With the huge success of Firefox 3, I think it is fair to say that a lot of people have been wondering how Firefox’s success could be achieved in other open-source projects. Firefox has two key advantages over other open-source software that have nothing, or very little, to do with Firefox itself. First, web browsers are used by almost everyone who uses a computer. Ubuntu shares this advantage, because everyone who uses a computer uses an operating system. Firefox’s second advantage, however, is not shared by Ubuntu, or any Linux distro. Firefox runs on Windows. Ubuntu has taken steps, however to make itself run on Windows and should take more steps in this direction.

Before Ubuntu Hardy Heron (the current version), the following are the steps you would have to give to a new user to let them try out Ubuntu:

1. Put the CD in the drive
2. Reboot your computer
3. Make sure your BIOS are set to boot from the CD drive
4. After you’re done, reboot your computer again

While the steps to try out Windows or OS X are even harder, even this set of instructions is not easy to convey to a non-technical user. In other words, it could be easier. In Hardy Heron, it is. The new instructions are just:

1. Put the CD in the drive
2. Install it (with Wubi)

These are not only fewer instructions, but also simpler and more ordinary instructions. This is the current state of things and, while this is really very good, it could be even better. How about this:

1. Put the CD in the drive
2. Start using Ubuntu

This would be possible if virtualization were built into the Ubuntu CD (or a separate special CD). If this were done, Ubuntu could almost be considered a Windows application, at least in terms of the advantages it brings for promotion. It would be incredibly easy to hand someone an Ubuntu CD without any explanation. After someone gets the chance to try it out, they might decide to try the Wubi installation or even the full installation.

Including this kind of virtualization capability would remove almost all barriers to people trying out Ubuntu and provide the chance for Ubuntu to have Firefox-level success, or even more success.