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"You can't run OS X on a normal PC either, and nobody considers it a dealbreaker" Still - it's easy to buy hardware in which you can have confidence that OSX w
by cturner 19y ago
"You can't run OS X on a normal PC either, and nobody considers it a dealbreaker"
Still - it's easy to buy hardware in which you can have confidence that OSX will work seamlessly. Not so with Ubuntu. Ubuntu is my preferred OS and I went through this recently while getting a new laptop.
Part of the problem is that people in the Linux world are so accustomed to having to do tweaks to get hardware working (and sneering at people like me who can't be bothered) that there's always a blur between hardware that "works with ubuntu" in the sense that you turn it on and get all functionality; or "works with ubuntu" in the sense that you can install it, invest lots of energy tweaking in order to get some functionality kind of working until you do the next major kernel upgrade.
Another example of Ubuntu not doing so well - wireless networking. The UI doesn't make sense, and is unhelpful when you can't get a connection. These are complete deal-breakers in terms of Ubuntu as a consumer OS.
- Tichy 19y agoI agree that it is a bit difficult to find out what hardware works and what doesn't. I have a working printer and a working scanner, though, and I didn't do much tweaking. The tweaking only applies if you have some weird hardware that you want to get running no matter what. But remember the "stuff" discussion - it really is not very expensive anymore to buy a scanner or a printer that works with Linux, so maybe that is an easier route. Wireless Networking: not sure what you mean, it works flawless for me.
- dhimes 19y agoI have an x_64 machine with an Atheros card (5007, I think). Nobody can make this work yet to my knowledge (it works on i386). Typically, it just takes a while for open source versions to come out for proprietary drivers. Same (I'm hoping!) for my Epson R280 printer. So it's not really weirdness that sets you back, as much as it is using linux-friendly stuff. It's riskier to go with Linux. Kinda like stick-shift vs. auto transmission: Stick-shift is way more fun, but it takes more effort to learn and is inconvenient in heavy traffic when you are trying to do other stuff....
- Tichy 19y agoWireless really is a sore point. I think only the Intel drivers are quite reliable. Some companies are more open source friendly than others...
- morbidkk 19y agoI am using wifi at home (desktop+laptop) and has worked on it at couple of places. It worked alright for both wired/wireless options w/o any problem. Havent worked on OSX but when I compare Windows Vs Ubuntu; ubuntu should be preferred choice for programmers atleast. It runs quite fast compared to vista/xp too.