Trying to Make Sense of Disappointment in Hardy Heron

Ubuntu’s latest and greatest distro is out and the early reviews are in. Some are glowing, some are luke warm and a few are hostile. Since this is an LTS release Canonical has much riding on Hardy. With that in mind, I am trying to make sense of what there is to dislike in Hardy.

My own experience with Hardy has been great. I have used both 32 and 64-bit versions, without a problem, for months before the final release. I did not even bother to download the full version yet. I just kept updating the experimental release once I settled on the 32-bit version. So, bad reviews of Hardy have left me scratching my head.

Some of the reviewers have got cutesy with the name saying it does not fly, or calling it hardly heron or, worse still, Oliver Hardy. It is unclear whether they wrote the review around their witticism or whether they wrote the unfavorable review and then tried to get witty.

I put unfavorable reviews into categories. First, are those who try to compare it to something else. Second, are those that are disappointed due to all of the hype. Thirdly, are those that have compatibility problems. Fourthly, and most perplexing, are the sour grapes reviews. Finally, there is legitimate criticism founded on real concerns. I will not speak to these last ones because they are specific or should be.

Those who try to compare Hardy use something else as their baseline. In some cases, it is Gutsy Gibbon, the previous release of Ubuntu. In many it is Windows, either Vista or XP. In a few it is OS/X or other Linux distros.

It is good to compare because we need something to use as a gauge. However, most of the comparisons are based on subjective evaluation. The starting point is unclear to us because we do not have any idea what the person used to gauge the original OS to which they are comparing Hardy. We only know their preference by their comparison.

Ubuntu 8.04 must stand on its own merits, but it must also suffer to be compared to other OSes. It is all part of the game. However, we must learn to give such reviews only passing notice because they are just opinions based on the subjective criteria of individuals and have no more credence than your own opinions.

Is Hardy better or worse than Vista? Well, many would say “yes” and just as many would say “no” for exactly the same reasons. Hardy has worked better for them or Vista has worked better for another. Each person has in their own mind what they use to measure against. Some have a greater tolerance for some kinds of irritants than others.

Linux users do not have much tolerance for the OS being intrusive. They do not like having to do things just because the OS requires it. They don’t want to be told that they must use anti-virus software or must re-boot. They see this as heavy handed and in your face. Conversely, Windows users don’t like having to use the terminal for anything. They see this as a throw back to the bygone days. This is a signal that the OS is lacking and out of step with the times. Of course, they are forgetting that everything they see has been coded for them by someone else and that the computer understands just as fine commands typed from a console as from the GUI.

Windows users tend to make allowance for things that irritate Linux users. When something goes wrong, they seem to expect it and take it in stride. Aren’t OSes meant to be intrusive and crash prone after all? What they have little tolerance for is when they can’t do things in their familiar way. “Why can’t Linux be more like Windows?” they complain, forgetting Windows problems that led them to try Linux in the first place.

Hardy Heron has been eagerly awaited. Its release was much publicized. Users of previous Ubuntu releases got caught in the excitement and wanted to be part of the event, so they upgraded. They were basically happy with Gutsy or Feisty, but they just thought that it was the right thing to do. After all, even the Ubuntu website touted that it is good to upgrade so that you can take advantage of new features and improved drivers. However, some people did not need new features or new drivers and found that their hardware was not detected properly or did not work so well with the new release. This is because they had old systems and some drivers are cut as new ones are added so the distro can fit onto a CD, which has fixed capacity.

The hype also went beyond the Ubuntu community to users of other distros. People who were essentially happy with what they had and, more importantly, with what they were familiar with and installed Hardy. They were disappointed because Hardy was not the same. It takes some getting used to another distro. Ubuntu uses Gnome. They may have been used to KDE. They are comparing proverbial apples to oranges. To make the comparison fairer they need to try Kubuntu 8.04. Some lamented the loss of the favorite applications such as XMMS or the emphasis on new ones such as Transmission. If you prefer the old way, then why try a new way?

Still others cannot get used to sudo which is used by Ubuntu. They have it in their minds that it is less secure and no amount of argument can change their minds. Some do not like Synaptic. They may have fallen for the elegant look of Yast with SUSE or are used to Yum with Fedora. Synaptic looks dated, but it works much better than Yast or Yum. Looks though often are the first impression that people go by.

