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A Windows 10 Alternative: Ubuntu-Based Zorin OS Linux Distro (betanews.com)
"With a click of a button, you can change the desktop layout to match that of Windows versions and Gnome 3. The Ultimate edition...also features Ubuntu, Gnome 2 and macOS-like layouts." BrianFagioli shares an article about a Linux-based operating system "designed for Windows-switchers."
While the company does charge for an "Ultimate" version, the "Core" edition of Zorin OS 12 is entirely free... "As Zorin OS 12 is based on Ubuntu 16.04 LTS, it will be supported with security updates until April 2021. This makes Zorin OS 12 the ideal choice for large deployments in businesses, governments, schools and organisations", says The Zorin OS Team"... Zorin OS features some really great features, such as Google Drive integration with the file browser.
Although unlike Windows 10, its default browser is Chromium.
Although unlike Windows 10, its default browser is Chromium.
Making a desktop look like Windows 10 is hardly the requirement for a replacement. Can it run Windows software, or replacements for them in a way no other linux distro could? I think we know the answer, hell no.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSdRTOh2jeA
Seriously, those of us who can install an operating system are hardly scared by "moving to a desktop environment like GNOME or Unity can be confusing and scary (from TFA)." Those of us who are scared by such a monstrous change in paradigm will never be able to install an OS, or understand that an OS is not part of the laptop, for what matters.
Either these guys manage to get their stuff preinstalled on some decent PCs, and I wish them the best luck possible, or I hardly see some hacker giving them 15 bucks for the privilege of a macosx-inspired theme, 20 crappy games and video wallpapers (I may give them some money to NOT have video wallpapers).
this post contain no useful information, no need to mod it down
Remember: Zorin is the name of the bad guy in the James Bond movie "A View to a Kill", played by Christopher Walken.
What does google drive integration into the file browser mean exactly? That seems to be exactly what I have with google drive installed on my windows system. So instead of shoving m$ onedrive onto my system by integrating it into the OS, Zorin has just chosen another cloud system to shove into user's systems without their consent?
Let's go back to focusing on making good OS's and letting people pick which software they want to run on them.
Sorry, but just making the UI "similar" is not enough to make it an "alternative" any different than the likes of Mint.
It would need to actually be able to run every Windows based applications and games, without issues, for it to be an "alternative".
This is just Linux with a different coat of paint on top, nothing new.
So, let me see if I got this straight.
Someone sat down and started thinking "How can I convince people to switch to Linux from Windows? What does Windows have that people want, but can't find on Linux?", and their brilliant conclusion was that what people REALLY wanted was that awful, ugly and schizophrenic "I'm not quite a mobile device but I'm also not also entirely a desktop" user interface?
AND they want to charge people for this?
This is why Linux will never make it on the desktop... people are totally clueless.
"Pros: It's not Windows 10
Cons: It's trying to look like Windows 10"
lol, one of the major reasons I want to use Linux is because it ISN'T Windows 10. The UI is far worse than Windows 7, for desktop PCs.
== Jez ==
Do you miss Firefox? Try Pale Moon.
My Windows 10 powered ubuntu. The Windows kernel, by itself is not a bad deal. Since 8.1 the memory consumption is pretty slick. I couldn't care less about the graphic interface. For me it is just a way to have a ton of terminal windows open so I can run all the ssh I need. I almost miss the day when I was working on a hardware VT-100 terminals, kept the room nice and warm. And I'm not even 35.
Just give me a stable graphics driver and I couldn't care less if it's running Linux or Windows or macOS or plan9 or some form of BSD.
Well don't give me Windows 7 as memory management is bad, because 7 is just a rebadged vista, but 8.1 and later are really nice at handling memory and io. macOS on the other hand went down the shitter with memory and io starting 10.7, especially if time machine is on it leaks kernel memory and file handles like crazy.
Can I play Battlefield on it? Can I play Civ 6? I guess not.
I would love to switch to Linux. The fact of the matter, nearly every program which I want to run, does not work natively on Linux.
Office? Nope. Photoshop? Nope.
Please, do not tell me to use WINE. Sure, it may be possible to get it going, but it is shit. Complete and total shit.
Wine is like buying a 911 4S then insisting the buyer replace the tire with a 13 inch wheels from a 1979 Datsun B210. Sure, it will technically work, but what the fuck did you buy that car for?
