Stories by: Matthew Newton

I don't know about where you live, but where I live, it feels like October. Halloween orange has sprouted everywhere from the grocery store to the doctor's office, the weather has acquired a distinctive chill, and, of course, we have a new release of Ubuntu Linux. Version 7.10 hit the Net just last week, right on time. (Ubuntu releases tend to come each October and April.)

Time for some self-criticism: Free Agent has become a bit of a one-trick pony of late. Recent output might lead you to believe this is PC World's Ubuntu Linux column. Well, it isn't. In fact, Free Agent is not even intended to be a Linux column per se; the overarching topic here is Free Software.

So, you've just installed Ubuntu 7.04, otherwise known as the "Feisty Fawn" release of everyone's favorite (for now) flavor of Linux. You booted the installation disc , looked around the test environment to discover that your hardware was working, and double-clicked the Install icon on the desktop. The Ubuntu installer helped you make room for Linux on your hard drive, and even copied over some of your documents and settings from Windows.

A couple months back, I was at home, working on some changes to my personal Web site. I wanted to see how my work in progress looked in Internet Explorer. On a Windows machine that's as easy as pie, of course, but on my Linux desktop it's not so simple. I usually grab my laptop and boot it into Windows if I need to check something in IE (or interact with a wrongheaded site that requires that browser), but this wasn't an option that day--so I apparently had no choice but to reboot my desktop (which dual boots), select Windows, fire up Internet Explorer, take a look, and boot back into Linux to continue my work.

A lot of people seem to get themselves about 90 per cent of the way to where they want to be with their Ubuntu installation and then hit a wall. "Why can't I play a DVD?", "Why can't I listen to MP3s?", "How can I watch streaming video in my browser?": these are the sort of questions I keep coming across.

A perennial e-mail in my inbox asks: "Should I use KDE or Gnome?" While tedious, it's actually natural for a user arriving from the land of commercial operating systems, where you don't have this sort of choice. Maybe not stupid, but perhaps a little silly.

I used Mandrake Linux for years before switching to Fedora Core and then to Ubuntu Linux last spring - around the same time Mandrake, which is based in France, bought a Brazilian Linux distributor called Conectiva and renamed itself Mandriva.

I haven't talked much about Ubuntu Linux since last fall, but Ubuntu-related e-mail keeps pouring in. Apparently quite a few Free Agent readers have taken my advice and given Ubuntu a shot. And a whole lot of folks seem to get themselves about 90 percent of the way to where they want to be, and then hit a wall. "Why can't I play a DVD?" "Why can't I listen to MP3s?" "How can I watch streaming video in my browser?" These are the sort of questions I keep reading.

SUSE Linux 10.0 is the latest edition of a venerable Linux distribution that Novell took under its wing nearly two years ago. SUSE has always been known for including everything but the kitchen sink - like previous versions, SUSE 10.0 comes on five CDs, compared to Ubuntu Linux's one - and for its extremely comprehensive YAST setup and configuration tool set. (YAST stands for "Yet Another Setup Tool," because geeks just can't get enough silly acronyms.)

Unable to stay away from his favourite flavour of Llinux, Matthew Newton checks out Ubuntu 5.10 - the breezy badger.

Linux is great, but sometimes a guy's gotta play games. Here's how to set up a quicker Dual-Boot to get you back into windows.