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This would have been a perfect router/firewall box, right up until they chose to use realtek nics. WHRRRRYYYYYYYYY??????? Realtek in linux is an irreperable sh

This would have been a perfect router/firewall box, right up until they chose to use realtek nics. WHRRRRYYYYYYYYY??????? Realtek in linux is an irreperable shitshow. All my interest evaporated right at that point.

rwmj 8y ago
Realtek are known for being cheap rather than having good performance. However I've never had a particular problem with them under Linux, they have all worked reliably enough. What's the actual issue? If it's an issue with Linux (ie software) then couldn't it be fixed?
- maxnoe 8y ago
  I have Students coming to me very regularly with linux problems. If it's wifi, it's always a realtek card. Mostly those cheap 300€ HP 15" Laptops.
  - rwmj 8y ago
    Sounds like an excellent way to get those students into programming open source software mixed with hardware troubleshooting. Both very valuable skills in the outside world.
    - maxnoe 8y ago
      For some: yes! But for most physics students it's an annoying linux experience that will make them go back to windows which they also get for free from the university.
    - e12e 8y ago
      I'm not convinced the crappy wifi cards can be fixed in software, though. I think they're just really crappy chips :/
      - rwmj 8y ago
        Grandparent posting said "Realtek in linux is an irreperable[sic] shitshow" which I take to mean that it must work in some other operating system like Windows, so it would be a software issue. Now if they had said "Realtek is a shitshow (but hey, it's cheap!)" I would agree :-)
        e12e 8y ago
        Yeah, I guess I think gp is wrong - they are crap in any os.
  - namibj 8y ago
    Then maybe take that wifi and ethernet are not the same, and that e.g. intel nakes good cpus but bad gpu, and amd, in comparison, the opposite (until recently at least)? Don't throw all into one bin.
    - yjftsjthsd-h 8y ago
      Support-wise, Intel makes excellent GPUs! (Unless the recent generations stopped having great open-source drivers? I admit I don't always keep up to speed with the latest hardware.)
      - namibj 8y ago
        I'm speaking about performance here, but yes, intel drivers seem to be pretty good (though my Haswell GPU seems to crash X11 after reactivating the screen(s) after they got blanked due to inactivity, if X11 had a now-unplugged Displayport screen configured before) (arch/xmonad) ).

rwmj 8y ago

Realtek are known for being cheap rather than having good performance. However I've never had a particular problem with them under Linux, they have all worked reliably enough. What's the actual issue? If it's an issue with Linux (ie software) then couldn't it be fixed?

maxnoe 8y ago
I have Students coming to me very regularly with linux problems. If it's wifi, it's always a realtek card. Mostly those cheap 300€ HP 15" Laptops.
- rwmj 8y ago
  Sounds like an excellent way to get those students into programming open source software mixed with hardware troubleshooting. Both very valuable skills in the outside world.
  - maxnoe 8y ago
    For some: yes! But for most physics students it's an annoying linux experience that will make them go back to windows which they also get for free from the university.
  - e12e 8y ago
    I'm not convinced the crappy wifi cards can be fixed in software, though. I think they're just really crappy chips :/
    - rwmj 8y ago
      Grandparent posting said "Realtek in linux is an irreperable[sic] shitshow" which I take to mean that it must work in some other operating system like Windows, so it would be a software issue. Now if they had said "Realtek is a shitshow (but hey, it's cheap!)" I would agree :-)
      - e12e 8y ago
        Yeah, I guess I think gp is wrong - they are crap in any os.
- namibj 8y ago
  Then maybe take that wifi and ethernet are not the same, and that e.g. intel nakes good cpus but bad gpu, and amd, in comparison, the opposite (until recently at least)? Don't throw all into one bin.
  - yjftsjthsd-h 8y ago
    Support-wise, Intel makes excellent GPUs! (Unless the recent generations stopped having great open-source drivers? I admit I don't always keep up to speed with the latest hardware.)
    - namibj 8y ago
      I'm speaking about performance here, but yes, intel drivers seem to be pretty good (though my Haswell GPU seems to crash X11 after reactivating the screen(s) after they got blanked due to inactivity, if X11 had a now-unplugged Displayport screen configured before) (arch/xmonad) ).