Author: nixternal Date: Mon Mar 12 04:00:48 2007 New Revision: 3968 Modified: branches/feisty/edubuntu/about-edubuntu/C/about-edubuntu.xml
Log: complete - review Modified: branches/feisty/edubuntu/about-edubuntu/C/about-edubuntu.xml ============================================================================== --- branches/feisty/edubuntu/about-edubuntu/C/about-edubuntu.xml (original) +++ branches/feisty/edubuntu/about-edubuntu/C/about-edubuntu.xml Mon Mar 12 04:00:48 2007 @@ -1,390 +1,336 @@ <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?> -<!DOCTYPE article PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook XML V4.1.2//EN" - "http://www.oasis-open.org/docbook/xml/4.1.2/docbookx.dtd"; [ +<!DOCTYPE article PUBLIC "-//OASIS//DTD DocBook XML V4.1.2//EN" +"http://www.oasis-open.org/docbook/xml/4.1.2/docbookx.dtd"; [ <!ENTITY % globalent SYSTEM "../../../libs/global.ent"> %globalent; <!ENTITY % cdo-C SYSTEM "../../../libs/cdo-C.ent"> %cdo-C; +<!ENTITY % gnome-menus-C SYSTEM "../../libs/edubuntu-menus-C.ent"> +%gnome-menus-C; <!ENTITY language "&EnglishAmerican;"> <!ENTITY language "en"> -<!ENTITY ubuntu '<phrase>Ubuntu</phrase>'> ]> +<?db.chunk.max_depth 0?> +<?yelp:chunk-depth 0?> <article id="art-about-edubuntu" status="complete" lang="&language;"> <articleinfo> - <title>Edubuntu - Linux for Young Human Beings!</title> - <legalnotice id="Credits-And-License"> - <title>Credits and License</title> - <para>The following Ubuntu Documentation Team authors maintain this document:</para> - <itemizedlist> - <listitem> - <para>Jerome Gotangco</para> - </listitem> - </itemizedlist> - <para>The following people have contributed to this document:</para> - <itemizedlist> - <listitem> - <para>Matthew East</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>Mark Shuttleworth</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>Robert Stoffers</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>Brian Burger</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>Richard Johnson</para> - </listitem> - </itemizedlist> - <para>This document is made available under the Creative Commons ShareAlike 2.5 License (CC-BY-SA).</para> - <para>You are free to modify, extend, and improve the Ubuntu documentation source code under the - terms of these licenses. All derivative works must be released under either or both of these licenses.</para> - <para>This documentation is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY - WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR - PURPOSE AS DESCRIBED IN THE DISCLAIMER.</para> - <para>Online versions of the license can be found at: &cc-attrib; </para> - </legalnotice> - ©right; - <authorgroup> - &author-ubuntu-documentation-project; - </authorgroup> - <abstract> - <para>This document is an introduction to Edubuntu. It explains the Edubuntu philosophy and roots, gives information about how to contribute to Edubuntu, and shows how to get help with Edubuntu.</para> - </abstract> - &disclaimer; - &publisher; - </articleinfo> - <para> - <inlinemediaobject> - <imageobject> - <imagedata fileref="../../images/C/edubuntu_logo_png.png" format="PNG"/> - </imageobject> - <textobject> - <phrase>Edubuntu Logo</phrase> - </textobject> - </inlinemediaobject> - </para> - <para>Thank you for using Edubuntu &distro-rev; - - the <emphasis>&distro-version;</emphasis> - released in &distro-release-date;. - </para> - <para>Edubuntu is an operating system designed with education in mind. It is based on <ulink url="http://www.ubuntu.com";>Ubuntu</ulink>, a complete operating system that uses the Linux kernel and is freely available to the public. As an education-driven operating system, Edubuntu provides a complete solution for the following: - </para> - <itemizedlist> - <listitem> - <para>Educators and school personnel who would like to set up Edubuntu in a networked learning environment.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>Home users who would like to have a standalone computer system that focuses on education for the younger members of the household.