In department stores with a big "netbook" section, roughly 1/3 of the netbooks are Linux editions. In smaller sections (where there may only be three netbooks, all versions of the same product), there are no Linux editions.
PC World locally where I am (in the UK) has about 60% Linux, 40% Windows netbooks.
But when I tried to install Fedora I quickly realized it was impossible.
Wait wait wait, you install a operating system that's just a development platform for Redhat Linux and expect it to run like a consumer distribution like Ubuntu, Mandriva or SuSE?
Yeah, Ubuntu does a decent job of being buggy and unstable
Not in my experience, but do provide verifiable sources that prove to be a decent job of being buggy and unstable - Launchpad can't even help you there as it proves otherwise.
Sure they package it nice for the computer illiterate, but they sacrifice the stability I require to get that wow factor in that the general public wants.
I have some servers running on Ubuntu and, I think I only rebooted them once last year when there was one potential kernel security update that could be a potential problem for the tasks they do - during the time I have ran Ubuntu servers, I have had no problems at all. Needless to say, when I was running other Linux distributions on servers - I also haven't had problems there too.
When it comes to desktop usage, I do have a tendency to reboot a lot - but generally nothing related to the OS stability wise. I don't have 'crashing' issues and I haven't noticed anything significantly different stability wise between other distributions I've used.
but even the LTS versions of Ubuntu are a joke compared to Debian Testing.
Really, how? Could you at least give some examples, because all you've been doing so far is saying it's unstable without any examples.
Note: OS X is not considered by most a BSD community.
was also tried of dealing with the "If you don't like it, code your own" mentality that I kept running across.
That's pretty much the OpenBSD answer to a lot of things, they also say "donate your hardware".
OS X 10.2 was out. That got me my Unix development stack AND commercial applications such as Adobe's apps and *gasp* MS Office and no hardware compatibility issues.
I'm guessing you were not a Windows power user if you didn't know of Windows' native POSIX subsystem or the POSIX alternative implementations under Windows.
Few hardware devices and peripherals come with Linux software and drivers.
There is still new hardware out there that Linux doesn't support out of the box with existing ones? What hardware is that? -- Serious question.
People shouldn't have to search the Internet for drivers.
I've never had to, honestly. Now with Windows... I've had wireless cards with the label "designed for Windows XP", requiring me to insert the CD before the card first, I do so. Install, reboot. System bluescreens as the drivers were designed for pre-sp2 XP. I have to go into safe mode, uninstall.. But I can't uninstall because the uninstaller doesn't like safe mode, so I have to manually seek out and remove the.inf files.
Then I have to go on some website in Hong Kong that does very bad English translations and download the latest drivers, install them.
This is with dirvers that passed Microsoft's logo testing and crap.
Compare this to Linux: I connect the device, after a second the network manager identifies a new network device and I can start using it immediately.
I work on a servicedesk. If a linux netbook is brought to us we don't even bother trying to set up WiFi anymore. Just get them to install Windows. Any of our staff can set up/debug a laptop on WiFi in a few minutes if its Windows/Mac. We're not idiots - we just haven't seen a single netbook with a consistent and reliable setup procedure that works.
I'm going to call you an idiot because the setup procedure on a EeePC to restore factory settings is so brain dead (just choosing the recovery option on boot), it's not even funny. This gets a broken system working within seconds.
We don't want to compile code or edit source code.
Taking the EeePC as a example again... Why would you need to do that? Infact, any netbook that comes with Linux won't require you to do that to get Wi-Fi working, what are you talking about?
Why the hell weren't the manufacturer supplied drivers built with WPA support?
To my knowledge, there is no netbook out there that doesn't have WPA support and I have seen quite a few. Even the earliest Linux netbooks have WPA support.
EA uses their own servers (rather than the Xbox Live servers) and I've heard that they actually have to add code to STOP players from different platforms from connecting with each other (I guess they use the same servers for all platforms).
I'm interested in "playing" Second life, because so far, I haven't figured out how to get on Second life using a mobile device without being on a text only interface or some crappy ajaxlife thing. Tell me?
Till the DSi is rebuilt into something geeky like the Millennium Falcon or the Battlestar Galactica? That's the sort of hand held gaming that I can get behind!
Adama wouldn't stand for networked computers on his ship.
No, 436 didn't fix it - I'm on 451 and it still repeats this behavior.
Works for me (TM)
Note: I still play the original UT.
451 is a community patch by UTPG which introduced numerous bugs such as alpha-transparency with #000000 which they don't intend to fix as they consider it a feature, despite the fact it effects the a few things with weapons and other textures. I wouldn't trust that patch for reliability. Thus, I still use the official 436 patch from Epic.
total wipe and reinstall was the only fix, and this was after full patching to the latest supported version. It would just happen about four or five months after install
I just removed the opengl/directx (depending on which one I was using) lines from unrealtournament.ini
It worked fine then. The v436 patch fixed this issue.
I had USB devices working fine in Win95. Maybe you should update your copy of Windows 95? Updates are still available on http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/ for it.
Windows Vista and higher does not support running DOS applications natively.
I would suggest Linux with Virtual Box or DosBox as an option if they want to keep the old software.
Which Linux? I don't know of any distribution that will make a version that lasts 15 years of updates. The only operating system I think of that will do that is Solaris.
