What is Ubuntu versus Mac OS X?
Not paying attention to Windows at all, Mark Shuttleworth said that OS X is an operating system that needs to be ahead. Now, after the release of Ubuntu 9.04, we can look at how it compares to OS X.
Exploring the history of the competition between desktop Linux and Windows, Ubuntu founder Mark Shuttleworth recently told journalist Bruce Byfield that he sees Mac OS X as the system that needs to be ahead of future Ubuntu releases - in particular, in terms of user-friendliness and user friendliness. So, Ubuntu 9.04 came out, and how does it now look compared to the latest Apple products?
As we all know, Apple has an advantage in supporting equipment and configurations because of the fact that it tightly controls the production of Mac components. But Ubuntu has made great strides in terms of simplifying the process of identifying and properly configuring problematic devices, such as wireless adapters and video cards. Jaunty Jackalope has a new proprietary driver management tool that automatically detects hardware for which closed binary drivers can be used. There is still a hassle in the form of a separate installation of closed drivers, especially when some system settings (such as “desktop effects” based on Compiz) are quietly and imperceptibly turned off when using the open driver, although the installation has never been so easy.
')
Jaunty comes with a new version of X.Org, thanks to which manual editing of xorg.conf becomes a museum rarity. Multi-monitor configurations can be defined and configured from the display settings menu, and input devices like pressure-sensitive Wacom graphic tablets are now detected upon connection and automatically configured. Jaunty is also making progress with webcam support, the fact that now most USB camcorders are correctly detected and automatically tuned is a great strategic success.
Ubuntu still has weaknesses in terms of hardware support, including Bluetooth and the PulseAudio sound server. In both, improvements are observed, but manual intervention is still required by a huge number of users, as a quick search in the forums shows. In addition, support for power management for laptops has improved, but it is still flawed and the stability of the suspend and hibernate modes depends on the specific hardware. This is caused, in part, by the use of closed drivers in Ubuntu.
Given that Ubuntu should work on any computer with any hardware configuration, it turns out that it has much better hardware support than the Apple offer. Moreover, you can buy almost any wireless card, webcam or other peripheral devices and they will work without any problems. Try it in OS X.
Assessment: well , for significantly improved X-server and camcorder support, but remaining problems with Bluetooth, sound and power management.
The innate advantage of hardware support in Mac OS X is opposed to the proven installation process in Ubuntu, which over time has become faster, more elegant and easier. Those who never installed, rearranged, or updated OS X would be surprised; No doubt you have a graphical installer, but there are not many details of modern installers of linux systems: you cannot boot from the LiveCD and perform the installation in this way, several disks that need to be changed, and perhaps the most problematic is that you have to choose a separate installation path to save documents and previously installed applications.
Ubuntu 9.04, by contrast, is available in a variety of formats: live CD, live USB, or installation directly via Synaptic for a variety of hardware architectures. It is easier to install, especially when you consider important options like disk layout, which allows you to install Ubuntu next to other existing operating systems without the risk of erasing them. You can also assign separate partitions for storing user data or for any other directory in the system. And this is even without any mention of the variants of the OS itself, including the main Ubuntu, based on KDE Kubuntu, Xubuntu, as well as all other variations, including those aimed at netbooks.
The 9.04 installer does not introduce any significant changes to the process itself, although it adds the ability to install a system with encrypted user directories (which, by the way, is in OS X), which will be liked by vigilant users. In general, the installer eventually gets better and leaves fewer questions to himself.
Rating: excellent
For day-to-day use, the desktop, file browser, and system configuration tools play a crucial role in what we will consider system usage scenarios. Ubuntu 9.04 comes with GNOME 2.26 and a whole range of tweaks and settings from the Canonical team. Of the best-known changes in 9.04, you can call the new notification system and the default shutdown of the Control-Alt-Backspace combination, which in the past restarted the X-server. They are not significant changes, but both are somewhat controversial due to the fact that they have changed traditions.
The new behavior of the notification system is very similar to Growl in OS X. Growl is distributed under the BSD license and is not developed by Apple, but is popular with independent application developers and users. The Control-Alt-Backspace key combinations have no direct equivalent in OS X; It is possible to force a reboot using the power key, but it is unlikely that this can happen by accident.
