Thetownend.com

OK, 2 questions, with a few more little sub-questions!

1/

Right, my sister has an old lapper and she's not computer illiterate, she just throws more shit at a pc than anyone i've ever known. She'll download and install anything.

I want to stick her on Linux because when i've seen it, it works, it's quick and i know it to be secure. She also can't execute any spyware apps and can still use her beloved Limewire.

So which linux distro? I've used Ubuntu (to a beginner degree) and have been told Mandriva's good. Should i go with one of these or is there another i should consider?

Spec of Laptop: 2ghz Celeron 256 DDR ram.


2/

I'm fucked off with Windows and am nearing the point of upgrade and have decided i will either move to Linux or onto a Mac, probably a Mac.

What i want to know is how smooth a transition is the conversion to Apple from PC? Will i be able to optimise the system myself and fiddle and what not (does it even need it?!) with relative ease after a period?

Peace and loving. Oh, and thanks. :D

1) I think ubuntu is generally the easy to install, easy to use, old windows user standard now. That's what everybody I know who does such things go with, and what I've played with.

2) Fuck knows. Don't do it. Go oldskool with GEM or something.

Get a mac, then install XP and have dual OS.

I know someone who used to go on about Risc all the time, i know what he'd say. That'd be to your taste no doubt.


That's the plan as i have a few .Net apps that i need. I didn't know you could even do that until a friend bought a Mac and showed off Windows on it. Which, surprisingly, seemed ridiculously fast.

I'd never heard of GEM before, i just read up about it. It's quite cool how the company's founder was out of the office on the day IBM wanted to use their OS. They next approached M$...

http://www.pcmech.com/article/gem-os-the-other-windows/

Its ok, slow to start then picks up.

Some interesting stuff at http://www.hackint0sh.org/ even installing MAC OS on a 4 gb RAM dual core PC which was built for windows.

macs are quality.

I got one in September and could honestly say i will never go back.

Hello friendly tefers, i'm buying a Mac this week and am in a state of disillusionment about a few things.

I'm of the understanding the best way to run Windose on a Mac, for those times of need, is to use VMware Fusion. Is this correct? Will it act as normal, in that i can load in a decent av and run .Net apps?

I'm worried about pirated software and even OS's, a i'm likely to buy second hand, is this worth worrying about?

I already have a copy of Adobe Creative Suite for the Mac, and a crack. Is running cracked software of a Mac anymore risky than on a PC?

Do i need to worry about buying Anti Virus, Anti Malware, Firewalls, Cleaning Apps, Zip apps and other crap that is pretty much compulsory for windose?

Thanks. :)

my mac came with boot camp which allows you to install windows on a mac without any problems

i dual boot between os x and xp quite often, it's useful and quick as fuck too

I'd start by using Boot Camp (part of Mac OS) to add a Windows partition which you can then boot in to. When you boot in to it Windows is running natively, so its just like a Windows laptop (Apple supply all the drivers to ensure everything works properly). If you want to run Windows and Mac apps side by side then you'll need to use VMWare or Parallels. I've got the latter and that picks up on and uses the Boot Camp partition (not sure if VMWare can do this). This gives you the best of both worlds.

No problems with running cracked apps. Not always necessary though, Apple don't protect many of their apps anymore - even the ££££ Logic Studio has no protection on it to speak of. Only problem is its harder to find cracked apps for the Mac.

I have zero security apps running on my Mac and have had zero problems. It scares the shit out of you (going bare back) to begin with but it works. They are always talking about Mac's being attacked but it ain't happened yet.

Zip support is built in. Whilst you don't have to worry much about maintenance I'd recommend Onyx (its free). No need to do any optimisation, defrags or any of that other shit you have to put do with Windows.

I'd give Time Machine a go for backups. Just plug a nice big external drive in and it does it all for you.

The biggest problem I had when I switched was getting used to everything working as you'd expect it to and simple tasks not requiring some complex solution.

Oh cool, I think my mate just liked showing off by running it within Mac's OS if you know what i mean. I'm glad i won't HAVE to buy VMware, but am tempted buy it purely because i'm worried i'll default to Windows too often with a dual boot. :)


Thanks, a lot of that's a relief. I've been looking at various softwares, just to get a feel for everything for when i take the plunge, and i can generally find software for the most important things like Firefox, Thunderbird and OpenOffice.

