Hi all! I have sampled and used various distros going back to Red Hat 5.2 in 1999, and
THIS THREAD is the best thing I've seen in the Linux community during that time!
Sound strange? Let me explain. Linux and OSS has so much hype surrounding it. So much dogma. So much propaganda. So many myths. Linux is almost 20 years old, but in so many ways, it still can't cut the mustard compared to Windows!
20 Years! And it still isn't there yet!
Of course there are those that disagree, but they are much fewer in number. The numbers of newbies that return to Windows; the countless testimonials of Linux horror stories, not just of Linux issues, but of hostile community issues, are littered across the internet.
Some would suggest that Windows is still the king because of marketing, contracts, under the table shenanigans, etc. Sure, those are major aspects, but the real reason is because "it works", it's "simple enough", and it is fully supported by software and hardware makers. ......and last but not least, Windows users don't get beat up on the forums for their unwillingness to hack the CLI and compile from source!
There are many reasons why 'Linux' hasn't made it yet, but the starting point to resolve our issues are threads like this: One that directly solicits something more than just 'newbie problems', but first impressions, which inherently include an emotional response, such as the negative response one has when you can't do something simple that ought to be simple.
So, thank you for this thread. Other distros may have had them at times as well, but I can't recall any off the top of my head.
I am presently learning programming and Linux development and hope to play a role someday in evolving the Linux Desktop. I would love to see Linux replace Windows as the 'king' of the Desktop, but realistically, I'd say that's still another 10 years off, and maybe more, if the philosophy doesn't change to include some hard lines in the sand, such as the understanding that certain bugs, or lack of functionality, are completely unacceptable, and must be fixed before a final release, along with a more open forum for consumers to voice their desires and gripes about Linux.
Now, I'm ready to list off my first impressions! I realize that for some of the negatives I list I may have just overlooked the obvious, or there may be fixes or workarounds for them. This is just what I've experienced up to this point.
Pros:
Install seemed to go ok, as I recall. I love the speed!
Love it! Definitely the
fastest distro I've used thus far. It actually makes my computer feel new again, and that feels great! Boot up time is nice too!
I also love the look and feel! It has a perfect blending of fun, happy, kids computer and yet still professional, clean ready for business. Just looking at it, it's the
most exciting desktop I've ever seen, and immediately begs to be explored! I've only used Macs a couple of times in the past, and this may not be Mac like, but the
look of it just gives me that impression of being easy, simple and fun to use.
I like the extra descriptions and guides that either pop up, or are part of the window, for various settings utilities. There is still room for enhancement here though. One of the best way to educate the new comer is by suppling instant help at the 'POP' (point of problem, to coin a term). This can minimize the time spent searching for help, which can be a real pain.
As an experienced computer user, I appreciate the partition listing on the desktop, which I'm sure I'll change later, but a newbie might not like it, especially since they're all labeled with device names (dev/sda1, etc).
The native firewall is a smart idea, and the 1-2 click setup right off of the taskbar is very nice.
Now, those are just the positives off the top of my head (I'm sure there's plenty more), and now I'll list the negatives off the top of my head.
Puppy is the 3rd OS on my dual drive system. I presently have WinXP, OpenSuse, and will also install Debian and Zenwalk. (I used Ubuntu for 4 years, and I'm sick of it!)
Well, Puppy setup a functional grub, but it decided to list every single partition on both drives as menu entries! I've managed to sort it out manually, and a newbie with a normal dual boot probably wouldn't have that problem.
I like the fact that the firewall is there on the taskbar just waiting for you to click on it, but I'm dismayed that an OS that instantly has better net security than other distros, leaves the user wide open on boot up with no enforced password! It's the opposite of some other distros who don't run a default firewall but enforce a root/user password system. On top of this, after digging around, I couldn't find an easy way to set one up! I then catch wind on the forums of a very lengthy CLI implementation.
That's a
major negative for a lot of people, especially in multi-person households where people (kids) have a tendency to fiddle with things they shouldn't. A new user needs to be able to quickly install, and have instant password security. I recommend going with passworded installation, with the option to opt-out during the setup.
There's a couple of issues with both the hidden and unhidden taskbar, covering up the tops of apps. When in hide mode, my mouse triggers the bar way too early, before the pointer even gets close to the bar area, so I can't access the top off max'ed apps.
Right Click on taskbar is non-functional. I like to be able to alter all taskbar properties with a right click.
Haven't yet found a "minimize all" icon to place on the taskbar. This is a must (but not a deal breaker).
There is nothing in the package manager to indicate the how/when/what of updates for installed packages and kernels. It "appears" to be just an optional package installer.
The Desktop location in the file system is not readily apparent.
The 'start' menu is very nice, on the one hand, but at the same time, there are some potential downsides. For a "newbie", it's going to be overwhelming, and hard on the eyes. There's a ton of stuff in there, much of it for advanced, experienced and niche users, as well as as a wealth of administrative stuff.
There are different ways that could be spruced up, depending on who your target user group is. One way would be to have a simple toggle button showing after you click on Menu. This would toggle between the current menu, and a simplified one for newbies or casual users, which would only have the most popular and most commonly needed apps and tools for newbies.
The default streaming player for Opera (GMplayer) has a poor default cache setting, adjusts to undesirable settings, and does not save the setting from session to session.
Several times now, there have been utilities where I have clicked on an option and the utility just crashed.
Ok, well, those are just the first impressions after about a day of using it. Based on what I've seen, I would recommend it to seasoned Linux fans, or those who don't mind playing around with new distros, but I would probably hesitate to recommend it to Windows users.......however, as a rule, I don't recommend any of the distros I've tried to Windows users.
Having said that, Puppy could very well be the first distro that I would recommend to Windows users as time goes on! But for me, this distro will definitely be a keeper!
(edited for typos and clarity)