</para> - </listitem> - </itemizedlist> - <para>Edubuntu gathers together the best available free software and digital materials for education. -</para> - <para>Since Edubuntu is based on Ubuntu, the team behind Edubuntu are part of the growing Ubuntu community. The Ubuntu community is built around the ideals enshrined in the <ulink url="&ubuntu-philosophy;">Ubuntu Philosophy</ulink>: that software should be - available free of charge, that software tools should be usable - by people in their local language and despite any disabilities, - and that people should have the freedom to customize and alter - their software in whatever way they see fit. For those reasons, the team behind Edubuntu makes the following public commitment to its community of users worldwide: - <itemizedlist> - <listitem> - <para>Edubuntu will always be free of charge, and there is - no extra fee for the "enterprise - edition," we make our very best work - available to everyone on the same Free terms. - </para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>Edubuntu includes the very best in translations and - accessibility infrastructure that the free software - community has to offer, to make Ubuntu usable for as - many people as possible. - </para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>Edubuntu is released regularly and predictably; a - new release is made every six months. You can use - the current stable release or the current - development release. Each release is supported for - at least 18 months. - </para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>Edubuntu is entirely committed to the principles of - open source software development; we encourage - people to use open source software, improve it, and - pass it on. - </para> - </listitem> - </itemizedlist> - </para> - <para>Find out more at <ulink url="http://www.edubuntu.org";>the Edubuntu website</ulink>. - </para> - <sect1 id="whats-new"> - <title>What's new in Edubuntu 7.04</title> - <para>Edubuntu 7.04 ships with all the features and improvements of -Ubuntu 7.04 and adds some more that are exclusive to this distribution.</para> - <sect2 id="for-users"> - <title>For Users</title> - <itemizedlist> - <listitem> - <para>The PowerPC architecture is now fully supported on -both the text-install and the live CD.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>The Edubuntu 7.04 live CD is now available for all -architectures. The live CD features the workstation install of Edubuntu.</para> - - </listitem> - </itemizedlist> - </sect2> - <sect2 id="for-admins"> - <title>For Administrators</title> - <itemizedlist> - <listitem> - <para>Edubuntu ships with three themes in the edubuntu-artwork package. To make a system-wide default look, you will only have to do a simple <emphasis>sudo dpkg-reconfigure edubuntu-artwork</emphasis> command from the terminal.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>Themed graphical login manager for the LTSP clients.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>Support for multiple architectures for the LTSP clients (It is now possible to build the client chroot on AMD64 systems for i386 clients by running sudo ltsp-build-client --arch i386 post install).</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>LTSP now finally supports the X_COLOR_DEPTH variable to force the usage of 16Bit on the clients through lts.conf.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>By default we now install only the linux-image package in the client chroot. The excessive memory usage of the restricted modules package is gone.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>A special netboot mode was introduced to initramfs, so only network device drivers are loaded. This reduces the size to two thirds of a normal initramfs and speeds up the boot process</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>LTSP now understands the X_MOUSE_DEVICE and X_MOUSE_PROTOCOL lts.conf options and adds support for various serial devices, including touchscreens and serial tablets.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>3-button emulation of 2-button mice is now supported as well. The bootprocess has seen a lot of speed improvements. Startup links in rcS.d and rc2.d are now started based on whitelists (RC2_WHITELIST RCS_WHITELIST). Only the bare minimum of processes is started on the thin clients, resulting in a shorter boot time.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>Usplash was included and enabled by default on thin clients.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>Many patches were merged from the Debian GNU/Linux project to make the packages work on Debian GNU/Linux as well.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>There is optional sound support on the thin clients now.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>The ltsp-build-client script now has options to manually enable extra and security mirrors during chroot creation.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>The default mirror of ltsp-build-client now points to archive.ubuntu.com.