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My sister is trying out Ubuntu and asks "what about my iTunes"? And this is the third time someone asks me about iTunes and Ubuntu. High time for an article on that.
I have bad news, ugly news and good news!
The Bad News
There isn't any iTunes for Linux (and Ubuntu). There is even a iTunes on Linux Petition to Apple Computer, Inc.
There are socalled workaround solutions where you use Wine or Crossover Office. In general, these allow you to run some of the native Windows programs, but even those don't work properly for iTunes:
The GNU General Public License, originally written by Richard Stallman for the GNU project that was launched in 1984 to develop a complete Unix-like operating system: the GNU system. GPL has become the most widely used open source software license and freedom is the watchword.
The license is intended to guarantee developers the freedom to share and change free software to make sure the software is free for all its users. So states the GNU General Public License in the beginning. However, two paragraphs later it states, "To protect your rights, we need to make restrictions that forbid anyone to deny you these rights or to ask you to surrender the rights."
So far we have spoken about being website owners and about visitors. We have not yet considered the open source software communities associated with a particular CMS system.
The closer website requirements fit existing sites already using a particular open source software, the more likely its features and its newly to be developed features, will meet your (future) needs, wants and desires. So this may turn your world upside down but ...
Generally the more competitors you can find in a community associated with a CMS system, the better it will be for your website and business.
It is common in open source that people using the software "pay" for it by providing feedback (by which the developers can improve the software), and by helping each other out on the forums. Win-win. So perhaps one of your competitors might even help you solve a problem you encounter.
As owners of a CMS-supported website, we don't want to have deep knowledge about all kinds of security issues. Certainly we would want a hassle-free experience for web site visitors.
Sadly, the Internet is full of dangers nowadays, with hackers no longer hacking to build a reputation, but profit. And we do not wish to harm the reputations of our businesses because our websites are hacked, spammed, used to send spam e-mails or pass on malicious code.
With the increasing amount of spam in the last couple of years, to be able to still provide interactivity, many systems either use some kind of "captcha", anti-spam software like "Automattic Kismet" (Akismet for short), and/or "registration required". Most deployed CMS'es use a combination of those.
If your website is for generating business, it is to make visitors curious for what you have to offer. Visitors should experience some open, direct action and adventure. Your website is to emanate that a customer relationship with you is going to provide value for them.
What creates that effect? That depends. There is no one-size-fits-all solution. Each CMS is different, to suit different needs. In some cases it even pays to have one developed uniquely for you. To organise what you need, want and desire, you can ask yourself, and your team (if such exists) some questions like
