I downloaded virtualbox, an open source virtualization software that was recently acquired by Sun. I downloaded the most recent version of Ubuntu as an iso and pointed virtualbox to it. It installed like a charm. After updating all of the packages on Ubuntu I followed the instructions for installing Deki on Ubuntu using the package installation. I had to make a few updates like install the following mono library that wasn't included in the package installation: apt-get install libmono-i18n2.0-cil
Note: The current package installtion for Deki is set for Gutsy Gibbon and hasn't been modified to support Hardy Heron.
I am a big fan of VMware but I am also a big fan of open source and virtualbox is opensource and compatible on all major OSs including a majority of Sun's OSs.
*UPDATE* - you can import a VMDK virtual file into VirtualBox which allows you to pull in the presetup VM