</para> - </listitem> - </itemizedlist> - </sect2> - </sect1> - <sect1 id="about-ubuntu"> - <title>Learn about Ubuntu, where Edubuntu originated</title> - <sect2 id="about-ubuntu-name" status="complete"> - <title>About the Name</title> - <para>Ubuntu is a South African ethical ideology focusing on - people's allegiances and relations with each other. The - word comes from the Zulu and Xhosa languages. Ubuntu - (pronounced "oo-BOON-too") is seen as a - traditional African concept, is regarded as one of the - founding principles of the new republic of South Africa, - and is connected to the idea of an African Renaissance. - </para> - <para>A rough translation of the principle of Ubuntu is - "humanity towards others". Another - translation could be: "the belief in a - universal bond of sharing that connects all - humanity". - </para> - <blockquote><attribution>Archbishop Desmond Tutu</attribution> - <para>"A person with ubuntu is open and available to others, affirming of others, does not feel threatened that others are able and good, for he or she has a proper self-assurance that comes from knowing that he or she belongs in a greater whole and is diminished when others are humiliated or diminished, when others are tortured or oppressed." - </para> - </blockquote> - <para>As a platform based on GNU/Linux, the Ubuntu - operating system brings the spirit of ubuntu to the software - world. - </para> - </sect2> - <sect2 id="free-software" xreflabel="Free Software" status="complete"> - <title>Free Software</title> - <para>The Ubuntu project is entirely committed to the - principles of open source software development; people - are encouraged to use open source software, improve it, - and pass it on. This means that Edubuntu is and will - always be free of charge. - </para> - <para>However, this means more than just being available at zero cost. The philosophy of free software is that people should be free to use software in all the ways that are "socially useful". "Free software" doesn't just mean that you shouldn't have to pay for it, it also means that you should be able to use the software in any way you wish: the code that makes up free software is available for anyone to download, change, fix, and use in any way. So apart from the fact that free software is often available without charge, this freedom also has technical advantages: when programs are developed, the hard work of others can be used and built upon. With non-free software, this cannot happen and when programs are developed, they have to start from scratch. For this reason the development of free software is fast, efficient and exciting! - </para> - <para>You can find out more about the philosophy of free software <ulink url="&gnu-philosophy;">here</ulink>. - </para> - </sect2> - <sect2 id="ubuntu-difference" status="complete"> - <title>The Difference</title> - <para>There are many different operating systems based on GNU/Linux: - Debian, SuSE, Gentoo, RedHat, and Mandriva are examples. - Ubuntu is yet another contender in what - is already a highly competitive world. So what makes - Ubuntu different? - </para> - <para>Based on Debian, one of the most widely acclaimed, - technologically advanced, and well-supported - distributions, Ubuntu - aims to create a distribution that provides - an up-to-date and coherent Linux system for desktop and - server computing. Ubuntu includes a number of carefully - selected packages from the Debian distribution and - retains its powerful package management system which - allows easy installation and clean removal of programs. Unlike most - distributions that ship with a large amount of software - that may or may not be of use, Ubuntu's list of packages - is reduced to a number of important applications of high - quality. - </para> - <para>By focusing on quality, Ubuntu produces a robust and - feature-rich computing environment that is suitable for - use in both home and commercial environments. The - project takes the time required to focus on finer - details and is able to release a version featuring the - latest and greatest of today's software once every 6 - months. Ubuntu is available in flavours for the i386 - (386/486/Pentium(II/III/IV) and Athlon/Duron/Sempron - processors), AMD64 (Athlon64, Opteron, and new 64-bit - Intel processors), and PowerPC (iBook/Powerbook, G4 and - G5) architectures. - </para> - </sect2> - <sect2 id="ubuntu-desktop" status="complete"> - <title>The Desktop</title> - <para>The default desktop environment for Ubuntu is <ulink - url="&gnome;">GNOME</ulink>, a leading UNIX and - Linux desktop suite and development platform. - </para> - <para>Another leading UNIX and Linux desktop is <ulink - url="&kde;">KDE</ulink>. The <ulink - url="&kubuntu-main;">Kubuntu</ulink> project - offers Ubuntu users an alternative choice - to the default GNOME desktop environment. Thanks - to the efforts of the Kubuntu team, Ubuntu users are now - able to install and use the KDE desktop easily on their - system. To