Canonical y Linspire, aliados

Además, debajo de esta carta, aparece una encuesta, en la que actualmente un 88% de la gente le gusta la elección. Sí señor, y es que es una buena alianza.

Para los que no se lleven bien, resumo un poco… Esta semana se ha procedido a hacer la alianza entre Linspire y Canonical - ésta última la que soporta Ubuntu -; es la mejor idea que han tenido, aunar esfuerzos y así, entre el sistema CNR (Click n’ Run) de Linspire y la comunidad de Ubuntu se puede formar la mejor distribución hecha hasta el momento.

Ventajas: Linspire pasará a tener su base de Debian a Ubuntu, y Ubuntu se compromete a utilizar su tecnología CNR.

Ambas compañías no se ven como enemigas o competitivas, sólo en cierto modo, ya que están interesados en tener un escritorio de GNU/Linux apetecible para todos, y desbancar a Microsoft Windows (palabras textuales).

CNR podrá ser usado en Ubuntu a partir de la versión 7.04 (Feisty Fawn) disponible en Abril, aunque no vendrá por defecto, se deberá descargar de la web de CNR.

La verdad es que CNR, en mi opinión personal, es un gran avance, porque si bien Ubuntu es bien sencillo a la hora de instalar, si no es por consola es gráficamente (Synaptic), pero ahora se podrán instalar drivers, codecs y demás (muchos propietarios, qué le vamos a hacer) a un sólo click, ¿a que mola?

¡GNU/Linux, unido, jamás será vencido!

“Linspire’s New Partnership with Canonical and Ubuntu

by Kevin Carmony

February 8th, 2007

This week, Linspire and Canonical, the lead sponsor of the popular Ubuntu operating system, announced a technology partnership that will integrate core competencies from each company into the other’s open source Linux offerings. This is very exciting news for both Linspire and Ubuntu users. Through this sharing of technology and working together, all users will benefit from quicker release cycles and expanded features, products and services.

Linspire is well known for the quality of the CNR technology, and Ubuntu is the most successful community Linux project to date. The marriage of these two efforts will greatly strengthen desktop Linux in its fight for broader adoption. Both of these distributions will improve significantly through this collaboration.

I’m sure many of you will have questions about this recent announcement. Therefore, in addition to the press release which I hope you’ll take a minute to read here, I wanted to try to answer some of the additional questions many of you might have.

General FAQs About The Linspire/Canonical Partnership

What are the main points of this partnership?
There are two main components to this partnership: 1) Linspire will immediately transition from Debian to Ubuntu as the base for their Linspire and Freespire operating systems, and 2) Canonical will utilize Linspire’s CNR technology for aspects of Ubuntu’s software delivery system

How long have Linspire and Canonical been working on this partnership?
Linspire and Ubuntu first started casual discussions about ways to work together a few years back, but started more formal discussions on ways to work together over the past year.

Take a look at the Linux OS building Chart

Why do Linspire and Canonical want to work together?
For the benefit of synergy - each can get farther, faster by working together than continuing to work individually. Each group does certain things well and there’s also a fair amount of overlap in what both have been doing. The less time, energy and resources Canonical, Ubuntu, Linspire, Freespire, and others spend duplicating efforts on the common challenges that face all of desktop Linux, the faster desktop Linux as a whole can advance. The partnership also frees up resources for each to dedicate to unique improvements and innovation that are important to their specific users and market segments.

But aren’t Canonical and Linspire competitors?
While both companies, and their respective projects, do compete at certain levels, they each have their own objectives and specialties. Both are interested in seeing greater desktop Linux adoption and growth. By joining forces they can work together to focus more attention on addressing common challenges Linux faces in a world dominated by Microsoft Windows, as well as having more resources to devote to their unique opportunities.

