mac users are suppose to be the gay ones. Right?

Yahoo! Yet Another Distro.

Just what we need to increase confusion. Look - I agree that there some justification to put this out, but do we *really* need yet another distro? A few well placed distros, each appealing to a market segment would be much better than this helter skelter rush for every man and their (yellow) dog to have a distro.

Wouldn't it be better to have 3 distros, one for techies, one for desktops and one for servers with paid with support. I know that those of you who use distro 'X' will yell "But {Slack,SuSE,SuSEE} doesn't quite match my requirements". Those 3 key distro's are very good, and I'm sure if theres some feature on some other distro, it will be available on one of these when all that hacking talent goes to just support them.

I'd rather we were all talking about and backing 3 very very good distros than over 100 quite good ones.

Slackware Anti-Whatever(TM): The perfect solution to all your virus, spam, spyware, and other problems since 1993!! :-)

Seriously, though, I think it's kind of stupid that Microsoft's making an anti-spyware program - after all, weren't they responsible for the problem in the first place? And of course, it doesn't detect the biggest piece of spyware integrated into every Window$ system... (whatever that unnamed program at version 6SP1 is ;-)

I'd say that if Microsoft really cared they'd make a secure system. It isn't too hard, they already have the perfect starting ground...

Why Xandros?
Xandros is for straight girls.

Just go to any cheap Linux CDs online
order about 6 different distros
order some 3-4 live CDs
and you still get more for your money.

Then play , experiment , learn ...
If you rush - you will be one of those trolling weeping how horrible Linux is - etc etc

Ubuntu seems a very good choice for the utter newbie. absolutely free - and lesbians really love it.

Come to think of it - what is a distro for queers? Lycoris?

Look at lycoris

For their most recent release, they licensed bitstream font renderer. They use this instead of the open source font rendering libraries that can't do certain things because of patents.

Try out Lycoris Desktop/LX 1.4. They just yesterday released 1.4, and it's got something new from Bitstream called btX2 that makes all fonts render better, even better than Windows.

I updated my system yesterday and the fonts are so crisp it's not even funny. Most distros use freetype, and a couple of them turn on the hinting illegally, but Desktop/LX apparently has licensed font hinting and antialiasing that even surpasses Windows and Mac.

Just one screenshot here.

Try out Lycoris Desktop/LX 1.4. They just yesterday released 1.4, and it's got something new from Bitstream called btX2 that makes all fonts render better, even better than Windows.

I updated my system yesterday and the fonts are so crisp it's not even funny. Most distros use freetype, and a couple of them turn on the hinting illegally, but Desktop/LX apparently has licensed font hinting and antialiasing that even surpasses Windows and Mac.

Just one screenshot here.

version of Linux for the tablet PC, but having no tablet PC, I cannot test it.

Here's the Link

OK, so the fans of the various distros are all comparing how big the penises of their favorites are. It's a fun exercise, but not what the guy asked about. I'd suggest that someone new to Linux look at: Mandrake, Xandros, Lycoris, SUSE, or Linspire. Each of these has a company behind it that's placing a high priority on making their distro accessible to new users, and that sounds like your top priority as well.

Let's face it, the linux center of mass in the Pacific Northwest is decidedly south of BC. Where is OSDL? Where are the West Coast linux strategists for IBM and Intel? Where is the 2nd fastest linux cluster and 5th fastest supercomputer in the world? Where is there a large Debian based distro aimed at homes and offices? Which Pacific Northwest city has new lugs sprouting up? Which prominent lug in the north did not participate at all in LFNW 2003, the largest LFNW to that date?

The triangle of Seattle, Portland, Richland (PNL puts it on the map) is the center of mass of Linux in the Northwest. Hopefully LFNW will take this into account in the future.

Did you check out Lycoris?

I'm not at all affiliated with them, I just think it might be a solution for you which perhaps you weren't aware of.

On the lycoris website, it says

Buy Desktop/LX pre-loaded on PCs at WalMart.com! Check out the entire line of MicroTel Desktop/LX- Certified PCs ranging from $199 to $558.

I thought that was Lindows market. Has WalMart dumped Lindows or are they coexisting? If the latter, that will be extra confusing for Joe Sixpack buying Linux at WalMart

I'm interested in Xandros, but there is no way I'm going to pay for a Linux distro I haven't thoroughly run through its paces.

I'm kind of in the same boat. But you'll be happy to know that there will be a 30 day trial version available shortly. I may break down and buy it anyway but I really want to have a look first. Some distributions are just disturbing.

http://www.lycoris.com/webservices/iris/

ISOs of the binary install and source code CDs for Lycoris 3 download edition (their latest release) are both available, just check out their FTP site. But you should probably use a mirror.

