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Curious about Linux? Try Linux Desktop on the Cloud
Linux maintains a very small market share as a desktop operating system. Current surveys estimate its share to be a mere 2%; contrast that with the various strains (no pun intended) of Windows which total nearly 90% of the desktop market. For Linux to challenge Microsoft's monopoly on the desktop, there needs to be a simple way of learning about this different operating system. And it would be naive to believe a typical Windows user is going to buy a second machine, tinker with partitioning a hard disk to set up a multi-boot system, or just jump ship to Linux without an easy way back.
We have examined a number of risk-free ways users can experiment with Linux without dabbling with partition management. Various options include Live CD/DVDs, USB keys and desktop virtualization software. For the latter, I can strongly recommend VMWare (VMWare Player) or Oracle VirtualBox, two relatively easy and free ways of installing and running multiple operating systems on a desktop or laptop computer. Each virtual machine has its own share of CPU, memory, network interfaces etc which is isolated from other virtual machines. But virtual machines still require some effort to get Linux up and running, and a reasonably powerful machine. Too much effort for a mere inquisitive mind.
It can be difficult to break down preconceptions. Many Windows users will have experimented with free software that is available on Linux. But there are many facets to learn on Linux. And it takes time to become accustomed to the way things work in Linux.
Surely there should be an effortless way for a beginner to experiment with Linux for the first time? Indeed there is; step forward the online cloud lab.
LabxNow
LabxNow provides a free service for general users offering Linux remote desktop over the browser. The developers promote the service as having a personal remote lab (to play around, develop, whatever!) that will be accessible from anywhere, with the internet of course.
The service currently offers a free virtual private server with 2 cores, 4GB RAM and 10GB SSD space. The service runs on a 4 AMD 6272 CPU with 128GB RAM.
Features include:
- Machine images: Ubuntu 14.04 with Xfce 4.10, RHEL 6.5, CentOS with Gnome, and Oracle
- Hardware: CPU - 1 or 2 cores; RAM: 512MB, 1GB, 2GB or 4GB
- Fast network for data transfers
- Works with all popular browsers
- Install anything, run anything - an excellent way to experiment and learn all about Linux without any risk
- Easily add, delete, manage and customize VMs
- Share VMs, Remote desktop support
All you need is a reasonable Internet connected device. Forget about high cost VPS, domain space or hardware support. LabxNow offers a great way of experimenting with Ubuntu, RHEL and CentOS. It gives Windows users an excellent environment to dip their toes into the wonderful world of Linux. Further, it allows users to do (programming) work from anywhere in the word without having the stress of installing Linux on each machine. Point your web browser at www.labxnow.org/labxweb/.
There are other services (mostly paid services) that allow users to experiment with Linux. These include Cloudsigma which offers a free 7 day trial, and Icebergs.io (full root access via HTML5). But for now, LabxNow gets my recommendation.
via: http://www.linuxlinks.com/article/20151003095334682/LinuxCloud.html