YOU SAY UBUNTU, I SAY OOBONTOO

If you're one of those hanging on my every post on ubuntu, here's my gen on upgrading to 9.04, the latest release. If you're not, seriously - move on.

I have just done this upgrade - in about four goes as my wireless link is not ideal. Still, we eventually got there and today I started up my computer only to get a lovely, blank beige screen. Cue panic as all my election material is on this computer.

I started it up about 16 times to get the same lovely beige...but b*gger all else. The panic rose so I decided to take a practical approach and to press every option I could. One of ubuntu's minor failings is that it offers me a series of options for start up programs which I had to run through to try every possibility.

Remarkably, it eventually worked. My computer slipped into scary DOS and offered me lots of choices, including 'repair' which seemed a good route to go down. Cue lots of script and lots of questions I did not understand. Luckily I seemed to guess right and, after about 15 minutes of agonising waiting and lots of 1980s computer script scrolling up the screen in very 'War Games' style, bingo! We were back in action.

The new system is a little smoother and I also now have Open Office 3.0, the benefits of which I have yet to establish. I suppose I should commend Ubuntu for allowing me to solve the problem with a small injection of common sense but it wasn't straightforward. The summary is perhaps that it cannot be said to be as idiot-proof as Windows - with the huge rider that this refers to when Windows is working, of course. When Windows goes down, you are well and truly stuffed.

To use an analogy, I still love Ubuntu but if I catch it eyeing up those laptops in PC World I will start to suspect it of cheating of me...The honeymoon is over but the marriage remains strong.