Linux and a 9-year-old

Heh. My little girl probably won't even know Windows exists until she goes to school and has to start using it. To answer the question, when she's old enough to start using computers properly it'll probably be Edubuntu here, too. We use Ubuntu anyway so I'll be familiar with the system and able to fix any problems, and installing Edubuntu on my daughter's first PC will mean not having to find and install all the separate packages.

It's unbelievable how many computers our schools get rid of that are less than five years old. Install Ubuntu or Edubuntu on those bad boys, and you still have a fully functional, perfectly fine computing machine. Plus, kids get to experience different desktop environments so they don't become completely dependent on Windows.

The problem i've run into making a xubuntu box out of an old computer for my youngest sibling is that there's no shockwave, which is required to run most of their favorite online games. Sure, you could use wine, but thats getting a bit complicated...

This is silly. Sure you can put ubuntu on an old computer and surf the net oruse oper office, but try to use a new POPULAR(good or fun) program or game on it. Can't.

Ariel is onto the only remaining obstacle to me dumping gate's abomination into the trash... the lack of shockwave and flash plug-ins. no flash, no myspace. no shockwave, no online games. for everything else i have and use on my computers (yes, several) there are reasonable analogs to software that you shell out bucks for (audio/video editing, office stuff, email, database, ...). once we have stable shockwave and flash plugins, poof, no more windows on my boxes...

I have flash 9. Check your repos. flashplugin-nonfree 9.0.21.78.3

For the record, I run Windows XP, Ubuntu, and Mac OS X on different computers at my house. Now for the comment, Ubuntu is great and stable as is Mac OS X and Windows gets better all the time. But the fact remains that neither Mac nor any (or all) flavor of Linux will ever take enough market share to matter much. It is a dis-service to train a child on a Mac or linux box and not expose them to Windows because odds are they will only use the Mac or Linux box at home. Like it or not, the business world runs on Windows based PC's.

I bought three surplus computers from my work - "old" Pentium IIIs with 800MHz processors, 20 GB hard drives, and 256 MB of RAM - and am in the process of converting them to a "home network" running Ubuntu and Edubuntu. When I told my kids of my plans, know what I got? Enthusiasm! They are REALLY down with the idea of having their very own computers (previously, computers were "family units" shared by all). Wait until they - and me! - begin to discover how to work with Linu to make it do everythig they want.

Anybody that has an "old" computer and some free time on their hands should definitely consider Ubuntu!

I think the comment thread here is interesting. I am the originator of the first post. The one who set the computer up for Andy. Keep these things in mind. Andy's mom works for Microsoft, there is no shortage of Windows PCs laying around, Andy has a PS2 that he uses for any game playing. What we want him to learn is the basics of opening and saving files, how to find things on the internet, how to type, things he can learn on any computer. It's only a plus that there are thousands of free educational games he can play as well as the internet at his hands. It's an exercise in learning, not a be all end all solution for any computing needs he may have. There are plenty of XP and Macs around the house if he wants to use something else.

The reason so many schools get rid of computers after 3-5 years is because parts are too expensive to keep replacing on them. Its usually not a reasoning of its not fast enough running windows, its just that it is cheaper to buy new with a 3 year warranty. Besides, people have a hard enough time figuring out how to open up word or outlook on their windows computers, i cant imagine them trying to figure out something really unfamiliar to them such as Linux. The kids I'm sure would be fine, but not those teachers...

"It is a dis-service to train a child on a Mac or linux box and not expose them to Windows"

Er, not really. The kids'll get plenty of Windows as soon as they're in school. They can learn Windows there and Linux at home. That's the best of both worlds if you ask me.

It's interesting the comment about needing to learn Windows because businesses use it. Sounds a lot like needing to speak English because it is the most important language in the world. And what have we learned about that one? Yup, being bilingual and understand linguistic concepts makes a more developed brain. Hmmm, I wonder if a kid who learns a little Linux, a little Mac, a little bit about the concepts of OSes might have a hand up on the student who knows only one? Nah.

I think it's a great idea to expose kids to different operating systems. I have a 7-year old son who has an older Windows machine and he would rather have Linux on it. He's used Puppy and Ubuntu and is really excited about having his own Linux machine. I figure it's a good idea, as he's exposed to both Windows and the Mac world at school; now he can be exposed to the Linux as well.