If we decide that this is something we want to commit to in the long run, we will do our best to address these as they come up. Due to the wide variety of PC and Mac hardware out there, there are likely to be minor issues on some hardware configurations. Remember that this is a prototype rather then a final release version. We know we’re not there yet, but by running PIXEL alongside Windows, Mac OS, and the established desktop GNU/Linux distros, we can more easily see where our weak points are, and work to fix them. We don’t just want to create the best desktop environment for the Raspberry Pi: we want to create the best desktop environment, period.

And bringing PIXEL to the PC and Mac keeps us honest.There is no learning curve, and no need to tweak her schoolwork to run on two subtly different operating systems. She can move back and forth between her computing class or after-school club and home, using exactly the same productivity software and programming tools, in exactly the same desktop environment. A school can now run PIXEL on its existing installed base of PCs, just as a student can run PIXEL on her Raspberry Pi at home.Why do we think this is worth doing? Two reasons: