Vista vs UBUntu
In a comprehensive test review, CRN finds that Ubuntu 8.10 ranks much higher than Windows Vista Business on almost every performance and feature parameter
By Edward F Moltzen
While Microsoft has stumbled over the past two years in gaining acceptance of Vista in the corporate world if not the marketplace in general, various distributions of desktop Linux have been gaining significant support. Lenovo, Dell, and HP now provide at least some client computers with Linux OS as an option.
So the time was right, following the release of the most recent version of the Ubuntu desktop Linux OS, for Test Center reviewers to take a side-by-side look at the two operating systems.
Ubuntu 8.10 Desktop Edition, nicknamed "Intrepid Ibex," provides so much functionality and ease of use, at zero cost of acquisition, that it is really impossible to ignore.
Installation
In previous years, there would have been no contest. For installation, Windows required disks. Linux required disks, line commands, support from online user groups, more line commands, more support and, well, you get the picture. But over the past few years that really hasn't been the case. Installing Ubuntu—or even other distributions of Linux from SuSE to Red Hat/Fedora to smaller distributions like Mandriva—has become a snap. (Customization is another story, though.)
For now, Microsoft has lost any advantage it once had in the basic installation process with Vista against Ubuntu.
Once each OS was installed during evaluation in the Test Center lab, Ubuntu 8.10 scored big against Vista in both performance testing and in wireless integration—areas where Linux has had some trouble in the past.
Performance
Using the same custom-built PC test bed loaded with, alternatively, Ubuntu 8.10 and Windows Vista Business, Ubuntu proved to be a quicker installation, scored higher in benchmark testing, managed wireless connectivity more easily and booted slightly faster than Vista. Keep in mind that less than two years ago, wireless integration with Ubuntu was pretty weak and nonintuitive—especially for Linux newbies—while Windows XP enjoyed nearly universal market support. Early results show Ubuntu has closed the gap dramatically.
The Test Center's PC test bed was built with an Intel Core 2 Duo E7200 CPU at 2.53GHz, an ECS G31T-M motherboard with integrated Intel graphics and 2 GB SDRAM. First, Vista Business was installed on the PC; using Primate Labs' Geekbench benchmarking software the system rang up a score of 2,838. That's about on par with other Vista-based systems we've reviewed this year with similar hardware specs. We then did a clean install on the same PC with Ubuntu 8.10. Running Geekbench on the PC, the system returned a score of 3,367—a measurable and noteworthy performance spike. Even apart from the Geekbench score, the PC with Ubuntu 8.10 was noticeably faster when opening or switching between applications. Boot time with the PC running Vista was 56 seconds; with Ubuntu 8.10 it took 50 seconds.
Connectivity
In Ubuntu 8.10, developers also have integrated a simple, intuitive console for managing wireless connectivity, including for Wi-Fi and broadband wireless. After installation, it took two clicks of the wireless console to hook up the PC to a wireless router. The PC was built with a Linksys Wireless-G PCI adapter and connectivity worked like a charm. No line commands were needed; no installation of drivers was needed. It just worked. Connecting to a network via Ethernet, Wi-Fi or wireless broadband is now possible with two clicks.
In a wired Ethernet connection, Vista will in most cases just connect—no questions asked. But to flip between Ethernet and WLAN, for example, does take some clicking back and forth and required additional navigation that isn't always the most intuitive.
Portability and sharing
There are a few other noteworthy improvements in this Ubuntu version vs. the 8.04 release. With two clicks of the management console, a "guest" account can be created to permit more than one person to customize a desktop on the same PC. A guest account can then be saved to a thumb drive and loaded onto another PC. Developers also have provided a streamlined upgrade process to get from one version to the next. (The upgrade process was a little balky when we tried to upgrade from 8.04 to 8.10 inside a Sun VirtualBox virtual machine.
Windows Vista does provide for sharing and guest use of the client, but it's much less intuitive and much more restrictive process.
Browser support
This is where Microsoft does have an advantage with Vista—which supports all the major Web browsers including Firefox 3.0, Chrome, Opera, Safari and Internet Explorer 7.0. While there are indications that Internet Explorer 8, which is now in beta, could have some problems unless bugs are resolved prior to launch, the wide array of browsers that run on Vista is an advantage.
A number of niche browsers do perform on Ubuntu, which is bundled with Firefox. And some may even say that its inability to run Internet Explorer is actually an advantage. But a growing segment of users may find themselves switching back and forth between different browsers for different reasons. A limited lineup of browsers compatible with Linux and Ubuntu won't help anyone seeking to migrate. In this case, Vista gets the nod for browser support, but its advantage over Ubuntu is a relatively small factor in measuring the overall capabilities between the two operating systems.