Some of the elements of the desktop and system settings have been renamed since the last release, in particular, the menu item "Session Management", which is now called more understandable "Running applications." The System Utilities submenu was excluded from the application menu, which is an improvement, and the shutdown screen was changed to more clearly present possible options for the user. Unfortunately, the menu system is still burdened with unclear (and inaccurate) “Places” (we have a better situation with this item than our foreign colleagues: the Russian translation of the menu is called “Transition” - approx. Lane), so there is still what to work on In general, these changes are a step in the right direction, but they are not yet fully prepared.
I doubt that there is any way to briefly explain the difference between “suspend” and “hibernate” without immersing in technical details, but the explanatory text in the shutdown menu does a very good job without even without this method. The new application, called “System Cleanup,” introduced at 9.04, allows you to detect and, if desired, remove the accumulated garbage like old packages, simplifying this task for all Ubuntu users who previously had to do it manually or simply ignore.
Comparing desktop usability in Ubuntu and OS X is really hard. Apple still uses strange, unmarked red, yellow and green buttons in the design of windows; a choice they had long given up. The standard Human theme in Ubuntu is easier to understand, and it looks good. For similar tasks, the Finder (file browser in OS X) is easier to use than Nautilus in Ubuntu, but the Finder has problems. Finding accessible network directories is harder than it should be, and Apple’s attempts to hide the Unix file system are pleasant until you need it and are annoying when you need to find a specific component.
Nautilus is still dealing strangely with removable media, with many ways to go to the same place, incomprehensible quasi-URL paths in the address bar (eg, computer: ///), as well as crashes caused by other applications (try go to the folder with the mounted CDROM, and then try to extract it via Nautilus (Nautilus will not be able to tell what the problem is). On the other hand, manually disable the removable media and see how OS X behaves. At least in Ubuntu, the command line is still in effect, which is part of Linux.
In the end, OS X is still ahead of Ubuntu in terms of usability, since the disadvantages of Ubuntu are more likely to prevent or not allow the user to complete the task. To cite a few unrelated examples: You may prefer the GNOME taskbar to the OS X dock to keep track of open applications, but, for example, in Ubuntu it is much more difficult to figure out why your printer suddenly stopped printing. You may like certain items in the “System -> Administration” menu in Ubuntu more than the system settings panel in OS X, made on the “all-in-one” principle, but in Firestarter in Ubuntu it is much more difficult to configure correctly than the built-in firewall in OS X .
Finally, the built-in help system in OS X is superior to Ubuntu in at least two ways. First, it is written as a troubleshooting guide, while Ubuntu help relies on documenting the contents of individual windows, and second, OS X can really get the page you need, unlike Ubuntu. For example, try getting help on setting up a Bluetooth headset on both systems. OS X will give you a step-by-step guide, while Ubuntu returns a list of manual pages.
Rating: 4 with a minus , despite the big steps forward, the remaining problems, as a rule, interfere with normal operation. Many of them are caused by the base components (HAL, CUPS, etc.), and not the desktop environment, but the result is the same.
The worst-kept secret of OS wars is that Apple makes money on OS X by selling its applications, and not by selling the OS itself. Of course, sometimes the new feature of the dock comes into advertising with John Hodgeman and Justin Long, but much more emphasis is placed on iPhoto, iTunes, iWork and other programs. Ubuntu, of course, comes with a much larger number of applications than OS X, but from the convenience of using the out-of-box system.
The iLife consumer-level media suite has strict parallels with Ubuntu’s standard set of multimedia applications, with the exception of a couple of iMovie and iDVD video editing and authoring applications, as well as an iWeb web design tool. The Rhythmbox audio player is closest to its Apple counterpart iTunes (with the exception of the store, of course), and the F-Spot is a simple replacement for iPhoto. Harder with the GarageBand sound editor; both Audacity and Jokosher are good consumer level editors, but none of them come by default.