get a working install of Kubuntu on an Ubuntu - install, install the <application>kubuntu-desktop</application> package. - Once kubuntu-desktop is installed, one - can choose to use either a Gnome or KDE desktop environment. - </para> - </sect2> - <sect2 id="version-numbers" status="complete"> - <title>Version and Release Numbers</title> - <para>The Ubuntu version numbering scheme is based on the - date we release a version of the distribution. The - version number comes from the year and month of the - release rather than reflecting the actual version of the - software. Our first release (Warty Warthog) was in - October 2004 so its version was 4.10. This version (&distro-version;) was - released in &distro-release-date; so its version number is &distro-rev;. - </para> - </sect2> - <sect2 id="ubuntu-backing-support" status="complete"> - <title>Backing and Support</title> - <para>Ubuntu is maintained by a quickly growing community. - The project is sponsored by <ulink - url="&canonical-url;">Canonical Ltd.</ulink>, a - holding company founded by Mark Shuttleworth. Canonical - employs the core Ubuntu developers and offers support and consulting services - for Ubuntu. - </para> - <para>Canonical Ltd. also sponsors a number of other Open Source software projects, about which more information can be found on the <ulink url="&canonical-url;">Canonical website</ulink>. - </para> - </sect2> - <sect2 id="about-linux" status="complete"> - <title>What is Linux?</title> - <para>The <ulink url="&kernel;">Linux kernel</ulink>, pronounced - 'lee-nucks' is the heart of the Ubuntu operating system. - A kernel is an important part of - any operating system, providing the communication bridge between - hardware and software. - </para> - <para>Linux was brought to life in 1991 by a Finnish student named - Linus Torvalds. At the time, it would run only on i386 systems, - and was essentially an independently created clone of the UNIX - kernel, intended to take advantage of the then-new i386 - architecture. - </para> - <para>Nowadays, thanks to a substantial amount of development - effort by people all around the world, Linux runs on virtually - every modern architecture. - </para> - <para>The Linux kernel has gained an ideological importance as well as a technical one. - There is an entire community of people who believe in the ideals - of free software and spend their time helping to make open - source technology as good as it can be. - </para> - <para>People in this community gave rise to initiatives such as - Ubuntu, standards committees that shape the development of the - Internet, organizations like the Mozilla Foundation, responsible - for creating Mozilla Firefox, and countless other software - projects from which you've certainly benefited in the past. - </para> - <para>The spirit of open source, commonly attributed to Linux, is - influencing software developers and users everywhere to drive - communities with common goals. - </para> - </sect2> - <sect2 id="about-gnu" status="complete"> - <title>What is GNU?</title> - <para>The <emphasis>GNU Project</emphasis>, pronounced “guh-noo”, was - launched in 1984 to develop a complete - UNIX style operating system which is comprised of free software: the GNU - system. Variants of the GNU operating system, - which use the Linux kernel, are now widely used; though these - systems are often referred to as “Linux,” they are more - accurately called GNU/Linux systems. - </para> - <para>The GNU project is closely linked to the philosophy of free - software, which is central to the projects that derive from it, - such as Ubuntu. The concept of free software is explained - at <xref linkend="free-software"/>. - </para> - </sect2> - </sect1> - - <sect1 id="participate" status="complete"> - <title>Participate in Edubuntu</title> - <para>The Edubuntu community is made up of software developers, documentation writers, translators, graphic artists, and most importantly, the people who are using Edubuntu in their everyday lives. We invite you to join this community and help shape Ubuntu into an operating system that better meets your needs.</para> - <para>You don't have to be a software developer to help improve Edubuntu. You can participate by translating Edubuntu into your own language, by testing it on desktops, laptops, and servers, by improving the Edubuntu web site with guides and tips for users, by answering questions on the forum or mailing lists, contributing artwork, and more. Any contribution, big or small, will shape the future of Edubuntu for all of us. To find out how to participate, visit <ulink url="&ubuntu-participate;">this webpage</ulink>!