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Xandros' latest release of their Linux Distribution, known as Xandros Desktop OS, continues their tradition of a polished, complete distribution oriented towards user who formerly used a Microsoft Windows desktop system.

This is simply their target market--Xandros Linux is eminently suitable for use by any Linux user who wants a modern Linux system but doesn't require traditional Window managers and is comfortable focusing on KDE rather than the GNOME desktop. Some GNOME applications, such as Evolution, and the required GNOME infrastructure are available as updates to the system, as are traditional GTK applications such as FireFox and GIMP.

Xandros Linux is a descendant of Corel's Debian-based Linux distribution, but has continued to evolve as a stable and well-though-out Linux distribution since the founding on Xandros a few years ago. Unlike many Linux distributions, its freely downloadable versions lag somewhat behind the official releases.

At the time this review was written, a free download of their basic 3.0 was not yet available. This is largely a marketing decision, since free downloads cut into the potential customer base but serve to help increase market share and awareness. However, at $49.95 for the Standard distribution and $89.95 for the Deluxe edition, no one's going to debtor's prison for buying a copy of their official releases.

The Deluxe edition primarily differs from the Standard edition in that it includes enhanced Windows compatibility software, such as Crossover Office, which is discussed later in this review, which focuses on the Deluxe edition, the version of the software that we received for review.

Next: Installing Xandros 3 »