In terms of video editing, Linux is lagging behind, although some stable and simple editors, such as PiTiVi, come close in convenience to iMovie. Currently, there is no DVD authoring tool that is appropriate for Apple’s iDVD ease. Personally, I have never been a fan of WYSIWYG sites produced in iWeb, but they are popular and there is no sane analogue in Ubuntu - the last real challenger, Kompozer (KDE app), and anabiosis since 2007. On the other hand, although QuickTime and DVD Player, non-iLife video players, are easily comparable to Totem, perhaps even surpassing them in the number of formats supported.
Again, OpenOffice in Ubuntu is an order of magnitude more functional than the Apple iWork — no wonder if we recall the long history of its development. In addition, the combination of Internet applications from Firefox, Evolution and Pidgin is more impressive than Safari, Mail, Addressbook, iCal and iChat, while remaining simple in terms of use. Linux is designed to communicate over the Internet, so it’s not surprising that its core applications have improved over the years.
Apple's XCode and Automator are also respected tools for developers, but again, Linux offers more, and for specialized tasks, such as software development, where the basic principles are different - programming an application cannot be as simple as creating a playlist in iTunes Moreover, simplicity is more important in the long run, whereas linux tools such as Eclipse have a long history. Also, Apple's multi-boot solution for Boot Camp looks dim in comparison with the installation options available through the Ubuntu and GRUB installer - only Windows is supported in Boot Camp and there are only two partitions under the OS.
As for the majority of utilities, then both operating systems are on approximately equal bases. But Apple has two powerful offerings without any applicable counterparts in Ubuntu: Time Machine and iSync. Time Machine is a comprehensive backup system that simplifies the process of creating a backup of user data, settings, system files and applications. Although there are many backup programs in Ubuntu in repositories, none of them are enabled by default, and most of them are much more difficult to use than Time Machine. Judging by the Ubuntu forums, most users who make backups seem to be sharpened by themselves or write rsync-based solutions themselves, or perform manual backups. Obviously, the niche of the integrated solution is empty.
OpenSolaris has a snapshot system built right into GNOME that takes advantage of the ZFS file system. Linux has all the tools you need for backup, such as rsync and hard links, even a few projects appeared, such as FlyBack and TimeVault.
iSync synchronizes personal data (such as contacts, calendar events, and to-do lists) between OS X desktop applications and mobile devices. No major Linux distribution comes with a personal data synchronization program, most rely on the built-in import and export utilities of the email client (limiting them only to VCard, Csv and other file formats), or, at best, have a handful of outdated, highly specialized tools. in the depths of a set of packages. Of course, none of this is similar to the automatic detection of mobile devices and the synchronization that iSync provides. This is a shame when you consider how many important mobile platforms appear on a daily basis, and especially if you consider that some synchronization solutions, such as Funambol, are especially difficult to handle.
The MobileMe online service (formerly Mac) is also noteworthy; despite its lack of focus on desktops, it provides useful services such as online synchronization. Ubuntu has already proven its integration with embedded online services, in particular the error reporting tool is integrated with Launchpad. Regardless of whether Canonical wants to offer paid IMAP and web hosting like MobileMe, simple integration with existing MobileMe applications is a matter of praise. Ubuntu recently broke into this sector with the release of Ubuntu One, which allows users to synchronize files and share their work with others or even work remotely. The service is still in beta testing, but it looks promising.
Finally, we should not forget how easy it is to install applications in Ubuntu. Thousands of packages are available in the official repositories, and only in rare cases will you have to download and install the package manually. The Apple software download service is not very convenient and easy to navigate. Installing a package in OS X usually involves searching for a project website, downloading a disk image, opening it, confirming its credentials with a password, and then manually copying the application to the hard disk. In Synaptic, you can put a mark much faster, and dependencies are resolved automatically.
Rating: 3+ for large gaps in the coverage of some areas (like backup or video editing), besides not including existing applications by default (like audio editors and synchronization tools). As in the previous section, part of this assessment is caused by the flaws in the underlying applications, but the end result for the user is unchanged.
