Ummm what? London is a country? Errr...

Not anymore. You REALLY are behind the times. Oracle dropped OpenOffice.org and StarOffice in the middle of April 2011. They put the entire staff of the Hamburg Germany office (where 99% of the paid OOo developers worked) on paid leave until they sorted out the layoffs. The layoffs officially started around September 2011.

During that same period, Oracle worked with the Apache Foundation to turn over the stewardship of OOo to Apache.... this has... not gone so well... mainly because almost all of the developers, previously paid and otherwise left to go work on LibreOffice. OOo development has stalled and stagnated, while LibreOffice development is going on at a rate that is far above what it saw when Sun was controlling things.

As of now, there are zero paid OOo developers in the same sense as there were during the period when Sun Microsystems was around. There are a few people (like IBM employees) who are paid to work on OOo, but it's very minimal compared to how it was between 2000 and 2010.

Clearly you are clueless... it was actually funny to read your trolling comment.. I actually laughed out loud at your uninformed rant.

I wonder how many years ago it was that you actually used Linux.

A few minor points... Linux is NOT Gnome shell... MP3 support is available from install, ie without searching for anything... standard webcams that use UVC (as in all current consumer grade webscams) work without the user needing to do anything other than plug it in... who installs Skype from a Windows CDROM? Seriously? Are you really that stupid?

I think at this point I'll stop. Each and every one of your points seem to come from a big pile of FUD that you're wallowing in. Nothing you stated about Linux was true... it's not a perfect OS, but... you are seriously misinformed about it.

I run it on an EEE Netbook.. and it's no problem at all. It's responsive and quite usable. Granted it may not be equal to a hot-rod desktop, but it certainly not so slow as to be in the way. It simply works and does a nice job of it too.

Specs: Asus EEE PC 1005HA-M, 2GB RAM, running openSUSE 12.1 with KDE4.8

1. I still say.. Nepomuk is core part of the desktop.. removing it is purposely crippling the desktop. You're basically chopping the legs off... but.. that's fine.. it'll continue to work without it.
2. Window glow? Meh.. it's theme based. I never use the default theme (which seems to be used to show what's possible vs what's usable) Oxygen is a nice dark theme...
3. You are a rare one who only wants one button (which is prob why Gnome is appealing)... but as you discovered... easy to tweak.
4. ...
5. You can change it... you're just seeing the default. Add a exit/shutdown widget/button to the panel... one click then. Change the countdown on the shutdown dialog to zero... although, again, you're crippling useful capabilities if you set it to zero.
6. Dolphin toolbar is evolving... it's much less in KDE4.8 (you're using 4.7.2 on a default openSUSE 12.1 install) with most extra functionality moved under the menu button (spanner icon)
7. Change it to double click then... Dolphin configuration setting.
8. Change it... it's in the KDE configuration
9 Easy to set

Basically 100% of what you want is possible out of the box with the exception of the cashew hiding, and that can be done with an addon... an will hopefully be do-able in a future KDE release.

An interesting aside... did you know that you can make your own spin of KDE using SUSE Studio? Since you haev non-standard needs for your desktop, you can actually build that specific desktop and create your own custom iso (technically it's a custom distro) using the web interface in Studio.

For a completely blank background with no objects at all... leave the default desktop style, remove the wallpaper and set the background color to black, and remove the Desktop Folder widget (click the X on the flyout). That should leave you with nothing there.. and if you put files into /home/$USER/Desktop, they will NOT show on the desktop.

If you notice Nepomuk running beyond the first couple minutes of the very first boot (unless you have it indexing multiple gigabytes/terabytes of data), it should be 100% unnoticeable - as in.. you shouldn't have to disable it. Wit it enabled you get really good desktop search functionality, and meta data can be shown for all files/objects in Dolphin (eg full meta data for images, multimedia etc).

There is a but report (somewhere) open requesting the ability to set transparency or autohide the cashew (ie it stays hidden until you need it)... I don't know the progress on this one though as I haven't been following it.

My toolbar has.. KMenu, Firefox, Chrome, Dolphin, and Pager.. on the far right I have a systray and it has a clock and a few key icons I want.. the rest are hidden. The default isn't much different (I added Chrome and removed the Activities pager)

Clean desktop... easy again... the default has nothing but the Desktop view widget... On click removes it if you don't want it there, or switch Desktop modes to something more suitable for you.

The default KDE4.8 from openSUSE has 2 virtual desktops defined and the virtual desktop pager as default on the toolbar. If Ubuntu devs remove/don't add it... well... what can I say? Yes Activities are promoted because.. they are actually VERY useful... if you use Virtual Desktops.. well.. they are basically the same but with a LOT more control and functionality.

Nepomuk is a core part of the desktop. You can disable it... at a cost. you actually lose out on a lot.. meta data, search, and a few other key desktop features that you would find quite useful if you tried them - it is especially key with KDEPIM. IF Ubuntu's KDE isn't allowing you to disable Nepomuk... then it's broken. I can and do disable Nepomuk on my netbook running KDE4.8 form openSUSE. I don't need that functionality there... so click and it's off.. and I never see it again.

