The City of Munich does not want a vulnerable populace, and has adopted a fairly aggressive stance on getting XP fans switched over to Ubuntu. In addition to linking users to a free Ubuntu download via its website, city officials have taken to Munich libraries to distribute 2,000 CDs of the open-source operating system.
Good to see that Germans are informing its people on alternative Windows operating systems. Ubuntu is pretty easy to install if you follow the instructions on the disc after you start your computer from the Ubuntu installer CD.
I haven't used just Ubuntu... Though I've used Kubuntu (which is basically Ubuntu with a different look. Ubuntu looks kinda like mac where Kubuntu looks more like windows. )
And, Kubuntu at least, isn't a bad OS at all. It's pretty quick to install (about 15-20 minutes to do the full set up). And loading times, at least on the version I tried (7.04, if I recall right, which was a few years ago... ) wasn't bad. It was roughly the same within a few seconds.
I haven't tried newer versions so I don't know what, if any, advances they've made since then. (I'd imagine they've sped things up considerably since then though...)
Start up speeds can be as fast as 15 seconds on a faster drive like a SSD, and shut down speeds are under 10 seconds in my experience.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjOnupZKr-8
Installing programs is not hard if users stick to the Ubuntu Software Center which is like a Search engine which lets you search for compatible Linux programs to install on it, or use Debian/.deb files which are similar to Windows .exe installer files you download from the internet.
Steam for Linux is also making it easier for people to install games on Linux which are not available in the Ubuntu Software Center or as a .deb installer file.
But, installing Windows software with WineHQ, using the command prompt, or the package managers with repositories is harder for installing Linux software.
Ubuntu Linux can be harder to use for some computer users, but it is pretty similar to Windows and Mac in my experience. Ubuntu is simpler than Windows 8 since Ubuntu still uses a regular desktop with a sidebar for quickly launching programs from shortcuts placed on the sidebar.
Ubuntu also comes pre-installed with Firefox, LibreOffice, media players, picture viewers, instant messengers, e-mail clients, and other software which people mostly use in Windows, so many people won't need to install many third-party programs ans apps.
Since this OS is being given away at a library, people can borrow a book or E-book about Ubuntu from the Library, or ask for help from the Librarian on how to use it.