Buy an Apple. my wifes iMac lasted ~10 years before we replaced it, and the only reason we replaced it was for a bigger screen for her. A current top end Mac Mini and a 20" Dell LCD will be relevant that long easily.
Providing more anecdotal data - Over the years I have had at least, at least twenty Macs, including a MBP two years ago.
Every single one had at least one logicboard failure.
you will tell him to get a professional to do this for him.
You know, in my experience there a lot of crap professionals, despite the fact I am quite good in the IT field - even I have problems finding good professionals.
Slashdot Mirror
Also not a issue.
It works fine for me, honestly. I didn't even really put much effort into configuring a ad-hoc network, just used the network manager wizards.
PC World locally where I am (in the UK) has about 60% Linux, 40% Windows netbooks.
Wait wait wait, you install a operating system that's just a development platform for Redhat Linux and expect it to run like a consumer distribution like Ubuntu, Mandriva or SuSE?
You're hilarious.
Not in my experience, but do provide verifiable sources that prove to be a decent job of being buggy and unstable - Launchpad can't even help you there as it proves otherwise.
I have some servers running on Ubuntu and, I think I only rebooted them once last year when there was one potential kernel security update that could be a potential problem for the tasks they do - during the time I have ran Ubuntu servers, I have had no problems at all. Needless to say, when I was running other Linux distributions on servers - I also haven't had problems there too.
When it comes to desktop usage, I do have a tendency to reboot a lot - but generally nothing related to the OS stability wise. I don't have 'crashing' issues and I haven't noticed anything significantly different stability wise between other distributions I've used.
Really, how? Could you at least give some examples, because all you've been doing so far is saying it's unstable without any examples.
That's odd, I have a EeePC701 and it had flash pre-installed (along with adobe acrobat reader and other commercial software).
I generally sit in a lot of different communities, Windows, OS X, Linux, BSD and Solaris etc.
Here is my overall experience with certain BSD communities.
Note: OS X is not considered by most a BSD community.
That's pretty much the OpenBSD answer to a lot of things, they also say "donate your hardware".
I'm guessing you were not a Windows power user if you didn't know of Windows' native POSIX subsystem or the POSIX alternative implementations under Windows.
That said, I've never really had a problem running commercial applications under Linux. That includes my games.
There is still new hardware out there that Linux doesn't support out of the box with existing ones? What hardware is that? -- Serious question.
I've never had to, honestly. Now with Windows... I've had wireless cards with the label "designed for Windows XP", requiring me to insert the CD before the card first, I do so. Install, reboot. System bluescreens as the drivers were designed for pre-sp2 XP. I have to go into safe mode, uninstall.. But I can't uninstall because the uninstaller doesn't like safe mode, so I have to manually seek out and remove the .inf files.
Then I have to go on some website in Hong Kong that does very bad English translations and download the latest drivers, install them.
This is with dirvers that passed Microsoft's logo testing and crap.
Compare this to Linux: I connect the device, after a second the network manager identifies a new network device and I can start using it immediately.
Seriously, WTF are you talking about?
I'm going to call you an idiot because the setup procedure on a EeePC to restore factory settings is so brain dead (just choosing the recovery option on boot), it's not even funny. This gets a broken system working within seconds.
Taking the EeePC as a example again... Why would you need to do that? Infact, any netbook that comes with Linux won't require you to do that to get Wi-Fi working, what are you talking about?
To my knowledge, there is no netbook out there that doesn't have WPA support and I have seen quite a few. Even the earliest Linux netbooks have WPA support.
It's a very small minority, I doubt it will grow much.
Non-sense, in the USA they're violating the DMCA by circumventing the copy protection by making it possible to install it on non-Apple hardware.
My EeePC fits in my jacket just fine.
Windows runs like shit on my EeePC compared to Linux, actually.
[citation needed]
I'm interested in "playing" Second life, because so far, I haven't figured out how to get on Second life using a mobile device without being on a text only interface or some crappy ajaxlife thing. Tell me?
Furcadia had a PC and iPhone version of the game available ages ago, so no, not new.
Adama wouldn't stand for networked computers on his ship.
Works for me (TM)
Note: I still play the original UT.
451 is a community patch by UTPG which introduced numerous bugs such as alpha-transparency with #000000 which they don't intend to fix as they consider it a feature, despite the fact it effects the a few things with weapons and other textures. I wouldn't trust that patch for reliability. Thus, I still use the official 436 patch from Epic.
For all I know, he's using the computers for e-mail and browsing too.
I just removed the opengl/directx (depending on which one I was using) lines from unrealtournament.ini
It worked fine then. The v436 patch fixed this issue.
I had USB support working fine on Win95 actually.
Now, if you want USB2.0 support, you want Windows 98.
I had USB devices working fine in Win95. Maybe you should update your copy of Windows 95? Updates are still available on http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/ for it.
Windows Vista and higher does not support running DOS applications natively.
Which Linux? I don't know of any distribution that will make a version that lasts 15 years of updates. The only operating system I think of that will do that is Solaris.
Sorry, got confused, I meant 1987, not 1994.
Providing more anecdotal data - Over the years I have had at least, at least twenty Macs, including a MBP two years ago.
Every single one had at least one logicboard failure.
You know, in my experience there a lot of crap professionals, despite the fact I am quite good in the IT field - even I have problems finding good professionals.