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HP Will Offer Customized Linux in Notebooks
diegocgteleline.es writes "According with Tom's Hardware, HP is working with Ubuntu to offer a customized GNU/Linux version that works 100% - wireless, bluetooth, IrDA, IEEE1394 - with HP hardware. This offer will be restricted to Europe, Middle East and Africa. The CD includes free support through online resources as well as paid support through Canonical, the developer of Ubuntu."
First, any idea why my scroll wheel doesn't work on the referred page??? (It continues to work everywhere else, weird.)
Second, I wonder why this always starts, and is only going to be available in Europe. I know the article says:
but, this sounds like a chicken or egg, or Catch 22 scenario. How do we break that circle? Is there a way to tell HP we do want linux on a laptop? Or are we too hardy and independent a group/demographic we just insist on doing this ourselves our own way. I'd love for allRelatedly, and specifically about HP, they don't completely embrace linux yet (though I know some are going to flame me because this may be interpreted as "not about linux"). I have an HP Pavilion ZX5000 -- great little (cough) machine! I configured it dual boot with Mandrake 10.1, and paid the extra to get a Linuxant wireless driver. What a great little (cough) machine! Screen resolution 1920x1200 full color, both OS's. But, when the video connector (my diagnosis) started to loosen and my screen started to flicker I called HP for warranty repair. During the obligatory debugging phase (reboot XP, un-install, re-install video drivers, etc.) it was revealed I had a dual boot setup, and they IMMEDIATELY upon hearing I had linux on the machine refused to do the warranty repair! I escalated three times, talked to three managers and each immediately (by scanning previous call's notes) declined to do the warranty work claiming they had no assurance linux didn't damage the machine. I offered to pay for repairs should they determine in the course of fixing my machine that linux indeed was the cause. No dice.
On my fourth contact, I found a helpful person who agreed with my diagnosis, and agreed it sounded like a loose cable and agreed to do the warranty repair. She did however (bless her) advise me to remove the hard drive because upon receipt, and debugging, as soon as the technicians would see the dual boot she could not guarantee me they wouldn't immediately re-image the disk.
Bottom line, HP is dipping their toes in the linux waters, but somehow I think this community should demonstrate willingness and interest. I don't know exactly what that should be but I'm willing to participate -- any replies/suggestions -- I'm willing to try to take action.
Because I'm sure the GPL'd drivers and hardware support won't find its way into the regular Ubuntu distribution and from there into others. I mean, all that good stuff will probably be tied into proprietary HP graphics included in this system. Without the HP logo, the code will just cease to function.
On a nicer note, kudos to HP for at least putting a little effort into Linux - maybe to counteract the $100 million investment from Michael Dell into Red Hat?
They really need to try and sell this to the "average old lady", who has no use for games but needs a little browser/e-mail system ...and just bought a "10.000 postcards" CD from CompUSA, and the Encyclopedia Britannica, only to discover they don't work on her you-bun-too laptop. Oh and also, she receives funny animated emails from her friends and/or colleagues, and a found Word document with the recipe for werewolf in dung sauce that she can't open...
Won't work for average old ladies. For average anybody in fact. It'll be a great buy for certain computer-savvy corporations tho, to save money buying in volume, knowing exactly what they want to do with the laptops and that Linux fits the bill.
Note: I'm a Linux enthusiast, I hate Windows as much as anybody here, but I'm just stating facts here, not trolling...
"A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of" - Ogden Nash
HP does not open advertise the Ubuntu option, but instead lists FreeDOS as optional pre-installed OS. If requested, HP will provide a CD-ROM with a customized and Debian-based Ubuntu Linux free of charge. The CD also includes description of technical support, which includes free support through online resources as well as paid support through Canonical, the developer of Ubuntu.
I don't know, but I am quite skeptical about this, from what I read, people that chose the non Windows option would have to make the Ubuntu installation.
This mean one more step than with the Windows option...
There could be a difference, if the price of both configuraitons (windows, linux) where different. And even with that, the average user would end acquiring the Windows option because just hearing the "you must Install the OS to use the machine" will sound scary...