ISOs of the binary install and source code CDs for Lycoris 3 download edition (their latest release) are both available, just check out their FTP site. But you should probably use a mirror.

There is lots of competition on the desktop right now, with:

Mandrake
Lindows
Xandros
Lycoris
Gentoo Games
Debian

And of course Slackware and Suse

Maybe they decided the market was already full. Turning it over the the community makes pretty good sense. Enterprise has always been their primary market.

I wouldn't say "better", since they cost about the same (i.e. way overpriced), and as such you could use a tabletPC as a terminal when at home and (this particular model) use it as a laptop/tablet when not at home.

And, just for some Karma, this has been available on lycoris.com/lycoris.org for a long time - months even.

-bZj

Besides, if you want something that feels like Windows, try Xpde. It works good. Or try lycoris.

"nobody is going to waste time writing Linux drivers for these M$ abandoned tablets"

You would be suprised . . . plus, I don't think Lycoris would mind picking up this business.

I see those being abandoned by MS being the types that will just end up selling them on E-bay. Then guys like you and I will enjoy cheap Linux tablets ;)

Cheers!

Steve Jobs must be shitting in his pants.

Luckily the world was saved from this possibility.

Not Really. :)

In fact, according to the site, they said

Gary Krakow of MSNBC Loves Desktop/LX
A glowing review of the Lycoris OS "...that's as
mindless to install as Microsoft's Windows."

Runs more stable, and cheaper. Linux that a MS user can use. Now that's amazing!

If you're looking for ease of use, then don't use a product like RedHat or SuSE, they're not aimed at users looking for a GUI-ified desktop. Use a tightly integrated end user oriented product like Lycoris or Xandros. You really need to use the right distro for a) your Linux "skill" level and b) your goal in using Linux in the first place. If you're looking for an environment where you can leverage your Windows experience, Lycoris and Xandros are for you. If and when you want to more fully customize or even modify your environment, use a more advanced distro like RedHat or SuSE. BTW, if any l33t jackasses criticize you for not using RedHat, SuSE, Debian, etc ... instead of the more GUI-centric distros, just tell 'em to shut the hell up.

Clearly then, Lycoris (screenshots) isn't your choice of desktops!

I checked the site, and I couldn't find any mention of handwriting recognition.

There are handwriting recognition programs available for Linux, including several under the GPL, but you are correct that the Lycoris website, which does have a "keyboard free" section, only seems to mention a software keyboard (xvkdb perhaps?) and not handwriting recognition as such. I too would be interested in a clarification of this, although I suspect the virtual software keyboard is the only form on 'keyboard free' input available at the moment (it is what we use on our GNU/Linux tablets as well).

A more important question for me, as an administrator who works for a firm that deploys several dozen GNU/Linux tablets (Fujitsu Stylistic 3400s and LPT-600s at present) is, do they have a list of supported tablets and are the latest Fujitsus on that list? Such a list would be invaluable when it comes to evaluating new hardware, and if their distro is as good and seemless as they make it sound, we would certainly buy a copy for consideration.

Alas, their website seems to be very lacking in that information as well. Hopefully someone from Lycoris is reading this thread and can comment and/or update the information on their web page.

There is a WineX add-on for games.

You can download a copy at LinuxISO.org.

I'd have to say that I've tried Lycoris and I'm rather impressed with it. It seems to be somewhat picky about what hardware it works with, but otherwise it is a fast, no-nonsense desktop. There is one well-chosen app for each task you could need, and the menu layout is simple and straightforward. I think they were even using Mozilla as the default browser before RedHat was. Everything is designed to look and work like, say, Windows 98; so it is an easy transition for almost anyone. The install is also very quick and easy; this is the one that lets you play solitare while it's copying files. There aren't really any installation options; you get the default install, but it will all fit on a 1gb disk.

The only thing I can't really gauge is whether it would be as easy to upgrade/modify as a distro like Lindows that is based on Debian. Lycoris originally didn't offer development tools for download, but I think their new version has them. I would be somewhat worried, though, about the long-term financial viability of some of these smaller desktop distributions.

I also used to think their productivity pack was something like AbiWord and Gnumeric because of the goofy pictures on their site, but I read somewhere that it is a modified version of OpenOffice.org.

There is a WineX add-on for games.

You can download a copy at LinuxISO.org.