Table: OS X applications and their alternatives in Ubuntu
Both operating systems can update using graphical utilities, although they have different approaches. In Ubuntu Update, Notifier periodically checks for new packages that a user can choose to install on a package-by-package basis, and the user can also upgrade using Synaptic. Software Update from Apple also periodically checks for updates, only Apple makes releases not often. When this happens, they are connected together; those. iTunes and iPhoto can receive independent updates, but updating the system itself, only in all or nothing mode, affects the entire system.
Apple's update utility starts downloading available packages in the background without user intervention, so that when a user is notified that an update is available, he usually doesn’t have to wait long. On the other hand, through the Apple system it is impossible to reduce the version of the program. Moreover, the Apple update service does not update all the software on the computer, but only the main Apple products. No third-party applications are managed and must be updated manually by the user. Interestingly, even Apple’s own application development kit is not supported in this service! And Synaptic allows users to skip or roll back updates if problems arise and they (updates) can be used for any application in any repository. More and more third-party software vendors are creating apt repositories that include open source packages (eg, Boxee) or closed (eg, Google).
One of the best innovations of Ubuntu in recent years is the personal archives of Launchpad packages, thanks to which any developer or team can safely create a full-fledged Apt repository for their packages. It is easy to take it for granted, but on OS X, if a third-party application was not programmed to automatically check its updates (and some programs have this feature), the only way to find out about the new version is to visit the program's website and search for announcements about the new version.
Rating: 5+ , for simple automatic updates, for the choice, and for integrating the software regardless of its source code.
This category is a trifle for Ubuntu, which is free no matter how many machines you install it on, and what kind of machines it is: servers, workstations, laptops, netbooks, thin clients, etc. It is also worth noting that not only the OS is free, but also applications. ITunes, Safari and Mail have crowds of fans, but do not forget that iLife, iWork and MobileMe are not free. Apple is even asking for money for supporting MPEG-2 in QuickTime because of 640 software patents that also affect free software users. Plus, “professional” creative applications like Aperture, Final Cut, Logic Pro, Shake and others cost significantly more. As previously mentioned, Ubuntu still lacks good tools for working with video, but processing digital negatives like in Aperture is quite accessible without any fee, while there are also powerful audio editors and programs for working with graphics. Although Ubuntu is free, commercial support is available, for which a fee is charged, which means spending money only on things that have real value!
Rating: 5+ , because it is cheaper than the gift just nowhere. Use the money saved on Ubuntu to buy hardware or, in the worst case, to purchase commercial software for Linux or paid support.
Both Apple and Canonical provide technical support that is attractive to businesses, but for the average user, these paid services are not the usual approach. To get help with Apple software, you will have to travel to the nearest Apple store and wait for your turn to talk to an employee. Will have to pay or not depends on the issue. You can also write to the ru_mac community or search the online knowledge base.
Ubuntu does not have retail stores, so it will not be possible to talk face to face, but it also has online documentation and visited forums. In addition to the official Ubuntu documentation, the user community maintains an extensive knowledge base with guides and problem solving options. At ubuntuforums.org, discussions are grouped by release, desktop environment and, in fact, topics. It also hosts specialized forums for local communities of Ubuntu (LoCo). All old discussions are preserved, creating a huge base of questions and answers. And, finally, with the most complex questions that the wiki does not help and which the forum regulars are puzzled with, you can always contact the developer directly. Launchpad provides an error tracking system and the ability to communicate with software authors - something that Apple will never allow itself.
There are flaws in the Ubuntu support system, such as the tendency to a wiki crash or simply defiantly incorrect information due to independent and sometimes conflicting edits. , , . , , .
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(): How Does Ubuntu 9.04 Measure Up to Mac OS X?
: liquido , Boten , stasikos , sidney3172blog, deadmoto , myself.
Exploring the history of the competition between desktop Linux and Windows, Ubuntu founder Mark Shuttleworth recently told journalist Bruce Byfield that he sees Mac OS X as the system that needs to be ahead of future Ubuntu releases - in particular, in terms of user-friendliness and user friendliness. So, Ubuntu 9.04 came out, and how does it now look compared to the latest Apple products?
