Easiest and simplest way to switch to Linux
Discussion
MC Bodge said:
I have used that.
It appears to be a graphics issue.
I've now re-tried using advice on here http://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.php?f=46&...
I have a black screen with a mouse pointer and nothing else. I'm going to leave the PC to think about it.
The Cinnamon version got further, but didn't display properly.
I'd give the xfce version a go, but as you say, sounds more like a fundamental graphics driver issue.It appears to be a graphics issue.
I've now re-tried using advice on here http://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.php?f=46&...
I have a black screen with a mouse pointer and nothing else. I'm going to leave the PC to think about it.
The Cinnamon version got further, but didn't display properly.
In which case, (and despite being a linux advocate and full time linux user..), I'd probably give up, and either stick with winxp on there, or get something a bit newer... its likely you are going to get other issues, and unless you have the time/patience, getting something newer will be a less painful solution...
There are some decent deals on ebay at the moment for ex-company dell/hp type i3/i5 desktops with win7 already installed.. for around the £2-300.
Out of interest, what spec is the pc, and graphics card ?
The desktop was a freebie a few years ago.it is old although it runs ok. I was just hoping to extend its useful life a bit.
No, I'm not interested enough to want to spend hours and hours setting up an old PC to run Linux for he little use it gets. I'll probably give it one more attempt.
Failing that, a cheap replacement with a newer OS would be the next option.
No, I'm not interested enough to want to spend hours and hours setting up an old PC to run Linux for he little use it gets. I'll probably give it one more attempt.
Failing that, a cheap replacement with a newer OS would be the next option.
MC Bodge said:
The desktop was a freebie a few years ago.it is old although it runs ok. I was just hoping to extend its useful life a bit.
No, I'm not interested enough to want to spend hours and hours setting up an old PC to run Linux for he little use it gets. I'll probably give it one more attempt.
Failing that, a cheap replacement with a newer OS would be the next option.
Does it have a running Windows now? Most Linux deploys just allow you to install from windows, no boot hardware (CD, USB,...) required...No, I'm not interested enough to want to spend hours and hours setting up an old PC to run Linux for he little use it gets. I'll probably give it one more attempt.
Failing that, a cheap replacement with a newer OS would be the next option.
On the other hand, when using a USB stick, you can just boot from it and see if everything works (wifi, sound, USB devices,...), then opt for the installation if you're happy with the results. It'll run somewhat slower (USB 2.0 isn't as fast as a regular HDD), but it'll give you a good view on what to expect.
Ubuntu and the rest of the Linux community have moved heaven and earth to make the installation as easy as possible. Nowadays, it's as easy to install as Windows 8 itself.
I just installed Lubuntu on one of these: http://www.samsung.com/ae/consumer/computers-perip...
No great shakes from a power perspective, and we just use it to surf web and knock up the odd spreadsheet. Made a disc image iso file on a dvd using a windows PC and then installed from there. Works well, and boots up fast-ish. However, the -ish bit is more likely to do with disk spin than software now, so that's the next thing with that....
No great shakes from a power perspective, and we just use it to surf web and knock up the odd spreadsheet. Made a disc image iso file on a dvd using a windows PC and then installed from there. Works well, and boots up fast-ish. However, the -ish bit is more likely to do with disk spin than software now, so that's the next thing with that....
I ditched microsoft's products over a year ago and started using Linux Mint.
I found Mint to be MUCH more stable and does just about everything that a typical windows operating system can do.
All for a total of ZERO pounds.
Downloading and installing software is very easy and it also has a "windows software operator" called WINE that allows you to run a lot of 'windows environment' programs.
I also find MINT to be much faster on boot up and faster in performing commands and generally 'doing stuff'.
Also a bonus is that it has a two tier security system, whereby you can assign two passwords levels of encriptions before it allows access to your system, meaning that virus attacks are not really heard of.
I found Mint to be MUCH more stable and does just about everything that a typical windows operating system can do.
All for a total of ZERO pounds.
Downloading and installing software is very easy and it also has a "windows software operator" called WINE that allows you to run a lot of 'windows environment' programs.
I also find MINT to be much faster on boot up and faster in performing commands and generally 'doing stuff'.
Also a bonus is that it has a two tier security system, whereby you can assign two passwords levels of encriptions before it allows access to your system, meaning that virus attacks are not really heard of.
It's also got such a small user base that it's rarely targeted.
I've used Mint and Ubuntu fairly recently with zero install problems with either. Created a Live CD, on a USB stick, tried them both out and then picked Ubuntu. That was on an Acer Aspire One netbook with AMD Fusion CPU/GPU.
The installs of either SHOULD be painless.
I've used Mint and Ubuntu fairly recently with zero install problems with either. Created a Live CD, on a USB stick, tried them both out and then picked Ubuntu. That was on an Acer Aspire One netbook with AMD Fusion CPU/GPU.
The installs of either SHOULD be painless.
I love Linux, but Windows has been very faithful. Plus, it comes as "no cost" with a new OEM computer. Very little offer the possibility to NOT install it, and when they do it isn't really cheaper.
Windows 8.1 has been very stable, very lightweight.
The only reason I install Linux these days is on older machines. I'm quite adept with computers but the installation is a doddle anyway these days.
My only gripe is that, when it doesn't work it can be a real b
h to fix. Luckily it has been a long time since I've had that.
Oh, got to add, due to my profession I can use a lot of MS products for nearly no cost myself, which makes the decision a little easier.
Windows 8.1 has been very stable, very lightweight.