FAQs About Linspire/Freespire Using Ubuntu As Their Linux Baseline

What does it mean that Linspire and Freespire will transition their core from Debian to Ubuntu?
As with all Linux distributions, Linspire and Freespire are created from the work of hundreds of individuals and open source projects Linspire takes this baseline of work, and then supplements it with thousands of lines of additional code to glue everything together in a way consistent with their intended audience. In the past, the Linspire and Freespire operating systems have been based directly on the Debian Linux distribution. With this new partnership, both Linspire and Freespire will start using Ubuntu as their baseline. Because Ubuntu is a Debian-based distribution, Linspire will continue to have access to all the same core functionality as before, but with the additional work Ubuntu adds to the process. In other words, the Linspire and Freespire operating systems will benefit from all the good work of Debian, Ubuntu, and Linspire. (See the chart that explains the Linux OS building blocks.)

Why are Linspire and Freespire making this change?
Simply put - to get farther, faster. As mentioned previously, Linux distributions are simply variations on core Linux packages and technology. The Ubuntu community has done an exceptional job of utilizing the Debian system and creating a solid foundation for desktop Linux, with fast-paced development cycles, significant programming tools, and an active developer community. By basing on Ubuntu, the Linspire and Freespire operating systems gain from the extra work that this strong community is doing, freeing up Linspire’s time and resources to be more additive, rather than redundant. This allows Linspire to spend more time improving and innovating in other unique areas, rather than overlapping the same efforts.

Does this mean Linspire and Freespire will start looking and behaving like the Ubuntu distribution?
No…not any more than Linspire/Freespire looks like a pure Debian distribution now. Linspire will continue doing all the unique things that are important to its target users (ease of use, CNR, proprietary drivers and codecs, OEM program, etc.). This change is more at the underlying, core level rather than the UI. By working together with the Ubuntu community, we can better focus our collective resources on the common issues of hardware support, networking, installing, applications, etc.

But isn’t Ubuntu GNOME based? Will Linspire and Freespire remain KDE based?
Ubuntu defaults to GNOME, but also supports KDE. (Kubuntu is a KDE-based version of Ubuntu.) Linspire still prefers, and will continue defaulting to, the KDE desktop environment for target users of the Linspire and Freespire operating systems. Linspire will also continue making the numerous enhancements it does to KDE that make it more ideal for their target users.

What are some of the ways Linspire and Freespire will be different from Ubuntu?

Here are just a few of the key differences:

• Linspire and Freespire are designed exclusively for desktop use. (Ubuntu is also designed to work for servers.)

• Linspire and Freespire designed their user interface to feel comfortable for users familiar with or migrating from Microsoft Windows.

• Linspire and Freespire include proprietary codecs, drivers and applications for out-of-the-box hardware and multimedia support.

• Linspire and Freespire are targeted at non-technical users and accordingly take ease of use to an extreme.

• Linspire and Freespire fully incorporate CNR throughout. (Ubuntu will be incorporating aspects of CNR technology in the future.)

• Linspire is designed to be pre-installed on PCs, with OEMs in mind, and includes a revenue sharing OEM program.

• Linspire and Freespire are KDE based (rather than GNOME).

Does this mean the Freespire community will go away?

Not at all. While there will likely be more collaboration between the Ubuntu and Freespire communities, as we try to address certain core problems together, Freespire will remain very much a unique project with its own goals, objectives, and community.

When will Linspire and Freespire move to a Ubuntu baseline?

Work on the changeover will begin immediately. The next versions of both Freespire (ver. 2.x) and Linspire (ver. 6.x) will be based on Ubuntu.

Does this affect the release dates for Freespire Version 2.0?
Yes, Freespire 2.0 was originally slated to be finished Q1 2007, but will shift slightly to Q2 of 2007 to allow the necessary time to complete this transition and to follow the official release of Ubuntu 7.04 (Feisty Fawn) in April.

When will we see the first early Alpha releases of Freespire based on Ubuntu?
Early Alpha releases of Freespire 2.x, based on Ubuntu, are expected in Q1 2007 (as early as February). Linspire 6.0 will be released soon after the stable version of Ubuntu 7.04 this April.

Will Freespire and Linspire release schedules start to coincide more closely with Ubuntu releases?
Yes. The Linspire/Freespire Roadmaps will be updated in the near future to reflect any expected changes.

FAQs About Ubuntu Using CNR Technology

When will CNR be available for Ubuntu?
Beginning with Ubuntu 7.04 in April CNR will be available to Ubuntu users from within Ubuntu. (An Ubuntu CNR plugin will also be available from www.CNR.com soon after the final release of Ubuntu 7.04 this April.)