Ubuntu's failure to make a decent UI has opened the door to distros like Mint and ZorinOS to fill in the gap. Too bad for their ivory tower attitude on this topic, Ubuntu is otherwise very good.
The comments on the release page are full of people who are having problems with the installer crashing. Then the developer asks people to verify the checksums on the downloads, but in every case the downloads were not corrupted.
lets see... replace one big spyware with another big spyware
just another clone of Canonical that thinks its an OS
no thanks, fuck off
When I started with Linux we had maybe five serious distros, and I don't think we have that many more nowadays, maybe ten. If you're going to make you own window manager or desktop then that's great, I applaud that. But this is an entire distro in itself. Are you really going to keep up with security patches on the same level as the Ubuntu or Debian security teams? Because that's what you need to do today if you're making an OS that you want to be taken seriously. Otherwise it's better to just make a package and have users install it from your repository.
MacOS is about consistency. Who cares what it looks like. Making linux look like macOS is worse than worthless.
but you'd never know. instead, only negative tor news is posted.
Zorin OS features some really dangerous and insecure features, such as Google Drive imposed loss of control over data, data security, user privacy and accessibility via the file browser.
FTFTFS:
Run right out there and get that! What could go wrong? After all... it's Google.
Can I then give it away or sell it? So if I make a car shell that looks like a BMW or Tesla wrapping a Fiero and then sell it will I vet a letter from either BMW or Tesla? I think so. Would apple be comfortable with this?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=La_YY9fKOLA
How about...I need to do a job so I can make money and the applications are only on Windows? What a bone headed argument to make. GIMP is not a replacement for Photoshop. It just isn't. Telling me to go from a Ferrari to a Yugo is not a compromise, that is career suicide.
To be a real alternative to Windows 10 I would say any OS needs:
Seemless integration with Active Directory
Ability to be remotely managed easily:
Software push/update
Some kind of user restriction for permissions
(possibly) something equivalent to AD's roaming profiles
Easy management of remote drives and folders (both from a sys-admin and user perspective)
Seemless integration with groupware email/calendar services (e.g. Microsoft Exchange)
In all honesty, I haven't checked if Zorin has all these, if it does. Amazing. However, in my experience Linux (sadly) doesn't yet provide the same ease of use/manageability in a networked office environment that windows does.
That's for yet another Linux distro.
But it seems that all of that silliness has followed me. First Unity and Gnome 3, and now a conscious and deliberate effort to emulate Windows. I wonder if Zorin will eventually have those oh-so-helpful telemetry 'features' too.
'The Economy' is a giant Ponzi scheme whose most pitiable suckers are the youngest among us and the yet-unborn.
... for the simple reason the desktop isn't cluttered (unless I want it cluttered), it's easy to add / remove app launchers, the desktop look and feel are easy to configure. It looks a lot like Windows 7, which worked for me no problem. I'm not a big "make your desktop like your personality" guy. I just like getting work done, and I want my desktop to do what it's supposed to do: gimmie GUI, with a minimal amount of fuss. I've been using Mint for the last 3 years and it's my favorite distro.
Whats the point? So it looks like windows 10. It cant run all the apps or enterprise apps so why?
if you want all those 'fancy features'.. and supposedly support 'direct from the developers'. uh, huh. i believe that. i see no sla for that support, i see absolutely nothing about the people behind it, nothing about where their funding comes from.. nothing. they didn't even have a wikipedia article until *NOW*.. existed since 2008 and no wiki entry? paging back through their blog they've changed urls several times (name of project hasn't so real reason). very not-professional. . nope sorry, not gonna buy it. if i want ubuntu, i'll go download ubuntu (i did, i have). if i want to pay for ubuntu, i'd actually give it to debian (i did, i have) as they do the heavy lifting here
Silly, hard to pronounce in joke name no one outside of extremist techie circles understands? Check
Not Windows? Check
It's Yet Another Dumb Claim
It's just like Windows only it's really not and should not be sold as such. Nothing against Linux or its many fine and stable desktop distro's. But it's not Windows and should never be compared as such. Yes some mimic the user interface and folder system but it's not running your favorite Windows programs. No iTunes, Microsoft Office, tax program, billing and payroll or Windows games. In all honesty you making a change from one operating system to another. It's a big deal and should not be portrayed as just installing one OS over Windows. The less that 5% user share of Linux makes this all too clear. Some users just can't move away from Windows no matter how much a Linux distro looks like it.
