Windows look a-like themes / user interface?

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Rhein-Ruhr-Hub's picture
Submitted by Rhein-Ruhr-Hub on Sun, 04/10/2016 - 10:59
Team(s): 
Coffee Shop

I know it is very strange to install and run a Linux OS (Lubuntu) within Labdoo project and to ask at the same time, if we should install an additional Windows theme (Windows look alike user interface).

After contributing about 2.500 laptops to Labdoo projects during the last 4 years I got different replies. Some users like Lubuntu at-once, some ask for Windows, but stay with Linux, others install Windows by themselves, deleting Lubuntu. We may not forget that the users we donate the laptops to, have poor or none computer knowledge - and if they have any, it is Windows based. LXDE is very close to WinXP/Win7 (start bottom, menus etc). But we can make it more look like Windows - if you want.

Preparing the images for cloning for 16.04 LTS it would be possible to add some themes to the images. So user might switch to a Windows like user interface. Or should pre-set these "Windows" themes, so a laptops looks like WinXP or Win7, when started? Not to be misunderstood - Labdoo will still use Linux, Lubuntu etc., only the look & feel of the user interface is closer to Windows, technically the platform stays Linux / Lubuntu.

So my questions are:

  1. Should Labdoo laptops come with a pre-installed Windows theme?
  2. Should we activate this Windows theme as standard user interface?
  3. Or should we leave this to the users and just enclose a "how to make your desktop look like Windows?

My opinion:
We should pre-install and test the Win7 theme (XP is outdated). If it works with Lubuntu we should deliver it with any Labdoo computer / image. If we should set it as standard user interface? Not sure about that...

Comments

Ron's picture
Submitted by Ron on Fri, 04/15/2016 - 10:50

Thanks for your contribution and suggestion on the topic: Here my answer on your questions:

1. Should Labdoo laptops come with a pre-installed Windows theme?
I sincerely think this would be a big advantage for our customers/students as a Windows operating system is far more common in Africa/Fare East as Linux is (and ever will be). The receiving students might have had some experience with a Windows operating system and therefore I understand the motivation to build on these existing skills.
2. Should we activate this Windows theme as standard user interface?
Yes, I believe this is an advantage for the recipient user.
3. Or should we leave this to the users and just enclose a "how to make your desktop look like Windows?
No, I think it is more “customer friendly” if we deliver a Windows theme as a standard. This will prevent our recipient users having to go through the process.

Thanks and regards
Ron

jordi's picture
Submitted by jordi on Sun, 04/17/2016 - 10:40

Thanks for the question and comments. Here are some additional thoughts:

  1. More and and more the OS is less important. The future is not in the OS, but in the content. The computer is just an interface to the content. You turn on the computer, you fire up a web browser, and then you can access content. So it does not matter if you are linux or windows, at the end of the day you will be using a web browser. True, schools in certain regions do not have access to Internet, but more and more Internet will be present everywhere. Cloud computing also means that the OS is becoming less important, as everything is run out of the network. An example is Google's chromebook, which is a laptop that runs the web browser chrome as the OS (so there is no actual OS). That's the trend.
  2. Perhaps most people don't know, but Linux is being run in most of the devices you are using (more than Windows). For instance, all Android phones and tablets are running Linux. According to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usage_share_of_operating_systems, the market share of Linux OS devices is 53% versus 11.7% for Windows. True, windows has more market share in PCs, but when it comes to mobile portable devices (which is where the growth is), Linux takes off. The reason it takes off is because of all the good properties: Open Source, Community Development, Robustness, and it is faster and more efficient.
  3. Linux has an additional message: it is a project that was initiated from collaboration and is based on the notion of openness. This message we think it helps spread the message on the importance of collaboration and helping each other. It goes very much in line with Labdoo's values too of using collaboration to spread education.

So it is ok to install a windows theme as an extra theme although i would prefer by default to still use the Edubuntu theme as we have been doing. Thanks everyone.

Rhein-Ruhr-Hub's picture
Submitted by Rhein-Ruhr-Hub on Sun, 04/17/2016 - 09:42

Thanks for your comments. A German helpers remarked that adding additional themes might get a Lubuntu system to become unstable. After done some testing I suggest the procedure explained here http://www.noobslab.com/2014/04/make-your-ubuntulinux-mint-look-like.html.

There is a new German and an English wiki entry, which is explaining the steps to be taken. And I prepared a script to run the installations automatized (link is in the wiki text).
EN: https://www.labdoo.org/content/windows-look-alike-user-interface (please improve the English text, if you want)
DE: https://www.labdoo.org/content/windows-%C3%A4hnliche-oberfl%C3%A4che
These themes and icons will be pre-installed and coming with all future 16.04 LTS images. Please send me your comments and experience using it, being positive or negative. Like to learn more from you, thanks.

PS:
The next weeks you might find dead links in our wiki and moved folders on our FTP server. In such a case please send a mail to Labdoo-DACH@Labdoo.org and I will fix it. The release date of 16.04 LTS is a good reason to go through some improvements...