What's wrong with Linpus? Why change?

I am just curious whether you feel a quick boot time is necessary or just nice to have. I ask be cause I use my AAO for everything I do on a computer and have been using computers since DOS was an infant yet I really don't turn it on and off that much so 30sec or 90sec or even 120sec is not something that has much effect in a practical sense.

I also see no practical advantage as far as time spent working goes.

This I agree is a must for practical work.

I agree is a must for practical work providing your work requires sound.

 

Thanks Pling. Finally got around to messing about with the desktop image and, as you said, it can be changed for the standard Acer desktop.

 

The main sin of Linpus is bad documentation and hiding away useful stuff. It'd give it a minimum rating of Pretty Good. If Acer and Linpus cured some stuff that would take about a week of coding and a week of help system writing and kept it updated - maybe moving on to new Fedoras - then I'd give it an Excellent.

 

Depends on "easy". I found it easy enough (but then, I am a Fedora/Redhat admin and user). I use OpenOffice 3.1, Evolution, Amarok (out of your list). I use mplayer (smplayer) instead of Vlc (with a full codec pack), and I am happier with Firefox (its the extensions!) than with Opera (so I haven't bothered with Opera).

See Macles site (http://macles.blogspot.com) for most of what you need, Amarok and Vlc will install from the Fedora 8 repositories.

One of my selection criteria was that Linpus, even though it has a "oozing" name (possibly the worst name for an OS I've seen in a long time) was a Fedora derivative. This, and the price/features drove the selection of the AAO over the EEE, the HP, and the Wind.

Notes:

Even though not directly supported by Acer, multiple desktops are easy: use xrandr and change X11.org to add the modes.

The WORST peripheral is the built-in speakers -- just not loud enough.

Some AAO systems drop wireless connections -- if you get one, and it happens, get it replaced under guarantee.

 

So far I've tried -

Ubuntu Netbook Remix - slow, messed up after first update. Time to breaking: about 1 hour.

Crunchbang - won't install. Time to breaking: 0! Edited to add: Bad download! I'd now say Crunch is excellent, at least for techie type users

Linux4One Light - still in early development, keeps downloading apps set to Italian. Time to breaking: installed already broken!

Kuki - GUI messed up permanently after I added a couple of things to the Panel, Firefox will no longer run. Time to breaking: 12 hours. Edited to add: unbreaking the GUI looks like it would be easy based on Kuki forum advice, which I haven't tried as I've settled on Crunch. Kuki's combination of efficiency and friendliness do look like it should ultimately be the best choice for most users.

Believe me, Linpus is looking pretty good. Edited to add: I now wouldn't touch it with the proverbial barge pole. I'll try a couple more options that I'm curious about - Zenwalk, Linux4One "classic", possibly Mandriva, and maybe see if there is anything I can do with Crunchbang as it looked excellent running from my USB pen.

 

I have ubuntu 9.04 on my desktop. Before you switch, spend a lot of time in the ubuntu forums. A lot of time

 

I would think that the idea of having a good distro would be not needing to spend a lot of time "a lot of time" on the distros forum. I know I spend very little time on the Mandriva forum since it works so well.

One of the things I find sad about Acer's pre-installed Linpus is that there doesn't seem to be a forum to help people with it.

 

Very good point. That said, my Crunchbang works perfectly, although the interface is a little hostile to new users.

That and decent docs and a help system would have been nice! You'd think that the designers had never seen a computer... "Windows Help? What's that? Something for double glazing?"

 

It doesn't allow pptp network vpn, therefore I can't dial in to work.
Otherwise, I would have used it all along.

 

So the strongest arguments for not using Linpus is:
- It's based on Fedora 8 and new packages aren't necessarily compatible
- There is no good Linpus support forum
- Lack of helpfiles (*)
- I'm used to some other distro
- I want to use some exotic software available for this or that distro
- I don't know what I'm doing, so I'm changeing

For me the strongest arguments for using Linpus is:
- If it aint broke, don't fix it
- It's actually quite good for what it is intended for. Most people don't buy it as their main computer.
- There aren't by default a zillion GUIs for configuring everything. I like CLI! This reminds me a bit of the early 90's.

Things bugging me with Acer Linpus:
- I have not yet found a way to install selfsigned root certificates in the e-mail client
- They really could have included the man-files
- A few Mb of old logfiles

(*) Referencing MS here as a good provider of helpfiles is a bit amusing. :lol: But their online tehnical documentation is quite good. That I give them credit for.

