One size does not fit all
Next on the list to try, is openSuSE 11.00 KDE 4 Live CD. I hope that I’ll have the time to download it. Man, why do openSuSE has to make 3-4 different versions? It’s kinda hard to choose which one to download. I’m thinking of downloading the Live CD with KDE4 interface, and the Internet DVD ISOs next weekend. If I have done it, I’ll tell you about my impression about the new openSuSE.
And just to set the record straight about “free” yeah, I first downloaded SuSe 10.0 for free, after deciding that it fulfilled my expectations, I went to “Comp USA” and bought the Novell box with media and documentation, SuSe 11.0 just went on the 4th HD in July, I bought that Novell box too, we open source pinheads believe in supporting the people that support us, giving all of us the freedom of choice, a valuable commodity thats priceless and vanishing without attention.
I’m not a convert, but I am enjoying it. My impressions of openSuse are much higher than I thought they would be. I’m not ready to put my grandmother on it, but I might put my son. I clearly see the future here.
Oh and speaking of future, my next install is going to be Mandriva Spring 2008 (another LiveCD from another magazine!). It will be interesting to compare the two and see how they stack up.
OpenSUSE 11.0 does a great job on the desktop, but it shines equally as bright in the server role. Everything you need to set up most any type of server comes on the OpenSUSE 11.0 installation DVD. The trick is narrowing down the options to the ones you'll really need. While you could have a single 'do everything' box, you might want to consider separating out some of the functionality for security and reliability reasons.
If you weren’t in Salt Lake City last week for the Utah Open Source Conference (UTOSC), you missed out big time! UTOSC was one heck of a community show, and it seemed like all who attended had a really good time.
At $60, openSUSE is more expensive than Ubuntu, but as a more established product, perhaps it can afford to be. Still, Joe Brockmeier, openSUSE community manager and a former Linux.com editor, says, "If a boxed version is going to be successful, it needs to offer something above and beyond what users can get by just downloading Linux." Both vendors' currently available retail boxes provide that extra in form of a manual and installation support (60 days for Ubuntu, 90 days for openSUSE). Both, too, make a point of listing the software included in the box.