That's not as drastic as it sounds. First off, I had a fresh backup of the home directory from the day before. Even better, since the home directory and all the current files were on a separate partition, so I could reformat and reload just the partition with the OS without harming the other working files. I might not even need the backups. Once the decision to reload was behind us, the next question was what version of the OS should I install?
The desktop was originally running Ubuntu 9.04 when the confusion started, which was about a year old. I could have reloaded with Ubuntu 9.10, released in October 2009, which is running very smoothly on my laptop. I had already been hearing good reports about the next release of Ubuntu, 10.04, nicknamed Lucid Lynx. Ubuntu 10.04 is still only available as a Beta version for testing, and not recommended for a production computer in daily use. Having had good experiences with earlier Ubuntu Beta's, I decided to move forward - not backwards.
Downloading the 10.04 Beta, I burned a copy of the OS to a CD and within 30 minutes was looking at the test version of Ubuntu's "latest and greatest" operating system. It booted right up and seems to have given my aging desktop a vitamin shot. The new version 10.04 boots noticeably faster, shuts down even quicker. The new OS still has a couple of wrinkles and I've filed a few minor bug reports. The best news is that the normal series of OS update over the past two weeks have shown visible progress. Ubuntu 10.04 already seems very stable and I'm looking forward to the final release on April 29th. Lucid Lynx is one of Ubuntu's long-term-support (LTS) releases and security and other updates will be provided for an extended length of time.
A few applications from the Ubuntu repositories that aren't automatically loaded with the new OS were checked off my checklist of installed software, and as usual, I tweaked a few configuration files. In summary, I saved time in the long run by jumping ahead to the new version a little early. So far everything seems to have worked out very well. My personal seven-year migration to a free Linux OS certainly paid back the investment with interest these past two weeks.
The ease of the upgrade has pushed me to reconsider some of my recommendations for intermediate and advanced computer users. I'm still reluctant to recommend Ubuntu or any Linux OS system to outright beginners. I want people to have access to a modern, secure operating system that anyone can use and anyone can have free for the asking. I want people to enjoy their computer without constantly worrying about the next virus or other malware attacks.
I also want new Linux users to have a successful experience transitioning to their new OS. If someone doesn't already know where to find and download a free copy of the OS software, or doesn't know how to burn a CD with the operating system to load on their computer, they probably wouldn't know how to use the appropriate Linux forums to get help nor how to resolve questions about their version of the OS. There's no such thing as a free lunch.
If this sounds harsh, it's really meant to be realistic. Time -- not money -- is the most important resource any computer user has to invest. If you enjoy learning new things and are willing to spend some of your own time to learn, exploring Linux and particularly Ubuntu, can be a very rewarding experience. If you're willing to invest in yourself, then the learning process can be as much fun as the feeling of accomplishment as you master any new skill or any new OS.
From my recent experience, this new version of Ubuntu, 10.04 - Lucid Lynx - may be the Ubuntu version that makes me change my mind about the minimum skill level needed for most people to use Linux. The Ubuntu system of regular improvements, delivered on schedule, has provided great advances in usability. This LTS version was built for stability. Throughout the process, the Lucid Lynx version of Ubuntu has been easy to use and shows great potential for wider acceptance by hardware manufacturers and by consumers.
I may be a little behind on updating the three websites that I help maintain, but I've got a new, stable computing platform that I can use to catch up.
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