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I just bought a new laptop (GE62 6QD MSI Apache Pro), and I spent the last few days trying to get Ubuntu 16 to run on it. I'm in pretty good shape now, but the

I just bought a new laptop (GE62 6QD MSI Apache Pro), and I spent the last few days trying to get Ubuntu 16 to run on it. I'm in pretty good shape now, but there are still issues with the microphone and camera (I wrote about the process here http://blog.robertelder.org/installing-ubuntu-16-linux-ge62-6qd-apache-pro-msi-notebook/ http://blog.robertelder.org/installing-ubuntu-16-linux-ge62-...). I've only installed Ubuntu/Linux on a few different laptops, but the process does seem to be getting worse the few times I've done it. The worst part tends to be getting the video cards and wifi to work. It really makes me wonder what the future will be like. Will we reach a breaking point where someone (or some group) takes on the responsibility of making this stuff work? I can't see people abandoning Linux for Windows, because Windows seems to be decreasing in quality as well. Are we doomed to just have computers that don't work properly?

qihqi 10y ago
I had sort of different experience. I guess it heavily depends on what hardware you have. I installed ubuntu in an Asus laptop with the Nvidia/Optimus thingy. The optimus thing did not work but I can't really tell a difference because there is no AAA games in Linux; but at least on first boot it renders the desktop in native resolution. I also reinstalled Windows 7 in the same laptop later to play SC, it supposed to be working great, but did not. I had to hunt wifi drivers from the laptop maker in a different machine and copy over, then hunt down the video driver because it is stuck in 800x600 otherwise. Same thing basically applies to every hardware you use. It used to be you have to install a driver for the mobo to get usb3 working at high speed. So I really wonder if Windows should take the credit of "things just work" it's not like they wrote all the drivers.
- sidereal1 10y ago
  In my experience Windows 10 has become much better at getting the proper drivers for you. One of the nicer features to the OS.
- melle 10y ago
  Wrt optimus, have you tried bumblebee? http://bumblebee-project.org/ http://bumblebee-project.org/ https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/bumblebee https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/bumblebee
slgeorge 10y ago
>Will we reach a breaking point where someone (or some group) takes on the responsibility of making this stuff work? No. Or perhaps the answer is better as, lots of people already work very hard to try and make things work, but there's only so much that can be done. There's no perfect solution because the economics just don't work. All the major distributions (RH/Suse/Ubuntu) already have full time engineers in the major manufacturers (e.g HP/Dell) and at the major ODM's in places such as Taiwan. There's complex testing the the distributions do to try and make sure that "it just works". But the economics are against them on the client side. Why does Linux on servers work? Because Linux users represent a major force in the market. HP can't launch a new server that doesn't work with the major Linux distro's so they work with them to make sure that hardware works. If HP's servers don't work with Linux then they'll lose a lot of sales to major players in the finance, oil and gas and military sectors. So, if the network card doesn't work then HP calls up its ODM in Taiwan and gets a driver written or gets one of the distro's paid to write a driver. Why does Linux on clients not work? Because it's less than 5% of the market. MSI (your laptop brand) doesn't work with any of the distributions. Even if it did, lets say the network card didn't work, would the ODM write a driver? No! It would be economic suicide, and any major brand (HP/Dell) would know this and wouldn't even request it. The margin on client side hardware is wafer thin and the ODM's barely manage. Some of the major brands (HP/Dell/Lenovo) do try and certify their client hardware, particularly workstations. But if something doesn't work it's a tough situation. Generally, what happens is some poor Linux engineer at one of the distro's gets a rubbish half-done driver manual and some hardware - or even worse NO hardware and the distribution has to go out and buy the hardware itself - and then has to try and reverse engineer the solution. Bottom line, if you want to use Linux as a client it demands that you know more about your hardware and how the OS interacts with it - it's not an easy option, it's an 'alternative' option for those that want to be educated! On the upside that education will come in use at dinner parties and in pub quizzes ;-)

qihqi 10y ago

I had sort of different experience. I guess it heavily depends on what hardware you have. I installed ubuntu in an Asus laptop with the Nvidia/Optimus thingy. The optimus thing did not work but I can't really tell a difference because there is no AAA games in Linux; but at least on first boot it renders the desktop in native resolution. I also reinstalled Windows 7 in the same laptop later to play SC, it supposed to be working great, but did not. I had to hunt wifi drivers from the laptop maker in a different machine and copy over, then hunt down the video driver because it is stuck in 800x600 otherwise. Same thing basically applies to every hardware you use. It used to be you have to install a driver for the mobo to get usb3 working at high speed. So I really wonder if Windows should take the credit of "things just work" it's not like they wrote all the drivers.

sidereal1 10y ago
In my experience Windows 10 has become much better at getting the proper drivers for you. One of the nicer features to the OS.
melle 10y ago
Wrt optimus, have you tried bumblebee? http://bumblebee-project.org/ http://bumblebee-project.org/ https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/bumblebee https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/bumblebee

slgeorge 10y ago

>Will we reach a breaking point where someone (or some group) takes on the responsibility of making this stuff work? No. Or perhaps the answer is better as, lots of people already work very hard to try and make things work, but there's only so much that can be done. There's no perfect solution because the economics just don't work. All the major distributions (RH/Suse/Ubuntu) already have full time engineers in the major manufacturers (e.g HP/Dell) and at the major ODM's in places such as Taiwan. There's complex testing the the distributions do to try and make sure that "it just works". But the economics are against them on the client side. Why does Linux on servers work? Because Linux users represent a major force in the market. HP can't launch a new server that doesn't work with the major Linux distro's so they work with them to make sure that hardware works. If HP's servers don't work with Linux then they'll lose a lot of sales to major players in the finance, oil and gas and military sectors. So, if the network card doesn't work then HP calls up its ODM in Taiwan and gets a driver written or gets one of the distro's paid to write a driver. Why does Linux on clients not work? Because it's less than 5% of the market. MSI (your laptop brand) doesn't work with any of the distributions. Even if it did, lets say the network card didn't work, would the ODM write a driver? No! It would be economic suicide, and any major brand (HP/Dell) would know this and wouldn't even request it. The margin on client side hardware is wafer thin and the ODM's barely manage. Some of the major brands (HP/Dell/Lenovo) do try and certify their client hardware, particularly workstations. But if something doesn't work it's a tough situation. Generally, what happens is some poor Linux engineer at one of the distro's gets a rubbish half-done driver manual and some hardware - or even worse NO hardware and the distribution has to go out and buy the hardware itself - and then has to try and reverse engineer the solution. Bottom line, if you want to use Linux as a client it demands that you know more about your hardware and how the OS interacts with it - it's not an easy option, it's an 'alternative' option for those that want to be educated! On the upside that education will come in use at dinner parties and in pub quizzes ;-)