support for desktop virtualisation from Citrix and VMware, alongside Microsoft RDP

Canonical has launched Ubuntu OS 12.04 LTS for the desktop. It marks the fourth long-term support  release of the world’s favourite free operating system, with maintenance updates guaranteed for five years. Ubuntu OS 12.04 LTS includes support for desktop virtualisation from Citrix and VMware, alongside Microsoft RDP 7.1. This means enterprise users now have a three-way choice for office productivity: remote delivery of desktop applications, browser-based cloud solutions like Google Docs or the native, Microsoft-compatible LibreOffice suite that comes pre-installed. For organisations faced with expensive upgrades to Windows 7, Ubuntu OS 12.04 LTS represents a far more cost-effective alternative. “For large enterprise deployments with long-term planning processes, Ubuntu OS 12.04 LTS is our best desktop yet,” said Jane Silber, CEO of Canonical. “Thanks to our expanded hardware partnerships, we’ll make regular updates to support new PCs from certified partners like Dell, HP and Lenovo. And we’ll support even more companies that make the switch to Ubuntu OS on their desktops.”

New to those upgrading from the last LTS release will be Unity, Ubuntu OS’s unique user interface. Following many hours of user testing, it has been refined even further, to improve day-to-day productivity for novices and experts alike. "The migration of all existing users from Ubuntu OS 10.04 to the Ubuntu OS 12.04 LTS release is something we are looking forward to rolling out and reaping the benefits of the improved ease of use and additional functionality built-in to the Unity-based desktop" - Pawel Zieba, Senior IT Innovation Consultant at Capgemini Business process outsourcing. Canonical provides optional commercial support for Ubuntu OS 12.04 LTS in the form of Ubuntu OS Advantage. The programme gives enterprise customers a choice of two levels of support, alongside access to the time-saving administration tool, Landscape, which includes audit, compliance and ongoing management features for large desktop deployments. Unlike other Linux distributions, Ubuntu OS customers have the choice to include their entire deployment in the support agreement, or just a subset they select. 

Source: IT VAR News Network