Look at the Linux Printing Support Database. Some details on drivers for different printers are listed in the printer vendor report card page. Also, you can check the status of printers that aren't "perfect" with a quick check in the database.
The database has links to the drivers needed for each printer, or the filters (LPD, CUPS) that are needed.
Here are the color inkjets that are listed to work "perfectly";
StarOffice 5.1 (pre-Sun) required registration information. StarOffice 5.1a (Sun's rebranding plus minor bug fix), didn't. SO5.2 also does not ask any registration questons.
Now, to download it from Sun you need to sign up with Sun and get a login ID. I use an account I set up last year to register for a Java tool kit.
Yes, loading AbiWord isn't the same as loading StarOffice desktop. Loading StarOffice Writer after StarOffice desktop is loaded should be about as fast as loading AbiWord. It isn't, so the charge of bloat seems justified.
Having said that, I use StarOffice for most of the documents I create.
I am quite impressed with AbiWord -- and not just because of it's speed. One of SO5.2's main features is how well it supports importing and exporting Word documents. Many of the Word documents I've delt with are rejected by SO5.2, while AbiWord loads them. Now, the reformating of MSWord docs that AbiWord does is moderate at best, but the documents do load...and fast.
I gues SO5.2 is balking on a fast-saved Word document, but I can't be certian. I don't have MS Office set up here to see what the originals look like and if disabling fast-saves will correct the problem.
Is StarOffice really bloatware, or is there just a lot of code because it does so many things? In particular, how much "bloat" is input/output filters to make it actually useful?
Time to load...
StarOffice 5.2 desktop: 75 seconds
Blank SO document: 15 seconds more
AbiWord: 4 seconds (max)
On a PII-465 (oc PII-300) with 128 MB RAM, 2.2.17-pre10, and Xfree v.3.3.5. Netscape 4.73 and a few shell windows were open. In all fairness, SO5.1 loaded much faster (guesstimate: 1/2 to 3/4 the time of SO5.2).
But he's not talking about general networking is he? This isn't theoretical. Right here, right now. If you're a gamer, Linux networking sucks compared to Windows. For games the better TCP/IP stack isn't really noticable, and it has much less support for modems and services.
I'd have to agree with what you said. Now, if I only knew what you said!;-}
(Seriously, I've read this a half dozen times and I don't know what I should comment on, if anything! It sounds good....)
Having said that, there is one area for ISP support that Linux isn't as good as Windows; free ISPs. Most free services either require Windows or are hostile to non-Windows systems, including Macintosh and BSD.
On top of that, some free ISPs are thwarting attempts to login using anything except for the Windows-only tools they provide. The reason is simple; a Linux system connecting to these services doesn't use the ad-laden login tools, so the free services can't justify allowing these freeloaders on thier systems!
I think getting a free ISP for the cost of some advertising is a fine exchange...but the ISPs are not doing anything to get thier ads on the 'un-supported' systems. Catch-22? You decide.
So, while many free ISPs can be made to work with Linux, fewer support it and a few are actively making it harder to use thier services.
Because of the minimal support by free ISPs for anything that isn't IE under MS Windows 98, I'd can't give Linux a 10 out of 10 in this category.
In a blatent attempt to get people to tell me something I don't know, here's what I do know so far.
First off, this month Juno -- a free ISP that hasn't supported Linux in the past -- has bought both FreeWWW and Worldspy -- two ISPs that have had support for Linux. Some people have complained that Juno's free service can't use Netscape or other browsers and requires IE...though I'd like to know if that's the case or not. Supposedly there's a way around this.
Notes on how to use different free ISPs; I'd give attribution for the information below but I didn't keep it when I first grabbed it!
[Most of this is from Deja and Google from 2 months ago; I didn't write it, I'm just passing it along.]
freei.net - download the software, get your local access number and use something like kppp (or pppd for you people that like to make things hard...). your login name is @.freei.net. your password is the one you entered when you signed up.
-----
A very good success story. If you and your friend are looking for a backup to freewwweb, Worldspy does work (with a little effort) but you need to setup and run the process from Windows in order to obtain the DNS info along with the cryptic user name. That means that if your username you signed up with is Ron123 then your Linux name to key into kppp will be something like: nvnet.asdfasdf@microportal.com . Trust me it does work and several others on this NG have made it happen as well. Good luck. blariz
--------
Better go to http://autoreg.freewwweb.com/ for a fast registration without downloading those huge browsers.
