Posted: 11/24/2009 1:09:46 PM EDT
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I made it! Windows Vista laptop kept acting crappier and crappier. On board wireless died a while back, so I started using a USB gizmo. Vista sucks, did I say that? So I am away for the Holiday, back in the home town. I wander through Best Buy looking for something else and see Windows 7 upgrade, $119. This might solve the problem. But I hold off. Get back to the house and decide to give another try to Linux. I have issue #80 of Linux User & Developer with 3 distros on the included DVD. PCLinuxOS first. Booted up, no internet. Click around and find network connection program. It finds my netgear usb gizmo. Finds the network we have set up here at Mom's house. Says it is working. Try Firefox. No go. Can't find the internet. Darn.
Next up, Ubuntu 9.10. Boots up. Try Firefox, no internet. OK, probably like the last one, a separate step to connect to the internet. Not so clever network connection program. But I know the name of the network, so I type it in. Says we are connected. Try Firefox, no go. Firefox is already running and not responding. Ok, do the windows thing, reboot. Hook up to the network first. Try Firefox. Here I am. Now, I have a new, larger disk drive for this laptop. Since Ubuntu can find and use my laptop hardware, I want to put that in and make a total Linux machine. Any gotcha's I should be looking out for when I do that? |
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Ok, no problemo. Gave me some message about it being a new installer not released till the next version, back up your data first blah, blah. Just kept clicking, it kept installing. Done deal. Linux has arrived for me. Now to work on improving the less than attractive appearance.
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Quoted:
Ubuntu's about as good as it gets as far as a Linux user experience. Have fun customizing! Yeah, I keep looking at other distros, but Ubuntu would still be dual-booting on my personal box, if I hadn't had to steal the HDD it was on to increase the drive space on my GF's PC. Its a solid OS. |
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I'm doing something similar with Ubuntu 9.10.
It finds both the onboard B wireless, and the card slot N wireless, but I can not force it to use the N wireless. It will connect, then disconnect. I've messed with the BIOS, and tried to blacklist to B driver. Messing with the BIOS shuts all wireless off  , and trying to blacklist the driver has confused the heck out of me.
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Welcome! Fedora also has a live CD that you can use to test out your hardware.
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