I've been a Windows user/programmer since 3.0 in the late '80s and have had various machines at home, all running some form of Windows, from 3.1 thru 95, 98SE, 2000 and currently XP Home and Professional.
In 2008, I got a wireless router from my ISP when my broadband got upgraded, so I tried using my old laptop for using MSN for video calls with the webcam. Performance under Windows was not great, so I thought I'd try out Ubuntu, as I'd heard (time and time and time again !) it was more efficient than Windows on older hardware.
Downloaded the ISO for 8.04 and the Live install was the first stumbling block. The screen seemed split into three or more vertical strips. Solution: enable 'Safe Graphics' mode and try again.
I have to say that the partitioning/installation phase was very smooth and friendly - well done, Canonical.
Using all the supplied apps was a doddle, too - just like any other self-respecting desktop OS.
Right, now to get serious and get ourselves online ! Plug in my USB WiFi dongle - nothing. Nada. Zilch. After a lengthy dig around the net (using my Windows desktop machine), I bit the bullet, steeled myself and attempted a recompile of ndiswrapper using the Windows drivers for the dongle. Well, I didn't bargain for having to install build-essential (thankfully available via apt-get and the 8.04 CD) and other crap. Let's just say that this stage was not "ready for Joe Sixpack". (To be fair, Ubuntu has progressed and 9.04 detects the same dongle out-of-the-box - very impressive).
OK, now to get my USB Webcam working. You jest, right ? Moving on...
I have to say that I really can't tell any difference in performance between Ubuntu and Windows XP on that laptop. If anything, video response is better under Windows - YouTube full screen makes the fans go into overdrive all the time with Ubuntu, whereas they pause for breath every now and then with Windows.
Music software/hardware ? Forget it ! Even something simple like getting a USB MIDI interface to talk to an app is a lost cause.
So is there anything I like better under Ubuntu on the laptop ? I have to say no, not really. An interesting geek experiment, but Windows 'just works' and actually 'just works better' for most things. I've since reverted to XP SP2 on that machine.
At the same time as I installed it on my laptop, I decided to partition my desktop machine and make a dual-boot between XP SP3 and Ubuntu 8.04. This installation went a lot more smoothly, with all attached hardware being detected out-of-the-box (no Wi-Fi, just an ethernet cable straight into the router). I set myself the goal of using Linux exclusively by the end of the month (really to force myself to find a non-Windows solution rather than taking the path of least resistance and just booting back into the familiar territory of Windows) and started compiling a list of tasks that I use Windows for on a day-to-day basis.
Office apps were every bit as good as Windows, which is no surprise as I use OO.o on both !
Printer drivers were a bit less intuitive and a bit less WYSIWYG in Linux; I still prefer Windows when I want to get a photo or document 'just right' these days. The scanner on my HP all-in-one printer/copier/scanner required a package from the repository, IMSC, but after that it behaved flawlessly.
Once again, music hardware and software was a dead loss. Even something simple like playing a General MIDI file from a webpage eludes me to this day. Forget something more involved, like running Propellerheads Reason on a Digidesign M-Box interface. Musicians/producers/DJ's who value their sanity should stick with Windows or OSX.
BitTorrents are a joy, and one of the things that I've stuck with Ubuntu for: Just click on the Torrent link and Transmission fires up immediately. You can throttle download and upload speeds very easily and the overall sense of control is excellent.
Apt-get - or rather the GUI equivalent, Synaptic - is another joy to use. It's just like an all-you-can-eat software buffet !
Oh well, I guess I'll never be able to get rid of my XP partition anyways. At least, not until Propellerheads, Ableton, and Native Instruments port their respective audio software packages to linux.
Amen, bro'. You can include Digidesign in that list, too.
Linux as a music production machine is a decided non-starter. No, Ubuntu Studio isn't even a contender.
My brother-in-law was using an 8080-based Amstrad POS well into the early '90s (whilst I had an Amiga 500+). We tend to forget just how primitive things were in those days. I remember reading the spec for LucasArts' "The Dig" and wondering how many people could afford to have such a kick-ass system at home for playing games.
