Ubuntu operating system features
The Ubuntu operating system is the best free operating system, as it gives its users many advantages without requiring expensive technical hardware, and through which most office tasks can be performed easily and smoothly.
But what is the Ubuntu operating system? And why do some see it as the best free operating system? And the most important question is; Is it better than Windows OS? In this article, we answer these questions and introduce you to the advantages and disadvantages of the Ubuntu operating system.
What is the Ubuntu operating system?Ubuntu is an operating system based on the kernel Linux operating system popular Systems based on the Linux operating system are called distributions.
Ubuntu is not the only distribution based on the Linux kernel, but there are other distributions, such as Fedora, Debian and others, but Ubuntu is the most famous of these distributions, and the most widely used at the present time.
For those who do not know what the distributions are; They are operating systems , but they are made up of several parts with each part taking over a set of commands and tasks. The main part is the kernel of the famous Linux system, and the rest of the parts are other open source software.
Open source programs are programs that give the user the right to use the program and see the special codes. Of course, this gives other programmers an opportunity to check these codes, and thus they can make modifications and additions to these programs and develop them.
Paid software and operating systems do not disclose their source code, and it is legally and technically reserved by the company that developed it.
It is worth noting that the Ubuntu operating system is one of the Linux distributions, but in turn it contains its own sub-distributions, which we will talk about in the next point.
The most important Ubuntu distributions
1. Lubuntu : light and fast Ubuntu distribution whose main goal is to provide basic operating system functions with minimal technical capabilities.
2. Ubuntu Budgie : Its distribution aims to provide an elegant and modern operating system that is updated periodically to suit the modern forms of new operating systems.
3. Kubuntu : a distro suitable for home and office use.
4. Xubuntu : Another light distro that can be installed on devices with weak technical hardware, but it is worth noting that it is older than Lubuntu.
5. Ubuntu MATE : A powerful distro that still uses a somewhat outdated interface. Some prefer to use it because it works efficiently on older devices, and its interface is similar to what the operating system interfaces were a few years ago.
6. Ubuntu Studio : A distro designed for creating visual and audio content. The distribution is pre-installed with all you need of content-making programs and editing programs , and it also contains programs for editing audio clips and songs.
The most important feature of this distro is its ability to direct entire device resources to editors to help them work in the best possible way.
7. Ubuntu Kylin : A distro designed primarily for Chinese users.
Here is the link to the official Ubuntu website
Ubuntu operating system features
1. No expensive technical equipment required
Do you have an old computer in your house that you are considering getting rid of? Yes, we are talking about that device with poor technical equipment that collects dust in your home.
You may remember trying to install a Windows operating system on it and finding it very slow, which made you consider it worthless junk, do not get rid of it before you try one of the versions of the Ubuntu operating system on it.
The Ubuntu operating system does not require a powerful computer to run efficiently, and this is evident in the technical capabilities that it officially requests, namely:
- Dual core CPU or more.
- Processing unit speed should not be less than 2GHz.
- 4 GB of temporary memory.
- 25 GB of storage space.
- An internet connection (preferred but not required).
These are the official requirements for the latest Ubuntu OS version. Formal requirements are usually greater than what the system actually needs to function efficiently.
I remember a while ago I installed the Ubuntu operating system using less technical capabilities. I used an old laptop that had 50% less hardware than these capabilities, and I had no problems running any of the basic applications.
Rather, I noticed a noticeable speed in the performance of the device compared to the Windows 7 operating system, although the latter is considered a non-requiring operating system compared to later versions of Windows operating systems such as Windows 8 and 10.
If the capabilities of your old device are less than the official requirements of Ubuntu, do not worry, you can use the Lubuntu or Xubuntu distribution, which requires less capabilities, as you can run these distributions on a computer processor running at a speed of 1 GHz and 1 GB of cache.
So in general, no matter how weak the technical hardware of your device is, the Ubuntu system or one of its distributions will work on it, which is difficult to achieve with the Windows operating system, which has become one of the most resource-intensive operating systems, and ultimately does not provide excellent performance, but still contains errors and performance problems. .
This is in contrast to the end of support for most Windows systems that require simple technical hardware, such as Windows XP and Windows 7. That is, if you want to use a secure Windows system that supports the latest programs and applications, you will have to download the Windows 10 operating system, which is a system that requires advanced technical hardware.
2. It contains most of the basic programs that you may need
Think of the applications that you use on a daily basis on your computer, most of these applications have versions designed to work on the Ubuntu operating system.
