Key Concepts of Inveneo Desktop Linux (IDL)

Before You Begin
Inveneo Desketop Linux (IDL) is based on Ubuntu 7.04; however it has been simplified to make the user and administration experience better. The IDL experience is unlike the experience users may have had with other computers. As such, it is important to understand four crucial concepts about how IDL operates and how users work with the system.

A Locked System
IDL is a locked system. That means the user cannot modify the operating system. By locking the system, the Inveneo Desktop Linux and installed applications are guaranteed to "just work"&mdash;always, with no exceptions. Users may change settings, visit web pages, create pictures and move icons around on the desktop, yet when the user turns the system off and on again, everything done in the prior session is lost, and the system appears exactly as before the user's last session, when they made changes.

The point of locking the system is to protect the system from failure, and to ensure the user can always count on the system working when they turn it on. While this is good for the system, it may be confusing when the user tries to save files. That's because by default local file storage is turned off. Instead, Inveneo Desktop Linux users save files to the Inveneo Hub Server or to a USB memory stick device.

Although the IDL system is locked to protect ordinary users, the administrator may make changes that stay in effect after the system is turned off and then turned back on again. To accomplish this, the administrator inputs a password that enables them to perform the "Save Configuration" process, described below.

Save Configuration
To make permanent changes to IDL, the administrator must perform a system-wide save. For instance, the administrator may set up a wireless network connection, add a printer and create Firefox bookmarks. Then the administrator must perform a save configuration for these changes to be kept after a reboot.

To save changes to the system, the administrator chooses Start > Administration > Save Configuration, enters the administrator password and clicks OK to save the system configuration. When the system is turned off and on again, any changes made and then saved with Save Configuration will be present, as before shutting off the system. For more information on how to perform a Save Configuration, see Chapter 9 System Preferences, Save Configuration.

A Save Configuration must be done any time the administrator wishes to make permanent changes to the configuration of the system. However, installing programs is not part of the save configuration process. To install programs, Inveneo Desktop Linux must be in "Install Mode."

Install Mode
The Inveneo Desktop Linux comes with several useful applications, including a web browser, word processing program, typing tutor, and graphics program. But Inveneo Desktop Linux is not limited to its pre-installed programs. Hundreds of other, free programs can be downloaded and run on IDL. The "Synaptic Package Manager" (Start > All Programs > System > Synaptic Package Manager) allows you to look for additional programs and install them. "Packages" refer to the method used to store applications in a compressed format on the various sources servers. To install programs, IDL must be in "Install Mode." In this mode, the system is able to accept downloaded packages and install them. To go into "Install Mode," see Chapter 12 Installing Applications  Return to the Table of Contents