What’s a Linux Distro and How Are They Different?

If you’ve heard anything at all about Linux, you’ve probably heard of Linux distributions – often shortened to “Linux distros.” When deciding to use Linux – on a desktop computer or server – you’ll first need to choose a distro.

For many people, Ubuntu has become synonymous with Linux. But Ubuntu is one of many distros, and you have a lot of choice when it comes to Linux.

What is a Linux Distro, Anyway?

Linux isn’t like Windows or Mac OS X. Microsoft combines all the bits of Windows internally to produce each new release of Windows and distributes it as a single package. If you want Windows, you’ll need to choose one of the versions Microsoft is offering.

Linux works differently. The Linux operating system isn’t produced by a single organization. Different organizations and people work on different parts. There’s the Linux kernel (the core of the operating system), the GNU shell utilities (the terminal interface and many of the commands you use), the X server (which produces a graphical desktop), the desktop environment (which runs on the X server to provide a graphical desktop), and more. System services, graphical programs, terminal commands – many are developed independently from another. They’re all open-source software distributed in source code form.

If you wanted to, you could grab the source code for the Linux kernel, GNU shell utilities, Xorg X server, and every other program on a Linux system, assembling it all yourself. However, compiling the software would take a lot of time – not to mention the work involved with making all the different programs work properly together.

Linux distributions do the hard work for you, taking all the code from the open-source projects and compiling it for you, combining it into a single operating system you can boot up and install. They also make choices for you, such as choosing the default desktop environment, browser, and other software. Most distributions add their own finishing touches, such as themes and custom software – the Unity desktop environment Ubuntu provides, for example.

Releasing the Ubuntu Touch Developer Preview and SDK Alpha

We’re thrilled to announce yet another significant milestone in the history of the Ubuntu project. After having recently unveiled the Ubuntu Touch Developer Preview, today we’re publishing the full source code and images for supported devices.

For developers and enthusiasts only

While a huge amount of Engineering and Design work has been put into ensuring that the foundations for our user experience vision are in place, we want to stress that the Ubuntu Touch Developer Preview is currently work in progress. We are releasing the full code at this point to align to our philosophy of transparency and open source development.

We recommend to install the Touch Developer Preview only if you are a developer or enthusiast who wants to test or contribute to the platform. It is not intended to replace production devices or the tablet or handset you use every day.

Flash your device

All that said, let’s get on to how to install Touch Developer Preview from a public image on your device.

What to expect after flashing

Not all functionality from a production device is yet available on the Touch Preview. The list of functions you can expect after installing the preview on your handset or tablet are as follows. For detailed information check the release notes.

• Shell and core applications
• Connection to the GSM network (on Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 4)
• Phone calls and SMS (on Galaxy Nexus and Nexus 4)
• Networking via Wifi
• Functional camera (front and back)
• Device connectivity through the Android Developer Bridge tool (adb)

Supported devices

The images we are making available today support the following devices:

• Galaxy Nexus

Ubuntu Apps Developed for the Ubuntu App Showdown

The Ubuntu App Showdown resulted in the development of 133 new applications for Ubuntu. Soon, you’ll be able to install these apps from the Ubuntu Software Center and vote on your favorites – the voting decides which apps win.

These are just some of the interesting applications that are being talked about among Ubuntu users. Feel free to browse the full list yourself; I’m sure there are some hidden gems.

Fogger

Fogger creates separate, sandboxed desktop applications out of web apps.

Each web app runs in its own window, allowing you to easily switch between them and launch them from the dash — just like Ubuntu’s new web app integration feature.

Fogger is already available in the Ubuntu Software Center.

LightRead

LightRead is a slick new RSS feed reader for Ubuntu. It works with Google Reader to synchronize your subscriptions and is integrated with other web services, including Instapaper and Pocket (formerly known as Read It Later). Of course, it has offline-reading support, too. Its interface is similar to the popular Reeder application for Macs.

Until it’s available in the Ubuntu Software Center, use the following commands to i

What is a Linux Distribution and Which Linux Distribution is Right For Me?

There are many different versions of Linux, and unlike other commercial operating systems that are controlled, distributed and supported by only one company, the core of Linux is free to distribute and use. This creates a situation in which numerous companies, organizations and individuals have developed their own specific version of the Linux operating system. When these versions are made publically available for use, they are known as “distributions”.

Normally distributions are made for specific reasons and have been tailored to address a series of concerns. There are many versions of Linux that were developed specifically to be installed on servers that receive heavy traffic, like web servers. Some distributions of Linux were developed to be used in networks where security is a priority; where sensitive information should only be accessed by a privileged few. In fact, Linux is at the core of many of today’s most advanced Firewalls! There are versions of Linux that are meant to be installed on top of an existing operating system like Windows so people can try out Linux under familiar conditions. There are versions of Linux that are designed to be installed on platforms like Macintosh.

Linux also makes its appearance in many embedded devices, like routers, switches, phone systems, smart phones, gps systems, and the list goes on and on. There are versions of Linux with funny names like "Chainsaw Linux" (no kidding). And, of course, there are distributions of Linux that are designed to be used as a PC Desktop operating system.

So, which Linux distribution should you use? My answer,

5 Ways To Try Out and Install Ubuntu On Your Computer

Want to try out Ubuntu, but not sure where to start? There are lots of ways to try out Ubuntu – you can even install it on Windows and uninstall it from your Control Panel if you don’t like it.

Ubuntu can be booted from a USB or CD drive and used without installation, installed under Windows with no partitioning required, run in a window on your Windows desktop, or installed alongside Windows on your computer.

