[OT] A couple of links about Gnome and usability

Sat Mar 24 20:03:08 EDT 2012

Thanks for all the info Richard.  I'm already feeling SO superior to all
those morons who don't run Ubuntu!

I will probably try out VirtualBox since it's free and probably also a dual
boot on my Windows 7 box since the only thing I ever do on Windows is test
out LC apps developed on my Mac, although it is a pretty new computer so I
may run into the driver issues you mentioned.

Pete

On Sat, Mar 24, 2012 at 4:39 PM, Richard Gaskin
<ambassador at fourthworld.com>wrote:

> Pete wrote:
>
> > Hi Richard,
> > This thread has been very interesting to me as I'm considering
> > getting a computer to run Linux.
> ...
>
> > But where do I buy a computer that runs Linux and what version of
> > Linux (if that's the right term) I need?
>
> Every distro has its fans, some quite passionate.  There's a running gag
> in the Ubuntu forums that whenever someone encounters an issue that's hard
> to solve, the answer is "use Arch". :)
>
> Personally I like Ubuntu, and as a developer it's important to me that I'm
> working with the most popular distro (an estimated one-third of Linus
> desktops are running Ubuntu).  With its mandate of "Linux for Human
> Beings", it's provided a good experience for me.
>
> Mark Weider uses Fedora, and I've enjoyed that one as well.   Linux Mint
> is another good choice.
>
> Whichever you choose, be sure to post all over the Internet that users of
> other distros or OSes are stupid fanbois who just don't get what Linux is
> all about!  That'll help keep the myth of the Linux community alive for
> those who have no familiarity with it. :)
>
>
> If you were in the market for a computer with Ubuntu pre-installed, these
> companies are good options:
>
> <http://www.system76.com/>
> <http://zareason.com>
> <http://linucity.com>
>
> While all three are very reputable vendors, the last there, LinuCity, is
> owned by my friend Aviv and I can personally vouch for the quality of
> service he provides.
>
> For more options, Canonical maintains a list of computers from major
> vendors they've worked with that have undergone their certification process:
> <http://www.ubuntu.com/**certification<http://www.ubuntu.com/certification>
> >
>
> Note that that's only a subset of computers Ubuntu is compatible with.
> There are only so many hours in the day, and even a billionaire like Mark
> Shuttleworth can't afford to certify everything it runs on.
>
>
> One upside to Linux being mostly installed on computers designed for some
> other OS is that it expects that challenge and usually meets it pretty
> well.   In my own experience, every machine I've installed it on has worked
> great out of the box.  The only time I needed a special driver was for the
> NVideo card on my Dell Vostro, and Ubuntu identified that and prompted me
> to install it with one click on first boot.
>
>
>
> > I already have a Windows laptop that I only use for testing out the
> > LC apps I develop on my Mac.  I don't really want another computer.
> > It seems like Apple has just about shut the door on running anything
> > but OS X on their computers.  Can I install Linux on my Windows
> > computer a dual boot it somehow?
>
> And even on your Mac.  Apple's OS X EULA only prevents you from legally
> installing it on anything other than "an Apple branded computer", but their
> computers are frequently used by members of the Ubuntu forum for running
> Linux.  Boot camp is a natural fit for that sort of thing.
>
> Because Apple tends to get specialized components, it can sometimes be
> trickier to get a solid install on a Mac than on popular PCs where the
> components are in such wide use that there are plenty of good drivers for
> them.
>
> Dual-booting with Windows is a popular option, esp. among gamers because
> Windows still rules the roost with the games market.  I've set up dual-boot
> systems before and it's not hard (the Ubuntu installer includes options for
> that), but personally I found I was booting into Windows so rarely that I
> ditched that partition and put Windows into a VM within Ubuntu.
>
> In general, the sweet spot for Linux is computers between two and six
> years old.  It can often run on newer systems, and even most older ones
> (Puppy Linux can run on darn near anything), but if a computer's too old it
> won't have the horsepower to deliver a great experience with the latest
> Linux distros, and if it's too new there's a chance of needing a driver
> that hasn't been made available yet.  Even then there's almost always a way
> to get things to work, but for a simple first-time experience the
> two-to-six years guideline may be helpful for systems that haven't been
> certified.
>
> Most of the popular distros allow an option to run the OS from CD or USB
> drive, so you can try it out on a machine without having to install
> anything.
>
> If you grab the Ubuntu ISO disk image here and burn it do CD, you can boot
> from that CD and see what works and what doesn't on your machine:
> <http://www.ubuntu.com/**download/ubuntu/download<http://www.ubuntu.com/download/ubuntu/download>
> >
>
> If you decide to install, the lovely Nixie Pixel teaches you how in her
> five-minute video:
> <http://www.youtube.com/watch?**v=GhnLk3gviWY<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhnLk3gviWY>
> >
>
> :)
>
> Nixie's fun, but really the Ubuntu installer is so simple you probably
> won't need any help with that.  I find it very similar to the OS X
> installer, and much simpler than installing Windows.
>
> Another way to explore Linux is in a VM.  I use VirtualBox on all my
> systems (thanks to Mark Weider for the recommendaton), and here it
> outperforms Parallels in restoring sessions, taking less than half the
> time.  Doesn't hurt that it's also free (in both senses of the word):
> <https://www.virtualbox.org/>
>
>
> If you run into any snags feel free to drop me an email, or you can find
> me in the Ubuntu forums under the screen name rg4w.
>
> Have fun!  Let us know how it goes.
>
> The LiveCode engine for Linux isn't quite on par with their engines for
> Mac and Win, but it's been much improved in recent years and in most areas
> runs like a champ.
>
>
> --
>  Richard Gaskin
>  Fourth World
>  LiveCode training and consulting: http://www.fourthworld.com
>  Webzine for LiveCode developers: http://www.LiveCodeJournal.com
>  LiveCode Journal blog: http://LiveCodejournal.com/**blog.irv<http://LiveCodejournal.com/blog.irv>
>
>
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>

-- 
Pete
Molly's Revenge <http://www.mollysrevenge.com>