Support and configuration of equipment
As we all know, Apple has an advantage in supporting equipment and configurations because of the fact that it tightly controls the production of Mac components. But Ubuntu has made great strides in terms of simplifying the process of identifying and properly configuring problematic devices, such as wireless adapters and video cards. Jaunty Jackalope has a new proprietary driver management tool that automatically detects hardware for which closed binary drivers can be used. There is still a hassle in the form of a separate installation of closed drivers, especially when some system settings (such as “desktop effects” based on Compiz) are quietly and imperceptibly turned off when using the open driver, although the installation has never been so easy.
')
Jaunty comes with a new version of X.Org, thanks to which manual editing of xorg.conf becomes a museum rarity. Multi-monitor configurations can be defined and configured from the display settings menu, and input devices like pressure-sensitive Wacom graphic tablets are now detected upon connection and automatically configured. Jaunty is also making progress with webcam support, the fact that now most USB camcorders are correctly detected and automatically tuned is a great strategic success.
Ubuntu still has weaknesses in terms of hardware support, including Bluetooth and the PulseAudio sound server. In both, improvements are observed, but manual intervention is still required by a huge number of users, as a quick search in the forums shows. In addition, support for power management for laptops has improved, but it is still flawed and the stability of the suspend and hibernate modes depends on the specific hardware. This is caused, in part, by the use of closed drivers in Ubuntu.
Given that Ubuntu should work on any computer with any hardware configuration, it turns out that it has much better hardware support than the Apple offer. Moreover, you can buy almost any wireless card, webcam or other peripheral devices and they will work without any problems. Try it in OS X.
Assessment: well , for significantly improved X-server and camcorder support, but remaining problems with Bluetooth, sound and power management.
Installation
The innate advantage of hardware support in Mac OS X is opposed to the proven installation process in Ubuntu, which over time has become faster, more elegant and easier. Those who never installed, rearranged, or updated OS X would be surprised; No doubt you have a graphical installer, but there are not many details of modern installers of linux systems: you cannot boot from the LiveCD and perform the installation in this way, several disks that need to be changed, and perhaps the most problematic is that you have to choose a separate installation path to save documents and previously installed applications.
Ubuntu 9.04, by contrast, is available in a variety of formats: live CD, live USB, or installation directly via Synaptic for a variety of hardware architectures. It is easier to install, especially when you consider important options like disk layout, which allows you to install Ubuntu next to other existing operating systems without the risk of erasing them. You can also assign separate partitions for storing user data or for any other directory in the system. And this is even without any mention of the variants of the OS itself, including the main Ubuntu, based on KDE Kubuntu, Xubuntu, as well as all other variations, including those aimed at netbooks.
The 9.04 installer does not introduce any significant changes to the process itself, although it adds the ability to install a system with encrypted user directories (which, by the way, is in OS X), which will be liked by vigilant users. In general, the installer eventually gets better and leaves fewer questions to himself.
Rating: excellent
Basic system and working environment
For day-to-day use, the desktop, file browser, and system configuration tools play a crucial role in what we will consider system usage scenarios. Ubuntu 9.04 comes with GNOME 2.26 and a whole range of tweaks and settings from the Canonical team. Of the best-known changes in 9.04, you can call the new notification system and the default shutdown of the Control-Alt-Backspace combination, which in the past restarted the X-server. They are not significant changes, but both are somewhat controversial due to the fact that they have changed traditions.
The new behavior of the notification system is very similar to Growl in OS X. Growl is distributed under the BSD license and is not developed by Apple, but is popular with independent application developers and users. The Control-Alt-Backspace key combinations have no direct equivalent in OS X; It is possible to force a reboot using the power key, but it is unlikely that this can happen by accident.
Some of the elements of the desktop and system settings have been renamed since the last release, in particular, the menu item "Session Management", which is now called more understandable "Running applications." The System Utilities submenu was excluded from the application menu, which is an improvement, and the shutdown screen was changed to more clearly present possible options for the user. Unfortunately, the menu system is still burdened with unclear (and inaccurate) “Places” (we have a better situation with this item than our foreign colleagues: the Russian translation of the menu is called “Transition” - approx. Lane), so there is still what to work on In general, these changes are a step in the right direction, but they are not yet fully prepared.