I'm quite looking forward to the simplicity thing. Should be a blessed relief!

I'm kinda having second thoughts now though, as i've discovered i can upgrade my current beloved Laptop to maximum for about £130, which is cheaper than a Mac (obviously! :D ). Although i'd still need a new battery and power supply ideally. Thinking about taking the plunge and buying a new laptop is starting to become very hard.

If you upgrade your existing laptop you will only regret it in a few months!  I took the plunge and bought a MacBook about a month ago.  It took about two weeks to get used to the workings and using the command key but it simply is so simple to use. 

This is all you need to know.

Listen to the darkie, beware the pc brigade.

The laptop may have too little ram to cope with newer versions of any of the big well known distros. You may want to try something with a lighter desktop such as XFCE or LXDE. Therefore i'd suggest something like Puppylinux, Zenwalk or Dreamlinux. All have good hardware detection and are fairly easy to setup. Go to www.distrowatch.com and have a nose around for something that looks suitable.

Hello,

1) For the laptop, I'd use Ubuntu, or else install XUbuntu (Ubuntu using XFCE) whichever works best. It might be a good idea to install "Ubuntu-restricted-extras" in the synaptic package manager though as this installs all the things your friend will be hassling to do (e.g. flash so youtube works fine etc)


2) Don't go MAC, use Linux Mint!  ;D

It's based on Ubuntu (it basically IS Ubuntu and uses all the same repositories) but with some additional extras and 90% of things a newbie (like me) would like to see installed (e.g. to ensure youtube, and realplayer for STFC radio work) straight out the box without any extra work!

"Linux Mint 7 'Gloria' - KDE Community Edition" is my personal favourite! It's based on Kubuntu (Ubuntu with KDE interface) meaning it is visually very pretty like a MAC and 'just works'. Something which I personally appreciate :D

Give it a whirl, it won't cost you anything and won't change any data on your pc unless you install it. Download the ISO image from the below link, burn it to a DVD, and pop it in your pc to try a "live" trial without installing anything on your pc... then if you like it, install away!

DVD image, download and burn  --> http://www.linuxmint.com/edition.php?id=42

A screenshot (in case you're interested) of the basic user interface is here -->
http://gabuntu.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/linux-mint-7-kde-edition-arrives-2.jpg

Cheers
Luke

Mint with KDE4 will run like shit with 256 of RAM. He needs a light distro / DE. If you want mac type looks go for Dreamlinux:- http://www.ngsys.eti.br/screenshots/dl35screens/screenshot02.jpg

It's based on Debian, just as ubuntu is. So it has a wealth of software available and good support.

Homepage:- http://www.dreamlinux.com.br/

Just got myself a bargain of eBay, and have taken the plunge. Got a new unibody aluminium 2.4 ghz MacBook with 4GB ram, 500GB HD, iWork, iLife, Leopard and applecar until May 2010 for sub £800.

Anyone want to buy a slightly tatty, but well looked after, Sony Vaio VGN-S4XP?

And thanks for the Linux advice. I'll have to bosh one of these on my sisters laptop, or maybe even keep my old laptop and put linux on it for something fun to do. :)

you should have traded in against the apple car and got £2k scrappage discount ;D

Which was why what I actually wrote was For the laptop, I'd use Ubuntu, or else install XUbuntu (Ubuntu using XFCE) whichever works best. ;)

The Linux Mint KDE 7 bit was for him to try himself on a more powerful pc, hence why it referred to point "2"! Though macs do the job too (just expensive). My mate picked up a macbook air in PC world for £800 the lucky goit a few months ago, when there was a minor version upgrade! :D

Right, got the Mac been using it for a few days and fuck me, even though i've got VMware running, i think i'd have to really have to force myself to go back to using windows for any reason! I love all the gestures on the trackpad and even just backing up my old laptop is annoying now. Thanks to all for easing me from the dark unstable depths of windows.

I'm now fiddling with Linux to put on my old lapper. I tried Linuxmint from the disk and it's got a lot of features and seems quite good, but it does have a designed by kids feel about it. Very fussy, reminds me of Vista or something!

I ran Ubuntu years ago and really liked that, but had so much trouble with Wireless drivers that am put off that slightly. Can any one recommend another Distro for me to try please?

www.distrowatch.com - take your pick. Just remember that when changing operating systems there's going to be a learing curve. Linux isn't Windows.