-----------
Well, that sort of depends on the definition of 'is'!:-)
I had noticed two mentioned, FREEWWWEB and DIAL4LIFE. I went to the web site for freewwweb to get an access number, but they all end with XXXX, which doesn't work. So I then went to dial4life and looked up their access numbers. It turned out to be the same list of towns and numbers except this one had the last 4 digits posted correctly. I followed the link to their instructions, and lo and behold, I was back at freewwweb!
So, I ended up installing freewwweb using the dial number I found at dial4life. And it WORKED! That little bit of good luck was my payback for putting in two solid weeks of hell trying to get linux installed at all!
BTW, I wasn't asked for a credit card at all.
-----------
I just called worldspy's tech support and asked about Linux and he said "you could try it, but they don't support it". I then asked if they used pap authentication and the support guy had no idea what I was talking about. I had tried it briefly this morning before going to work and got the connect, but immediately pppd died (I'm assuming because of the username/password authentication). I don't know whether that's because they don't use PAP or whether my account that I had just signed up for 30 minutes earlier hadn't been activated yet.
------
Actually I had to do a little hacking but didn't have any problem. I use Win95's dialer when in Win95. After installing worldspy.net and getting frustrated with all the windows that are used just to log on, I decided to find a way around them. Checking the DUN file it created for dialing I found that my user name was relaced with a code that looks like a wierd email address. Then I created a new dialer and copied the code to it and used my normal password. It worked! I logged on without going through all the BS they give you. Next I switched to Linux and set up ppp the same way and it works too. Now I have a FREE ISP with none of the BS, not even their home page. Try it, you'll like it.
-----
The ticket is to get a bogus account set up under Win98, then run RASSpy or a logging program to get the user/password strings (which are usually encrypted or modified by their software) required for a straight logon, then just configure a standard call-up profile with this info in whatever program you're using, then throw away all the FISP's software. Works for any platform or O/S.
Instant raw ISP!
Naturally, you get rid of all their ads, timeouts, spyware and other crap in the bargain.
Some FISPs have gotten wise to this hack and have blocked logging in their DUN profiles or made it impossible to run RASSpy, but at least 2/3 are still hackable using this workaround.
NetZero, which is otherwise pretty high-quality access, has made this impossible in v.3, but if you can get an earlier version of the software you can run the hack and use the info for a clean login.
Juno, Freei, Bluelight and a whole bunch more are currently easy to do this with. I get faster connects with NetZero and NZ is less congested than the other FISPs I've tried, but this may vary from user to user.
I get Python script errors on boot trying to get kickstart to work on either RH6.1 or 6.2. After spending a days worth of time over a week, and seeing no hints on Deja or Google I admited defeat and moved on.
Even if it did work, you still have to deal with installing software from source or a non-RPM package binary. That's step two in a one step process -- unless you roll your own RPMs for the source/binary packages you need to add.
After all that hassle, why not just do it yourself with a script? A pain to keep together, but it's more likely to work.
If low-cost and redundancy are top goals, you could run multiple coax cables and multiplex them.
10base2 cards are just about free. I haven't priced cable, but it should be cheap at a commercial cable store (not Radio Shack/Home Depot/...).
Multiplexing is well supported for just about any device for kernel 2.4.0test4.
The problem with cat-5 is that it's not as resistant to weather and trauma as coax. That may or may not be an issue, though running multiple cat-5 and multiplexing them might be a better choice.
That's right -- use any arcade game supported by XMame as an XScreensaver or in your root window (aka "wallpaper").
(I submitted the patch way back on Nov.8th 1999 to XMame & didn't get credit, but it was trivial...so no fuss. Read the man page for XScreensaver and look at the text covering vroot.h. This is easy to do with other programs because -- duh -- the source is available.)
It seems to me that one of the things that will forever dog linuxconf is it's inability to keep up with server changes. The manner in which they build modules has them constantly changing a rapidly moving target.
Exactly. My first impression of Linuxconfig was "cool!" and steadily toward "#@#@%! -- don't I ever learn!".