Windows people try Ubuntu 8.04 and complain that it is not Windows. Yes, that’s right. It isn’t. And it isn’t supposed to be. Ubuntu is an alternative to Windows and not meant to be a clone. You cannot run your Windows apps in Linux or at least not without working at it. You can get some compatibility with Wine and you can get even more if you have a Windows license and run Virtual Box or VM Server.That is as it should be. You can opt to try a new OS, but should not expect it to be the same as the old one. Try to be flexible and try to learn to use many of the great open source alternatives. In most cases, you will not be disappointed. There are exceptions. If you are a gamer or need to use specific windows programs then you need to consider other options such as dual booting or maybe not using Linux at all.

If you come to Ubuntu expecting it to be anything else but what it is, you are sure to be disappointed. Ubuntu is Ubuntu, just as Vista is Vista and OS/X is OS/X. It is time to change your attitude or stick with what you are comfortable.

The third group was those with compatibility problems. I have partially covered this with users of Gutsy who upgraded but found they had issues with drivers not included in Hardy. However, drivers are a big issue in Linux in general. This is because OEMs work closely with Microsoft to ensure compatibility with Microsoft products, but shun the open source community. This is slowly changing, but the close relationship with Microsoft is a cozy arrangement that has worked to their mutual benefit.

Hardware and software have played a cat and mouse game for years in which improvements to one has forced users to get caught in a constant upgrade cycle. Then, along comes Linux, which runs equally well on old equipment as new, and they are stymied. Open source does not play their game, so they won’t play with us.

The upshot of this is that we do have a shortage of drivers and some manufacturers are better than others at providing assistance. Big problems continue to be with wireless, webcams and music players. People incorrectly interpret the situation as a Linux problem. They assume that Linux is bad at detecting hardware and getting it to work properly, but this is not the case. Linux is very good at detecting hardware and installing drivers is usually done very discreetly.

To be fair, we have to say that this issue goes beyond Linux. There is a class action suit against Microsoft for its Vista Ready designation by disgruntled purchasers of equipment who found that their purchase did not work on their Vista computer. In addition to this, Vista has huge issues with drivers of its own. Many new users of Vista had to buy new printers or other hardware because their new computer did not work with their old equipment.

The only place that you find no compatibility issues is if you buy Apple because they offer proprietary solutions because they can control both hardware and software. But, Linux users who have shunned the Evil Empire are not likely to embrace a new dictatorship, however benevolent. They want choice. For those of us who have been around for a while, we shop wisely and only buy once we are sure it will work on Linux when we purchase the equipment.

In the end, users have choice. They should stick with the OS that works best for them whether it is Ubuntu or something else. If you need to compromise, then bear that in mind. You will have to make trade offs and live with the consequences. Just don’t gripe about it afterwards.

Lastly, I come to sour grapes. These people either suffer from Ubuntu envy or inferiority complex. They feel that Ubuntu is over-hyped and resent all of the attention it is getting. They are likely using an OS that they are happy with, but do not like the fact that it is being overlooked. Get used to it.

I say this to sour grapes nay sayers. Ubuntu has made great inroads since it inception. It came from nowhere to being the leading distro. That was no accident. It is backed by a company that is losing money on it and the personal wealth of someone who believes in what he is doing, Mark Shuttleworth. He is taking the risk, not you. There is the potential for getting back some of the investment, but that isn’t what it is about. It is about believing that what you are doing is right.

If Ubuntu has proven one thing, it is that it is more than Canonical. It is more than a company. It is a community of developers and users. It is the largest and most successful community. When people attribute the success of Ubuntu to Mark Shuttleworth or Canonical alone, they are selling out the efforts of many thousands of people who contribute to the project. When they dump on Ubuntu, they are dumping on people.

Sour grapes is using disparaging terms to describe Ubuntu such as it is newbie distro. Yes, it can be. But this does not begin to sum up Ubuntu. It can be very innovative and has chosen a separate path deliberately to stand out from its Debian siblings and RPM based cousins. These people take offense that many newbies misuse terminology, thinking of Linux as Ubuntu and vice versa. We were all newbies once and we need to cut them some slack. Yes, take the time to straighten them out, but do it gently.

Another condemnation of the open source community leveled at Ubuntu is that is does not give back anything to Debian or Linux in general from which it sprung. Pardon me? Ubuntu has given much back. For starters it has brought in many new users. Many of these people have brought experience and expertise which they contribute through the forums. These people will develop and some will move on to other distros.