That's not entirely true, anymore. What do you do in Photoshop that you can't do in GIMP? There are some things, but I won't mention them. I'd like to know what functionality is missing from GIMP in your opinion.
Windows is basically a games platform that also runs legacy software like Microsoft Office. The main thing I have it around for is running games (e.g. via steam), music software (e.g. VSTs), or a few Windows only things. I wish Apple would make machines with the build quality of professional laptops and workstations, like e.g. Lenovo Thinkpads and HP Z-series workstations, rather than shiny toy that one needs an oxyacetylene blowtorch to get into, and for which the standard remedy for any fault is to bin the device and buy a new one. It is a good illustration of the problems of committing to a closed proprietary platform: if Apple's hardware lineup doesn't suit you, but you're committed to running software that only runs on macs, you're screwed. There is no market competition, just Hobson's choice.
John_Chalisque
Why in gods name would you WANT the Windows 10 UI in ANY year?
That whole interface is a fucking disaster.
I almost put my fist though a screen having to suffer fixing that shit OS via its horrific interface. Most infuriating piece of shit I've ever used in 20 years.
Then you have the updates that completely shit on drivers for the trackpad, and it was one of those really awful trackpads with no physical buttons (THANKS Asus), so the buttons now DETECT movement, making it damn near impossible to click precisely.
Try fixing a computer when you cannot track-scroll, click precisely and have to deal with Windows 10s UI. Infinite rage.
I'm probably going to rip the thing off and pop Ubuntu on it.
She only needs Chrome anyway. Just like any average person.
No I don't think you will have happy customers. In fact making Linux look exactly like any other operating system like Windows or Mac is a recipe for disaster. I think of it as the uncanny valley of desktops. At first users may be comforted seeing something familiar. But as they use it, subtle differences will lead to a jarring experience. And sooner or later, as the GP said, users will try to install some cool program they found that won't work when they download it.
In my experience moving people from Windows to Linux, having a look and feel that closely resembles Windows is not at all important. It's not helpful at all. Most Linux desktops function similarly enough to Windows to be nearly immediately usable to most users. Having a look and feel that's different from Windows reinforces the idea that they aren't using Windows anymore, but something different, though it works on the same principles. I have never changed program icons to "Excel" or "Word" as that also would be harmful when they encounter differences (as soon as they open the application... LibreOffice looks and acts very differently from current versions of Office). Instead I make shortcuts entitled "Word Processor" or "Spreadsheet." Often I just leave them as they were.
Really none of this theming nonsense is necessary and it's not helpful to Linux adoption. In fact it may actually be harmful in the long run. Linux desktops have to stand on their own or we're doomed to failure.
I read the post twice but still only wanted to know, is it systemd free?
I can't think of a single case where I use both a website and mobile app, and the mobile app isn't hamstrung, limited and just basically more unpleasant to use than the web site. Yelp, Facebook and Meetup.com are the ones I use most often. In every case the experience is better on the desktop. The meetup app recently got a major revamp that made it much less functional than the web site, and especially annoying.
RETURN without GOSUB in line 1050
Nobody would think this was a Windows replacement, especially people that have ever used Windows before.
Yep, give this man a cookie. My mantra is: don't buy software that has no linux version.
The awful UI of Windows 10 with the lack of WIndows compatibility of Ubuntu.
(Seriously, I think the main reason people choose to run Windows 10 these days is for the games and some legacy apps.)
Win2k is the last windows version with a efficient UI.
Every version after add more eye candy while simultaneously try to hide functionality. Settings are hidden inside more and more layers and take far more clicks to access.
I would say Win2k is the closest point to "right" any MS OS ever been.
I tend to agree, even though I wouldn't have a few years back. I always thought visual similarity was important for people attempting to transition from Windows -> Linux, but in the end, UI is more than just about the visual, it's also about the interactivity, what people expect to see and whatnot. If you're going to invest time into using Linux, trying to make it look as much like Windows as possible might turn out to be counter-productive because you'll start trying to use Linux LIKE Windows, and once you hit the important differences, the jarring aspect of it tends to result in someone going back to Windows because it's the real thing and not an imitation.