I'd have to say that I've tried Lycoris and I'm rather impressed with it. It seems to be somewhat picky about what hardware it works with, but otherwise it is a fast, no-nonsense desktop. There is one well-chosen app for each task you could need, and the menu layout is simple and straightforward. I think they were even using Mozilla as the default browser before RedHat was. Everything is designed to look and work like, say, Windows 98; so it is an easy transition for almost anyone. The install is also very quick and easy; this is the one that lets you play solitare while it's copying files. There aren't really any installation options; you get the default install, but it will all fit on a 1gb disk.

The only thing I can't really gauge is whether it would be as easy to upgrade/modify as a distro like Lindows that is based on Debian. Lycoris originally didn't offer development tools for download, but I think their new version has them. I would be somewhat worried, though, about the long-term financial viability of some of these smaller desktop distributions.

I also used to think their productivity pack was something like AbiWord and Gnumeric because of the goofy pictures on their site, but I read somewhere that it is a modified version of OpenOffice.org.

• Windows XP Control Panel
  
• Lycoris Desktop/LX Control Panel

First, we can make Linux look like the computers in their room, check out Lycoris Linux http://www.lycoris.com/

See it looks like Windows. What you dont understand(I am a college student), is that college students dont care how it looks, they care how it functions, if the function is close enough to Windows they wont even notice the differences.

Lindows with ClickNRun functions just like Windows, installing programs is easy, etc, perhaps if we set up a Linux distro which made applications easy to install, had Lycoris/Lindows style functionality, and which had a word processor, browser, etc included, I think college students wouldnt care.

I have proof, WindowsXP doesnt look anything like Windows98, so why are all the college students using XP now? What about the fact that alot of college students use the Ibook with OSX? Its not the look, its the functionality, when Linux functions as well as Windows, the problem will be solved.

Currently Linux is 99% as functional as Windows, missing only polish and ease of software installation.

Knoppix is mature yes, but the problem with Knoppix is that its difficult to install software, until theres a clickNrun type feature people wont want to replace Windows with it, also the file structure should be like windows, a C: drive etc, to cover up the true Linux file structure, hell we might even be able to make it even easier than Windows by instead of using letters just using symbols/labels, or going the way of mac.

College students are our most intelligent and open minded sector of the population, if anyone is going to try Linux it will be them, also because these people already are trying Apple laptops and are amoung the first to switch to XP, we can convince them to switch to Linux instead of Longhorn when the time comes for their next upgrade by simply saying Lindows is the best upgrade to WindowsXP, Microsoft used this tactic to trick 98 users into upgrading into a new OS that wasnt even 100% backard compatible, hell even a new file system was involved so most people cant even access their old files.

I think if Microsoft could make people use an UGLY weird version of Windows, we can make people use Linux.

They took Caldera's good points (and there were a few) and washed the SuCk-O out of it.

I wonder what all this SCO bullshit will mean for the next major upgrade of Lycoris, Beryl. Maybe it will never happen. Another reason to curse the name of SCO. Now and forever. Amen.

Walmart had a Lycoris OS pc for. $199 .

Some of the Microtel systems come with an MSI 6390 board . The MSI Metis barebones ( $138 at Newegg also uses this board and I have used these boards extensively due to their tight integration, small form factor, high degree of reliability and stability.

that is, a third party completely devoid of any ties to Redmond trying to create a unified Linux desktop system and get it sold at major retailers.

Well, I thought they took paypal, but it looks like they do not. You can snail mail them money orders and such, though. From their subscription page:

Sign up for a TransGaming subscription at $5 per month, with a minimum three-month payment. Once you have created an account and logged in, you will need to choose your subscription period and make your initial payment. We accept most major credit cards, but at this time we do not accept debit cards or American Express. You can also pay by international certified check or money order for subscriptions of twelve months of more (US Dollars only); we will activate your account as soon as we receive it. If you would like to pay by gift certificate, please send the gift certificate number to support@transgaming.com and we will activate your account.

Please be sure that you have read the Installation FAQ list and other documentation on this site to ensure that your hardware and software meet the minimum system requirements for WineX. Also note that WineX is a work in progress and not all Windows games are supported.

That second part is important, too. One of the biggies is your video card has to be supported fully (with 3d) under Linux. I found out that my built-in radeon on my motherboard will not cut it as ATI has not (yet?) given the right info/drivers for it. Last I checked, NVidia cards were supported up to the latest with drivers (I think) from their site, and ATI drivers are available through Radeon 8500. There are open-source Radeon drivers and the Nvidia drivers are closed source (but regularly updated).

