Tuesday, August 23, 2005
Downloading Linux in India
Downloading software over a low-speed connection can be quite a nightmare. I remember some folks in my lab - this was way back in the mid-90's - trying to download Netscape because there was this really cool thing that everybody was talking about called a "browser". Gosh, what a pain that was. Downloading and installing something like Linux in India - oh well, if you don't have a high-speed line, you might as well forget about it.
I happened upon Carthik's blog this morning, and I noticed that he is actually offering to ship Ubuntu Linux live/install disks for FREE to India. Awesome!
Ubuntu Linux is, in one word, spectacular. I installed Ubuntu on my computer last month. It was a pretty smooth install. Ubuntu has shot up to number one in terms of Linux distro's in a matter of a year or so, and I think it is for good reason. Easy to install, rich set of features, blazing fast. Good out-of-the-box experience, although there are other distro's which might pip Ubuntu to the post on that. I did have to tweak a bunch of stuff to get it to work on my laptop, but it wasn't too bad. I would highly recommend it. Sez Carthik :
I figure that good should beget good, and so am willing to pass on the free distribution, at my own personal cost. The reason for doing this is that though you do get free cds from Ubuntu's shipit system, it takes an awfully long time, and what's not available immediately has very little worth. So I decided to re-ship them. If anyone wants a copy of the live and install disks of Ubuntu 5.04, please leave me a comment with your postal address in it, and I shall ship it to you for free. If you don't want to leave a comment, then you can email me at mail@carthik.net.
Update : That brings up the question : what would be a good way to distribute Linux in India on a large-scale? Set up a mirror site (problem : low bandwidth on the receiving end)? Snail-mail (people send in a self-addressed envelope)?
I happened upon Carthik's blog this morning, and I noticed that he is actually offering to ship Ubuntu Linux live/install disks for FREE to India. Awesome!
Ubuntu Linux is, in one word, spectacular. I installed Ubuntu on my computer last month. It was a pretty smooth install. Ubuntu has shot up to number one in terms of Linux distro's in a matter of a year or so, and I think it is for good reason. Easy to install, rich set of features, blazing fast. Good out-of-the-box experience, although there are other distro's which might pip Ubuntu to the post on that. I did have to tweak a bunch of stuff to get it to work on my laptop, but it wasn't too bad. I would highly recommend it. Sez Carthik :
I figure that good should beget good, and so am willing to pass on the free distribution, at my own personal cost. The reason for doing this is that though you do get free cds from Ubuntu's shipit system, it takes an awfully long time, and what's not available immediately has very little worth. So I decided to re-ship them. If anyone wants a copy of the live and install disks of Ubuntu 5.04, please leave me a comment with your postal address in it, and I shall ship it to you for free. If you don't want to leave a comment, then you can email me at mail@carthik.net.
Update : That brings up the question : what would be a good way to distribute Linux in India on a large-scale? Set up a mirror site (problem : low bandwidth on the receiving end)? Snail-mail (people send in a self-addressed envelope)?
