Desktop Linux Users Double in 2006

According to DesktopLinux.com’s just completed survey, the number of Desktop Linux users has more than doubled in 2006, and Ubuntu remains the no. 1 Linux distribution of choice for desktop users. The survey comprised of a self-selected sample size of 38, 500 users.

This year’s survey produced 38,500 votes versus 14,535 votes over the same number of days in a similar survey one year ago. The number of votes was used to estimate the increase in Linux usage which isn’t exactly scientific but it gives a fair estimation.

What is the preferred Desktop Linux distribution?

The leading Linux distribution is the Ubuntu family - 30 percent of survey respondents are using Ubuntu or one of its sister distributions: Kubuntu, Xubuntu, and Edubuntu.

While there are other distributions that owe a great deal to Ubuntu like Linspire, Freespire, MEPIS, Linux Mint, and Pioneer; they were not included in the count for Ubuntu this year, since some, like Freespire, have just made the switch, while others, such as MEPIS, are switching back to Debian, and Pioneer is going in its own direction.

My experience with Xubuntu

Xubuntu was a strong contender when I evaluated linux distros for our desktop environment. It is a very polished distribution. It selected Fedora Core 6 primarily because it didn’t at that time support RAID-1 on boot partitions.

Note: Most desktop users wouldn’t even care, if they even know what it is, for RAID-1, let alone care for RAID-1 for boot partitions. However I had been severely affected in the past with hardware crashes and I was not going to leave any stone unturned.

I am not surprised with Xubuntu’s prominence in the survey because:
1. It is a very polished distro and very easy to use
2. The CD’s are shipped free to anyone around the world

Overall as I stated in the past Linux has very much matured as a desktop OS and today’s competes head to head with Microsoft Windows and in my humble opinion comes ahead. Linux is here to stay and win; get used to it.