 

when you consider the potential security risks, threats of viruses, problems with drivers, bluescreen errors and other unacceptable flaws with windows, its hard to say that anything from micro$oft is low cost.

at the time when i bought my a150L, the xp home version was around £30 more.

ive installed fedora 10 on my aspire one and id say i have a more secure, stable and user-friendly netbook with an online user-base who can and will answer almost any question or problem i encounter.

i also £30 more than those who were too scared to try something new.

 

when you consider the potential security risks, threats of viruses, problems with drivers, bluescreen errors and other unacceptable flaws with windows, its hard to say that anything from micro$oft is low cost.
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Linux also runs faster on less hardware. Even Linpus is leaner than XP, and Linpus is a hippo next to Crunchbang or Kuki.

But more than that, MS is not "committed" to having a competent low cost OS for Netbooks - they're desperately trying to get the price up and have introduced a crippleware version on Windows 7 intended for Netbooks that will only run 3 apps at a time.

As for the "most users" thing, it's nonsense. A distro of Linux properly customized to a particular piece of hardware - and then supported - will be much more stable and friendly than Windows or any other generic OS, including Linux. That's all OS X is (plus some development libraries).

 

Properly customized is the correct word, up to now.... no Linux distro is as problem free as XP in the AAO. I've used Linpus and Mandriva, both are not as stable as XP for everyday use. And that's reality. BSOD? That only happens when newbie users try to install lots of incompatible hardware and crappy software that messes up XP. All my computers are windows based, from XP to Vista & Windows7, and I have not had a BSOD in years. In linux, I get frequent hangs, slow downs, and that's on apps that are already installed with the OS. My worse frustration with linux is that even just a simple OS update can brick your AAO. Linux is an alternative, FREE and very useful. But for now, it's not as practical and reliable as windows.

 

Why bother getting rid of Linpus when Ubuntu will quite happily live along side it I've got Linpus for a fast boot OS, Ubuntu for a more serious daily driver OS and OS X for hacking around with when I have too much time on my hands. I've found it's easier to just dump all my documents in a shared partition so I'm not tied down to one OS, means I can get the best of all worlds

 

Then All Hail Acer! Because I've now used three distros that run better on the One than XP does on my 3GHz desktops and suspect I can name two or three more, based on forum reports.

Btw, I'm impressed that you've tried out every Linux distro available! That's, what, 200? 666? 2001? Googleplex?

So you've tried i. the most dissed distro in Linux history and ii. a distro designed for desktops. Hm. That's two.

Speaking as a professional windows programmer, no, you are very, very wrong.

BSODs are no longer the problem.

I don't. Could the problem be that your Linux was installed by you? It's either that or I - and the people who use Mandriva without problems on the One - have magic computers. Otoh I know professional programmers and Windows sysadmin who routinely resort to re-installing XP to solve problems - I've heard it seriously said by pro admins that you should re-install XP every two or three years. By comparison it's quite possible to leave a Linux box switched on for three years - as in without a re-boot.

Well, if that can't happen with XP on the One then it's definitely the world's best XP machine!

What's basically happened is that you've tried to install a damn good OS (Mandriva) designed for the equivalent of an ocean liner into a dingy. It's actually possible to do the job without being terribly competent, but you didn't manage it. To be fair, you shouldn't have had to have tried - Acer let you down with Linpus. But again, take a look at OS X to see custom fit Unix done right.

 

Did I say I tried all the Distros? Ok name one that will work right out of the box without any mods.... :lol:

Like I said on the previous post, "properly customized" There's non so far... or you're just too good that you don't pay attention.

Oh my a windows programmer... Ok, then I guess I'm wrong. hahaha. And the fact that all my windows machines are on 24/7 without problems is just a freak of nature, ok.

Ok, that's good

Maybe, since I'm not a pro programmer like you. I have used alot of distros, I only mentioned those 2 on the AAO... So you're bashing is of no use. If you want experience, I've been on front of a computer since I was 7yrs old. I'm now 37, ok? Mandriva is very very good on the AAO, I got everything to work w/ minor tweaking, I've been endorsing it before as well. But realistically from using it everyday, it's indeed not as stable and slower than XP. And this is not linux's fault, you know that. Like you said, properly customized. You're right about linux boxes left on for years, I own a computer business, and our servers are Linux based. But that's just it, Linux servers are rock solid.... It's the GUI that's messing it up, too many incompatibilities still.

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I'm amazed by your attitude, hahaha. Get the stick out your butt for the moment, ok?

