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Corel even fixed the single biggest weakness in Debian Linux, its software installation method.
   technofile
Al Fasoldt's reviews and commentaries, continuously available online since 1983

Corel Linux is easy to install and has many improvements


Corel based its Linux version on Debian Linux

March 26, 2000

By Al Fasoldt
Copyright ©2000, Al Fasoldt
Copyright ©2000, The Syracuse Newspapers

   I'm a big fan of the Linux operating system, but until lately I was convinced that Linux had a long way to go before it could match Windows or the Mac in being easy to use.
   And then I installed Corel Linux. Boy, was I wrong!
   Corel Linux, which has something for Linux old-timers and newcomers alike, surprised me in a half dozen ways:
   It installed almost perfectly. It automatically set up my sound card, my SCSI adaptor, my video card and my mouse without asking me a single question. It asked me to help it identify my monitor, but knew exactly how to deal with it once I specified the make and model.
   I was amazed to find that Corel Linux was easier to install than Windows 98 and Windows 2000.
   It automatically installed all the other software needed in a standard Linux PC. As soon as the installation was done -- without needing any rebooting -- I had everything I needed and could start working immediately. Because I'd installed the fancy version of Corel Linux, I even had Corel WordPerfect, a superb word processor, ready to use. I was overjoyed.
   It came with an easy-to-use display adjustment method that works just like the "Display Properties" function one in Windows. One of the worst problems in most other versions of Linux is the astoundingly dumb (and often unworkable) method they force users to resort to just to change display modes (from 640 X 480 resolution to 800 X 600, for example). Corel won my heart forever for knowing how important it is to do this kind of thing right.
   It installed itself without touching my Windows installation and automatically made all my Windows files available in Linux. In all other versions of Linux I know about, this has to be done manually. (Corel Linux can't, by itself, run Windows programs, but it can handle many kinds of PC documents without a problem. This means I can edit my Microsoft Word files in Corel Linux using Corel WordPerfect, for example.)
   It created a great boot-up menu unlike any I've seen before. When the PC starts up, you'll see a colorful animated Corel logo followed by a menu in large letters. You'll have a choice of Corel Linux or Windows (if you installed it on a Windows PC) as well as a couple of fail-safe modes in case you ever have a problem booting up. Dual-boot options are standard these days in most versions of Linux, but most of the other versions handle this in an odd and unfriendly way.
   If you buy the boxed version, you get a printed manual that actually explains how to use many features of the graphical interface. (The interface it uses is the most common and most Windows-like one, KDE.) This is a huge bonus for all of us who like KDE but can't easily figure out how some things work. The manual is excellent in other ways, too.
   In creating their own version (or "distribution") of Linux, Corel's engineers choose to base their work on a version of Linux known for its stability. This version, Debian Linux, is watched over by a vigilant group of volunteers who test new software thoroughly before they allow it to be included in Debian Linux. This makes Debian Linux (and therefore Corel Linux) much more reliable than Microsoft Windows. A PC with Corel Linux installed should be able to run for years without crashing, locking up or needing to be rebooted.
   Corel even fixed the single biggest weakness in Debian Linux, its software installation method. Corel created a program that checks the software you have installed and tells you if you can get newer versions (for free, of course -- this is Linux, after all) and then goes out and downloads and installs them for you. The program that does this is so advanced that it makes the Windows method -- or the Windows non-method, I suppose we should say, since Windows doesn't have one to speak of -- look embarrassingly stupid. Mandrake Linux has a similar update manager, but I like the one in Corel Linux much better since it does everything for you.
   I installed the deluxe version of Corel Linux. It comes with the full WordPerfect word processor -- with spell checking, a grammar checker, an HTML editor and much more, including the ability to import documents from Microsoft Office programs. Also in the box was a CD of a role-playing game that had fantastic graphics. I play such games about as well as I do brain surgery, so I had fun for 10 minutes and then realized I was lost.
   The deluxe version costs about $90. The standard one sells for about $60. You can find them at stores that sell computers and software or you can order them from discounters on the Web.
   The free version is also available on CD for about $5. It's missing the extras but does have everything you need to run Linux, along with a good Web browser and so on. The free version also includes the automatic dual-boot menu and the great video-mode utility.
   The fact that Linux is both free and non-free is confusing, so let's stop for an explanation. For reasons we won't get into here, Linux is always freely available. You can download Linux installations for free off the Internet, for example, or you can buy copies already on CDs for a few dollars from Web sites. (A good one is at www.cheapbytes.com.)
   But a better way, especially for new users, is to buy a packaged version of Linux. That way you'll get a user manual, an installation CD that you know works and, sometimes, real customer support.
   Don't get the idea Corel Linux is just for "newbies." Experienced Linux users probably will appreciate the Corel file manager, which seems to be an improved version of the "Explorer" file-and-folder manager in Windows.
   They'd probably like the Corel MIME editor, too. It's not a way to change a clown's pantomime act, despite the name; MIME helps computers figure out how to deal with files. A word processor file, for example, would have a MIME type that tells the computer to open the file with a word processor.
   MIME is especially important to Linux because it does not use filename extensions to tell it how to deal with files. It uses MIME signatures, hidden at the top of the file, instead. (AOL users probably encounter MIME often enough to wish they'd never heard of it, because the AOL software for Windows is as dumb as a doorknob when it comes to MIME. Files that have proper MIME types sometimes show up as "MIM" files on an AOL user's PC.)