This is like andLinux, but apparently better.

Fresh on Slashdot.org and already /.-ed. I got there eventually. The Virtual Desktop executable is 503 MB.

A Virtualized Linux System For Windows

Ulteo today unveiled their Virtual Desktop (screenshots, download) which is a free, full Linux desktop that runs seamlessly on Windows. It's interesting because it's not running under Xen or VMWare, but instead uses the coLinux patch, which they claim allows the system to achieve 'great performance, close to a native installation on the PC.' No need to reboot the system anymore to switch from Windows to Linux.

We discussed Ulteo when the Ubuntu-derived distro was announced a year back.

Pretty damn cool!

What exactly is better with this one? I don't see anything that can force me to change. I can use Anjuta 2.4 on andLinux, which is a plus to me

For one thing, you can easily launch and end the Ulteo Virtual Desktop (UVD). And instead of a few icons in the systray menu of andLinux (KWrite, Kate, etc.), UVD uses a Kicker bar with a ton of Linux software (OpenOffice, Gimp, etc.).

I'm new to using UVD, so I'll have to explore it some more for benefits and bugs. Synaptic doesn't seem to be installed by default and apt-get update isn't grabbing anything, so I'll have to manually add some repositories. But the Ulteo forum is /.-ed, so I'll have to wait to find assistance.

These guys took coLinux (www.colinux.org) and repackaged it as their own "product". Open source at its finest, yes...

That looks like a customized XFCE bar more, but i won't be installing this to check

What's so hard in running andLinux? Unless you didn't install it as a service...

Nothing is wrong with andLinux. And I've been using coLinux for years to run numerous distros (to run the Linux port of the SheepShaver emulator before there was a Windows port).

Ulteo is yet another way of packaging Ubuntu with coLinux. I think Ulteo has more to offer the user new to Linux. The kicker panel gives the user access to many programs and configurations. Once I get around* to seeing how to install/remove software, if the panel reflects the changes, that would be a big plus vs. the andLinux systray.

*My new N800 just arrived!

Can this be 'installed' to a USB stick (a la U3 apps or PortableApps) to have the apps run cross platform on Windows and Linux?

No. This requires installing a number of items like the Tap-Win32 network driver to serve as a conduit for the colinux XServer (for graphics and sound).

However, programs created on andLinux/UlteoVD can be ran on standard Linux (or Maemo thanks to Scratchbox) systems, sometimes from a mountable drive.

Oh ok.
Though I don't quite see the point of running Linux version of OO.o and Firefox on a windows system, as in the demo picture.

I've been running andLinux, and youo can run the kicker bar if you prefer it. Just launch it from a terminal. That's how I get it when I want it. I even have it set to autohide, and to take up about 1/4 of the screen instead of the whole screen.

-hal