Having determined that Linux was not to be feared, I set out on the next phase of my operating system adventure: To work on a machine designed specifically for Linux. System 76 has been manufacturing Ubuntu pre-installed laptops, desktops, and servers since 2005. They sent me a 14.1 inch Lemur ultra laptop to take for a quick spin.

As a point of reference for the device I have been playing with testing, here are the specs for the Lemur Ultra:

Ubuntu 12.04LTS

7.7 GB Ram

2nd generation Intel core i5 Sandy Bridge 2.5 Ghz Quad Core CPU

32 Gig Hard drive

Onboard Graphics

500 GB 7200rpm SATA Hybrid Hard Drive with 4 GB SSD8 GB RAM

Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6235 - 802.11A/B/G/N Wireless LAN +

Bluetooth Combo Module.

Image courtesy of System 76

I had heard both good and bad things about the company, and I was interested to see what the hype was all about. When the machine arrived I had mixed first impressions. It seemed to be quite flimsy, but next to my husband's Alienware machine (dual booted), and its metal casing, anything looks fragile. As I'm not exactly mountain climbing with my laptop everyday I was on the whole impressed with the quality and aesthetics of the machine. It has nice keys and a stylish touchpad that is integrated into the chassis. Once I was actually using the machine the pad felt a little too sensitive for my use, even when set at the lowest sensitivity. At 4.5 pounds with a 14.1 inch display, it is the perfect weight and size for a mom on the go who doesn't want to sacrifice screen space.

The machine came pre-loaded with the same version of Ubuntu that I had already been using, so it was instantly familiar to me. The machine is fast, faster than the HP netbook I currently run Ubuntu on. Within moments of flipping open the screen I get an alert telling me I am connected to my network. As a comparison, I generally get two unconnected alerts before getting the same connection on my HP netbook. Diving into the System 76 machine after using Ubuntu on an HP netbook is somewhat akin to taking a Cadillac out on the road after driving a Kia Spectra (my current car). There is nothing necessarily wrong with the old system, the old machine, but this one is smoother and faster, an altogether more luxurious ride.

Image: Screenshot

Part of the customization of a System 76 machine, and arguably part of the appeal, is the ease with which you can just charge and go. The drivers come pre-installed, so at no point are you asked to install third party drivers. In fact the only third party driver required by the system is the Realtek Barossa Plus Plus card reader, which comes pre-loaded. Ubuntu is a Debian based version of Linux. The Debian package provided by System 76 adds a System 76 option to your settings menu. This piece of software has a size of 908 Kb, small enough to email. Running this allows the Ubuntu software center to gather and install all your drivers for you. To give you an idea of what this means, when installing Windows 7 on a machine you would normally have to acquire and install any of these drivers individually. Within this option you have three choices.

That the machine arrives pre-loaded does not take away the freedom that comes with using Linux.You still have the option of installing your own drivers, so if anything happens you can install them yourself.

There is a system restore option which will set it to factory default without erasing your files.

You may choose to create log files, which you will send in should you need tech support.

The System 76 machine, in fact Linux in general, does have a few quirks that the more novice user should know about prior to purchase. In order to run things like YouTube or sites using Java, there are a few simple steps to take that don't come already set up. You have to install the Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL) and the Ubuntu restricted extras, both of which are easily obtained through the Ubuntu software center. Third party proprietary software contained within the restricted extras is free, but is not open source and thus cannot be bundled with Ubuntu. This is the software that will enable you to surf the Internet at large as you would on any other machine. You have to install things like Flash and Java on any Windows machine too, but Canonical has it bundled under the Ubuntu restricted extras for your convenience. Restricted just means that they are unable to bundle it with the installed operating system; you have to agree to a license. Interestingly enough, this is the first and only time that you are ever going to have to agree to a corporate end user license agreement with Ubuntu, unless you want to install something else that isn't open source.

Also, if your reason for purchasing a System 76 machine is to avoid supporting corporations, then you are going to have a problem. Things such as Java and Flash are owned and developed by for-profit companies, and while it is a free download you still have to agree to an end user license agreement and the software is not open source. If your goal is to go purely open source, then you are good to go with System 76; however, until HTML5 comes into its own, you will still need the extras. Or you can take a shot with one of the many open source alternatives that are constantly being developed. The open source software may be corporation free, but the Internet is not, yet.

One of the things I have greatly enjoyed about working in Ubuntu is the way in which it handles updates. On the System 76 machine, the Ubuntu updates come up as usual, but since the System 76 repositories also come pre-loaded. Any updates coming directly from System 76 automatically show up with your Ubuntu software notices as well.You get both in one carefully crafted update notification.

Image courtesy of System76

I used this machine for everything that I would usually use my machine for. I watched YouTube, I watched trailers on Hulu, I even let my toddler watch VeggieTales on Amazon Prime. The only video streaming that I had a problem with on this machine was Hulu; for some reason it kept pixellating. The sound would continue but the screen would freeze. It did this several times, for several different videos and on several different days. I did not have the same issue with Amazon or YouTube, so either it is an Ubuntu issue or Hulu itself. I also used this machine to design a photo book on Snapfish and found the uploads quick and easy. Photo software can often be sluggish when designing a book, but the Lemur Ultra performed beyond my expectations and kept me moving at a steady pace through the creation of a family album.

So then, as the final act of testing before sending the machine back from whence it came, I did what any self respecting IT spouse would do. I turned it over to my Geek husband and had him remove Ubuntu, install Windows 7, then remove Windows 7 and reload Ubuntu. Just for kicks.

We ran a benchmarking test on the machine under both Ubuntu and Windows, using Geekbench for the simple fact that it is compatible with both Linux and Windows. This ensured an accurate comparison.

__ Process Integer Performance__ under Windows received a score of 5664, under Ubuntu 4928.

Memory Bandwidth Performance under Windows received a score of 8951, under Ubuntu 8142.

under Windows received a score of 8951, under Ubuntu 8142. Processor Floating Point Performance under Windows received a score of 6717, under Ubuntu 9561.

under Windows received a score of 6717, under Ubuntu 9561. Memory Performance, my biggest issue with my HP netbook when using Windows, under Windows received a score of 7364, under Ubuntu 10891.

Note that, whilst the victories are split fifty-fifty, the margin of victory for Ubuntu over Windows is far greater than that of Windows over Ubuntu. The differences seem to all stem from the drivers and the ways in which the operating systems each handle these operations.

The overall score from Geekbench, which we expected to be nearly identical, was a shocking 8063 for Ubuntu and 6701 for Windows. To see and understand these results more comprehensively, you can check out the Ubuntu results and Windows 7 results of these tests on Geekbench. If you would like to dual boot Ubuntu 12.04 LTS and Windows 7, the System 76 support website provides you with a full set of Windows 7 drivers.

Final Impressions? I dislike the particular plastic they have used for the outer shell, but that is all it is – an outer shell. If I drop it I will have more problems than just the casing getting scratched! If the shell was a major part of the low cost, the comparable machine from Dell being the XPS14 Ultrabook at $1,099.99, where the Lemur Ultra is $689, then I would make that choice. Other than the shell, I thoroughly enjoyed working on this machine. The Lemur Ultra has a good keyboard which is a big plus, and the screen is nicely sized. The touchpad seems somewhat sensitive, but I prefer the look of it to any other I have worked with. I like the Operating System (ahem) and the System 76 support page is extremely useful and complete, which says a lot about the company. The battery had excellent endurance, and for my personal needs this is a quality machine.

This post was researched and written on a System 76 Lemur ultra laptop with Ubuntu 12.04 LTS. It was returned to the manufacturer, and added to my Christmas wish list, after testing.