How will CNR be supported in Ubuntu?
Beginning with Ubuntu 7.04, Ubuntu users will be able to use CNR to access commercial programs and proprietary drivers with one click of the mouse. In subsequent releases CNR technology will be integrated to provide an even better desktop user experience for getting commercial software.

Will the CNR plugin ever be shipped by default in Ubuntu?
Canonical plans to integrate aspects of the open source CNR technology into Ubuntu’s software management system starting with Ubuntu’s Feisty +1 release expected in October 2007.

Will Ubuntu users have to use CNR when running Ubuntu?
No, they will still have access to all the same systems for downloading and installing software they enjoy now, including: apt-get, Synaptic, etc.

Is the CNR Service free?
Yes, the basic CNR Service is available to all, free of charge. In addition to the free service and products, users may also use CNR to access commercial products and services as well as proprietary drivers, but it’s entirely up to them. There are commercial programs in many popular categories including: personal and business productivity, communication, media players, games, drivers, etc.

Is the CNR Plugin open source and are the web services it uses published publicly?
Yes and yes.

How is CNR different from apt-get and other methods of installing software on Ubuntu?

CNR is different from most other software management system in many ways:

• One-click graphical install and uninstall of thousands of programs.

• Automatic update notification and one-click updating of OS components and software applications.

• Program and services management.

• One-click access to proprietary codecs, drivers and software.

• Allows you to buy dozens of different commercial programs, such as DVD Player, StarOffice, games, accounting programs, Win4Lin, Crossover Office, Cedega, etc.

• Menu entries and desktop icons (optionally) are automatically added when installing and removed when uninstalling.

• “Charts” to easily find the most popular software programs by category.

• Search feature to easily find software programs by name, category, keywords, similar programs, author, etc.

• Clear, easy-to-understand product pages, including:
  o Screenshots of programs
  o User reviews of the programs
  o Description, versions, specs, file size, source, etc.
  o User support and help by program
  o Release Notes
  o Screenshots

• “Aisles” to group applications together for one-click install of multiple applications.

• Dedicated, high-speed server farms with huge bandwidth pipes for fast downloads.

• Friendly naming shown alongside normal package name.

• “Voting Booth” where users help prioritize new software to be added or updated.

• Automated, on-line Publisher Program where anyone can submit software to be QA-ed and tested for inclusion in the CNR Warehouse.

• Automatically retries and fixes any problem downloads.

• CNR has a better than 98% success rate. (The < 2% failures are usually a result of modem dropoffs, in which case CNR will can automatically resume when connected, providing the user with a successful install.)

• Many of the most popular applications are enhanced and improved before adding them to the CNR Warehouse.

• Products and services which are found exclusively in the CNR Warehouse.

• Tracks problem packages on the server automatically, 24/7, and immediately hides the product from CNR users and instantly notifies the maintainer when a problem occurs.

• Easy, one-click access to a program’s source code.

• User profiles based upon machine for managing multiple machines per user.

• Local or networked software repository for quick install of same programs on multiple computers on the same network or from a CD.

How does CNR work technically with the Ubuntu system?
CNR is added to the standard Ubuntu software installation method to complement existing functionality and provide Ubuntu users with easy access to commercial products and proprietary drivers. Since CNR adheres to and works in parallel with standard Ubuntu software installation methods, users can choose to use Ubuntu’s standard installation method, CNR, or a combination of them to download and install thousands of additional programs and packages. To see a visual representation of how CNR works in parallel with Ubuntu’s current system, view this diagram.

Where can I learn more about CNR and CNR.com?
Learn more here.

This technology partnership goes a long way in advancing and unifying the Linux desktop. Linux faces many challenges as it competes in a world historically dominated by Microsoft Windows, so there is plenty of work to go around and Linspire is pleased to be able to offer differentiation and choice, while reducing fragmentation. We are very excited to be working side by side with Canonical to integrate each of our technologies for the benefit of Linux users worldwide. I think history will show this to be a very important partnership for the success of desktop Linux.

- Kevin” (FUENTE ORIGINAL)

Gracias a Luis por el aviso.