Before I start, I must admit, I'm biased towards Linux, open and free software. I like something that works for me: simple to use, reliable and not hard on my skimpy budget. I can't speak for each and every Linux OS (operating system- Microsoft Windows is a computer operating system, for example). But, I do love Ubuntu, the Linux OS.

Ubuntu is a version of Linux which is made to be user friendly. You can install it, run it and be online with your favourite web browser in just minutes. I know because I've done it myself! I am not a computer expert. I have never taken a computer class. Everything I have learned about computers and the Internet I have taught myself (or found help with online or in a book).

Some may say I am brave or adventurous or a risk taker. I think I am fairly ordinary, with a creative bent. I have taken the lid off my computer, more than once. I have reformatted my hard drive, more than once. I have installed, reinstalled and deleted MS Windows from my computer, more than once. Does this make me a nerdy rebel, perhaps? I think I just have a little lust for adventure and learning and I want to try new things before I get too old (older).

I ran Ubuntu for over two years on my personal, home computer. I use the computer every day, for everything about being online and running my own websites, creating digital art and everything else in between. I've been on the Internet since 1996 and this is my 5th computer. I like to replace them as they start getting too old to work with new software - usually it is the Windows OS which ages a computer faster than any other software. I was a long time MS Windows user when I decided to change to Ubuntu Linux.

I made the change mainly because Ubuntu was not Windows. Ubuntu was not prone to attack by hackers because they preferred Windows. Ubuntu was new (for me) and I wanted to see what it was really like to run a Linux computer. Of course, running a free OS (operating system) was very appealing too. But, a big part of my switch was just to try something new, something that was not giving me a huge OS with far more software than I ever needed or wanted to use. I wanted something which could be simple and dependable again.

In Ubuntu I found something simple, fresh and fun too. I can't say enough about wishing more people would break away from the old Windows software and try Ubuntu instead. Give yourself some time to adjust. There are some small, mainly cosmetic, differences. Take a week to find your way around and get used to the new layout.

If you hardly go into your computer, beyond using the web browser (Google Chrome, Firefox, MS IExplorer being the ones most people use these days), you won't see much difference in running Ubuntu. If you sometimes download software or other files, you will notice minor differences in where the files are stored as they download. However, you can have them download to the desktop just as you can in MS Windows. So, this is not a hardship or complicated.

Don't be intimidated by Linux. Running Ubuntu Linux does not mean you need to have any training as a computer programmer, you don't have to be a computer geek or nerd at all. You can be an ordinary (but creative and curious) 40+ year old woman who nearly failed Math in school ( a couple of times actually).