Something new from the man who brought us Mandrake, a quick look...
In the spring of 2006
Mandriva decided
that one of it's founders needed to find a new career, in turn Gael
Duval was put out of work. Not to be held down, Gael decided to
create a new Linux distribution with his own vision. The results of
that goal is Ulteo, of which the first Alpha was released on December
6th.
According to the
website:
After
years of
looking at Windows, Mac and Linux users with limited knowledge in
computers, Ulteo was designed as a new concept which benefits from
Internet access to ease the way people use computers. Ulteo is going
to be more than just another Linux distribution. It won't try to
provide the ultimate desktop to users - we believe that current Linux
desktops are most often excellent. Massive Linux adoption relies on
something else. A first version of Ulteo Sirius Alpha 1 was released
on December 6th, 2006.
and
The Ulteo operating system
has been
actively developed since March. It will provide an easy-to-use,
easy-to-maintain operating system.
Primarily aimed at
individuals with
limited knowledge in computing. The Ulteo operating system will also
provide all the applications needed for experienced users.
Ease of use and simplicity,
sounds like
a good place to start.
Ulteo is a Live-CD, which
is easily my
preferred method to get new Distros, they provide quick access to
review and determine if the Distro is right for you. For this test I
fired up Ulteo on my Laptop, which is a bit finicky when it comes to
both the monitor and the network, a good test I figured.
Installation:
Installation is very easy,
a fairly
simple point and go arrangement. Select your partition, give user
name and password and wait a bit. It just worked simply and quickly.
First Boot:
Ulteo provided a simple yet
attractive splash screen on boot, while the loading messages flowed by
underneath. The user created during install is automatically
booted into the desktop, rather than needing to log in.
Administrative tasks are handled via Sudo, which while not my
preferred method, it provides an acceptable and easy to use way to
access those functions.
What it has:
Ulteo is built on a Debian base, and is
modestly equipped for a Live-CD. We have Firefox 1.5.0.8,
Thunderbird 1.5.0.8, OpenOffice.org,,
Keep backup, KmyMoney, VLC Player, Amarok, The GIMP, K3b, KDE 3.5.2
all built on top of a 2.6.15.386 kernel. There is a program for
most needs, but not all.
What it has not:
Currently there does not appear to be a
great deal of depth to the repositories, but I am sure that will be
changing before too long. The repositories are being handled by Apt,
and Aptitude package managers.
While I personally have no problems
using either, the intent of simplicity may be lost on some newer
users, as both can be intimidating.
Usage:
Ulteo is very clean, if not a bit
sparse. The standard KDE interface is mostly here, with KDFX set up
to replace the K button with a familiar “Start” button. The look
is basic and simple, I would expect that this may be an area that
will be addressed as the Distro progresses from Alpha to Beta and
finally to full release status. It is not lacking, but is not
exciting either. I am very surprised with Ulteo's ability to find
and accurately load drivers for the wireless adapter and widescreen
monitor on my laptop. The monitor needed no attention, it just came
up normally, a feat many Distros have not been able to do. The
network adapter also just loaded and I was able to configure and
connect without a lot of difficulty. It did drop it's connection a
few times, but for the most part I was impressed. Speed feels good
as is stability, for an Alpha release I am quite pleased.
Conclusions:
Ulteo Alpha is obviously a very early
release of what looks to be a promising Distro. Everything is here,
and it all seems to work fairly well. Clearly there is much to do,
there are not a lot of additional packages available, the look is
very basic, I am hoping that an easier to use package manager like
Synpatic or Smart is included, but the basics are clearly here. I for
one am very impressed and foresee a bright future for this Distro.
Contact me at:
webmaster@capnkirby.com
It's
Easy to Bitch, Easy to whine, Easy to moan, Easy to cry,
Easy to feel like there ain't nothing in your life,
Harder to work, Harder to strive, Harder to be glad to be alive
But its really worth it if you give it a try...
Fred Leblanc
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