I doubt that there is any way to briefly explain the difference between “suspend” and “hibernate” without immersing in technical details, but the explanatory text in the shutdown menu does a very good job without even without this method. The new application, called “System Cleanup,” introduced at 9.04, allows you to detect and, if desired, remove the accumulated garbage like old packages, simplifying this task for all Ubuntu users who previously had to do it manually or simply ignore.
Comparing desktop usability in Ubuntu and OS X is really hard. Apple still uses strange, unmarked red, yellow and green buttons in the design of windows; a choice they had long given up. The standard Human theme in Ubuntu is easier to understand, and it looks good. For similar tasks, the Finder (file browser in OS X) is easier to use than Nautilus in Ubuntu, but the Finder has problems. Finding accessible network directories is harder than it should be, and Apple’s attempts to hide the Unix file system are pleasant until you need it and are annoying when you need to find a specific component.
Nautilus is still dealing strangely with removable media, with many ways to go to the same place, incomprehensible quasi-URL paths in the address bar (eg, computer: ///), as well as crashes caused by other applications (try go to the folder with the mounted CDROM, and then try to extract it via Nautilus (Nautilus will not be able to tell what the problem is). On the other hand, manually disable the removable media and see how OS X behaves. At least in Ubuntu, the command line is still in effect, which is part of Linux.
In the end, OS X is still ahead of Ubuntu in terms of usability, since the disadvantages of Ubuntu are more likely to prevent or not allow the user to complete the task. To cite a few unrelated examples: You may prefer the GNOME taskbar to the OS X dock to keep track of open applications, but, for example, in Ubuntu it is much more difficult to figure out why your printer suddenly stopped printing. You may like certain items in the “System -> Administration” menu in Ubuntu more than the system settings panel in OS X, made on the “all-in-one” principle, but in Firestarter in Ubuntu it is much more difficult to configure correctly than the built-in firewall in OS X .
Finally, the built-in help system in OS X is superior to Ubuntu in at least two ways. First, it is written as a troubleshooting guide, while Ubuntu help relies on documenting the contents of individual windows, and second, OS X can really get the page you need, unlike Ubuntu. For example, try getting help on setting up a Bluetooth headset on both systems. OS X will give you a step-by-step guide, while Ubuntu returns a list of manual pages.
Rating: 4 with a minus , despite the big steps forward, the remaining problems, as a rule, interfere with normal operation. Many of them are caused by the base components (HAL, CUPS, etc.), and not the desktop environment, but the result is the same.
Applications, applications ...
The worst-kept secret of OS wars is that Apple makes money on OS X by selling its applications, and not by selling the OS itself. Of course, sometimes the new feature of the dock comes into advertising with John Hodgeman and Justin Long, but much more emphasis is placed on iPhoto, iTunes, iWork and other programs. Ubuntu, of course, comes with a much larger number of applications than OS X, but from the convenience of using the out-of-box system.
The iLife consumer-level media suite has strict parallels with Ubuntu’s standard set of multimedia applications, with the exception of a couple of iMovie and iDVD video editing and authoring applications, as well as an iWeb web design tool. The Rhythmbox audio player is closest to its Apple counterpart iTunes (with the exception of the store, of course), and the F-Spot is a simple replacement for iPhoto. Harder with the GarageBand sound editor; both Audacity and Jokosher are good consumer level editors, but none of them come by default.
In terms of video editing, Linux is lagging behind, although some stable and simple editors, such as PiTiVi, come close in convenience to iMovie. Currently, there is no DVD authoring tool that is appropriate for Apple’s iDVD ease. Personally, I have never been a fan of WYSIWYG sites produced in iWeb, but they are popular and there is no sane analogue in Ubuntu - the last real challenger, Kompozer (KDE app), and anabiosis since 2007. On the other hand, although QuickTime and DVD Player, non-iLife video players, are easily comparable to Totem, perhaps even surpassing them in the number of formats supported.
Again, OpenOffice in Ubuntu is an order of magnitude more functional than the Apple iWork — no wonder if we recall the long history of its development. In addition, the combination of Internet applications from Firefox, Evolution and Pidgin is more impressive than Safari, Mail, Addressbook, iCal and iChat, while remaining simple in terms of use. Linux is designed to communicate over the Internet, so it’s not surprising that its core applications have improved over the years.