No matter what automated tool I use, I'm always back learning how to do it manually...so why not skip the frustration and screwups and just set up SSH? Doing it yourself takes no longer, and it's more reliable.
I just talked my brother-in-law -- sick of Windows -- into switching to Linux. (Already have my younger sister using it. Parents are the next targets.)
Unfortunately, he has a controllerless/software 'winmodem', so replacing it has become a priority.
Looking into it, I was surprised that there are some decient PCI hardware modems now -- not just the winmodem crap.
The one getting the most discussion on Usenet is the Actiontech Call Waiting modem. One simple reason is that they have 6 pages of documentation for Windows setup...and 6 pages of documentation for Linux setup!
They're not just putting a Linux sticker on the box, they back it up. It's cheap for a hardware modem (~$70-80 before rebates), and is available in most stores and over the Internet.
Now, having said that, they do make controlerless modems, so make sure you get the right one.
Multitech, USR, Zoom, IBM, GVC, and a few other companies make PCI hardware modems that work with Linux, but it looks like they aren't promoting or supporting the Linux compatable hardware as much. (Corrections appreciated!)
Before getting zapped on a PCI modem, take a look at the detailed Winmodems are not modems page.
In a way this reminds me of animal right activist trying to save only the really cute animals. Cute little io?! noo! ! noo!! ! don't club that little baby seal ..but big nasty mean ol jupiter?? let the hammer fall! !
Slashdot Mirror
The database has links to the drivers needed for each printer, or the filters (LPD, CUPS) that are needed.
Here are the color inkjets that are listed to work "perfectly";
Canon - BJC-70, BJC-210, BJC-250, BJC-600, BJC-610, BJC-620, BJC-800, BJC-4000, BJC-4100, BJC-4200, BJC-4300, BJC-4400
Citizen - ProJet IIc
Digital - DECwriter 520ic*
Hewlett Packard - 2000C, 2500C, DesignJet 3500CP, DeskJet 400, DeskJet 420C, DeskJet 500C, DeskJet 540, DeskJet 550C, DeskJet 560C, DeskJet 600, DeskJet 1200C, DeskJet 1600C, DeskJet 1600CM, PaintJet*, PaintJet XL*, PaintJet XL300*
Lexmark - Optra Color 40, Optra Color 45
Olivetti - JP350S*, JP450*, JP470*
Samsung - SI-630A*
Tektronix - 4696*, 4697*
Xerox - DocuPrint C20
Here's another example; a list of Lexmark printers (inkjet or not, perfect or not);
Mostly - 1020 Business, 3000
Partially - 1000, 1100, 2030, 2070, 3200, 5000, 5700, 7000, 7200, Winwriter 400*, Z11, Z51
Paperweight - 1020, 2050, Winwriter 100*, Winwriter 150c*, Winwriter 200*
Now, to download it from Sun you need to sign up with Sun and get a login ID. I use an account I set up last year to register for a Java tool kit.
Yes, loading AbiWord isn't the same as loading StarOffice desktop. Loading StarOffice Writer after StarOffice desktop is loaded should be about as fast as loading AbiWord. It isn't, so the charge of bloat seems justified.
Having said that, I use StarOffice for most of the documents I create.
I am quite impressed with AbiWord -- and not just because of it's speed. One of SO5.2's main features is how well it supports importing and exporting Word documents. Many of the Word documents I've delt with are rejected by SO5.2, while AbiWord loads them. Now, the reformating of MSWord docs that AbiWord does is moderate at best, but the documents do load...and fast.
I gues SO5.2 is balking on a fast-saved Word document, but I can't be certian. I don't have MS Office set up here to see what the originals look like and if disabling fast-saves will correct the problem.
Time to load...
On a PII-465 (oc PII-300) with 128 MB RAM, 2.2.17-pre10, and Xfree v.3.3.5. Netscape 4.73 and a few shell windows were open. In all fairness, SO5.1 loaded much faster (guesstimate: 1/2 to 3/4 the time of SO5.2).
I'd have to agree with what you said. Now, if I only knew what you said! ;-}
(Seriously, I've read this a half dozen times and I don't know what I should comment on, if anything! It sounds good....)