The question is WHY?? OH WHY!!? isnt Ubunty pre installed? what is wrong with that?
Ubuntu is an African word meaning 'I can't configure Debian'
I have just spend some time with Ubuntu. IMHO This is the first distro that really gets it and has the potential to be a desktop killer. The install is very simple (timezone, name, password), and after install you have a very simple well thought out interface.
You dont have 50 different text editors and 12 different cd writers. Just one. Not necessarily the best, but it makes for a great distro to put on a novices desktop.
The menus are well though out too. None of this 'system tools' and 'system' and crap from FC. The menus go across the top a la the Mac.
Just brilliant.
HP have made a smart move.
HP has always been a big Debian fan, so I am not suprised that they will support Ubuntu... They've been supporting Debian Stable for a long time and even offer a HP pack for it and they use it internally.
They've been probably waiting for the next Debian Stable, but Ubuntu is great right now so it makes sense.
Plus it's been a trend for people wanting to get involved in Linux to try to not depend to heavily on commercial Linux versions.
you had me at #!
You should have invoked Magnusom-moss on them the moment they told you that they cannot support your system with linux.
Although tie-in sales provisions generally are not allowed, you can include such a provision in your warranty if you can demonstrate to the satisfaction of the FTC that your product will not work properly without a specified item or service.
They will have a hard time demonstrating that you system will not work properly under linux. Even if this is a linux only-system they will have a hard time. Since you have XP installed it is clear that linux cannot be at fault.
They can do that, but you don't have to accept the license for XP home. So put it on eBay. When lawyers pull it sue. The only thing that prohibits you from selling XP without a CPU/harddrive is the license, which is a contract. When you refuse to accept the contract it cannot apply.
Even if the contact does apply, it isn't clear that the no re-sell provision is legal. Most states have "first sale" laws which would apply.
I'm, not a lawyer myself. I'm pretty sure this would work, and I'd like someone to try it. However since I'm not a lawyer I cannot tell you what will happen, only what should.
It takes average users switching to Linux to solve the problem of only finding Windows software in attachments and at CompUSA. I have installed Ubuntu Linux on other people's Windows laptops that were too virus ridden to be useful and I just told them up-front that they wouldn't be able to run the average piece of software as they were accustomed to. But when I showed them everything they can do (make Powerpoint/Word/Excel documents in OpenOffice, use StarDict in place of Powerword, Kino instead of Windows Movie Maker, etc.), they were more than happy to have it all on a stable, free system.
HP is now headed by Mike Hurd. He'll be trying to get HP in better shape after the raping it went through with Fiorina.
Maybe it's coincidence, or maybe not, but by using Europe, Middle East, Africa as a proving ground to get a stable linux version on their laptops, they could use it as a barganing chip against MS to get a better deal for MS OSs.
If MS gives in, the HP-Ubuntu option stays in EMEA, otherwise it goes global. HP giving such legitimacy would be a nightmare to MS.
Even if it wasn't intentional, I bet MS would sweeten it's deal with HP just to limit it's effect in any case.
The lack of support in the US is likely due to the unethical bundling agreements with microsoft. One way to provide a reasonable degree of support without selling machines preinstalled is to publish highly detailed installation instructions. for a few distributions. I log machine installations in such a way that you can practically cut and paste the log into a shell prompt and duplicate the install. Only the occasional reboot or a $%@#$% interactive install program prevents running the entire log as a shell script. All file edits are recorded using diff/patch, sed, cat, etc so you have an exact way to reproduce the changes.
That way, you are covered on your first install, reinstalls, and have a good head start on upgrades. And, this way you don't have to use their configuration. You can partition your hard drive to your specifications, for example. But you don't need to go searching for drivers to download or puzzle out how to install them.
This approach doesn't work very well for grandma but it will work for power users who may be new to linux as well as those people who normally use linux. And it would be a major selling point to linux people if the installation instructions are on the HP web site and they can view them before they even buy the machine.
The link above includes an example for an older HP notebook.