Want Ubuntu? Go to Best Buy!

I love this! Ubuntu, an extremely popular Linux distribution, can be found at your local Best Buy. It is pretty cool to think that something that was sort of an experiment just about four years ago, is now in Best Buy. Can you believe it?

Ubuntu will remain free, as always. You can even get free CDs via ShipIt. But the Ubuntu that is available at Best Buy is pretty interesting. It is the normal Ubuntu 8.04 "Hardy Heron" Desktop Edition that is on the disc. It also includes 60 days of vendor support from ValuSoft, the company that is selling the software. Canonical put this up on their blog.

What I like about this is that people will actually think that Ubuntu is something worth using. If someone offered you Ubuntu, would you rather see a burned disc with "Ubuntu" written in a permanent marker, or would you rather see a nice box with some documentation, printed discs, and 60 days of support? Sounds like it would be worth the $19.99 USD.

Will this even last? Or will we see Ubuntu fail in the brick-and-mortar marketplace? Only time will tell.