Ubuntu 10.10 Will Have a Revamped Installer

This is OLD news....

Ubuntu Roooocks

Very good....i like it!

i was just a new user of Ubuntu 9.10 . on first sight, it took my heart. I explored it with my breath stopped for at least more than 7 hours.....
it was so easy, fast, friendly, secured and simple that i could not eplain. Simply, i could suggest you to use this too. Believe me, you will forgive windows or any other OS... Ubuntu, the product of Linux is simply the best!

I would like to see RAID, LVM, and LUKS/dm-crypt support (or at least fix the broken text-mode installer).

The installation process should start with an OVERVIEW of the entire installation process. Are there 3 steps? Are there 7? What are they? What information will I need for the installation?

There is nothing more annoying than getting 3 or 4 steps into an installation and then needing to dig out some piece of information.

Secondly, no applications software should be installed by default. There should be a screen that lets people check/uncheck the applications they want.

Right now, I wait for Ubuntu to install several apps that I don't want and then I have to go in and spend time removing them.

This "install everything" is a Windoze leftover.

The "mystery default applications" on a computer make a computer slower, less stable and less safe.

If people wish to install applications, they can always install them later with the Ubuntu Application Centre. Since they are free, there is absolutely no good reason to install everything by default.

Thanks for a great operating system and an important contribution to world productivity!

May all beneficial wishes come true in beneficial ways!

Namke von Federlein

@Namke: I've done some comparative usability studies for earlier Ubuntu versions and Windows 7, and I mostly disagree with your two points. This is just my opinion, of course.

"The installation process should start with an OVERVIEW" - Most people I've seen don't read much text, and will perceive a lot of information as "it's complicated". Ubuntu gets right to the point, and that is perceived as "it's easy". I do agree that progress indicators are important - I saw "Step 4/5" on one of the shots above, and if that's not metering install steps, it probably should. By the way, Ubuntu has FAR fewer install steps (and zero versus two reboots) compared to Win7.

"...no applications software should be installed by default" - Please, no. In the bad old days (around 2000), people were forced to slog through the thousands of apps in the repository to decide what apps they wanted. Even a geek like me found it incredibly tiresome. Win7 goes to the other extreme - it installs nothing but a browser, an is thus pretty useless once installation completes. It left me feeling a bit lost - no IM, no office apps, nothing but a browser and a "good luck" in making it useful. Ubuntu's 90% solution of pre-installed software is the best compromise I've seen.

If you're interested in my blow-by-blow comparison, a summary is at http://ricegf.posterous.com/installing-your-own-os-whos-easy, which includes a link to the gory details.

My take on the new features in 10.10 mentioned above - parallel install, timezone selection by any city name, wireless support during install, and better keyboard detection - is a huge round of applause. While newbies should generally buy pre-installed from a company such as Dell, System76 or Zareason, Ubuntu continues to innovate the install process. I'm very impressed. All IMHO, of course. ;-)

Much better.

Now just need to work on the parition hard-disk drop-down - it has scary tehcnical bable, plus the window buttons are still on the wrong side which is also scary and the app icon is missing.

Awesomeness!

Still no LVM...

Looks good! Very Schick!
Very glad also to note there is still an advanced option for partitioning.

Namke: Leading to a bajillion different choices is against the easy direction that Ubuntu is trying. Ubuntu is trying to give a wonderful "out-of-the-box" experience. You can do whatever you like with it after. Jeez, it's not like they're FORCING you to use the applications (only evolution gives problems :P). The time spent installing/removing is so pitifully small that it's not even worth mentioning (expect OO.o, which does take a small amount of time). Also, Canonical would have to maintain even MORE applications. You're asking an awful lot out of them when they try hard to keep the default applications polished as best they can.

Ubuntu has always been a remarkable operating system especially for those who are just starting with Linux. This honestly is not surprising that they'd do something like this and I think its a great idea. In my opinion Ubuntu is helping to show that Linux is a very easy to use and great alternative to the mainstream for those who want change or are just interested in this sort of thing. The only thing I can say is keep up the good work Canonical and also... GO LINUX!

OK so you want to do a manual partition setup, if you use a different than default keyboard layout the the installer puts it after the partition layout. It should be before it.

I attempted to install Ubuntu 10.10 using this installer to a new partition. At the bottom screen shown above I get the message "ready when you are" with the "forward" button (not "next") greyed out. Abject failure!
I found the installer, especially the partitioning section, difficult to understand (and I'm no novice!). This despite having left a nice big chunk of free space on my drive for the installation.
The use of Linux device, partition and folder naming conventions is something which would baffle anyone conversant only with Windows.
Not an installer for novices.

I'm writing this while installing Ubuntu 10.10. The appearance of the installer is still horrible. It only runs in 1600x1200 resolution, and the text is >>tiny