By the time I created my first GeoCities page ('97 or '98), I was using a similar system as described above. I had a hand-me-down Windows 3.1 PC at home (no net connection) and used my work's internet access to upload the hand-cranked HTML files and hand-optimised GIFs. It wasn't until 2000 that I had a Windows 98 machine and dial-up access from home.
The Alpha 400 has been on sale internationally (under many guises) for the past year or so. I wouldn't be so hasty to dismiss these models as vapourware.
It looks like a slightly higher-spec'ed Alpha 400: AKA CnMBook, Elonex OneT, Trendtac, etc.
I've had an Elonex OneT for a few months and it's fun. I can only imagine that this model will a little bit more capable. The ARM proc compares favourably to the MIPS SoC found in the Alpha 400 and the dedicated game pads are a good omen (the 400 can run Gameboy Color games in emulation).
Slashdot Mirror
I find your lack of caller ID disturbing.
You do realise that "Linux" != "Open Source" ? The GIMP and OO.o are available for Windows, too. Just sayin' like...
"Hey! This guy's got UNIX on a laptop!"
Did a 12yo girl come up and say "It's a UNIX system! I know this!" ?
I've been a Windows user/programmer since 3.0 in the late '80s and have had various machines at home, all running some form of Windows, from 3.1 thru 95, 98SE, 2000 and currently XP Home and Professional.
In 2008, I got a wireless router from my ISP when my broadband got upgraded, so I tried using my old laptop for using MSN for video calls with the webcam. Performance under Windows was not great, so I thought I'd try out Ubuntu, as I'd heard (time and time and time again !) it was more efficient than Windows on older hardware.
Downloaded the ISO for 8.04 and the Live install was the first stumbling block. The screen seemed split into three or more vertical strips. Solution: enable 'Safe Graphics' mode and try again.
I have to say that the partitioning/installation phase was very smooth and friendly - well done, Canonical.
Using all the supplied apps was a doddle, too - just like any other self-respecting desktop OS.
Right, now to get serious and get ourselves online ! Plug in my USB WiFi dongle - nothing. Nada. Zilch. After a lengthy dig around the net (using my Windows desktop machine), I bit the bullet, steeled myself and attempted a recompile of ndiswrapper using the Windows drivers for the dongle. Well, I didn't bargain for having to install build-essential (thankfully available via apt-get and the 8.04 CD) and other crap. Let's just say that this stage was not "ready for Joe Sixpack". (To be fair, Ubuntu has progressed and 9.04 detects the same dongle out-of-the-box - very impressive).
OK, now to get my USB Webcam working. You jest, right ? Moving on...
I have to say that I really can't tell any difference in performance between Ubuntu and Windows XP on that laptop. If anything, video response is better under Windows - YouTube full screen makes the fans go into overdrive all the time with Ubuntu, whereas they pause for breath every now and then with Windows.
Music software/hardware ? Forget it ! Even something simple like getting a USB MIDI interface to talk to an app is a lost cause.
So is there anything I like better under Ubuntu on the laptop ? I have to say no, not really. An interesting geek experiment, but Windows 'just works' and actually 'just works better' for most things. I've since reverted to XP SP2 on that machine.
At the same time as I installed it on my laptop, I decided to partition my desktop machine and make a dual-boot between XP SP3 and Ubuntu 8.04. This installation went a lot more smoothly, with all attached hardware being detected out-of-the-box (no Wi-Fi, just an ethernet cable straight into the router). I set myself the goal of using Linux exclusively by the end of the month (really to force myself to find a non-Windows solution rather than taking the path of least resistance and just booting back into the familiar territory of Windows) and started compiling a list of tasks that I use Windows for on a day-to-day basis.
Office apps were every bit as good as Windows, which is no surprise as I use OO.o on both !