Winex is free as in beer if you are willing/able to compile from CVS. I was not able to do this trivially before, but I may have had other problems which are now more apparent under my current Linux Distro. Subscription gives you the right to vote for games you want and gets you easier-to-install binaries. Source-based distributions actually make it easier to compile from cvs, but they are not for everyone. Another option is to purchase one of the distributions which comes with Winex and a subscription.

My current favorite source based distribution is also supposed to make it easier to install the nvidia drivers, though nvidia's instructions for manually doing this seemed straightforward. I have not tried this yet, but it is looking more and more like that is what I will do to alleviate my 3d problem. I had planned to buy a beefy video card anyway.

I would also encourage you to get involved with LUGS in your area both by meeting with them when they have meetings and by participating in their mailing lists. These are excellent sources of information. You can also email me at rifter0x0000 at yahoo dot com if you want more ideas/advice/etc.

Ultimately we need more Linux resources on the net to help people, and people who use linux need to be a resource. I also think it is important that Linux users settle for nothing less than total functionality, in other words we should be able to use Linux for everything you would want to use a computer for. That is almost true now, with some caveats, but I want to puzzle out and eliminate the caveats. I think anyone who can code or write documentation should work on this goal as well.

I hope that you have good luck in trying linux. If it does not work for you at first, try try again and seek help. I tried many distributions befor eI settled on one I woudl like for my purposes, and then I changed my mind again :). But remmeber Linux == choice and if you don't like something about it, it is likel

There's definitely a certain amount of fear of change being exhibited by the linux users who've posted before i did. Linux is an evolving OS, if you don't let it change it'll never have the chance to be what you want it to be; a windows-beater. Personally I use windows 2000, though i did spend half a year with only Linux installed on my machine, and I administer linux and BSD servers. My dad recently installed Lycoris linux, and it looked like a step in the right direction. I don't advocate Linux as a good desktop operating system, it simply doesnt have the application base to compete yet, what it does have is a lot of applications that nearly do what the commercial apps do, but don't quite. This is mostly due to a shoddy windowing system (X) and a nonstandard way of programming for window managers (do you use QT, or GTK?).

Do you want more people to use Linux or not? Or are you happy to be an elitist group who prefer to keep linux usage Your Secret. If you pride yourself on being able to navigate the Linux filesystem, maybe you should learn some new skills, like being able to adapt to change.

This post was not directed at the Anonymous Coward above, it's just general observations prompted by his sarcastic response :)

And people complain about Redhat's Blue Curve.

not the original, but check the games menu

I think you're misinformed. The KDE 3.1 packages for Red Hat are here. Besides, isn't it possible that this guy might prefer GNOME over KDE, or is GNOME also "crippled"? Actually, I shouldn't have said that. This is just going to turn into another off-topic flame-fest. Regardless, I don't understand why you insist he run KDE. I'd prefer he make that choice for himself.

He will have to mess with different configuration tools in different places and that sucks. (Or can I set IP-adresses, screen resolution, firewall settings, desktop colors and wallpaper in the same config center in RedHat?)

Have you actually tried Red Hat Linux? You can find all the configuration options on the start menu. For instance, to change the desktop background, click start menu, Preferences, Background. To change the screen fonts, click start menu, Preferences, Fonts. Seems pretty easy and consistent to me. If you want all of the options within one application, you can run GNOME Control Center, also available in the Preferences menu. I believe Bluecurve has the same control center option in KDE, but if not, it seems like a pretty silly reason to throw out Red Hat. Are you saying the whole distro is worthless because the system settings are in the start menu instead of a control center? (Rhetorical question; I think I already know your answer.)

it is inconsistent with all other distros

Since when do all desktops have to be identical to each other? Lindows and Lycoris also run heavily modified versions of KDE; are they trash, too?

causes RedHat to lag behind in availability of packages

Lag behind? They come out with a new release every six months, and if that's not enough, you can get the unstable packages here.

and makes bugreports from RedHat users worthless

I don't see why. The configuration of the desktop is different, but the code is same. For instance, Red Hat did not re-write the KDE CD Player for Bluecurve. When a Red Hat user finds a bug in kscd, the bug will be in all other distributions, as well.

Since when do we cheer up unecessary forks?

Bluecurve is not a fork; it's a repackaging. What Red Hat has done with KDE is similar to what Galeon has done with Mozilla, or what Apple's Safari has done with Konqueror. They've added code and changed the look a lot, but the foundation is still there. Or does this mean you think Safari is crap, too? It sounds like you think it's okay for others to modify KDE, but Red Hat can't.