Boot From a Live USB Drive or CD

One of the easiest ways to get started with Ubuntu is by creating a live USB or CD drive. After you place Ubuntu on the drive, you can insert your USB stick, CD, or DVD into any computer you come across and restart the computer. The computer will boot from the removable media you provided and you’ll be able to use Ubuntu without making any changes to the computer’s hard drive.

To create a Ubuntu USB drive or CD, download the latest Ubuntu disc image fromUbuntu’s website. Use Unetbootin to put Ubuntu on your USB flash drive or burn the downloaded ISO image to a disc. (On Windows 7, you can right-click an ISO file and selectBurn disc image to burn the ISO file without installing any other software.)

Restart your computer from the removable media you provided and select the Try Ubuntu option.

Install Ubuntu On Windows With Wubi

Traditionally, installing Linux on a hard drive has been daunting for new users. It involves resizing existing partitions to make space for the new

10 Awesome Indicator Applets for Ubuntu’s Unity Desktop

If you’ve used Ubuntu a while, you might remember GNOME applets – icons that sat on your panel and gave you access to controls and information. If you miss panel applets, try installing third-party indicator applets for Ubuntu’s Unity desktop.

There are a wide variety of indicator applets available for Unity, most of which aren’t available in Ubuntu’s default software repositories. The commands to install the indicator applets provided here were tested on Ubuntu 12.04.

After installing an indicator, you may have to search for it and activate it from your Dash, launch it with a command, or log out and log back in. This behavior depends on the indicator.

Weather

The weather indicator applet provides constantly updating weather information right on your panel. Install it with the following command:

sudo apt-get install indicator-weather

Launch the Weather indicator from the Dash after installing it.

4+ Ways to Run Windows Software on Linux

Linux has come a long way, but you may still need to run Windows applications occasionally – especially Windows-only PC games. Luckily, there are quite a few ways to run Windows applications on Linux.

Of course, before you try to run an old Windows program, you should look or alternatives that run natively on Linux. You’ll have a better experience if you can find a decent alternative that runs without any fiddling.

Use Wine

Wine is a compatibility layer that allows Windows applications to run on Linux. It’s basically an implementation of the Windows API on Linux. Of course, Microsoft doesn’t publish all the information we need to re-implement the Windows API from scratch, so Wine has to be reverse-engineered. While it works amazingly well given how little Microsoft has given us to worth with, it’s nowhere near perfect.

13 killer Chrome apps to replace your desktop software

When Tim Berners-Lee invented the first Web browser in 1990, it was just an application made to read HTML pages passively. Fast-forward to today, and the modern Web browser has become a powerful platform in itself—almost a miniature operating system, capable of running complex JavaScript code and interacting with Flash plug-ins.

Indeed, Web pages have evolved into Web apps, to the point where we can do much of our productivity work in a browser window without ever having to invest in traditional desktop software.

But how much work can you really do from a browser? Could you replace all of your desktop apps with Chrome extensions, and be none the worse for wear? After testing a bunch of Chrome apps, I found mixed results: Web apps simply aren’t designed to be complete replicas of their desktop counterparts. Although these apps have gotten a lot better in the past couple of years, you might encounter a few peccadilloes, and desktop software may still be the better choice for your unique needs.

That said, if you haven't been keeping a close watch on the growing power of Chrome extensions and Web apps, you might be pleasantly surprised by our top alternatives to popular desktop software.

Word processing: Google Drive Documents

No matter what you do for a living, you've probably spent some time using a word processor in the past week, probably even in the past 24 hours. Unless you're doing some very complicated work, you could ditch your word processor for Google Drive right now without missing a beat. Sure, the interface is different: You'll find no Ribbon of commands and functions at the top of the screen, and you'll see far fewer buttons. But Google Drive's Documents let you do all of the important things, such as format text, create titles and lists, embed images into your documents, and more.

With its powerful collaboration features, Google Docs is ideal for working on documents with friends and colleagues.

If you often find yourself emailing Word files back and forth, Google Drive might be even better than its desktop counterparts: You can just invite another person to view your document, and you can both edit the document at the same time, watching each other’s cursors at work. Add Skype to the mix, and it's just like working in the same room, even if the other person is a continent away.

Safe online shopping: 10 tips to avoid getting burned

You need to buy some gifts. You need to buy them quickly. You can (a) brave the madness of holiday retail shopping at your local mall, rife with screaming children and airborne contagions, or (b) kick back at home and buy all your gifts online, accompanied by nothing more obnoxious than a warm cup of cocoa—or a cold glass of wine.

We'll take the online shopping option. We're civilized adults at PCWorld, and we're not interested in rubbing shoulders with rabid mall zombies unless we have to.

But the world of online shopping isn't all hot chocolate and chardonnay. Buying gifts via a Web browser certainly speeds up one's shopping regimen, but it also bears risks. Here are 10 easy ways to lock down your Web security this season, and still get all your shopping done in time.

Keep your browser updated

Start at the beginning. Whether you use Chrome, Firefox, or Internet Explorer, updating your browser will help to ensure that you’re getting the most up-to-date security protection.

10 reasons to choose Ubuntu 12.10 over Windows 8

Microsoft's Windows 8 dominated countless headlines in the weeks leading up to its launch late last month, but October saw the debut of another major operating system as well.

Canonical's Ubuntu 12.10 "Quantal Quetzal" arrived a week ahead of its competitor, in fact, accompanied by a challenge: "Avoid the pain of Windows 8." That slogan appeared on the Ubuntu home page for the first few hours after the OS's official launch, and attracted considerable attention.

Apparently Canonical decided to tone down its message later in the day—the slogan now reads "Your wish is our command"—but it seems fair to say that the underlying challenge remains.

Ubuntu comes with a variety of software packages, including Firefox, Thunderbird, and the full-featured productivity suite LibreOffice.