Uberstudent: The students' Linux

There are so many Linux distributions out there it's dizzying. Some are simply respins of various base distributions with a different theme or maybe one or two specific applications thrown in for good measure. Sometimes it's hard to reason why someone actually created a new distribution because there's so closely resembles the distribution they used as a base. And then there's Uberstudent. Uberstudent is a Linux distribution, built upon Ubuntu, that targets students in higher-education settings. It's goal is to become a perfect platform to aid in the process of education. It is, essentially, a learning platform and to this end it succeeds with aplomb, elegance, and power.

There are few tools so highly in tune with the needs of students. But is Uberstudent the right tool to aid you in the quest for your higher education? Let's take a look and find out.

Features

Features? You want features? How about the following snippet from the toolset Uberstudent includes:

• Education-specific take on the Firefox browser.
• Zotero research tool.
• LyX document processing tool that enables you to concentrate on content.
• Virtual Understanding Environment concept and content mapping tool.
• Top shelf for keeping track of your working files.
• Buddi finance management.
• Keepnote for class notes.
• Plenty of document templates.
• ThinkingRock, a visual planner.
• Beagle for quick searching of your files.
• Ardesial for writing directly over OpenOffice presentations.

and much, much more. So much so, you could easily spend days taking your initial look at all the available tools.

Education

There is a menu, under the Applications menu, called Education. Within that menu you will find six sub-menus:

• Books: Here you will find tools for managing eBooks as well as links to web sites selling cheap (or rental) textboks.
• Research and Writing: Here you will find nearly every tool you can think of to aid you in the process of research and writing. From Document writing to notes, to different incarnations of Firefox to the Mendeley Desktop (keeps track of all your PDFs and research papers).
• Self-Management: Keep track of your finances, social networking, time, and tasks.
• Study Aids: Here you will find flash card tools, dictionaries, thesaurus, and much more.
• Subjects: Help with Math and the ability to browse educational software by subject (not yet implimented).
• Utilities: Translators, stopwatch, lecture tools, schedulers, more note tools, resume builder, and more.

Browsers

Uberstudent comes with two browsers: Firefox and Chrome. The Firefox included with Uberstudent has been fine-tuned to aid you in your quest for education, which means you will be using it for specific needs. It includes the Zotero add-in which helps you collect, manage, and cite your work. All default bookmarks in Firefox are geared towards learning as well.  In the Browsers menu you will also find a Firefox cheatsheet which includes keyboard and mouse shortcuts to make your Firefox experience more efficient. You will need this as there have been so many enhancements to Firefox. For regular, every day browsing, Uberstudent includes Chrome without any specific enhancements.

Final thoughts

If you are looking for an operating system perfect for the higher education environment, look no further than Uberstudent. This distribution of Linux contains so many education-specific tools you will be spending your first days with it just marveling at what the developers have packed into one single operating system...and nearly every single tool specific to helping you achieve your goal of graduation. With school about ready to reconvene, I highly recommend you give this take on Linux a try. Your education will thank you for it.