</para> - <para id="about3">Read more about Edubuntu and its growing community at <ulink url="http://www.edubuntu.org";>www.edubuntu.org</ulink>.</para> - </sect1> - <sect1 id="help" status="complete"> - <title>Get Help with Edubuntu</title> - <para>There are many ways to get help with Edubuntu. You can obtain <ulink url="&ubuntu-paidsupport;">paid support</ulink> or use one of the many free support options, such as:</para> - <itemizedlist> - <listitem> - <para>Edubuntu's local help, available from the System menu.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>The Ubuntu <ulink url="&ubuntu-documentation;">documentation website</ulink>, where you will find comprehensive guides to using Ubuntu (and are applicable to Edubuntu) written by the <emphasis>Ubuntu Documentation Team</emphasis>.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>The Edubuntu <ulink url="https://wiki.edubuntu.org/EdubuntuWiki";>wiki</ulink>, which hosts a vast range of community-contributed documentation on using Edubuntu.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>The Edubuntu community <ulink url="https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/edubuntu-devel";>mailing list</ulink>, where we discuss news, ideas and issues with Edubuntu. There is also a special interest group for <ulink url="https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/edubuntu-devel-es";>Edubuntu in the Spanish language</ulink>.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>The Edubuntu community <ulink url="&ubuntu-forums;">web forums</ulink>, where you can ask questions, look for help, and discuss any aspect of Edubuntu.</para> - </listitem> - <listitem> - <para>IRC chat: <phrase>#edubuntu at &irc-server;</phrase> - chat in realtime with the IRC community. You will need an <application>IRC client</application> to connect. Edubuntu comes with a messenger client. Open -<menuchoice> - <guimenu>Applications</guimenu> - <guimenuitem>Internet</guimenuitem> - <guimenuitem>Gaim Internet Messenger</guimenuitem> -</menuchoice>.</para> - </listitem> - </itemizedlist> - </sect1> +<title>Edubuntu - Linux for Young Human Beings!</title> +&legalnotice; +<abstract> +<para>This document is an introduction to Edubuntu. It explains the +Edubuntu philosophy and roots, gives information about how to contribute to +Edubuntu, and shows how to get help with Edubuntu.</para> +</abstract> +</articleinfo> + +<para> +This section is an introduction to Edubuntu. It explains the Edubuntu +philosophy and roots, gives information about how to contribute to Edubuntu, +and shows how to get help with Edubuntu. +</para> + +<para> +<inlinemediaobject> +<imageobject> +<imagedata fileref="../../images/C/edubuntu_logo_png.png" format="PNG"/> +</imageobject> +<textobject> +<phrase>Edubuntu Logo</phrase> +</textobject> +</inlinemediaobject> +</para> + +<para> +Thank you for your interestin Edubuntu &distro-rev; - the +<emphasis>&distro-version;</emphasis> - released in &distro-release-date;. +</para> + +<para> +Edubuntu is an operating system designed with education in mind. It is based on +<ulink url="http://www.ubuntu.com";>&ubuntu;</ulink>, a complete operating system +that uses the Linux kernel and is freely available to the public. As an +education-driven operating system, Edubuntu provides a complete solution for the +following: +<itemizedlist> +<listitem> +<para> +Educators and school personnel who would like to set up Edubuntu in a networked +learning environment. +</para> +</listitem> + +<listitem> +<para> +Home users who would like to have a standalone computer system that focuses on +education for the younger members of the household. +</para> +</listitem> +</itemizedlist> +</para> + +<para> +Since Edubuntu is based on Ubuntu, the team behind Edubuntu are part of the +growing Ubuntu community. The Ubuntu community is built around the ideals +enshrined in the Ubuntu Philosophy: that software should be available free of +charge, that software tools should be usable by people in their local language +and despite any disabilities, and that people should have the freedom to +customize and alter their software in whatever way they see fit. For those +reasons, the team behind Edubuntu makes the following public commitment to its +community of users worldwide: +<itemizedlist> +<listitem> +<para> +Edubuntu will always be free of charge, and there is no extra fee for the +"enterprise edition," we make our very best work available to everyone +on the same Free terms. +</para> +</listitem> + +<listitem> +<para> +Edubuntu includes the very best in translations and accessibility infrastructure +that the free software community has to offer, to make Ubuntu usable for as many +people as possible. +</para> +</listitem> + +<listitem> +<para> +Edubuntu is released regularly and predictably; a new release is made every six +months. You can use the current stable release or the current development +release. Each release is supported for at least 18 months. +</para> +</listitem> + +<listitem> +<para> +Edubuntu is released regularly and predictably; a new release is made every six +months. You can use the current stable release or the current development +release. Each release is supported for at least 18 months. +</para> +</listitem> +</itemizedlist> +</para> + +<para> +Find out more at <ulink url="http://www.edubuntu.org";>the Edubuntu +website</ulink> +</para> + +<!