As is pretty well established, I've been a Linux user for a while now and I've come to expect certain things of which one is whilst most things work, somethings can be a right pain in the derriere. Wireless networking has often been cited as a prime example of such headache inducing problems.
So it was with that in mind (and the expectation that laptop computers will cause more problems than desktops) that I set to work over the weekend on installing Ubuntu Linux 8.04 onto a damaged IBM/Lenevo Thinkpad R50e.
This particular laptop has a damaged screen making it pretty much useless as something to use on the lap. The computer itself though was functioning fine. My mission then, was to employ this machine as a living room media computer. For the requirements of such a system it ticks all the boxes - it's small (fits into my TV centre), it's very quiet, it's high spec'd enough to playback HD (720p) video and it's onboard audio is of a suitable standard for my existing audio equipment.
I didn't want to use the supplied OS (Windows XP) not because of a hate of all things Microsoft, but because my Server runs Linux and I find sharing disc space between machines using NFS rather more straight forward and reliable than SAMBA (although I do have the latter available). A Linux OS would play FLAC audio files (the format my CDs are ripped to) out-of-the-box whereas Windows would need extra software; but above all I wanted to use the Amarok music player connected to an existing Amarok MySQL database so that my music stats would be updated.
So it was with keen determination that I downloaded and ran the latest LiveCD on said laptop and straight away things worked. The LiveCD booted without so much as a whimper and at that point everything seemed fine. The wireless adaptor was detecting nearby networks including my own, I had widescreen resolution on my television and I could hear audio. Result!
Not wanting to get my hopes up though, I told myself to stay skeptical until the final install was complete. The 6 installation steps went by uneventfully although I did get concerned when the partitioner appeared to hang but it was just taking it's time. 30 minutes later, the system restarted without the LiveCD and Ubuntu loaded up. Again happy as a happy thing.
So now came the real testing. Wireless network - connected first time. Internet access - connected first time. NFS shares - mounted first time. Amarok - installed, accessing the database and playing tunes first time. Playing HD video - codecs installed and the video playing full screen first time.
I even tested a few of the laptops special keys: the volume keys (up/down/mute) all functioned, and brightness worked fine. I didn't notice any effect of the external screen button (Fn+F7) though and I haven't yet tested the zoom (Fn+Space), wireless (Fn+F5) or other special keys but only because I have no need for them. I should probably also note that I haven't tested battery life since I'm running without it (no need for a battery if it's staying plugged in).
I really could not be happier. With the exception of mounting drives using fstab, no terminal access was needed. Although I used it for software installation, Synaptic would have worked just as well.
I now have a tidy media computer controlled by VNC (on a fully working Windows laptop) running on my TV allowing me to listen to music all day long (as evidenced in my last.fm profile from yesterday), watch stored videos, stream radio stations across the net, use the BBC's catchup service; the iPlayer, and view photographs on a large screen.
Yes, I fully realise that there are hundreds of different laptop and desktop computers out there, and that there are problems on many when installing Linux. This example however shows how good and simple it can be given the right hardware. This is what Ubuntu, Linux in general and the computer industry should strive for.
So it was with that in mind (and the expectation that laptop computers will cause more problems than desktops) that I set to work over the weekend on installing Ubuntu Linux 8.04 onto a damaged IBM/Lenevo Thinkpad R50e.
This particular laptop has a damaged screen making it pretty much useless as something to use on the lap. The computer itself though was functioning fine. My mission then, was to employ this machine as a living room media computer. For the requirements of such a system it ticks all the boxes - it's small (fits into my TV centre), it's very quiet, it's high spec'd enough to playback HD (720p) video and it's onboard audio is of a suitable standard for my existing audio equipment.
I didn't want to use the supplied OS (Windows XP) not because of a hate of all things Microsoft, but because my Server runs Linux and I find sharing disc space between machines using NFS rather more straight forward and reliable than SAMBA (although I do have the latter available). A Linux OS would play FLAC audio files (the format my CDs are ripped to) out-of-the-box whereas Windows would need extra software; but above all I wanted to use the Amarok music player connected to an existing Amarok MySQL database so that my music stats would be updated.
So it was with keen determination that I downloaded and ran the latest LiveCD on said laptop and straight away things worked. The LiveCD booted without so much as a whimper and at that point everything seemed fine. The wireless adaptor was detecting nearby networks including my own, I had widescreen resolution on my television and I could hear audio. Result!
Not wanting to get my hopes up though, I told myself to stay skeptical until the final install was complete. The 6 installation steps went by uneventfully although I did get concerned when the partitioner appeared to hang but it was just taking it's time. 30 minutes later, the system restarted without the LiveCD and Ubuntu loaded up. Again happy as a happy thing.
So now came the real testing. Wireless network - connected first time. Internet access - connected first time. NFS shares - mounted first time. Amarok - installed, accessing the database and playing tunes first time. Playing HD video - codecs installed and the video playing full screen first time.
I even tested a few of the laptops special keys: the volume keys (up/down/mute) all functioned, and brightness worked fine. I didn't notice any effect of the external screen button (Fn+F7) though and I haven't yet tested the zoom (Fn+Space), wireless (Fn+F5) or other special keys but only because I have no need for them. I should probably also note that I haven't tested battery life since I'm running without it (no need for a battery if it's staying plugged in).
I really could not be happier. With the exception of mounting drives using fstab, no terminal access was needed. Although I used it for software installation, Synaptic would have worked just as well.
I now have a tidy media computer controlled by VNC (on a fully working Windows laptop) running on my TV allowing me to listen to music all day long (as evidenced in my last.fm profile from yesterday), watch stored videos, stream radio stations across the net, use the BBC's catchup service; the iPlayer, and view photographs on a large screen.
Yes, I fully realise that there are hundreds of different laptop and desktop computers out there, and that there are problems on many when installing Linux. This example however shows how good and simple it can be given the right hardware. This is what Ubuntu, Linux in general and the computer industry should strive for.