Debian is as inconsistent as RedHat but has other advantages (apt-get)

Hmm. You complained about Red Hat lagging behind in package availability, but from what I hear, Debian is far worse. How long did it take Debian to come out with KDE 3.0 packages?

so does Gentoo.

Gentoo!? I thought we were talking about distros for newbies.

*ALL* the prejudices that I hear...

That you "hear"? Don't judge a distro until you've actually tried it.

on RedHat you do have to compile KDE 3.1 on no other major distro you have to do that!

This is simply not true. You can get them from the Rawhide links I posted above, or you can get them here. Just because you can't get them from kde.org doesn't mean you have to compile them yourself.

RedHat is not ready for the desktop, Linux is.

Well, to each his own. I can see why KDE purists might have a problem with Red Hat Linux, but for Linux newbies, it's one of the better distros out there. I think dj_paulgibbs should try several different distros and pick the one he likes best, not the one that has "pure KDE".

No. Redmond Linux is now Lycoris.

It seems you can get a walmart pc for $199 with lycoris pre-installed....

Another bonus about Lycoris over Lindows: a damn fine user community. Oh yeah, and Joseph Cheek isn't an asshole like Michael Robertson is. ;-)

Lycoris anyone.

It is from Redmond, it is Linux, it is so easy that a 2 year old can install.

Linux will be ready for the desktop when Gnome or KDE drop dead (I can't wait) and some consistency settles in. Until then, I'll run BSD on my servers (the documentation is much better as a result of the consistency) and Windows on the desktop.

Then you should look at
Xandros Linux
Which is based on debian/corel linux and is quite good

Or
Lindows

Or
Lycoris

All of these are quite good Windows replacments and they will get better. Have a look at each and their prices/policies. Lindows has click'n'run which you have heard of. Lycoris I have used and is quite good.

Reviews are available from

Xandros Review

Lycoris Review

Xandros Review

Xandros Review

Xandros Review

Lindows Review

Xandros Review

Lycoris Review

Xandros Review

Lycoris Review

Lindows Review

Evolution looks so much like Outlook there ought to be royalties involved

Ever checked out Lycroris? Looks familiar doesn't it. Thought and design theft go both ways though, notice what happens when you push "tab" with a half-typed file/directory in winXP (and I think 2k) command prompt? Hmmm, somehow I think that one got ripped off from the linux (perhaps unix or previous other) community, was it GPL'ed?

The point of making products like evolution similar to office is to provide the user with something they can relate to easily enough while providing them with better functionality or stability, etc (or just functionality on an alternate medium).

People recognise Microsoft layouts. In fact, I even like them. Chances are that if MS software didn't crash so much and wasn't so fricking expensive and/or ignorant in EULA's etc, then even linux users could find a use for it.

Linux systems can get a lot by mimicking windows graphical designs and ideas. MS can learn about (but probably won't) useful functionality and ability to grow from linux.

Just IMHO though...

Third thing. Ain't half bad, neither.

"How many geeks are going to buy a desktop OS? None."

I have. I started learning POs when I got my first IBM, a PCjr, at age 7. It booted up into rom (or cartridge) basic, and I started programming. Now, at almost 25, I'm a paid programmer. But I never learned linux and of my friends, the only one who knows linux even moderately well lives about an hour and a half away. So I grabbed Lycoris. Since all a GUI is is a front-end for a command interpreter, I'm doing things in the GUI and finding out what they do in the CI. My intent, of course, is to wean myself from the GUI like many people did from Win3x and 9x. Shouldn't take me long. But when I forget something in a pinch, the gui's there. Now I see the things the gui does, and look up how it does it. It's been pretty constructive.

MSNBC has done some surprisingly UNbiased articles about Linux. They have done some excellent articles on:

• Lycoris Linux
• AbiWord
• and the Zaurus handheld

I also remember that "The Site" show on MSNBC was very scrupulous in trying to make sure MacOS and Linux got as much time as possible. The fact that Leo Laporte and Soledad O'Brien were both Mac heads probably helped. If you recall, when "The Site" was pulled (it was getting far less ratings than the wall-to-wall Princess Di coverage) it spawned ZDTV, later to be known as TechTV.

Alas, Soledad, where have you gone?

About Gates as geek deity: the Flynn character in "Tron" was kind of modeled after him. It would be cool if in "Tron 2.0" Flynn goes from being a downtrodden geek to being an evil monopolist who revives the MCP to dominate the brave new world of Cyberspace. It would work.