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Today saw the release of the latest and greatest version of the Lunix
operating system, Lunix Fedora Core 5. Although "alternative" operating
systems are not usually of interest to ZDNet's readership, who prefer to
trust user-friendly commercial software, this release is noteworthy. For the
release of Lunix Fedora Core 5, aggressively timed to coincide with the UK
launch of Microsoft's much vaunted X Box, marks the start of the final
battle for domination of the computer industry. Make no mistake, the next
few months will either see Microsoft tighten its stranglehold on the
marketplace or will be a coming of age for the upstart Lunix operating
system.
Considering the enormous significance of this release, we at ZDNet are
proud to bring you the first ever review of Lunix Fedora Core 5.
The Lunix operating system was born in 1991 and was created by one man, a
Finnish student named Axl Torvalds. Since these humble beginnings, a
multi-million dollar industry has sprung up to exploit the commercial
potential of Lunix, but until recently Lunix has eluded mainstream
acceptance. However, due to the recent economic downturn together with
uncertainty over changes to Microsoft's pricing policy, Lunix is now being
touted as a serious contender to Microsoft Windows. While there are many
other alternatives to Windows, including BSD which is based on Sun's
server-grade Solaris operating system, none have commanded the same level of
media attention as Lunix.
Lunix Fedora Core is just the latest in a long line of quirkily christened
versions of Lunix. Previous versions of Lunix have been named Red Hat, Slack
Ware, Storm and Coral. In stark contrast to the mundane names such as 98, ME
or NT preferred by Microsoft, the crazy names of each Lunix release hint at
its renegade nature.
My foray into the world of Lunix began by downloading a "CD image" from the
Lunix web site. But don't worry, this isn't software piracy, it's perfectly
legal! Lunix is shareware, meaning that it can be freely redistributed
without fear of a visit by the Business Software Alliance. The free
availability of Lunix is a major reason for its popularity among
cash-strapped students, criminals and self-styled anti-capitalist
hackers.
Before installing new software, it is always advisable to read the
documentation. Unfortunately, an unpleasant surprise was in store for me in
the "required configuration" section of the manual. I was shocked to learn
that Lunix Fedora Core only runs on Pentium processors, meaning that my
hopes of testing the water with my old Gateway 486 were dashed. Furthermore,
a whopping 32 megabytes of memory are required to run Lunix! Although the
advocates of Lunix self-righteously boast the efficiency of their chosen
operating system and deride the "bloatware" produced by Microsoft, it
appears that their claims are blatantly incorrect. Although my humble 486
will happily run Windows 95, it seems that Lunix requires far more powerful,
and more expensive, computer hardware. Is this really a sign of a lean, mean
operating system? Of course not.
Sadly, not even being able to install Lunix is just the first of my many
complaints about Lunix. A brief perusal of the features of Lunix Fedora Core
reveals that Lunix is sorely lacking many crucial productivity applications.
For example, why isn't the industry standard web browser, Internet Explorer,
included with Lunix? Despite the best efforts of the experts at the Internet
Engineering Task Force to encourage adoption of the Internet Explorer
standard, the creators of Lunix seem to think that they know better. By
refusing to adhere to recognised standards, Lunix is simply undermining its
own credibility.
Similarly, almost all of the world's most popular and widely used software
is completely incompatible with Lunix! It may surprise you to learn that
your copy of Microsoft Office, Outlook Express or Lotus Notes will not work
under Lunix. Those who wish to use their computer for recreational purposes
are also out of luck, for almost all of the most popular
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Considering the enormous significance of this release, we at ZDNet are proud to bring you the first ever review of Lunix Fedora Core 5.
The Lunix operating system was born in 1991 and was created by one man, a Finnish student named Axl Torvalds. Since these humble beginnings, a multi-million dollar industry has sprung up to exploit the commercial potential of Lunix, but until recently Lunix has eluded mainstream acceptance. However, due to the recent economic downturn together with uncertainty over changes to Microsoft's pricing policy, Lunix is now being touted as a serious contender to Microsoft Windows. While there are many other alternatives to Windows, including BSD which is based on Sun's server-grade Solaris operating system, none have commanded the same level of media attention as Lunix.
Lunix Fedora Core is just the latest in a long line of quirkily christened versions of Lunix. Previous versions of Lunix have been named Red Hat, Slack Ware, Storm and Coral. In stark contrast to the mundane names such as 98, ME or NT preferred by Microsoft, the crazy names of each Lunix release hint at its renegade nature.
My foray into the world of Lunix began by downloading a "CD image" from the Lunix web site. But don't worry, this isn't software piracy, it's perfectly legal! Lunix is shareware, meaning that it can be freely redistributed without fear of a visit by the Business Software Alliance. The free availability of Lunix is a major reason for its popularity among cash-strapped students, criminals and self-styled anti-capitalist hackers.
Before installing new software, it is always advisable to read the documentation. Unfortunately, an unpleasant surprise was in store for me in the "required configuration" section of the manual. I was shocked to learn that Lunix Fedora Core only runs on Pentium processors, meaning that my hopes of testing the water with my old Gateway 486 were dashed. Furthermore, a whopping 32 megabytes of memory are required to run Lunix! Although the advocates of Lunix self-righteously boast the efficiency of their chosen operating system and deride the "bloatware" produced by Microsoft, it appears that their claims are blatantly incorrect. Although my humble 486 will happily run Windows 95, it seems that Lunix requires far more powerful, and more expensive, computer hardware. Is this really a sign of a lean, mean operating system? Of course not.
Sadly, not even being able to install Lunix is just the first of my many complaints about Lunix. A brief perusal of the features of Lunix Fedora Core reveals that Lunix is sorely lacking many crucial productivity applications. For example, why isn't the industry standard web browser, Internet Explorer, included with Lunix? Despite the best efforts of the experts at the Internet Engineering Task Force to encourage adoption of the Internet Explorer standard, the creators of Lunix seem to think that they know better. By refusing to adhere to recognised standards, Lunix is simply undermining its own credibility.
Similarly, almost all of the world's most popular and widely used software is completely incompatible with Lunix! It may surprise you to learn that your copy of Microsoft Office, Outlook Express or Lotus Notes will not work under Lunix. Those who wish to use their computer for recreational purposes are also out of luck, for almost all of the most popular