Fed up with XP and Vista You need this

[vaughan]

i've tried several times in the past to install linux with no luck.. 99% of the time is problems with the display..
it's always the graphics drivers that hiccup,
- i can't change resolution away from 800x600 otherwise it hoses the config (???)
- the drivers i install for my graphics card doesn't work (ati radeon 3850)
- i can't play windows games without a large amount of effort.. oh and my drivers needs to work first

i did manage to get it to work once and compiz was nice and all.. but i couldn't play windows games anyways so i gave up and switched back

some distros i've tried: ubuntu 8.04, 8.10, suse 10.4?, suse 11, mandriva something

If you want to play windows games, whilst some may work using WINE, you're best of using a free program called virtualbox OSE (can install from synaptic package manager), it allows you to run any other O/S inside of Linux.

of course you'll need the CD of the O/S you want to install, it's just like dual boot, but instead you are running it inside linux so no need to shutdown and then boot up the windslows.

as for graphics drivers, were you installing them from the GUI? or were you installing from commandline? because you shouldn't install them whilst you are running XServer. so you'll need to boot up into command mode and not run the GDM.

[aidanjt]

If you want to play windows games, whilst some may work using WINE, you're best of using a free program called virtualbox OSE (can install from synaptic package manager), it allows you to run any other O/S inside of Linux.

of course you'll need the CD of the O/S you want to install, it's just like dual boot, but instead you are running it inside linux so no need to shutdown and then boot up the windslows.

as for graphics drivers, were you installing them from the GUI? or were you installing from commandline? because you shouldn't install them whilst you are running XServer. so you'll need to boot up into command mode and not run the GDM.

VirtualBox doesn't provide any hardware 3D acceleration yet (well, rudimentary OpenGL support was *just* added). So, no virtualised Crysis yet.

[alsenior]

i've tried several times in the past to install linux with no luck.. 99% of the time is problems with the display..
it's always the graphics drivers that hiccup,
- i can't change resolution away from 800x600 otherwise it hoses the config (???)
- the drivers i install for my graphics card doesn't work (ati radeon 3850)
- i can't play windows games without a large amount of effort.. oh and my drivers needs to work first

i did manage to get it to work once and compiz was nice and all.. but i couldn't play windows games anyways so i gave up and switched back

some distros i've tried: ubuntu 8.04, 8.10, suse 10.4?, suse 11, mandriva something

your problem seams to stem from ati linux drivers being utter crap until recently. on my lenovo they have got a whole lot better recently so it might be worth a try again.

[Blastuk]

your problem seams to stem from ati linux drivers being utter crap until recently. on my lenovo they have got a whole lot better recently so it might be worth a try again.

i think i try like once a year when i feel i have too much time on my hands, i usually hose the mbrs or something and spend hours trying to fix it. won't be any time soon i'll be trying again i think

[hypnoticstate]

I'm still undecided about ubuntu. I've never used it but don't know if i should give it a go or not. is it worth my time?

[aidanjt]

I'm still undecided about ubuntu. I've never used it but don't know if i should give it a go or not. is it worth my time?

It depends on what you're looking for from your Operating System, if all you want is a Windows replacement then you're setting yourself up for a whole load of fail. ReactOS is trying to fill that niche, but it isn't in a production ready state, it is however, working with Wine developers which makes things nicers for Linux users running some of the 'killer apps' they used to use in Windows that doesn't have a viable replacement.

If what you're looking for is a different OS, not afraid to learn (or at least read documentation), not afraid to type things into a text terminal, then Linux might be for you. There's a lot of choice out there too, plenty of desktop environments and window managers to choose from. If you have a spare PC laying around gathering dust, it wont hurt to give it a spin.

[Blastuk]

It depends on what you're looking for from your Operating System, if all you want is a Windows replacement then you're setting yourself up for a whole load of fail. ReactOS is trying to fill that niche, but it isn't in a production ready state, it is however, working with Wine developers which makes things nicers for Linux users running some of the 'killer apps' they used to use in Windows that doesn't have a viable replacement.