These may be official versions developed by the same company that designed versions of the Windows operating system, as in browsers such as Firefox and Chrome.
Or it may be alternative programs that perform the same tasks as other popular programs such as LibreOffice, the alternative program for Microsoft Office, which can perform most of the tasks that the latter does.
It is worth noting that LibreOffice is available on the Windows operating system for free, but here we address the misconception that Ubuntu does not contain the programs on Windows, or that you cannot perform the same tasks that you do on a Windows computer with it.
The Ubuntu operating system store contains many programs found on the Windows system, such as Slack, Spotify and all browsers.
This is in addition to the presence of a large number of video and photo editing programs on it. In short, any productivity tasks you perform on the computer will find their applications available on the system store itself or on the official website of these applications.
But if you search for a specific application on the store and did not find it, do not worry, because you will often find alternative programs that do the same tasks with features and for free.
The Ubuntu operating system is loved among the technical community, so developers and programmers strive to provide it with any software they deem to be required by users.
3. Free operating system
Yes, Ubuntu is a free operating system, as are all Linux distributions. You will not need to pay any money to get it or use it, and of course you will not need to activate it.
This applies to all copies available from it, whether copies directed to the ordinary user, or copies directed to institutions and companies.
The Windows operating system is not a free system, and despite its activation licenses and the presence of a good number of legal and illegal ways through which you can use it, it is a paid system and obtaining it completely means either paying or resorting to illegal methods, and the latter threatens the security of your device and your privacy.
4. Easy and clear user interface
You may find that using the Windows operating system is easy for you, forgetting the idea that you have been with it for years and understand the terms and synonyms it gives to its tools and commands.
Although you have reached the stage of saving the locations of the basic system tools, you still face some difficulty in finding them sometimes due to the changes that occur in Windows after each update.
Sometimes you think that Windows is intentionally flooding you with details that you may not need to know. Of course, system developers are always working to add new features and change the look of the system, but this sometimes negatively affects the user experience.
On the contrary, the Ubuntu operating system tries to be as simple as possible, as it makes sure to clarify all its terms and explain all its programs to the user, and it deliberately hides the complex technical details behind a simple user interface, which allows providing a smooth user experience and performing tasks with high efficiency.
5. Safe operating system
In my personal opinion, there are several reasons why the Ubuntu operating system is more secure than the Windows operating system, one of these reasons you may find it a little funny, but it is true.
The more an operating system is used, the more hackers and virus programmers pay attention to it. Programmers and developers tend to develop software that will be used by as many people as possible. This is a common thing between software developers and virus developers.
The greater the number of users of the operating system, the greater the chance of use/hack, and therefore we can say that using the Ubuntu operating system keeps the attention of the largest number of virus and malware developers from you.
The only reason mentioned above is to reduce the level of security protection in the Ubuntu operating system. So we have to mention that Ubuntu has a strong firewall, and security updates are provided almost periodically.
And we must not forget that it is an open source operating system… that is, its code is available to everyone for review and examination, and thus discovering security holes in it is faster.
The last reason is that Ubuntu aims to spread the idea of open source software, meaning that you do not need to purchase an operating system or specific software to perform your daily tasks.
Freedom of access to the source code helps to develop many free programs to perform most of the basic tasks, and even develop programs to perform tasks that cannot be performed on the Windows operating system without purchasing special programs, and the latter may be expensive, which leads some to obtain them illegally.
In short, a free operating system + free software = avoiding illegal methods = more security.
6. The operating system enjoys great support from the technical community
Other than Ubuntu developers, there is a large technical community that supports this system, and both sides are working on developing the system on an ongoing basis.
Notably, the Ubuntu community is keen to help new and old users alike.
If you encounter a problem related to the Ubuntu operating system itself or one of its applications, you will find someone to help you through the Ubuntu forum website Ubuntu community , where you will find more information about the Ubuntu operating system and its technical community.
The Ubuntu operating system is updated every 6 months by the company that developed it Canonical , which provides technical support for a period of 9 months. .
The Windows operating system also has a technical community, and it has a technical support team that communicates with customers and helps them, but being a non-open source system makes it difficult to discover errors and gaps in it and is only done by experience, and experiment is an impractical method for testing operating systems, and it may endanger users’ files sometimes .
Windows 10 has received catastrophic updates more than once since its launch, one update caused game performance to drop, while another deleted all files in the My Documents folder.
Updates, of course, may cause problems with any system, but the support of the technical community in Windows is weak, because the operating system codes are protected, and the law prevents any party other than Microsoft from modifying the system even if it is for the purpose of repairing it.