Apple's XCode and Automator are also respected tools for developers, but again, Linux offers more, and for specialized tasks, such as software development, where the basic principles are different - programming an application cannot be as simple as creating a playlist in iTunes Moreover, simplicity is more important in the long run, whereas linux tools such as Eclipse have a long history. Also, Apple's multi-boot solution for Boot Camp looks dim in comparison with the installation options available through the Ubuntu and GRUB installer - only Windows is supported in Boot Camp and there are only two partitions under the OS.
As for the majority of utilities, then both operating systems are on approximately equal bases. But Apple has two powerful offerings without any applicable counterparts in Ubuntu: Time Machine and iSync. Time Machine is a comprehensive backup system that simplifies the process of creating a backup of user data, settings, system files and applications. Although there are many backup programs in Ubuntu in repositories, none of them are enabled by default, and most of them are much more difficult to use than Time Machine. Judging by the Ubuntu forums, most users who make backups seem to be sharpened by themselves or write rsync-based solutions themselves, or perform manual backups. Obviously, the niche of the integrated solution is empty.
OpenSolaris has a snapshot system built right into GNOME that takes advantage of the ZFS file system. Linux has all the tools you need for backup, such as rsync and hard links, even a few projects appeared, such as FlyBack and TimeVault.
iSync synchronizes personal data (such as contacts, calendar events, and to-do lists) between OS X desktop applications and mobile devices. No major Linux distribution comes with a personal data synchronization program, most rely on the built-in import and export utilities of the email client (limiting them only to VCard, Csv and other file formats), or, at best, have a handful of outdated, highly specialized tools. in the depths of a set of packages. Of course, none of this is similar to the automatic detection of mobile devices and the synchronization that iSync provides. This is a shame when you consider how many important mobile platforms appear on a daily basis, and especially if you consider that some synchronization solutions, such as Funambol, are especially difficult to handle.
The MobileMe online service (formerly Mac) is also noteworthy; despite its lack of focus on desktops, it provides useful services such as online synchronization. Ubuntu has already proven its integration with embedded online services, in particular the error reporting tool is integrated with Launchpad. Regardless of whether Canonical wants to offer paid IMAP and web hosting like MobileMe, simple integration with existing MobileMe applications is a matter of praise. Ubuntu recently broke into this sector with the release of Ubuntu One, which allows users to synchronize files and share their work with others or even work remotely. The service is still in beta testing, but it looks promising.
Finally, we should not forget how easy it is to install applications in Ubuntu. Thousands of packages are available in the official repositories, and only in rare cases will you have to download and install the package manually. The Apple software download service is not very convenient and easy to navigate. Installing a package in OS X usually involves searching for a project website, downloading a disk image, opening it, confirming its credentials with a password, and then manually copying the application to the hard disk. In Synaptic, you can put a mark much faster, and dependencies are resolved automatically.
Rating: 3+ for large gaps in the coverage of some areas (like backup or video editing), besides not including existing applications by default (like audio editors and synchronization tools). As in the previous section, part of this assessment is caused by the flaws in the underlying applications, but the end result for the user is unchanged.
Table: OS X applications and their alternatives in Ubuntu
| Apple | Ubuntu |
| iTunes | Rhythmbox |
| iPhoto | F-spot |
| iMovie | there is none; somewhat under active development |
| GarageBand | no default; Jokosher and Audacity are good choices. |
| iDVD | no default; several available in repositories |
| iWeb | there is none |
| Quicktime | Totem |
| Dvd player | Totem |
| Evolution | |
| Safari | Firefox |
| iCal | Evolution |
| iChat | Pidgin for instant messaging, Ekiga for VoIP |
| Photobooth | Cheese |
| Front row | no default; Elisa and MythTV available |
| Addressbook | Evolution |
| iWork | Openoffice |
| Mobileme | there is none; Conduit and others are under active development. |
| Time machine | no default; many options in repositories |
| iSync | there is none; Funambol is an independent solution. |
| Xcode | Eclipse, Anjuta, KDevelop and some others |
| Automator | Many scripting languages, although not a single target for destop in general |
| Boot camp | Grub |
| Aperture | no default; Rawstudio and UFRaw are good options. |
| Final cut | there is none; Cinelerra is unstable, Lumiera is far from ready |
| Logic pro | no default; Ardour is available |
| Shake | no default; Blender has compositing in addition to 3-D |
Software update
Both operating systems can update using graphical utilities, although they have different approaches. In Ubuntu Update, Notifier periodically checks for new packages that a user can choose to install on a package-by-package basis, and the user can also upgrade using Synaptic. Software Update from Apple also periodically checks for updates, only Apple makes releases not often. When this happens, they are connected together; those. iTunes and iPhoto can receive independent updates, but updating the system itself, only in all or nothing mode, affects the entire system.