Having said that, it's been something like 20 years and despite making great strides everywhere else, Linux still only has at best 2% desktop share. I think Linux desktops have failed to spark any interest from mainstream users at this point, which to me is classified as being "doomed to failure" already.
Yes we should punish those who give us a decent product that runs what we want
While rewarding those who make an Os that does nothing we want, and in a lot of cases is almost functionality unusable
What is really complete and total shit is shit like DirectX.
Please, go ahead and explain why you think that is the case. I'm really curious, bonus points if you just present facts and keep it devoid of emotionally-charged profanities.
Maybe you need to think about the work you wish to perform rather than a specific application that can be used to perform it.
Using nothing but Linux here since 2006, have had as much work as I could do the whole time, and just bought a vacation home.
Who cares. It's not like a sorry bunch of nerds can ever boycott to the extent of making any difference. :)
While i agree with you on the boycott i can bet you that there are very few people who are sorry that they have converted.
... when all you need is a decent VT220 emulator?
I hadn't the slightest objection to his spending his time planning massacres for the bourgeoisie... (P.G. Wodehouse)
Google beat them to it on this one. They made web their common platform. Looks pretty much the same on any OS, any browser. Chrome runs everywhere. Google Docs for office tasks, or even Microsoft Office online or Zoho Office or any number of others.
For non-geeks the OS is becoming increasingly irrelevant. A glorified launcher and file manager, mostly replaceable by the browser and cloud storage. It's actually great for consumers, in theory. No updating apps, files automatically backed up and available everywhere... Maybe the reality isn't quite that great, but we are definitely headed that way.
const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
Not until they add an outline mode like MS Word's. This is a feature that has been requested since at least 2003, and nothing happens.
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I've tried Zorin multiple times, it often crashes and has never been stable in any version on the multiple platforms I've tried. Finally got my dad moved to Linux from Windows to avoid the Win10 update nags and he loves Ubuntu Mate. Since he really can't do the admin work and I'm a couple of thousand miles away stability is everything. Linux Mate does everything he needs; web, email and facebook to see the grand kids. It has been rock solid for him for well over a year and a half.
Sounds kind of like the sort of restaurant that takes a roasted carrot and serves it on a bun as a "Vegan Hot Dog" (real example from a place around the corner from my house). If you want your Linux desktop to look exactly like Windows 10, you should probably be using Windows 10......
My mantra is: don't buy software
Why would you? Free Software tends to be free as in beer, too.
Nothing in the Ubuntu repositories costs a dime.
Everything on F-Droid is free of charge.
I guess you could say the only software I pay for is in ROM.
So I saw this article and thought, "Oh neat! This looks like it could be useful, especially if they did a good job of polishing the UI." and I figured I'd check the comments to see what people thought of it, etc.
Aaaaaand as usual, all we have is one flame war after another with people making ad hominem attacks and how people hate Windows or Linux or whatever. (I'm excluding the vast array of racist remarks for my own sanity) But then again, I really shouldn't be surprised at this point.
Has anyone ACTUALLY tried it, and have anything of value to say? Does it work well? Is it easy to configure/use?
I'm an old KDE user, but switched over to XFCE years ago. I've tried Cinnamon and Mate, but none of them work for me like XFCE, particularly on Mint. Usability, configurability, and no-nonsense are what I like and what I find to be the most productive. I really don't mind that there are these experiments with DEs, maybe some of them will stick and some won't. As long as I can make it simple and effective, there's enough room for more than one.
My beliefs do not require that you agree with them.
My mantra is: don't buy software that has no linux version.
Well good for you. Perhaps you don't realize that for the vast majority of people software is just a tool to do a job, not something they are ideologically attached to or care whether the vendor supports some platform or other. Anybody can run both Windows and Linux (if you have a Mac you can run macOS too) and you just run the OS that runs your programs so your "mantra" makes no sense in terms of practicality.
Sadly no torrent links to download this thing. Anyone have one? Their download link http://bitly.com/12core641 redirects to Sourceforge of all terrible places.
So, since the company name is Zorin, does this mean that Max Zorin (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Max_Zorin) owns and runs the company? As a psychopath, he'd fit right in with the rest of the CEO/CFO/President community!