Gnome has no way to modify things.. KDE has too many ways. You choose Gnome and get a desktop that is the way others think it shoudl be.. most Gnopme users just use the default.. and never change it... KDE on the other hand is all abotu tweaking and configuring.. if you don't like it.. change it.

I STILL don't understand the almost universal hatred for the cashew.. seriously.. I know people that almost go off the deep end over that... they've got 27 inch monitors, and the cashew is covered by apps 99.9999% of the time, yet it infuriates them... a LOT. The cashew is actually a core part of the desktop and about as fundamental as KMenu... no one freaks and hides the KMenu button... yet all they can do is soapbox about a tiny button in the top right corner... one you actually could just drag elsewhere... heck, you can even "hide" it under the taskbar/panel. I suspect it's a case of people can't find significant niggles to they pick on the insignificant and easily changed and bark about it - not saying you are.. just a general observation. On my system, the cashew is covered by another widget I've got stuffed in the top right corner... no one even notices it's there anymore

In the end.. I'd say your issues were... Ubuntu's rendition of KDE... I've tried that one over and over and over and had nothing but problems with it... openSUSE is NOT perfect by any means, but I've got to say that the KDE I pull from there (I use the "Upstream" KDE4.8 openSUSE repository, not the default KDE 4.7.2 you get from an install off the latest 12.1. DVD ISO) is rock solid, and works exactly as it should.

The reality is.. use the window manager that works for you. KDE is not the be-all-end-all and it is not right for everyone.. heck it' snot right for even half the users.. the beauty is you've got choices.. Cinnamon, Trinity, E17, KDE4, Gnome3, and on and on....

1. Toolbars full of crap? Not on my openSUSE12.1 KDE4.8 desktop All I see is what I want there... nothing more
2. Hahaha.. this is one of the silliest excuses I see, and I see it as the main reason why KDE4 is crap.. a tiny button top right. That tiny button... if that's all you can seriously find, you're stretching... and... if you really want to, you can hide it. There are several KDE Look addons that can be used to set the transparency... removing it is like demanding that the KMenu button be removed because it clutters up the lower left corner way too much. :-P
3. So don't use Activities. They do NOT need to be used if you don't want to. And no virtual desktops? Buh? What broken distro are you testing on? Really? If Ubuntu does that, then blame Ubuntu, not KDE4. My KDE4 comes default with several virtual desktops on install, plus a pager in the taskbar.
4. Nepomuk has its issues, there's no denying that, but.. in KDE4.8 you don't notice it (unless you're upgrading from an old release, then it hiccups for about 2 minutes while it re-indexes). On top of that... you can simply disable Nepomuk... it's like.. 2 whole clicks.

Stop using a broken distro and use one that actually works.

> Can Microsoft Office read LibreOffice files? No, it cannot. It is not supposed to.

Ummmm.. actually yes it can. MS Office 2010 supports ODF files just fine. You can read AND write ODF from MS Office. This is default for MS Office now.. not some obscure hidden plugin either.

I take it you haven't traveled much then?

I travel all over the world for work. I go to China on a regular basis, South Korea, South Africa, Kenya, all over Europe, Canada, USA, Peru, Brazil and so on. The ONLY country I have problems entering.. the USA. The only destination I fly to in the whole world that gives me hassle.. the USA. I, and every single passenger. have to go through personal one-on-one interviews before being allowed into the gate area... and not in some 3rd world airport.. this happens in "safe" zones like in Frankfurt Germany. I have to justify the contents of my work laptop, I'm forced to decrypt the contents (employer requires drive encryption) and show that there is nothing scary (at least 1 in 3 trips to the USA). I have to justify who bought my tickets (which must be purchased by credit card or bank transfer, not cash), why I'm traveling, my personal relationship if I'm traveling with my wife (we often travel together). God forbid you have brown skin... that's a recipe for even more detention, and more grilling.

On my last flight to New York, one poor lady and her 4 year old son were grilled for almost 2 hours before being allowed into the gate area... her crime.. slightly elevated melanin... in other words she had a nice tan. The gate interview staff were VERY rude and downright mean to her... how do I know? I was interviewed at the podium next to her and overheard most of their conversation during my own grilling - which went terribly wrong because when I was asked "Has your laptop been recently repaired?", I stupidly and honestly answered "Yes".... NEVER EVER say Yes... even if it's true. Lie.. say No... I was milliseconds from having my laptop confiscated, and only after pleading my case did they agree to return it to me.

Yes millions fly to the US every year, and all those millions are now subjected to an insane level of paranoid investigation and harassment. Most people I work with are now refusing to fly to the US. They will fly anywhere in the world but the US.. why? Not because they hate the US... it's because of the American "security" which is more hassle than countries you'd traditionally associate with border hassle like ... China... (which is dead easy to enter if you have your visa sorted before flying there).

I was wondering about Suri too.... when it came out, everyone was all excited about it... and I was standing there thinking, "but, my Android phone has had something similar for a looooooong time".

