As you're probably aware, LindowsOS is an attempt at a consumer-friendly Linux that looks and works like Windows. It was even originally intended to run Windows applications, using the Wine emulator, although this only works well with certain high-profile programs such as Microsoft Office. So, although other distributions such as Xandros Desktop and SuSE Linux Office Desktop (September 2003, page 60, 65) bundle Wine and can run some Windows applications, Lindows has quietly dropped this function.

Instead, what you get is an easy-to-use operating system - a customised version of Debian with a simplified KDE 3.01 Desktop. More importantly, it's incredibly Windows-like - you'll even find My Computer and My Documents icons in the usual places. It's simple to install too - just boot from the CD, choose whether it should use the entire hard disk or a single partition, supply a name for the computer and that's it.

However, by default, there's only one user account - 'root' - the system administrator. This will terrify knowledgeable Unix users, as it eliminates all Linux security features. 'Root' can do anything from installing software to formatting the hard disk. Even a password is optional. If one isn't chosen, the system automatically logs in and starts the Desktop.

But, in its favour, LindowsOS 4 correctly detected and installed most graphics cards, network adaptors, USB mice and so on. This is all good, although it failed to detect audio controllers on two machines, and also failed to notice an existing LindowsOS 3 installation when you're supposed to be able to upgrade. But these are minor complaints when the process is so quick and easy. It takes under ten minutes on a PC meeting the 800MHz system requirements, and this makes the OS fast too. It's even usable on a slower Pentium II/450, although it really benefits from around 384MB of RAM rather than the minimum 128MB.

One of the reasons it's so fast is that little is included in the box. Aside from the OS, control panel and a text editor, the only notable software is a web browser, chat client, some simple games and utilities such as a disk formatter and MP3 player.
This is where Lindows' unique Click-N-Run downloadable software archive comes into play. Although most Linux applications are free, installation is often a matter of downloading source code, configuring it, compiling it, installing the binaries and adding any required supporting modules - much too complicated for non-techies. You can still install and run ordinary Linux software in the usual way, but Click-N-Run reduces it to a single mouse-click. The programs are precompiled and tailored for LindowsOS, so there are no questions about where or how to install -- they just work.

Users with slower connections or groups of machines to update can also download or buy a Click-N-Run Express CD, which contains an assortment of the most popular downloads, such as StarOffice, OpenOffice and Acrobat Reader. This preloads the files into a cache folder on the hard disk, although you still have to click a link in the online program to request the software. Other Linux vendors offer online software repositories, but Click-N-Run is by far the largest and most complete. It even includes useful commercial products such as Win4Lin, which enables Windows 9x to run under Linux and opens up a wealth of Windows applications.

Click-N-Run is also integrated deeply into the OS. An assortment of standard applications already appears in the 'L' (Start) menu, but they're not installed, and attempting to launch them starts Click-N-Run's fetching process. It's a little confusing, but it's beginner-friendly. There are also icons in the taskbar for VirusSafe, an anti-virus program, and SurfSafe, a web filter.

LindowsOS 3 also included Netscape 7, which lets you access AOL email and AOL Instant Messenger, but version 4 contains Lindows Internet Suite instead - a customised version of Mozilla 1.3. This includes smart spam filtering and pop-up blocking, although these are disabled by default in the standard version. Also bundled is the Gaim chat client, which supports not only AIM but also Yahoo!, MSN and ICQ. Although it can't access AOL email, in all other respects Mozilla and Gaim are solid choices. KDE's Konqueror is also there for those who prefer something smaller and lighter.

LindowsOS 4 is small, sleek and stylish. It looks good, works well, is easy to install and accessible to Windows users. However, the default setup is insecure and you need to download and install a lot of extras to rival Windows XP or competing products. It's an easy way into Linux, but products such as Xandros and Mandrake Linux 9 (February 2003, page 59) do better, and the latter can even be downloaded for free.