Price
Here, there is no argument. Ubuntu is free, as in no cost of acquisition. Microsoft has set a variety of different pricing schemes—not only from Vista Ultimate to Vista Business and all the other flavors of Vista, but even from OEM to OEM and solution provider to solution provider. In a down economy, that may start to matter as more enterprises determine that it's simply more efficient to install Ubuntu 8.10 at no up-front cost—even as a bridge until Microsoft launches Windows 7.
Application support
It's also important to note that the ecosystem around Ubuntu has grown significantly over the past couple of years as well. Canonical continues to bundle key application software with Ubuntu, including OpenOffice.org, Rhythmbox (music management software that can integrate with MP3 players including iPods), Firefox 3.0, GIMP photo editing software and more. However, it is—and will be for a while—a Windows world when it comes to application support. Whether for multimedia, business, network, client, gaming, productivity (and on and on and on), Microsoft enjoys a much stronger position than Ubuntu with application support. It's not as much a criticism of Ubuntu or Linux as it is an acknowledgment of the deep roots of Microsoft's ecosystem in the IT world.
Security
While some may argue—that the Windows platform is much more vulnerable from a security perspective than Linux because it's a bigger target, Windows Vista Business allows for a nice, drill-down level of security management on a client-by-client basis via its Local Security Policy console. And Vista has been tuned to run hand-in-glove with Windows Server 2008, which the Test Center has previously found to be unparalleled in terms of its ROI potential, management features, scalability and flexibility.
From our vantage point, Windows Vista Business still maintains an advantage in terms of strength of network management and administration in Windows environments (surprise, surprise.) After all, Windows servers—including Server 2003 and Server 2008—have an optimal working relationship with Windows clients. But even there, the Vista installed base in commercial settings in North America shows no signs yet of hitting a crossover point with Windows XP in terms of installed base. On security, it's essentially a tie.
A look ahead
Ubuntu developers are scheduled to release the next version of the OS, Ubuntu 9.04, code-named Jaunty Jackalope, in April. In that version, expect the OS to come bundled with the newest versions of open-source applications like OpenOffice.org 3.0, the latest release of GIMP photo editing software and more.
For its part, Microsoft continues to make Windows XP available on netbook platforms, and is expected to release Vista Service Pack 2 in the near term. An early look at Windows 7 shows some improvements in areas such as User Account Control, better personalization and improvements to Bit Locker, and support for multitouch technology, among other things.
Our analysis of Windows 7 pre-beta and beta versions also reveals the OS may be the most secure ever produced by Microsoft. However, it's still unclear—even if Ubuntu and other Linux distributions provide improvements in their next iterations—whether Microsoft will pick up an appreciable edge in security over its open-source rivals.
But we're more than a little concerned about how tightly Internet Explorer 8 is tied to the Windows 7 platform; public remarks about Internet Explorer 8 in beta testing have not been kind and other ISVs, including McAfee, continue to exhibit show-stopping incompabilities in some applications with Microsoft's next-generation browser. Vendors may point fingers back and forth about who is to blame for not being compatible with the other software, but for us that misses the point. Ubuntu's platform is not tied to Internet Explorer and Mozilla's Firefox shows no such show-stoppers in how it works with the open-source OS.
Windows 7 shows improvement over Vista, but not in a dramatic way. Indications are that the change from Vista to Windows 7 will be much more subtle than the sea change VARs and their customers experienced when confronted with trying to switch from Windows XP to Vista.
The bottom line
Ubuntu 8.10 Desktop Edition easily ranks higher than any other Linux desktop OS we've looked at in the Test Center. Head to head, Ubuntu simply beats Vista on so many important points that Windows is no longer the simple, reflexive default. We're calling this one for Ubuntu, plain and simple, because it's a beautifully done operating system, it functions as advertised, it's easier on the client side to get up and running and it costs less. Application support is still a big deal working against it.
We understand that not every solution provider and not every customer will exactly be eager to make the jump from Windows to Linux on the desktop. VARs may also fear they'd lose out on financial incentives that Microsoft might provide, while Ubuntu provides no rebates or spifs.
Just because Ubuntu 8.10 is a desktop OS that's ready for prime time doesn't mean that everybody should make the jump all at once. Take baby steps, if that works better. But know that the steps are a lot easier to take than in the past.
One point to remember is that the Test Center doesn't dislike Windows Vista. It works fine (with enough CPU strength and 4 GB of memory installed). It just works less fine than Ubuntu 8.10. |