The only reason I install Linux these days is on older machines. I'm quite adept with computers but the installation is a doddle anyway these days.
My only gripe is that, when it doesn't work it can be a real b
h to fix. Luckily it has been a long time since I've had that.Oh, got to add, due to my profession I can use a lot of MS products for nearly no cost myself, which makes the decision a little easier.
Well, Lubuntu seems to be working well so far booting from USB.
I'm now installing it, so let's hope that it stays that way.
Other than it defaulting to installing itself on the ancient, tiny slave drive I fitted when I installed Ubuntu in the past, it appears to have worked well.
I did have to play about with the sound settings to get the right sound channel to work.
I'm not sure if Lubuntu is any quicker than XP, but I'll have a tinker with it.
I'm now installing it, so let's hope that it stays that way.
Other than it defaulting to installing itself on the ancient, tiny slave drive I fitted when I installed Ubuntu in the past, it appears to have worked well.
I did have to play about with the sound settings to get the right sound channel to work.
I'm not sure if Lubuntu is any quicker than XP, but I'll have a tinker with it.
Edited by MC Bodge on Monday 1st September 00:01
Edited by MC Bodge on Monday 1st September 18:33
EggsBenedict said:
I just installed Lubuntu on one of these: http://www.samsung.com/ae/consumer/computers-perip...
No great shakes from a power perspective, and we just use it to surf web and knock up the odd spreadsheet. Made a disc image iso file on a dvd using a windows PC and then installed from there. Works well, and boots up fast-ish. However, the -ish bit is more likely to do with disk spin than software now, so that's the next thing with that....
Bit of an update:No great shakes from a power perspective, and we just use it to surf web and knock up the odd spreadsheet. Made a disc image iso file on a dvd using a windows PC and then installed from there. Works well, and boots up fast-ish. However, the -ish bit is more likely to do with disk spin than software now, so that's the next thing with that....
I fitted one of these: http://www.misco.co.uk/product/218947/Crucial-128G...
Boot time is now 15 seconds from cold. Huge difference. I know I've gone from a 320Gb HDD to a 128Gb SSD, but as I use a NAS to store stuff, it doesn't make much odds to me.
MC Bodge said:
Well, Lubuntu seems to be working well so far booting from USB.
I'm now installing it, so let's hope that it stays that way.
I'm very, very impressed with Lubuntu so far I'm now installing it, so let's hope that it stays that way.
Other than sound initially being only one channel, it has been very easy to install and to use.
It is still on my small 2nd hard drive, but I will move it to a bigger one at some point.
I'm now tempted to try (L)Ubuntu on my 3 year old Win7 web browsing/kitchen/garage/living room laptop.
-Would Lubuntu lose any features that I would miss from Win7?
I use Win7 in 'classic' mode with all graphic effects/aero themes etc. turned off for improved performance.
Would Ubuntu be a better choice than Lubuntu?
Edited by MC Bodge on Thursday 4th September 16:21
MC Bodge said:
-Would Lubuntu lose any features that I would miss from Win7?
The question you have to ask yourself is "what do I use this machine for?".MC Bodge said:
I use Win7 in 'classic' mode with all graphic effects/aero themes etc. turned off for improved performance.
Would Ubuntu be a better choice than Lubuntu?
AFAIK Ubuntu just has the nicer visual look and more pre-installed stuff.Would Ubuntu be a better choice than Lubuntu?
If the machine can handle Ubuntu, I prefer it, but Lubuntu is fine.
I use Ubuntu on a couple of old laptops. It works well, is faster than the windows operating system it replaced and does everything I need it to (like email, web browsing and word/excel activities).
I also like the software center idea. It seems to work well, and has a huge list of programs to use.
I also like the software center idea. It seems to work well, and has a huge list of programs to use.
Skodasupercar said:
I use Ubuntu on a couple of old laptops. It works well, is faster than the windows operating system it replaced and does everything I need it to (like email, web browsing and word/excel activities).
That is basically what I use my PC and laptop for.The software centre certainly makes it easier to install extras than it was when I tried Linux in the past.
To be honest, Win7 works fine on my laptop, but the old machine with Lubuntu is a pleasure to use.
I'm still enjoying the Lubuntu (and tweaking the preferences a bit), albeit with some Firefox loading and scrolling slowness issues
-browsing the WWW suggests that I'm not the only one to experience this. I've improved it a little, but more work will be required.
HD Youtube videos appear to play smoothly.
Interestingly, the sound seems(placebo?) to be of a better quality (through my old Akai amp and Mission bookshelf Speakers, no tinny pc speakers here) than it was under Win XP with the Dell-supplied sound software (that I can't remember the name of).
-browsing the WWW suggests that I'm not the only one to experience this. I've improved it a little, but more work will be required.
HD Youtube videos appear to play smoothly.
Interestingly, the sound seems(placebo?) to be of a better quality (through my old Akai amp and Mission bookshelf Speakers, no tinny pc speakers here) than it was under Win XP with the Dell-supplied sound software (that I can't remember the name of).
MC Bodge said:
I'm still enjoying the Lubuntu (and tweaking the preferences a bit), albeit with some Firefox loading and scrolling slowness issues
The Firefox slowness issues have now been solved ...with Google Chrome. Having been a Firefox and Netscape user for many years, it is just too clunky on this os.I'm a big fan of this Lubuntu thing.
I'm planning to install Lubuntu (or similar), and a bigger SD card, on an old Eee PC Netbook.
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