Review: From Windows To Linux In A Flash

Or maybe it's because the seemingly unlimited number of Linux distributions out there can make choosing the appropriate one for a business a daunting task.

Running Linux off of a flash drive is a great way to test and evaluate a Linux desktop without making any changes to a Windows system. It's also a neat alternative for end users who may just want to run a Linux environment on a current Windows machine without having to dual-boot or use virtualization.

Best of all, some flash-based Linux distributions can be run persistently, meaning the session's settings can be saved to the flash drive so that the same desktop settings will open up no matter which computer a user is on; truly, the ultimate in portability.

Test Center reviewers took a look at four Linux desktops all running off of a USB flash drive. The unique feature of all was that they could be downloaded in Windows and then copied to the USB drive without the need to burn an ISO image to a disk. The same step for getting the Linux image to the flash drive involved similar steps for each operating system, with a few minor variations -- downloading the Linux image and then using a batch file or utility to copy the image (which came with each image's download) to the USB drive. It's important to follow the directions that the batch file gives in order not to overwrite the master boot record and leave Windows unbootable.

After running the batch file, all that was left was setting the laptop's BIOS to boot off the USB drive.

The USB drive used was a 2-GB Micro Cruzer and the drive was connected to a laptop running Windows XP SP 2. Here's the down-low on each of the Linux operating systems.

CrunchBang

CrunchBang Linux is a more lightweight version of Ubuntu. It's not an official derivative of Ubuntu, so it isn't supported by Canonical. It did, however, give us a decent user experience running off a flash drive.

The image took less than a minute to load completely off the flash drive. The boot screen gives a number of options: Boot into default live system, Start in safe graphics mode, Run memtest or Boot from HD.

The CrunchBang desktop is a minimalist desktop. Shortcut keys are listed in a menu in the upper corner of the interface. With these shortcuts, an end user can do just about any task without having to use the command line.

One problem we ran into was most of these shortcut keys required pressing the "Super" key and another single letter key. For example, to execute the browser: "Super+w." Linux recognizes the "Super" key to be the "Windows" key on most modern keyboards designed for Windows. However, the IBM ThinkPad we used did not have the "Windows'" key. The usual workaround is to use "Cntrl-Esc" as a substitute for the Windows key, but that did not work either. We ended up plugging a USB keyboard with the Windows key into the ThinkPad and we were set.

The CrunchBang environment has all the tools a typical user would need: a browser, Gnome Office for work processing and spreadsheets, media player, picture viewer and more.

File that were saved on XP's NTFS hard disk were easily opened in Gnome's word-processing application. Conversely, a file that was created in Gnome could be saved as a .txt, .rtf or .doc file to the hard drive. When we tried to save the same file in the default Gnome format, we received a write error.

One issue was a problem of latency and freezing up of both the mouse and keyboard. At one point the system locked up completely for about 3 minutes while browsing through CrunchBang's File Manager.

Linux Mint 6 Felicia

The ease of install and the performance of Linux Mint 6 Felicia left us in awe. The user interface is simply beautiful.

The only issue we had was the length of time it took to load Linux Mint from the USB drive: 1 minute and 49 seconds.

The boot menu gives the option of running the OS persistently or running it without saving changes. You also can opt to start in Compatibility Mode, run a memory test or boot off the local hard drive.

Any Windows user would have little trouble navigating around the GUI desktop. Again, applications that most users would run on a typical basis are installed, including a full version of OpenOffice.

There were no problems opening files that were stored on the local drive, including screenshots that were taken in the XP environment. In Linux Mint, files can be saved to the local disk or to the USB. If a user chooses to save a file to the USB, the system will place the file by default into the documents folder that gets mounted with the OS. Consider the portability factor of running in persistent mode; if a user has saved a file into the documents folder, that user has access to it the next time he or she plugs that USB drive into a machine.

Keyboard and mouse commands executed flawlessly. There were no latency issues running the OS from the flash drive. In fact, the user experience was smoother in Linux Mint off the flash drive than running XP natively. All devices seemed to work well, including a GB network card adapter -- we never lost our network connection.

Xubuntu 8.10

Xubuntu is a Canonical product that is a variant of Ubuntu. It uses fewer system resources, making it a good candidate to run from a flash drive.

Xubuntu, as with Ubuntu, may be the Linux OS that Windows users are most comfortable with. Menu and Windows settings are very similar in both.

Xubuntu took 59 seconds to load. Boot options include: Boot in Persistent Connection, Install Ubuntu, Check CD for Errors, Test Memory, Boot into HD, Advanced Options and Help.

We loaded Xubuntu in Persistent mode. As with the other Linux flash OSes, Xubuntu is loaded with applications that a typical user would need; Abiword for word processing, Totem media player, IM application, Firefox and others.

It was easy to browse files residing on the NTFS hard drive, and just as simple to open from and save to the drive. Performance was excellent; it was really difficult to tell we were working in an OS running off a flash drive. There were no issues with the mouse or keyboard. Ubuntu has really set the bar as a Linux option for novices and pros alike.

Pendrivelinux2008

With Pendrivelinux2008, a .zip file gets extracted onto a flash drive. From the USB, makeboot.bat is executed to make the USB drive into a boot drive.

This Linux OS was the fastest of the four to create on a USB drive. It was also the fastest to fully boot from the USB drive to the desktop, a total of 48 seconds.

There are more boot options on this OS besides Persistent and Live Boot; a user can opt to boot into Vesa video mode, copy the entire system to RAM or mount NTFS to read/write.

The splash screen mimics the splash screen that Windows XP uses before the desktop loads. Fittingly, it is named "Redmond" in the System Settings and can be changed to no fewer than 10 other splash screens.

In fact, the Pendrivelinux2008 desktop appears to be even more customizable than the Aero desktop in Vista or Widows 7. It is a 3-D desktop that offers features such as translucency (the glass effect), Themes and shadowed text in windows. It is a great environment for users who really enjoy expressing their individuality through their desktop interface.

This Linux OS may have the most applications of the four tested. Loaded and installed packages include: Ksnapshot, a full productivity suite (with a presentation creator), IM software and Kcalander.

Performance and response time of keyboard and mouse did not disappoint. This OS even recognizes the familiar Windows right-click to bring up a desktop shortcut menu.

The only issue we ran into was trying to lock a current guest session and start a new session as the "root" administrator login. The laptop completely locked up and would not recover on its own. We had to initiate a cold restart.

Yet, Pendrivelinux2008, as the other three flash-drive bootable Linux offerings, impressed us. Booting Linux from a USB is free, generates little to no headaches and requires no additional equipment.