The voice recognition on my Android is actually pretty amazing. OK, it doesn't speak the results back at me, but I can use voice to do language translations, websearches, dictate SMS messages and a million other things... and as long as I speak clearly it gets it right every time, even with background noises. Yet.. along comes Apple saying "Look what we invented!!" while showing something that everyone else has had for months/years already, and then getting all the credit for inventing the new idea/technology.

Pick one in Europe. My examples were from Germany and the Netherlands. My experience in France was similar (although I didn't need to be taken to hospital there). The medical does cost, as in you do pay for it out of your taxes, as a percentage of your income, but from that you get what amounts to virtually free medical.

It breaks down something like this in Germany (simplified of course):

  - you pay a percentage of your salary into the state health care pot (you can opt for private health insurance if you want, but I don't bother... the small benefits are not worth it to me)
  - when you want to visit the doctor, you pay 10 Euro out of your pocket for the first visit in a quarter, all subsequent visits in the quarter are free.
  - medicines/prescriptions are often free (for common ailments/treatments), and when you do pay, it's a small amount.. like 3 or 4 Euros (in some cases it's more, but it's uncommon, and usually not a lot more)
  - extended medical care/treatments such as emergency room visits, ambulance services, specialized treatments like the MRI I had are all covered.
  - dental is covered for basic care (fillings, getting a tooth pulled), but you pay extra for cleanings and prosthetic
  - as far as I'm aware, there is no pre-existing condition silliness in the medical system here either... doesn't matter if you were sick elsewhere and have some chronic illness... you're sick? you get treated, end of story.

This is VERY similar to the way it works in the Netherlands too, although, medical there is cheaper (you may less off your salary than you do in Germany.. in my experience, but prescriptions cost slightly more).

There are of course exceptions, and I'll bet someone can provide some way it breaks down... and hey, it's a system managed by people.. it's not perfect by any means, but dang-it, it's so much better than the crap you get in the US, that the small cracks are irrelevant.

Your problems with patching and kernel x vs y etc sounds a LOT like the issues I have with Ubuntu in general... and one of the reasons I can't/won't use it. On openSUSE - recently.. say in the last... 2 or 3 years - I haven't had to do much of anything at all... just use it. I apply the updates once per month or so and have no issues with kernel compatibility, recompiling anything... I haven't had to recompile on my home desktop for a long long time.

Top 5 printers... easy.. HP. The USB printers from HP... deskjet, laserjet etc all work without me having to do anything at all on my openSUSE default installs. The HP printer drivers/tools are installed by default, so I just plug in and print.. no config necessary.

As always, you use what works best. Sometimes it's Linux, sometimes it's not.

And then there's me. I live outside the US as an expat working in Europe. I pay into the national healthcare. My back gave out and I had to be taken to hospital (I couldn't even walk). I was there 12 hours. I had x-rays, blood tests, and an MRI along with various meds to ease the pain and several examinations. Cost to me out of pocket.. zero.

My partner collapsed at work. An ambulance was called and she as taken to the hospital. Treated kept overnight and released the next day. Cost to her.. zero. Not once did anyone ask for money. She was sick, she was treated (and treated very well / efficiently).

We didn't have to think about things like... can we afford the ambulance, can I afford the MRI... what is this blood test going to cost me? We just got treatment and were healed up.

If I was in the US... ALL of those questions would have to be asked... I am thankful I was sick in a country other than the US.

There is a significant different between no patching and keep up with the patches. Again, with openSUSE, there is a Community driven initiative called Evergreen which maintains the older releases through security patches so that older releases can still be kept in place without upgrades yet be patched with security fixes.

You point at the very valid security issues that do definitely crop up in Linux as they do in all current OSes... yet you also say that you may as well install Windows since it'll be a zombie machine anyway. So....

Nothing wrong with openBSD if you can manage the higher level of tech knowledge required to keep it up to date.

Every Atheros card I've thrown at openSUSE "just worked" BUT... BUT, there are some Atheros cards that are unsupported/don't work. When I purchase hardware, I always make sure it fits the basic checklist, and then I usually check a bit deeper if it's a newer bit of hardware. That's what Hardware Compat Lists are for (although not the be-all-end-all).

The Nvidia 6100 should work fine... don't know why it failed. i know on openSUSE if you're using teh nVidia driver repository, it is a supported card - you do have to use the Legacy driver from Nvidia, but it works - just installed a system recently with a 6100. Also worked with the default open source driver.

I agree the driver situation can be.. problematic, but it isn't as dire as you make it out to be. I do a LOT of installs... a lot, and they occasionally fail, but it's rare with a CURRENT release of Linux (regardless of distro).

I'm still wondering.. you demand a rolling upgrade for your Linux distro, but to be honest it's not necessary.

Oh, as for your friend... what kind of *admin* does an upgrade *without* maintaining a *backup* of critical data? no admin worth their salary will EVER do anything on a working system without making sure a proper backup is in place. So... I have little sympathy there.