-- ABOUT THE EDUBUNTU NAME --> +<sect1 id="about-name" status="complete"> +<title>About the Name</title> + +<para> +Edubuntu combines education and Ubuntu to form the name (pronounced +"ed-oo-BOON-too"). Ubuntu is a South African ethical ideology focusing +on people's allegiances and relations with each other. The word comes from the +Zulu and Xhosa languages. Ubuntu (pronounced "oo-BOON-too") is seen as a +traditional African concept, is regarded as one of the founding principles of +the new republic of South Africa and is connected to the idea of an African +Renaissance. +</para> + +<para> +A rough translation of the principle of Ubuntu is "humanity towards others". +Another translation could be: "the belief in a universal bond of sharing that +connects all humanity". +</para> + +<blockquote> +<attribution>Archbishop Desmond Tutu</attribution> +<para> +"A person with ubuntu is open and available to others, affirming of others, +does not feel threatened that others are able and good, for he or she has a +proper self-assurance that comes from knowing that he or she belongs in a +greater whole and is diminished when others are humiliated or diminished, when +others are tortured or oppressed." +</para> +</blockquote> + +<para> +As a platform based on Ubuntu Linux, the Edubuntu operating system brings the +spirit of ubuntu to the educational world. +</para> +</sect1> + +<!-- FREE SOFTWARE --> +<sect1 id="free-software" status="complete"> +<title>Free Software</title> + +<para> +The Edubuntu project is entirely committed to the principles of free software +development; people are encouraged to use free software, improve it, and pass it +on. +</para> + +<para> +"Free software" doesn't mean that you shouldn't have to pay for it +(although Edubuntu is committed to being free of charge as well); it means that +you should be able to use the software in any way you wish: the code that makes +up free software is available for anyone to download, change, fix, and use in +any way. Alongside ideological benefits, this freedom also has technical +advantages: when programs are developed, the hard work of others can be used and +built upon. With non-free software, this cannot happen and when programs are +developed, they have to start from scratch. For this reason the development of +free software is fast, efficient and exciting! +</para> + +<para> +You can find out more about free software and the ideological and technical +philosophy behind it at the <ulink url="http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/";>GNU +website</ulink>. +</para> +</sect1> + +<!-- THE DIFFERENCE --> +<sect1 id="difference" status="complete"> +<title>The Difference</title> + +<para> +There are many different operating systems based on Linux: Debian, SuSE, Gentoo, +RedHat, and Mandriva are examples. Edubuntu is yet another contender in what is +already a highly competitive world. So what makes Edubuntu different? +</para> + +<para> +Based on Debian, one of the most widely acclaimed, technologically advanced, and +well-supported distributions, Edubuntu aims to create a distribution that +provides an up-to-date and coherent Linux system for educational desktop and +server computing. Edubuntu includes a number of carefully selected packages from +the Debian distribution and retains its powerful package management system which +allows easy installation and clean removal of programs. Unlike most +distributions that ship with a large amount of software that may or may not be +of use, Edubuntu's list of packages is reduced to a number of important +applications of high quality and educational importance. +</para> + +<para> +By focusing on quality, Edubuntu produces a robust and feature-rich computing +environment that is suitable for use in both home and educational environments. +The project takes the time required to focus on finer details and is able to +release a version featuring the latest and greatest of today's software once +every 6 months. Edubuntu is available in downloads for the i386 +(386/486/Pentium(II/III/IV) and Athlon/Duron/Sempron processors), AMD64 +(Athlon64, Opteron, and new 64-bit Intel processors), and PowerPC +(iBook/Powerbook, G4 and G5) architectures. +</para> +</sect1> + +<!