[lubuntu-users] Hardware Usage Stats

[Narcis Garcia]

I perform many hundreds of GNU/Linux installs both for corporate users
and individuals. I can talk about my experience and policies in Spain:

First of all, I change "home" URL of the web browsers to other websites
than distributor's and Google (DDG, Wikipedia, etc.) and disable APT
stats feedback. This means no easy collecting of statistic data.

In automated preinstallations I use custom "SuperBogomips" and
"UltraBogomips" measures automatically to decide distro, desktop and
applications selection. For desktop selection (flavour in Ubuntu case)
this is the precedence of variables that matter: CPU, RAM, 3D graphics,
disk space.

As an average, Lubuntu is selected when RAM is between 512 and 1024MiB.
Below this Debian-LXDE is selected and over this Ubuntu-Mate (or
Debian-Mate) is selected. The upper limit depends on 3D FOSS
acceleration before deciding Gnome or KDE.

Educational collectives are the biggest group of people who asks for old
computer liberations (privative -> FOSS). Most individuals are victims
of ignorance when viruses eat their normal computers (Windows) and,
depending on "money level" they finish with computers (jump to
only-mobile) or the "old" computer goes to trash just when they buy a
new one.

Windows XP is still the most common OS I find in old computers that
survive to the two main terrors for the user: viruses and new Windows
usability chaos. Most of computers that arrives with Windows XP, go to
LXDE-based installations. Next big group here is Mate desktop.

"How many boxes run a distro that's no longer supported?"
Answer in proportion: Most Ubuntu 11.04 (Gnome2) in my case, because of
"no-Unity" policy between 2011 and 2013, and the typical setting to not
propose to the user upgrading the OS version.

"What display size is used on those machines?"
For all groups I made installations to, desktop computers can guarantee
1280x1024 except touchscreeens typically used in POS (then the guarantee
can be 1024x768). And notebook/netbook can guarantee 1024?x600 real
pixels in display area.

There is no large demand of CD-ROM. This is in the inverse sense:
When you are recovering a computer with CD-ROM drive only, you look for
an LXDE-based distribution, and better if it's well-known, supported,
and mature.


El 14/08/16 a les 22:24, scrooyahoo at riseup.net ha escrit:
> Does anyone know if there are stats available from Canonical or 3rd
> party about hardware.
> 
> How many computers with PII, PIII, P4 CPU's etc.,  browsed the various
> Ubuntu websites?
> In what parts of the world are they used most
> What OS are they using?
> I came across several websites with some stats but nothing really useful
> to form an opinion on questions like the 700MB capacity limit.
> 
> It's clear that it is a technical challenge to stay within that limit.
> But it is not clear how big the demand is on a global scale to have a
> capable OS that can be installed on old hardware without having to jump
> trough hoops.
> 
> How many boxes still run XP? (or anything worse)
> How many boxes run a distro that's no longer supported?
> What display size is used on those machines?
> 
> Can it be estimated if DVD players are covered on most hardware, or will
> there still be a large demand for CD-ROM?.
> 
> Regardless if the 700MB limit will be left behind it will be very
> interesting to know how many people still rely on old hardware.
> 
> Canonical's data would be interesting, but an independent source would
> also be good. Or Google's stats, if they still can be trusted... I'm
> currently connected trough TOR so Google isn't much help to me....
>