Disappointed with Ubuntu Server, could be used by such a wider audience

[Remco]

On Fri, Aug 1, 2008 at 3:26 PM, Stephan Hermann <sh at sourcecode.de> wrote:
> But what do you (not you in particular) want to do at home?
>
> Setting up a webserver is easy...and adding a drupal or blog software,
> too. The default apache2 package from debian/ubuntu gives you most of
> the needed setup from the time after installation. You just need to
> adjust at least your IP or your hostname, but that's it. No need to
> install dangerous third level tool which are playing with the config
> and adding mostly uneeded stuff.

What if you want to set up a (POP+SMTP) mail server? That's a lot more
involved than just installing a package. It should be as easy as
installing it and adding allowed addresses+logins. As you said, Apache
is already that easy (though becomes more powerful with rapache), why
stop there?

What about a file/music/video server? A family has bought a box which
will be used as central storage. Any computer in the LAN must have
access to it (through NFS? Samba?), and the family wants to be able to
play music by just starting Rhythmbox and discovering the server. The
same goes for videos and Totem.

> but there is a difference between really doing admin work, where you
> need to touch the config files in /etc or whereever and the simple work
> you need to do at home..I know those lamp tools from windows, and it's
> horrible how those packages are degrading your system to a potential
> security risk for you and your family, because it's too easy to do
> something really stupid.

That's what the GUI needs to prevent: doing stupid things. A GUI can
do this much better than a configuration file. A GUI usually forces a
sane configuration, while a config file has limitless possibilities.

For example: I can imagine a simple button for a hypothetical Ubuntu
Home Server which says: "Enable weblog". It will make sure a LAMP
server is set up properly, and some default weblog software will be
installed. Everything has been secured by default, through the system
login. It just tells the user that it can find his weblog at a certain
URL. It will also give directions for setting up the router and buying
a domain name in order to make it accessible to the world.

Remco