If what you're looking for is a different OS, not afraid to learn (or at least read documentation), not afraid to type things into a text terminal, then Linux might be for you. There's a lot of choice out there too, plenty of desktop environments and window managers to choose from. If you have a spare PC laying around gathering dust, it wont hurt to give it a spin.

i think one of the major reasons for some people who cannot switch to linux full time is the lack of windows games support or if you look at it another way, the lack of linux support from games.

ubuntu as a regular desktop replacement for web/email/homework/spreadsheets etc is perfectly fine.. there are many programs available for pretty much anything you want to do.

oh and i *think* there's no blu-ray support aswell for those who want that.

[directhex]

oh and i *think* there's no blu-ray support aswell for those who want that.

Nope, right now you need to dump the disc contents to play them

[aidanjt]

i think one of the major reasons for some people who cannot switch to linux full time is the lack of windows games support or if you look at it another way, the lack of linux support from games.

In the Add/Remove Programes dialog, search: "wine"
Install, done.. Now Linux magically supports Windows games.

oh and i *think* there's no blu-ray support aswell for those who want that.

*shrug* It's early days for bluray. You can still read the disc, so that's a start.

[moogle]

Install, done.. Now Linux magically supports Windows games.

Not without a few problems right? Or is it flawless nowadays

[aidanjt]

Not without a few problems right? Or is it flawless nowadays

It's not without some niggles, particularly where virual DRM tries to assert itself. But it works a lot better than Windows' Linux compatibility layer, or lack thereof.

[Maccer101]

I don't game so I actually prefer Ubuntu 8.04 to XP & Vista, it just works, its stable, has lower system requirements, no antivirus is needed and its free therefore it knocks £60-100 off the cost of a new PC, can't argue with that.

[Allen]

Decided to give it a go today. Downloaded and installed ubuntu-8.04.1-desktop-amd64.iso, everything went fine. Was promtly greeted by the Ubuntu desktop, it managed to set everything up fine (resolution, sound, network etc). So I start the automatic update of packages, it downloaded about 250MB of stuff, installed it and all was fine. I then downloaded and updated the graphics drivers (ATI card, I know drivers are a problem but did this before fine), they installed OK and it asked me to reboot. Since then I haven't been able to get back into Ubuntu.

First couple of times after rebooting it showed the Ubuntu loading screen, the screen went black and I couldn't do anything. Then I tried pressing escape and going to the GRUB (?) menu and went into the recovery option, did some things like repairing packages and fixing x server, it rebooted and this time after the Ubuntu loading screen I get the login page, put in my details, I hear the loading sound but then the screen goes white with a moveable cursor but I can't do anything else.

Sounds like I borked the drivers even though I only accepted what the system asked me to download and install. Any ideas what ATI drivers I should be using and where I should get them from? System spec to the left by the way if needed.

[directhex]

Decided to give it a go today. Downloaded and installed ubuntu-8.04.1-desktop-amd64.iso, everything went fine. Was promtly greeted by the Ubuntu desktop, it managed to set everything up fine (resolution, sound, network etc). So I start the automatic update of packages, it downloaded about 250MB of stuff, installed it and all was fine. I then downloaded and updated the graphics drivers (ATI card, I know drivers are a problem but did this before fine), they installed OK and it asked me to reboot. Since then I haven't been able to get back into Ubuntu.

First couple of times after rebooting it showed the Ubuntu loading screen, the screen went black and I couldn't do anything. Then I tried pressing escape and going to the GRUB (?) menu and went into the recovery option, did some things like repairing packages and fixing x server, it rebooted and this time after the Ubuntu loading screen I get the login page, put in my details, I hear the loading sound but then the screen goes white with a moveable cursor but I can't do anything else.

Sounds like I borked the drivers even though I only accepted what the system asked me to download and install. Any ideas what ATI drivers I should be using and where I should get them from? System spec to the left by the way if needed.

Try Ubuntu 8.10, which has a newer driver (iirc a 8.10 pre-release) rather than 8.3

[Allen]

Try Ubuntu 8.10, which has a newer driver (iirc a 8.10 pre-release) rather than 8.3

Cheer hex, I would've thought 8.04 would've worked as it's the LTS version. Will start the download for 8.10 and try that later on when I get home.

[directhex]

Cheer hex, I would've thought 8.04 would've worked as it's the LTS version. Will start the download for 8.10 and try that later on when I get home.

Ubuntu's policy towards driver updates in stable releases is a smidge crappy

And old ATI drivers always suck