Ubuntu!

[kenstogie]

Workin on it now!

[kenstogie]

Got it all working, it's a little different but I could get used to that no problem. I also set up a Live thumbdrive to make startups a little easier as I figure out if I want to make the switch. So it all went well except the Wifi. I looked for a few mins 10 or so but really didn't know what to do. Is there a control panel or something? Any suggestions?

[rennD]

Check restricted drivers section to make sure that the wifi card is enabled.

[kenstogie]

Originally Posted by rennD

Check restricted drivers section to make sure that the wifi card is enabled.

Thanks I'll take a look.

[Tristan]

Should be a network icon in the panel next to the date/time. What hardware are you running? What is your wireless card? When I've had issues with wireless cards in the past I've done a Google search to see if anyone else has run into similar issues. There have been a few times where I knew the hardware just wouldn't work with the time/effort I was willing to put in. Luckily, this hasn't happened with any hardware that I own.

Hopefully your wired connection still operates and you have access to plug straight in to a router, etc. If so, you can click on System - Administration - Hardware Drivers and see if Ubuntu finds any drivers for your wireless card.

If it doesn't find any, you can still use windows wireless drivers by downloading from the manufacturer and using ndiswrapper. The operation could get a little more complicated then desired, but searching through the Ubuntu forums really helps in these situations.

[kenstogie]

I'll give it a shot thanks Tristan.

[s0leful0ne]

This may be a long shot but I just installed ubuntu 9.04 via virtual machine using VMWare Fusion. I've had trouble installing the VMWare tools, does anyone have any experience with this?

Originally Posted by s0leful0ne

This may be a long shot but I just installed ubuntu 9.04 via virtual machine using VMWare Fusion. I've had trouble installing the VMWare tools, does anyone have any experience with this?

Yes. The installation does not include the kernel headers or libraries by default. There may also be trouble with the version of gcc installed vs what the kernel was compiled with. The error message from the tools installation would be helpful.

[kenstogie]

So I loaded up a thumb drive with Ubuntu and brought it to work, plugged it in and low and behold it worked. It also browsed the internet rather easily. Is this frowned upon by the IT department? I have a feeling it is but thought I would ask the inmates.


FWIW I only used it for about a minute so I could have "plausible deniability" that and I have known the IT Guy for a decade and I'll be asking him as soon as I can.

Originally Posted by kenstogie

So I loaded up a thumb drive with Ubuntu and brought it to work, plugged it in and low and behold it worked. It also browsed the internet rather easily. Is this frowned upon by the IT department? I have a feeling it is but thought I would ask the inmates.


FWIW I only used it for about a minute so I could have "plausible deniability" that and I have known the IT Guy for a decade and I'll be asking him as soon as I can.

Totally depends on where you work. If it's the Gov. you may get in big trouble. Some places could fire you. Most places would go "huh?"

[kenstogie]

Originally Posted by BC-Axeman

Totally depends on where you work. If it's the Gov. you may get in big trouble. Some places could fire you. Most places would go "huh?"

I'll be alright I just did it to see if it would work. I know they use a linux distro on thier boxes for trouble shooting/back up etc so it's not to big a deal and I've known the IT guys for years and seem to recall them doing this very thing. Getting on the network they would be more ticked at than using the hardware. but I appreciate the info on IT dpt Opinion.

[Tenor CS]

I used a thumb drive with puppy linux almost exclusively at work the whole last year. Their windows xp based machines were so poorly maintained, puppy freed me from a lot of hassles. It's amazing what decent hardware can do when it's not being bogged down by a badly maintained windows setup.

[Tristan]

BTW, Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Alpha 5 is running great on my Dell Mini 10V netbook. The speed CRUSHES Windows XP. There are a few bugs that need to be worked out, but by the time of the official release I think it will be a nice step up from the current version.

A few things look promising. 9.10 uses EXT4 partitions by default, Firefox 3.5 and Ubuntu One, an application that automatically uplinks and syncs files between computers. Pretty cool!

[VirtualSmitty]

Originally Posted by Tristan

A few things look promising. 9.10 uses EXT4 partitions by default, Firefox 3.5 and Ubuntu One, an application that automatically uplinks and syncs files between computers. Pretty cool!

I haven't played with the 9.10 alpha yet, how does ubuntu one stack up against dropbox? I use it know and like it a lot.

[kenstogie]

So I have a Medion Laptop (who?) Yea that's what everyone says except Europeans some times. It's kind of semi old 3 years and I did the google search on my Winbond W89C33 mPCI 802.11 Wireless LAN Adapter. And of the 8 or so hits/post I sampled...

"winbond is not supported in linux nor does ndiswrapper support it." or something similiar.

Many were in other languages too.


So for me it's back to Winblows. Oh well. At least I have the actual install disc

Originally Posted by kenstogie

So I have a Medion Laptop (who?) Yea that's what everyone says except Europeans some times. It's kind of semi old 3 years and I did the google search on my Winbond W89C33 mPCI 802.11 Wireless LAN Adapter. And of the 8 or so hits/post I sampled...

"winbond is not supported in linux nor does ndiswrapper support it." or something similiar.

Many were in other languages too.


So for me it's back to Winblows. Oh well. At least I have the actual install disc

You could always get a PCcard or usb wireless adapter. It will likely work better anyway. Then you can run Kismet
You should search first for compatibility.

[kenstogie]

Originally Posted by BC-Axeman

You could always get a PCcard or usb wireless adapter. It will likely work better anyway. Then you can run Kismet
You should search first for compatibility.

If I could get one cheaply and it's not a big thing to get it going I am not adverse to it. With budget laptops being fairly inexpensive I may opt for a new one, when my current one gives up the ghost.

[Tristan]

Originally Posted by VirtualSmitty

how does ubuntu one stack up against dropbox? I use it know and like it a lot.

I'll have to give it a shot! I've tried Xubuntu, Kubuntu, Ubuntu netbook remix, DSL and PC Linux as well as Knoppix, but there are many distros I haven't played with yet!

[VirtualSmitty]

Originally Posted by Tristan

I'll have to give it a shot! I've tried Xubuntu, Kubuntu, Ubuntu netbook remix, DSL and PC Linux as well as Knoppix, but there are many distros I haven't played with yet!

Dropbox isn't a distro, it's a service that let's you sync files between mac, linux, or windows. I've been using it for some time as I use all three and it is convienient. Ubuntu One sounds like it does the same thing.

[Tristan]

Originally Posted by VirtualSmitty

Dropbox isn't a distro, it's a service that let's you sync files between mac, linux, or windows. I've been using it for some time as I use all three and it is convienient. Ubuntu One sounds like it does the same thing.

Gotcha! Ubuntu One isn't working perfectly yet, still in beta. I like the concept and it seems like it will be slick when the bugs are worked out. I'll have to look into Dropbox a little more, fees, storage, etc.