Again did I say it can't happen to XP? Ok do a search on this entire forum..... count how many posts are there for broken OS after updates. See the numbers on Linux users. We're talking about the AAO here, don't forget.

And of course you're right about OSX, almost perfect.... again like I've said. "properly customized"

Now if there's a distro out there that's as easy to install and is fully functional as XP on the AAO right now... Please point me to it, and I'd gladly ditch XP for it.

 

i genuinely think that fedora is a viable alternative to xp.

i can do everything from word processing to creating spreadsheets;

editing photos to watching movies;

the list is endless, although i suppose it depends on what exactly you use your netbook for on a daily basis.

the only 'tweak' for fedora was for the card readers and precise easy to follow instructions can be found on the fedoraproject aspire one page: https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Acer_Aspire_One

as ive said before, add to that a strong community of users who are willing to help with any questions and i definitely believe that you have a serious alternative to windows.

i know nothing about linux but im more than happy using fedora on my aspire one and had no problems installing it.

 

Ok... I'm confused -- what is wrong with AAO Linpus again? Seems tuned to me. All hardware supported, and based on Fedora -- both pluses for me.

Locked down system, but no open ports (well, one, but that's easily dealt with). So its secure enough. Usable enough. Cheap enough.

OOO 3 is good, macles to update to that version. Acer site for most of the rest. mplayer/vlc update for those stupid extra codecs. Where's the problem?

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I'm amazed by your attitude, hahaha. Get the stick out your butt for the moment, ok?

Again did I say it can't happen to XP? Ok do a search on this entire forum..... count how many posts are there for broken OS after updates. See the numbers on Linux users. We're talking about the AAO here, don't forget.

And of course you're right about OSX, almost perfect.... again like I've said. "properly customized"

Now if there's a distro out there that's as easy to install and is fully functional as XP on the AAO right now... Please point me to it, and I'd gladly ditch XP for it. [/quote]

 

My experience of Linux has been the polar opposite. The heavily (and unfairly?) maligned LLL (Linpus Linux Lite) has only hung on me once - in 9 months of everyday use. When applications crash or hang (rare) the OS has always remained stable - and has never hung as a consequence. Crashed apps have always then reloaded quickly and completely problem-free.

Conversely with Windows, having a "fresh boot" after epxeriencing application or OS instabilities has, over the years, become a way of life - and (perversely) such a regular part of day-to-day computing that you don't even notice it anymore. Until that is you run an OS that never needs to be rebooted to regain stability - and simply needs to be turned on when you're ready to use it and turned off again once you are done.

If you could get MS Office for Linux I would never need to use a Windows machine ever again. Open Office is amazing for a free suite. But for seamless compatibility when working with crucial work files and emailing stuff to colleagues and clients who use Windows, I need Office and VBA. But even then, its only Excel and VBA that are genuine, market-leading killer apps for Microsoft (IMO). Everything else of theirs I am happy to throw away, especially Word.

 

Thank you from freeing me from the restraint of good manners.

Did I say I tried all the Distros? Ok name one that will work right out of the box without any mods.... :lol:
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You did say that, although you might not be capable of understanding what you wrote.

And Kuki, #!, Linux4One all ran fine for me with no tweaks.

Otoh, my father's XP is filling save dialogs and Word with mysterious hyphens and can't see files on my MP3 player...

Sorry: I can only reply to the stupid thing you actually said, not the less stupid things you wish that you'd said. But, yes, you would have been much smarter to install a pre-idiot proofed Acer distro.

Oh my a windows programmer... Ok, then I guess I'm wrong. hahaha. And the fact that all my windows machines are on 24/7 without problems is just a freak of nature, ok.
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No, it's a sign that you're not smart enough to compare sensibly. You've seen a tiny number of XP machines pampered with huge RAM and drives run ok for short periods of time; you've seen a Linux machine with very RAM - used, candidly, by someone who isn't the sharpest tool in the box - glitch, and you've jumped to conclusions from this minute and biased sample.

Yes, and like I said: that's a Linpus specifc failing. One that is shared by XP - I've had to throw peripherals away because a SP killed compatibility with 'em.

Basically: You're a guy with low self esteem - hence you result to abuse when people disgree with your choice of OS - and Linpus made you feel stupid. Like most low self esteem people you strongly believe in the majority is always right, so its back to Windows land. Ok. That's fine. I hope you, your butt, and whatever you have up it - mineral, animal or vegetable - are very happy together.