I'm done with Ubuntu

[Neddie]

This is the third Ubuntu update in a row to require a complete reinstall on my desktop. This time, when the update dialog popped up, it would not respond to clicks on the "Ask Me Later" button - so much for choice. As expected, upon completion of install it did not complete shutdown, and I can't boot into 11.10 or any of the previous 11.04 iterations.

Not to mention, both Unity and Gnome 3 are bloated, unattractive, low functioning crap. I can't run Ubuntu on a netbook anymore and expect reasonable response times to input. I've tried all the alternatives including Unity 2D and they only reduce the severity of the problem.

Suffice to say, it doesn't work, and I'm tired of it. I've been burnt pretty badly by Debian in the past as well, so where can I go from here? I'd like a distribution where I don't need to use the terminal to use basic functionality, but I'm somewhat flexible on that as I've never encountered a distribution with a functionally complete GUI. I'd also like to be able to use the Debian and Ubuntu repositories for software, because compilation is time consuming. Helpful suggestions welcome.

[Forboding Angel]

How about Mint? It's really nice, and if you are putting it on an epicly shitty computer, there is an lxde dist of it available from the same place that will run on practically anything with a cpu.

http://www.linuxmint.com/

(BTW mint is ubuntu with "the works", and is quite awesome.) I'm thinking that those who don't like 11.10 would enjoy mint. Plus, it has a real nice slick interface.

[smoth]

or fork over the money and get a copy of windows.

[Neddie]

Helpful suggestions welcome.

or fork over the money and get a copy of windows.

Helpful suggestions are not classist. Seriously though, I cannot afford the extravagance of another Windows license, and there is no modern version of Windows which will address the amount of memory I want to run with and perform well on the remainder of the legacy hardware I'm working with. Windows is a decent suggestion for the netbook and I may be moving back to it, though.

[smoth]

Helpful suggestions are not classist.

That was hardly classist.

Seriously though, I cannot afford the extravagance of another Windows license, and there is no modern version of Windows which will address the amount of memory I want to run with and perform well on the remainder of the legacy hardware I'm working with. Windows is a decent suggestion for the netbook and I may be moving back to it, though.

So if I can read between the fluff you have here:
"my pc in question is old and cannot run windows due to weak hardware" that about right?

xp is used on most netbooks and should be readily purchasable on ebay.

[Forboding Angel]

XP is absolutely awful though, whereas something like mint isn't.

Neddie you could also use a cloud based OS like Jolicloud (JoliOS).

[luckywaldo7]

Any particular preference on interface, other than no unity or gnome 3?

Mepis is a Debian-based distro known for rock-solid stability, although afaik it only offers KDE. Personally I prefer KDE, but if you don't want it that is something to consider.

[momfreeek]

there is no modern version of Windows which will address the amount of memory I want to run with

doesn't sound like its all weak hardware.

and perform well on the remainder of the legacy hardware I'm working with. Windows is a decent suggestion for the netbook and I may be moving back to it, though.

just some of it


I've been running ubuntu on my laptop with mixed results from jubilation to cursing. Haven't been brave enough to click the "update" dialogues..

[det]

I cant stand unity, I am now using Xubuntu (XFCE based) configured to look exactly like gnome2.

http://files.caspring.org/misc/ss.png

[MidKnight]

A Whole New World ended up being a bi letdown, didn't it?

[PicassoCT]

yeah, but turning around is admiting failure, and a true man sticks to the mistake he made, and travells on, until he freezes to death on the geographic northpole, a memorial to cannibalize for generations of lost tourists to come...

Srsly, windows only turned halfway decent because they acquired (dont ask me now how) a opensource following of there own, writting fixxes (for those cursed balloons to vannish e.g.)

Actually though it would try out Unbuntu myself, but seeing this as the fugees walking the other way... mmh, maybee if we acellerate the speed of system change, we could smash those thwo together, generating a U-Wi-bun-tos, having twice the phail and none of the win.

Im writting the CERNel for this one.

[Petah]

At least its not a Mac

[luckywaldo7]

Macs? Too mainstream.

[scifi]

Well theres OpenSuse, it will prety mutch do the same things as ubuntu, and its not a debian derivative. Only problem i see is some aplications not being available for it, it depends though.

[REVENGE]

Get a copy of Windows Server 2008 for free and run it as a workstation build?

EDIT: Nice, R2 is now available, that's an extra license for me!

EDIT2: http://www.win2008r2workstation.com/ - There's been a manual for every release of Server thus far since 2003.

[smoth]

I would suggest ogre or xna over spring for this.

[CarRepairer]

Over here on Kubuntu I haven't had any problems. KDE is similar enough to windows and I use both.

[KaiserJ]

Get a copy of Windows Server 2008 for free and run it as a workstation build?

wait, what? what version of windows does that equate to? awesome!

[REVENGE]

Server 2008 R2 equates to Windows 7. Get it from dreamspark.com / your school's software licensing system / your IT department.

[Johannes]

I've been burnt pretty badly by Debian in the past as well,

By what exactly?