Puppy is a truely amazing tiny distro that works on most hardware but may have quite a steep learning curve. However it will run like a dream and lighting fast on those laptop specs.

Yeah i went there, but for someone that doesn't known my arse from my elbow when it comes to Linux, it gives me no idea what would be the "best". :)

Mint seems to have it all, but compared to the way Ubuntu looked when i last used it, there's no comparison.

I'll have a look at Puppy, but have a feeling that'll be little fun for a n00b!

You can boot ubuntu from a cd can't you? Why not burn one and see if you have any driver issues in it's sort of default state.

Yeah, but the iso didn't have all the drivers, so i installed and used some crap i got from their site which enabled it all. (That makes it sound really simple, but it was mainly command line crap and various other "hacks" and took days.)

I'm downloading Puppy, Ultimate Edition and the latest Ubuntu to see how it goes. I've tried to install Mint this morning (after running it from a dvd) but when it came to a full install it didn't like my partitions and refused to go on unless I completely format and repartition my HD, which i'm not ready for yet.

I don't even know why i'm bothering to be honest, I have my new computer and can't use 2 at once. Plus my laptop is solid as fuck on XP SP2.

OH yeah. I had wireless problems with ubuntu when I tried it a few years ago, but I meant now, it's supposed to be a bit better now I think.

What spec and how much?

I'm hoping it is. Ubuntu was really nice and fast when i used it, and mint is just too busy for my tastes. I'll have a go later and see what happens.

Just for the record, now i've delved into the world of Apple, it's clear their loyal users are buried completely up the arse of the company and fail to see the wood for the trees. You find a problem, ask how to solve it, and all they have to say is, "You can't change that and actually it's not a problem, it's better because <insert pathetic excuse that makes no sense here>"

For instance, you can't chose lid closing preferences, and if you close your lid it goes to sleep and more importantly closes your wireless. Therefore you have to leave the screen open if you want to remain online. Well, to Apple whores, it's a good thing because it's not good for the lid to be unnecessarily opened and closed, as well as it might cause the laptop to overheat if it wasn't allowed to sleep...

Just other little issues: No delete key, track pad drag lock...

right mouse button? do they have them yet?

I've been thinking of trying Linux on an old laptop I've got, the thing is it doesn't have an internat CD drive and I don't think it can boot from USB.

Anyway, I can't even download a distro at the moment until Virgin sort out my [lack of] broadband.

I'm still thinking of keeping it now, but that would be silly really as I have no need for it!

It's 13", 2Ghz Centrino, 1GB Ram (but can upgrade to 2GB for £25), 120GB HD, Wifi, bluetooth, DVDRW, Port replicator (cost £150 i think and has never been used!), handheld trackball mouse thing. Battery life is down to about 30-45 minutes now and charger is covered in ducttape, but is fiine. There are some other cosmetic issues as well, but you can look at it if you wish. I'd like £200.

http://www.pcpro.co.uk/reviews/laptops/75048/sony-vaio-vgn-s4xp

Double fingered tap on the trackpad (which is ace!) or you can set it up to click in bottom left or right corners.

If it's that old, don't try using Ubuntu or one of the mainstream distros - it'll crawl and you'll struggle. Like MR said Puppy or one of the other lightweight distros are geared towards getting the best out of older/low spec hardware.

Oh and Ben they sorted out the wireless in Ubuntu some time ago - I recently set up a PC for the kids using a tailored kids' distro based on Xubuntu and it runs wireless fine (well except for the normal problems I get with wireless - apparently the Victorians built labourers' cottages with walls thick enough to withstand small tactical nuclear wars)

Wireless shouldn't be much of a problem on any modern distro providing you can get online via ethernet and download the relevant drivers for your card.

FWIW, in the kids PC I used a USB wireless stick and it just worked, drivers already loaded as modules.

Being an old laptop I suspect there's a kernel module for his card. It will certainly make life easier for him.

*Bump*

Just installed Puppy onto an old IBM Think Pad. Fuck. Me. That is a proper OS. There's some speed in that baby. I love it. Might have a use for the old IBM now. Although I'm still thinking I might bosh XP on it again.

Did you have to bump this thread BS? I sound like a right fucking dweeb!

Yes. To let you know I'm using Puppy and to remind you why wearing a Linux t-shirt is like contraception. :D