"I never do dual-boot installations - tried it a few times and it is additional complexity added. However, maybe I should try your way of offering the dual-boot."
Martin, you are right it is more complex to deploy. I have developed a method of deployment which seems to cover most cases and seems to be reasonably popular: 1. Basically repartition the current HDD to free a 10G space somewhere and install Ubuntu into that. 2. Then mount the original partitions into Ubuntu to appear as folders on the desktop. 3. Then install as much of the equivalent software and get as much working as possible. 4. Add a swap file into the Ubuntu installation (1-3G depending on free space) 5. Ensure Windows boots OK and make sure Ubuntu is the default. 6. Demonstrate to the user how to boot Windows and run through the Ubuntu equivalents, how to install software etc. 7. Leave them to it and be available to help. Once you do this you find that after a few months of them on their own, they sing the praises of Ubuntu and wonder how they put up with Windows. "The problems arise when you have people who are e.g. working as freelancers and need to communicate a lot with other companies." I am a freelancer so I have directly experienced this. My experience is this is purely FUD. I deal with agencies, consultancies and clients and all through I have used Linux machines to do my business. Very rarely I have a stubborn customer who insists you use some Microsoft package. Once I go round the roundabout of complaining it doesn't work (but not telling them why) they will allow you to provide a solution which works and move on. "I myself are facing the biggest hurdles as I am running my Ubuntu in a Windows-only environment in the office where whole IT department is fully Microsoft-conform." As a freelancer I feel your pain with this one. Again I have a strategy for this, which basically involves installing Ubuntu into virtualbox on whatever equipment they provide, then after a couple of weeks setting up dual boot and continuing with that. I usually avoid telling the client I have set up dual boot since this starts the FUD again, but they usually never ask. -- So you are now asking why I go through all this pa-lava just to use Ubuntu and why don't I just put up with Windows and keep the client happy? Again in my experience they thank the fact that I can keep near 100% uptime and connectivity when everyone else is complaining about their IT dept keep messing around with their machine and breaking it on patch Tuesday and locking them out of access. On more than one occasion I have been asked by my line managers to perform tasks on their behalf since they can't do it do to their companies enforced IT policy, or simply because my machine is the only one still working in the office! If you want support feel free to contact. -- You received this bug notification because you are a member of Ubuntu 4 dz, which is subscribed to the bug report. https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/1 Title: Microsoft has a majority market share Status in Club Distro: Confirmed Status in Computer Science Ubuntu: Confirmed Status in LibreOffice Productivity Suite: New Status in dylan.NET.Reflection: Invalid Status in dylan.NET: Invalid Status in EasyPeasy Overview: Invalid Status in Ichthux - Linux for Christians: Invalid Status in JAK LINUX: Invalid Status in LibreOffice: In Progress Status in The Linux Kernel: New Status in The Linux Mint Distribution: In Progress Status in The Linux OS Project: In Progress Status in The Metacity Window Manager: In Progress Status in The OpenOffice.org Suite: In Progress Status in Tabuntu: Invalid Status in A simple player to online TV streaming: Invalid Status in Tv-Player: Invalid Status in Ubuntu Malaysia LoCo Team Meta Project: In Progress Status in Ubuntu: In Progress Status in Arch Linux: Confirmed Status in Baltix GNU/Linux: Invalid Status in “linux” package in Debian: In Progress Status in Fluxbuntu: The Lightweight, Productive, Agile OS: Confirmed Status in openSUSE: In Progress Status in Tilix Linux: New Bug description: Microsoft has a majority market share in the new desktop PC marketplace. This is a bug which Ubuntu and other projects are meant to fix. As the philosophy of the Ubuntu Project states, "Our work is driven by a belief that software should be free and accessible to all." "Ubuntu software is free. Always was, always will be. Free software gives everyone the freedom to use it however they want and share with whoever they like. This freedom has huge benefits. At one end of the spectrum it enables the Ubuntu community to grow and share its collective experience and expertise to continually improve all things Ubuntu. At the other, we are able to give access to essential software for those who couldn’t otherwise afford it – an advantage that’s keenly felt by individuals and organisations all over the world." * http://www.ubuntu.com/project/about-ubuntu/our-philosophy Non-free software leaves users at the mercy of the software owner and concentrates control over the technology which powers our society into the hands of a few. Additionally, proprietary software stifles innovation, maintains artificial scarcities, and enables malicious anti-features such as DRM, surveillance, and other monopolistic practices. This bug is widely evident in the PC industry. Steps to repeat: 1. Visit a local PC store. 2. Attempt to buy a machine without any proprietary software. What happens: Almost always, a majority of PCs for sale have Microsoft Windows pre- installed. In the rare cases that they come with a GNU/Linux operating system or no operating system at all, the drivers and BIOS may be proprietary. What should happen: A majority of the PCs for sale should include only free software. * http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html * http://www.debian.org/social_contract#guidelines * http://www.opensource.org/docs/osd To manage notifications about this bug go to: https://bugs.launchpad.net/clubdistro/+bug/1/+subscriptions _______________________________________________ Mailing list: https://launchpad.net/~algeriatul Post to : [email protected] Unsubscribe : https://launchpad.net/~algeriatul More help : https://help.launchpad.net/ListHelp
