If you have been a member of the Cincinnati PC Users Group for the past few years, you have seen quite a few presentations on different versions of Linux. Some of them were Linspire, PCLinuxOS. Xandros, and Ubuntu. Well Ubuntu has released a new version 8.04.1 LTS. The LTS means long term support in which Ubuntu will continue to provide updates for this version for a period of 3 years. Most versions of Linux are supported for a period of only 18 months.

Ubuntu is a relative newcomer to the Linux scene, yet, is now arguably the most popular ever. At this month’s presentation we will show you why it is so popular. Many geeks and non-geeks pronounce it the easiest-to-use Desktop Linux ever, and it is almost ready for Mom or Dad to be able to use.

Ubuntu has an auto-install program that allows you access to over 20,000 free programs on the web. We will look at this and show some of the popular programs that are available and that can compete with their commercial versions in the Windows world.

Finally, if you want to experiment with Linux but are afraid of messing up Windows on your system, we will show you how you can install Ubuntu within Windows without having to partition your hard drive or run Ubuntu in a virtual machine. It is basically a two-click operation that takes about 20 minutes.

Also at the presentation we will discuss the many other versions of Linux giving pro’s and con’s of each to provide you with more information in case you want to try one of them.

If you want to check out the easy Ubuntu install before the meeting go the website http://wubi-installer.org/.