Working with the new Ubuntu Karmic (Koala 9.10) is much of a pleasure. My 6 years old ASUS P4P800 hums like a bird on it, though using the 32-bit version only. Yes, I did 'upgrade' from the last Beta release, which went totally flawless. Of course I downloaded the official version as an image-file that I burned as ISO on a 700 Mb CD for possible later usage. From an angle I looked at Windows-7, that -though nicely polished- had nothing to offer that could attract me and which was not already available in Ubuntu. I realise that Win7 has more in common with Apple's OSX, than any Linux distro. On my older computer Win7 showed no advantages, was markedly slower and more cumbersome to handle than the very agile Karmic. And of course the confrontation with licenses and costs for everything extra beyond the between 90 and 300 USD priced official Win7 versions is a definitively passed station for me. Tiny amounts make a big heap in the end experience taught me, particularly when needing anti-virus subscriptions. Karmic comes 'gratis', as does (nearly) all of its im- and approved software. All I need can be found in Ubuntu repos: gratis. An interesting difference. But there is far more to tell...

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