Canonical has been nothing but innovative. They have changed Linux. They have supported and helped other projects become successful. They were one of the first distros to back KDE 4 and are often the first to include new applications to its repositories. They were early adopters of Firefox 3 and even included it as the default browser in 8.04, despite the fact that it was still in beta. Ubuntu developers work closely with other distros and with other projects such as Gnome and KDE. Kubuntu developers have expressed an interest in keeping Automatix alive after the Automatix developers decided to go in another direction and let the project end.

Linspire and several other distros now build on the work of Ubuntu. Ubuntu has embraced several projects even going as far as to offer them as official packages in the repositories. Mythbuntu, Ubuntu Studio and Edubuntu will get far more attention now that Canonical has included them as metapackages. Firefox entensions have been included in the repositories since Gutsy. This has made it easier for some people to install them and shows support for Mozilla and its work.

Ubuntu has been more community driven than most distros and to suggest that is the darling of the open source world because it is promoted by Canonical is just plain wrong. It is so popular because of the community. With Ubuntu Brainstorm, which allows users to submit suggestions and to vote on them, Ubuntu actively solicits input from users. The forums and documentation for Ubuntu are useful to everybody, not just Ubuntu users. Do a Google search on just about any topic and add Ubuntu to the line and you are much more likely to find solutions to your problem no matter which distro you are using.

So, why the sour grapes? Some users are fearful of Ubuntu getting too popular lest their distro of choice gets less support. This makes some sense, if developers and users are being lured away, but this is not the intention of Ubuntu. The Ubuntu developers want to make Ubuntu a great user experience and they value the input of users. They do not try to raid the user base of any distro. They try to draw new users into Linux. That is why they try to keep it simple.

If any distro should suffer due to Ubuntu’s strength, it will probably be due to other reasons. If a distro takes its users for granted or neglects their needs, one can hardly blame Ubuntu. If they fail to be innovative or move at a glacial rate, then that should not mean that Ubuntu should be similarly inclined.

Linux should be about choice, innovation and being the best. Nothing short of this is acceptable. Ubuntu should not be held back because of the failures of others. Nor should others be limited to what Ubuntu delivers. Users will migrate to the platform that delivers on its promises and becomes what they need in an OS.

I am not dissatisfied with Ubuntu 8.04 in any way. It works perfectly on my computer and there is nothing that I cannot do. This is not the experience of everyone, but it is the experience of enough people to keep Ubuntu moving forward towards its goal of making itself the best distro.

Will I consider using another distro? Undoubtedly. I have always used many distros in the past and have at least five installed at any one time on my computer. Which one I will stay with for my main OS will be determined by which one best meets my needs. As my needs change, so will what I expect a distro to deliver on.

In the past my main distros in order have been: Mandrake, Fedora, MEPIS and now Ubuntu.  What they will be five years from now is anybody’s guess. What I do know is that Ubuntu will be along for the long haul. I have tried just about everything. There are things that I like and dislike about each one.

What I won’t do is to put down another distro and the efforts of others, just because I have opted for another distro. To me that is just plain sour grapes. It belittles the developers, the users and most of all the person who expresses that opinion. It makes you petty and small minded.

Try this. Instead of putting something down, try to build something up. Promote your distro of choice and tell the world how great it is. If you do a good enough job, then maybe you will be part of something big, too. Until then don’t rain on someone else’s parade. When you feel inclined to, bite your tongue.

I am not suggesting that Ubuntu 8.04 is perfect or that it should not be criticized. I am suggesting that criticism must be constructive and respectful. You need to know that any distro is the result of the hard work of many people and that your comments, if they are to be effective, have to be more than just lame criticism for the sake of nothing better to do or say.

Any good criticism is welcomed. To be constructive, it needs to be specific, so the developers can know what to fix. If it is general, then you probably are not in tune with the philosophy of the developers and just maybe you should shop around. Do not condemn them for their approach just because it differs from yours.

Instead, celebrate that Linux is big enough for everybody and, if you can’t find what you like, you can always start your own project. That’s something worth celebrating. Diversity makes us strong. The emergence of a strong distro takes nothing away. It only adds a missing element. This is what the business world wants. They will get it in the end. One distro will become the darling of commercial enterprise. It is a necessary part of our evolution. It is happening and that is to be expected. Whether it will be Ubuntu or someone else is yet to be determined. Right now the smart money is on Ubuntu.

The reason is clear. They do not need to be the best. They just need the momentum to carry it along and they have that without question.