Linux - 3 / 10 (promoted / actual)
Windows 98 - 10 / 8
For general networking, Linux is amazing.
Having said that, there is one area for ISP support that Linux isn't as good as Windows; free ISPs. Most free services either require Windows or are hostile to non-Windows systems, including Macintosh and BSD.
On top of that, some free ISPs are thwarting attempts to login using anything except for the Windows-only tools they provide. The reason is simple; a Linux system connecting to these services doesn't use the ad-laden login tools, so the free services can't justify allowing these freeloaders on thier systems!
I think getting a free ISP for the cost of some advertising is a fine exchange...but the ISPs are not doing anything to get thier ads on the 'un-supported' systems. Catch-22? You decide.
So, while many free ISPs can be made to work with Linux, fewer support it and a few are actively making it harder to use thier services.
Because of the minimal support by free ISPs for anything that isn't IE under MS Windows 98, I'd can't give Linux a 10 out of 10 in this category.
In a blatent attempt to get people to tell me something I don't know, here's what I do know so far.
First off, this month Juno -- a free ISP that hasn't supported Linux in the past -- has bought both FreeWWW and Worldspy -- two ISPs that have had support for Linux. Some people have complained that Juno's free service can't use Netscape or other browsers and requires IE...though I'd like to know if that's the case or not. Supposedly there's a way around this.
Free ISPs that can be used with Linux;
www.freewwweb.com
Freeweb Linux link; read the notes on Juno's buy out of Freewww
Worldspy - Bought out by Juno
www.freei.net
www.netzero.com- first have to set up in Windows to get encrypted password/ID, then put in login under Linux
www.freedsl.com - I know nothing; some Linux users. See this link to a Usenet post
Notes on how to use different free ISPs; I'd give attribution for the information below but I didn't keep it when I first grabbed it!
[Most of this is from Deja and Google from 2 months ago; I didn't write it, I'm just passing it along.]
-----
A very good success story. If you and your friend are looking for a backup to freewwweb, Worldspy does work (with a little effort) but you need to setup and run the process from Windows in order to obtain the DNS info along with the cryptic user name. That means that if your username you signed up with is Ron123 then your Linux name to key into kppp will be something like: nvnet.asdfasdf@microportal.com . Trust me it does work and several others on this NG have made it happen as well. Good luck. blariz
--------
Better go to http://autoreg.freewwweb.com/ for a fast registration without downloading those huge browsers.
-----------
Well, that sort of depends on the definition of 'is'! :-)
I had noticed two mentioned, FREEWWWEB and DIAL4LIFE. I went to the web site for freewwweb to get an access number, but they all end with XXXX, which doesn't work. So I then went to dial4life and looked up their access numbers. It turned out to be the same list of towns and numbers except this one had the last 4 digits posted correctly. I followed the link to their instructions, and lo and behold, I was back at freewwweb!
So, I ended up installing freewwweb using the dial number I found at dial4life. And it WORKED! That little bit of good luck was my payback for putting in two solid weeks of hell trying to get linux installed at all!
BTW, I wasn't asked for a credit card at all.
-----------
I just called worldspy's tech support and asked about Linux and he said "you could try it, but they don't support it". I then asked if they used pap authentication and the support guy had no idea what I was talking about. I had tried it briefly this morning before going to work and got the connect, but immediately pppd died (I'm assuming because of the username/password authentication). I don't know whether that's because they don't use PAP or whether my account that I had just signed up for 30 minutes earlier hadn't been activated yet.
------
Actually I had to do a little hacking but didn't have any problem. I use Win95's dialer when in Win95. After installing worldspy.net and getting frustrated with all the windows that are used just to log on, I decided to find a way around them. Checking the DUN file it created for dialing I found that my user name was relaced with a code that looks like a wierd email address. Then I created a new dialer and copied the code to it and used my normal password. It worked! I logged on without going through all the BS they give you. Next I switched to Linux and set up ppp the same way and it works too. Now I have a FREE ISP with none of the BS, not even their home page. Try it, you'll like it.
-----
The ticket is to get a bogus account set up under Win98, then run RASSpy or a logging program to get the user/password strings (which are usually encrypted or modified by their software) required for a straight logon, then just configure a standard call-up profile with this info in whatever program you're using, then throw away all the FISP's software. Works for any platform or O/S.