Printer drivers were a bit less intuitive and a bit less WYSIWYG in Linux; I still prefer Windows when I want to get a photo or document 'just right' these days. The scanner on my HP all-in-one printer/copier/scanner required a package from the repository, IMSC, but after that it behaved flawlessly.
Once again, music hardware and software was a dead loss. Even something simple like playing a General MIDI file from a webpage eludes me to this day. Forget something more involved, like running Propellerheads Reason on a Digidesign M-Box interface. Musicians/producers/DJ's who value their sanity should stick with Windows or OSX.
BitTorrents are a joy, and one of the things that I've stuck with Ubuntu for: Just click on the Torrent link and Transmission fires up immediately. You can throttle download and upload speeds very easily and the overall sense of control is excellent.
Apt-get - or rather the GUI equivalent, Synaptic - is another joy to use. It's just like an all-you-can-eat software buffet !
44 Gigabytes in a week ???
If you want that level of service, you've got to pay for it. Anything else is taking the piss.
My softwarehack is full of eels.
+3 Funny.
LOL !!!
Oh well, I guess I'll never be able to get rid of my XP partition anyways. At least, not until Propellerheads, Ableton, and Native Instruments port their respective audio software packages to linux.
Amen, bro'. You can include Digidesign in that list, too.
Linux as a music production machine is a decided non-starter. No, Ubuntu Studio isn't even a contender.
+3 Funny
Well, it's Friday night and I enjoyed the laugh.
I bet they weren't ripping CDs or creating MP3s in those days !
Two words: Linux Mint (yeah, I know it's not free-as-in-FSF, but who cares ?).
You can't beat the value and ease of use of Linux today.
News flash - no modern desktop operating systems could be described as anything other than 'easy to use'.
It's certainly hard to beat 'free' (as in beer) for value, I'll give you that.
I would love a touch screen in my laptop to perform live using Ableton Live.
Can you get Live to run under Linux in the first place ?
Google's likely to stick around because it's so large, and still trends very well.
WTF does that even mean ? Speak English, boy !
You had internet access on your 8086?
No, he had sneakernet access, if you RTFP.
My brother-in-law was using an 8080-based Amstrad POS well into the early '90s (whilst I had an Amiga 500+). We tend to forget just how primitive things were in those days. I remember reading the spec for LucasArts' "The Dig" and wondering how many people could afford to have such a kick-ass system at home for playing games.
By the time I created my first GeoCities page ('97 or '98), I was using a similar system as described above. I had a hand-me-down Windows 3.1 PC at home (no net connection) and used my work's internet access to upload the hand-cranked HTML files and hand-optimised GIFs. It wasn't until 2000 that I had a Windows 98 machine and dial-up access from home.
You're The Man now, Dog.
Unfortunately the pain isn't limited to geocities... more pain here.
Holy shit !!!
A book's contents, conveniently embedded in the physical, tangible medium of dead tree.
Just be careful you don't buy a swarm of Vashta Nerada while you're at it.
I read that as "boobiest paradise", which made me wonder where the touch-screen aspect came into the equation...oh, wait.
I don't think it is a touch screen, though. :(
The Alpha 400 has been on sale internationally (under many guises) for the past year or so. I wouldn't be so hasty to dismiss these models as vapourware.
It looks like a slightly higher-spec'ed Alpha 400: AKA CnMBook, Elonex OneT, Trendtac, etc.
I've had an Elonex OneT for a few months and it's fun. I can only imagine that this model will a little bit more capable. The ARM proc compares favourably to the MIPS SoC found in the Alpha 400 and the dedicated game pads are a good omen (the 400 can run Gameboy Color games in emulation).
I'll be watching this one with interest.
UR doin' it rite !
Any addiction needs a support network for a succesful "disintoxication" and "continued state of sobriety".
Not everyone would agree with that assertion.
Nothing beats rock !
'L' beats everything. (rolleyes)
In fact they arguably help the status quo
That's just not fair ! The Quo have been rockin' all over the world for 40 years. Time for a new band to get some help.