Apple's update utility starts downloading available packages in the background without user intervention, so that when a user is notified that an update is available, he usually doesn’t have to wait long. On the other hand, through the Apple system it is impossible to reduce the version of the program. Moreover, the Apple update service does not update all the software on the computer, but only the main Apple products. No third-party applications are managed and must be updated manually by the user. Interestingly, even Apple’s own application development kit is not supported in this service! And Synaptic allows users to skip or roll back updates if problems arise and they (updates) can be used for any application in any repository. More and more third-party software vendors are creating apt repositories that include open source packages (eg, Boxee) or closed (eg, Google).
One of the best innovations of Ubuntu in recent years is the personal archives of Launchpad packages, thanks to which any developer or team can safely create a full-fledged Apt repository for their packages. It is easy to take it for granted, but on OS X, if a third-party application was not programmed to automatically check its updates (and some programs have this feature), the only way to find out about the new version is to visit the program's website and search for announcements about the new version.
Rating: 5+ , for simple automatic updates, for the choice, and for integrating the software regardless of its source code.
Price
This category is a trifle for Ubuntu, which is free no matter how many machines you install it on, and what kind of machines it is: servers, workstations, laptops, netbooks, thin clients, etc. It is also worth noting that not only the OS is free, but also applications. ITunes, Safari and Mail have crowds of fans, but do not forget that iLife, iWork and MobileMe are not free. Apple is even asking for money for supporting MPEG-2 in QuickTime because of 640 software patents that also affect free software users. Plus, “professional” creative applications like Aperture, Final Cut, Logic Pro, Shake and others cost significantly more. As previously mentioned, Ubuntu still lacks good tools for working with video, but processing digital negatives like in Aperture is quite accessible without any fee, while there are also powerful audio editors and programs for working with graphics. Although Ubuntu is free, commercial support is available, for which a fee is charged, which means spending money only on things that have real value!
Rating: 5+ , because it is cheaper than the gift just nowhere. Use the money saved on Ubuntu to buy hardware or, in the worst case, to purchase commercial software for Linux or paid support.
Support
Both Apple and Canonical provide technical support that is attractive to businesses, but for the average user, these paid services are not the usual approach. To get help with Apple software, you will have to travel to the nearest Apple store and wait for your turn to talk to an employee. Will have to pay or not depends on the issue. You can also write to the ru_mac community or search the online knowledge base.
Ubuntu does not have retail stores, so it will not be possible to talk face to face, but it also has online documentation and visited forums. In addition to the official Ubuntu documentation, the user community maintains an extensive knowledge base with guides and problem solving options. At ubuntuforums.org, discussions are grouped by release, desktop environment and, in fact, topics. It also hosts specialized forums for local communities of Ubuntu (LoCo). All old discussions are preserved, creating a huge base of questions and answers. And, finally, with the most complex questions that the wiki does not help and which the forum regulars are puzzled with, you can always contact the developer directly. Launchpad provides an error tracking system and the ability to communicate with software authors - something that Apple will never allow itself.
There are flaws in the Ubuntu support system, such as the tendency to a wiki crash or simply defiantly incorrect information due to independent and sometimes conflicting edits. , , . , , .
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(): How Does Ubuntu 9.04 Measure Up to Mac OS X?
: liquido , Boten , stasikos , sidney3172blog, deadmoto , myself.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/64640/
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