-- DESKTOP - GNOME --> +<sect1 id="desktop" status="complete"> +<title>The Desktop</title> + +<para> +The default desktop environment for Edubuntu is <ulink +url="http://www.gnome.org/";>GNOME</ulink>, a leading UNIX and Linux desktop +suite and development platform. +</para> + +<para> +Another leading UNIX and Linux desktop is <ulink +url="http://www.kde.org";>KDE</ulink>. The <ulink +url="http://www.kubuntu.org";>Kubuntu</ulink> project offers Edubuntu users an +alternative choice to the default GNOME desktop environment. Thanks to the +efforts of the Kubuntu team, Edubuntu users are now able to install and use the +KDE desktop easily on their system. To get a working install of Kubuntu on an +Edubuntu install, install the <application>kubuntu-desktop</application> +package. Once kubuntu-desktop is installed, one can choose to use either a Gnome +or KDE desktop environment. +</para> +</sect1> + +<!-- VERSION AND RELEASE NUMBER INFO --> +<sect1 id="version-release-numbers" status="complete"> +<title>Version and Release Numbers</title> + +<para> +The Edubuntu version numbering scheme is based on the date we release a version +of the distribution. The version number comes from the year and month of the +release rather than reflecting the actual version of the software. Our first +release (Warty Warthog) was in October 2004 so its version was 4.10. This +version (&distro-version;) was released in April 2007 so its version number is +&distro-rev;. +</para> +</sect1> + +<!-- SUPPORT --> +<sect1 id="support" status="complete"> +<title>Backing and Support</title> + +<para> +Edubuntu is maintained by a quickly growing community. The project is sponsored +by <ulink url="http://www.canonical.com";>Canonical Ltd.</ulink>, a holding +company founded by Mark Shuttleworth. Canonical employs the core Edubuntu +developers and offers support and consulting services for Edubuntu. +</para> + +<para> +Canonical Ltd. also sponsors a number of other Open Source software projects, +about which more information can be found on the <ulink +url="http://www.canonical.com";>Canonical website</ulink>. +</para> +</sect1> + +<!-- WHAT IS LINUX? --> +<sect1 id="linux" status="complete"> +<title>What is Linux?</title> + +<para> +The <ulink url="http://www.kernel.org";>Linux kernel</ulink>, pronounced +'linnuks' is the heart of the Ubuntu operating system. A kernel is an important +part of any operating system, providing the communication bridge between +hardware and software. +</para> + +<para> +Linux was brought to life in 1991 by a Finnish student named Linus Torvalds. At +the time, it would run only on i386 systems, and was essentially an +independently created clone of the UNIX kernel, intended to take advantage of +the then-new i386 architecture. +</para> + +<para> +Nowadays, thanks to a substantial amount of development effort by people all +around the world, Linux runs on virtually every modern architecture. +</para> + +<para> +The Linux kernel has gained an ideological importance as well as a technical +one. There is an entire community of people who believe in the ideals of free +software and spend their time helping to make open source technology as good as +it can be. +</para> + +<para> +People in this community gave rise to initiatives such as Ubuntu, standards +committees that shape the development of the Internet, organizations like the +Mozilla Foundation, responsible for creating Mozilla Firefox, and countless +other software projects from which you've certainly benefited in the past. +</para> + +<para> +The spirit of open source, commonly attributed to Linux, is influencing software +developers and users everywhere to drive communities with common goals. +</para> +</sect1> + +<!-- GNU --> +<sect1 id="gnu" status="complete"> +<title>What is GNU?</title> + +<para> +The <emphasis><acronym>GNU</acronym> Project</emphasis>, pronounced “guh-noo”, +was launched in 1984 to develop a complete UNIX style operating system which is +comprised of free software: the <acronym>GNU</acronym> system. Variants of the +<acronym>GNU</acronym> operating system, which use the Linux kernel, are now +widely used. +</para> + +<para> +The <acronym>GNU</acronym> project is closely linked to the philosophy of free +software, which is central to the projects that derive from it, such as Ubuntu. +The concept of free software is explained at <xref linkend="free-software"/>. +</para> +</sect1> </article> -- ubuntu-doc-commits mailing list ubuntu-doc-commits@lists.ubuntu.com https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-doc-commits
