Some bad notes:
Debugging is turned on by default (it is an alpha release). You can turn it off to see a 20% increase in speed.
There is no wireless support (This one is really bad...)
More info:
What is Haiku?
Haiku is a fast, efficient, easy to use and learn open source operating system inspired by the BeOS that specifically targets personal computing. It is also the name of the project that develops and promotes the Haiku operating system.
Is Haiku based on Linux?
Haiku is not a Linux distribution, nor does it use the Linux kernel.
Why not Linux?
Linux-based distributions stack up software -- the Linux kernel, the X Window System, and various DEs with disparate toolkits such as GTK+ and Qt -- that do not necessarily share the same guidelines and/or goals. This lack of consistency and overall vision manifests itself in increased complexity, insufficient integration, and inefficient solutions, making the use of your computer more complicated than it should actually be.
Instead, Haiku has a single focus on personal computing and is driven by a unified vision for the whole OS. That, we believe, enables Haiku to provide a leaner, cleaner and more efficient system capable of providing a better user experience that is simple and uniform throughout.
Is Haiku based on BeOS then?
Haiku reimplements both the BeOS technologies as well as the end user experience, but it is far from being based on BeOS from a code base perspective. The only BeOS code that has made it into Haiku are Tracker and the Deskbar (the file manager and the equivalent of the start menu/taskbar, respectively). These were open sourced by Be Inc. back in 2001, later forked under the OpenTracker project, and eventually merged into the Haiku code base. The rest is either homebuilt code or derivatives of existing open source sofftware.