It is possible, of course, to ask Microsoft to fix update problems, but Microsoft’s response is not quick, and it usually combines updates that address problems with its quarterly updates, and sometimes the latter contains other new problems.
On the contrary, with the Ubuntu operating system, any programmer can view its code and discover vulnerabilities and solve them, or communicate with the developers of the Ubuntu operating system and inform them of the vulnerabilities, who respond by launching a quick update that addresses the problems or security holes discovered
Disadvantages of Ubuntu Operating System
1. It may take some time to understand its mechanisms
The Windows operating system is characterized by ease, and this is something that cannot be denied or overlooked. One click on any program to start infecting itself almost automatically. This is not available in Linux systems and Ubuntu, by extension, lacks the same feature.
Of course, you can install programs from the free Ubuntu store as easily as downloading applications and programs on Windows, but the store lacks many programs, which means that you will need programs that are not available on it, and this is the biggest problem.
Installing programs on Ubuntu takes some time to master and learn, because it requires memorizing (or at least familiarity) with some programming commands, as it is done through a special terminal portal.
I personally had trouble familiarizing myself with the setup commands, but recently I discovered that Ubuntu provides a guide to understanding these commands .
It should be noted that this guide did not erase the difficulty of installing programs, but it will help you greatly to understand the mechanism of the installation gate, and understand the things that you must know to deal with the Ubuntu operating system easier.
2. Unsuitable Operating System for Games
In general, operating systems based on the Linux kernel do not fully support games, and of course Ubuntu is no exception to this rule.
The problem is not related to the system itself as much as it is related to the focus of most game companies that their games support the Windows operating system only, but there are games that support all operating systems, but their number is still few.
Of course, there are solutions to play games on Ubuntu, such as installing the Windows operating system next to Ubuntu, or installing it in a dummy space in a virtual machine style, and then playing games through it.
Some professional users follow more complex ways to play games on Ubuntu, the most famous of which is making modifications to the game play files themselves.
Of course, there are those who rely on third-party software for game libraries such as Steam, but in this case there must be a customized version of the game that works on Linux systems (and by extension, Ubuntu) in general.
In the end, if playing games is an essential part of your computer use, then Ubuntu will not be the perfect system for this task.
3. The compatibility of software and computer components is not the best
The lack of compatibility between the Ubuntu operating system and some computer components is one of the biggest problems of this system ever.
Several users reported problems with GPU drivers. GPUs are generally important in editing photos and making high-quality videos and 3D clips, meaning the problem is bigger than the card’s inability to play games.
The problem of definitions also affected a large number of other computer components, some of which can be replaced or an alternative unit can be used to bypass the problem.
For example: the problem of the incompatibility of the definitions of the antenna Internet unit with the Ubuntu operating system can be solved by relying on the wired connection, it is true that it is an impractical solution, especially when you are a laptop user, but it remains a solution.
The problem becomes even more difficult with parts that cannot be replaced or dispensed with, such as the audio processing unit.
The problem of compatibility of definitions has been going on with Linux and Ubuntu systems for a period of time, and the technical solutions for it came mostly from the users themselves, and there was no radical solution for it either from component manufacturers or from Linux and Ubuntu programmers themselves.
4. Yes, it contains all the basic programs, but
A computer enables you to perform a large number of tasks, and a large part of this capability has to do with the characteristics of the operating system. Although there are most of the basic task programs on the Ubuntu system, it is still missing a noticeable number of programs and applications.
Most of the time, you will feel that software innovation is more present in Windows and Mac OS, while Linux and other kernel-based systems are trying to catch up.
Note that the percentage of users of the Windows system is greater than the users of Linux systems, which results in less interest in developing programs dedicated to Linux only or versions that work on it, because the developer always wants his program to reach the largest possible number of users, and this can be easily achieved with an operating system in Windows.
Conclusion
The Ubuntu operating system has its advantages and disadvantages like any other operating system, but it is a suitable option for many users. I agree with you that moving from an operating system you know and are familiar with may be difficult, but there are strong features of Ubuntu that make you think about it and install it even as an experiment.
And do not forget that the Ubuntu operating system is subject to drastic changes from time to time, and these changes may include overcoming some of the defects that we mentioned in this article, and therefore it will not hurt you to review it from time to time.
Do you intend to try Ubuntu after reading this article? What is your impression of him in general? And finally, what is the reason why you might want to give it a try soon
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