Instant raw ISP!
Naturally, you get rid of all their ads, timeouts, spyware and other crap in the bargain.
Some FISPs have gotten wise to this hack and have blocked logging in their DUN profiles or made it impossible to run RASSpy, but at least 2/3 are still hackable using this workaround.
NetZero, which is otherwise pretty high-quality access, has made this impossible in v.3, but if you can get an earlier version of the software you can run the hack and use the info for a clean login.
Juno, Freei, Bluelight and a whole bunch more are currently easy to do this with. I get faster connects with NetZero and NZ is less congested than the other FISPs I've tried, but this may vary from user to user.
Has anyone sucessfully used kickstart?
I get Python script errors on boot trying to get kickstart to work on either RH6.1 or 6.2. After spending a days worth of time over a week, and seeing no hints on Deja or Google I admited defeat and moved on.
Even if it did work, you still have to deal with installing software from source or a non-RPM package binary. That's step two in a one step process -- unless you roll your own RPMs for the source/binary packages you need to add.
After all that hassle, why not just do it yourself with a script? A pain to keep together, but it's more likely to work.
10base2 cards are just about free. I haven't priced cable, but it should be cheap at a commercial cable store (not Radio Shack/Home Depot/...).
Multiplexing is well supported for just about any device for kernel 2.4.0test4.
The problem with cat-5 is that it's not as resistant to weather and trauma as coax. That may or may not be an issue, though running multiple cat-5 and multiplexing them might be a better choice.
How is this;
...it's the same bias the reviewer starts with before they 'report' on something.
Very few people can be objective, even when it's supposed to be part of thier job.
...a troll?
Sure, it's not a deeply insightful comment, but it's not bad, and it is a wee-bit thoughtful.
I agree with the other guy ... I want an explanation for this one; tell me why this is a troll, for future reference. I just can't see it.
Very few people can be objective, even when it's supposed to be part of thier job.
What? You don't like? Me 'n the boys will hoffa take you out to 'talk' to ya!
...linked of course to...
Hmmm...that reminds me to pick up a t-shirt
Is there anyone out there that knows the present ratio for tech support calls?
Let me know if you need help setting it up, though there are some details in the release notes for XMame.
(I submitted the patch way back on Nov.8th 1999 to XMame & didn't get credit, but it was trivial...so no fuss. Read the man page for XScreensaver and look at the text covering vroot.h. This is easy to do with other programs because -- duh -- the source is available.)
Exactly. My first impression of Linuxconfig was "cool!" and steadily toward "#@#@%! -- don't I ever learn!".
No matter what automated tool I use, I'm always back learning how to do it manually...so why not skip the frustration and screwups and just set up SSH? Doing it yourself takes no longer, and it's more reliable.
Snork!
Unfortunately, he has a controllerless/software 'winmodem', so replacing it has become a priority.
Looking into it, I was surprised that there are some decient PCI hardware modems now -- not just the winmodem crap.
The one getting the most discussion on Usenet is the Actiontech Call Waiting modem. One simple reason is that they have 6 pages of documentation for Windows setup...and 6 pages of documentation for Linux setup!
They're not just putting a Linux sticker on the box, they back it up. It's cheap for a hardware modem (~$70-80 before rebates), and is available in most stores and over the Internet.
Now, having said that, they do make controlerless modems, so make sure you get the right one.
Multitech, USR, Zoom, IBM, GVC, and a few other companies make PCI hardware modems that work with Linux, but it looks like they aren't promoting or supporting the Linux compatable hardware as much. (Corrections appreciated!)
Before getting zapped on a PCI modem, take a look at the detailed Winmodems are not modems page.
Aren't most of the S&F drives OEMs of others, like Yamaha?
Something has. It's called Ethernet. :)
They can't...it's privately held. (Unless the small group of owners want to sell.)
Hey, PAL! Don't even joke about PITA, or something like this will happen to you!
Binaries and complete source tar balls comming later.
SquidGuard is quicker, and has many features not present in Junkbuster. Take a look.
A joke is still a joke, though. No need to disect it. Ever heard someone complain about the 'atheists in foxholes' references? Rare, isn't it?