Netbook: Which Operating System to Use?

As many people know that I have a 160GB HD first generation Acer Aspire One netbook. It originally comes with a version of Windows XP (I have no idea what version it comes with but I would guess it is Windows XP Home because that’s the only license manufacturers can bundle with the Intel Atom CPU without using Windows Vista). I formatted the netbook right away and installed Ubuntu 8.10. After using Linux for 4 months, I formatted it again and installed Windows 7 Beta and Release Candidate. Recently, I installed Ubuntu 9.04 Netbook Remix and extremely happy about it.

Now, you would be going to ask me. Which operating system I like the most on my Acer Aspire One netbook.

The netbook performs pretty good with Windows XP.  I have installed Firefox and some plug-ins of course.  Also, it is a pleasure to watch video using Media Player.  I am happy with iTunes on Windows as well.  However, it is a pain for me to work remotely although I always can install Cygwin or Putty.  I prefer native command line environment such as Mac OS X or Linux.  This is the main reason why I get rid of Windows XP right away after I received my netbook.

There are some issue with Ubuntu 8.10 on Acer Apsire One.  The major pain is the Wifi and sound driver.  I can live without sound, but I really cannot live without Wifi.  The Wifi driver is very unstable and it can disappear any time.  There was a backport can fix the problem but I have to re-compile and install the driver everytime after I update the Linux kernel.  It’s not something I want to deal with.

Then, Microsoft comes out Windows 7 beta.  Most of the reviewers highly recommend Windows 7 to be the operating system for netbook.  I immediately download a copy and install on my netbook.  It’s fast and clean.  Plus, it comes with some eye candies.  Also, Microsoft Live Writer is the best blog writer I ever use.  However, I have less than 1.5MB available memory can use after open Firefox on Windows 7.  I almost cannot do anything else since my netbook only has 1GB memory.

Since Windows 7 could be expired in the future and I don’t want to spend extra money to get a Windows 7 license, I installed Ubuntu 9.04 Netbook Remix (NBR) on my Aspire One.  My netbook works perfectly after the installation.  The only problem I need to fix is the noisy fan, which can be fixed by installed a small program.  Also, if you are the type of person who needs the wiki indicator light blinking, you can always install the linux kernel backport module using apt-get.

Now, what is my answer?  If my netbook has 2GB memory and I am willing to spare the other 50 bucks to get a Windows 7 license, I will pick Windows 7.  Or, I will just stick with Ubuntu 9.04.  Oh, by the way, Ubuntu 9.10 has major user interface changes and it will be released around October.  I really cannot wait for it.