Tuesday, June 19, 2007
My Experience on Linux Hardware Support
It's not a secret. There are many blog posts about it. Linux has far better hardware support and is safer than other operating systems (especially Windows). Anyway, here is part of my personal experience for your consideration, in case you're not convinced of making the switch yet.
Here are just two cases related with hardware support, one of the big Linux myths.
Case 1: Linux may be as good as Windows.
I bought a webcam about two months ago. When I connected it to my Xubuntu 6.06 installation, it did nothing. After a call to
I plugged the same webcam in a PC with Windows XP at work (I don't use Windows at home) and it needed a driver installed in order to work too. The difference: The camera includes a CD with the driver for Windows.
What I learned: Windows does not have better hardware support than Linux. Manufacturers have better Windows support.
By the way, since Edgy Eft (version 6.10) Ubuntu installs the driver for that camera by default, so now the camera works out of the box, literally. No driver installation required.
Case 2. Linux can be better than Windows.
A friend of mine received an old Pentium III laptop as a gift with Windows XP installed. The gift also included a briefcase and a PC Card network adapter, but no drivers CD. It seems that the previous owner never used the Ethernet adapter, because the drivers were not installed. So, the LAN card was useless.
I suggested him to try a lightweight Linux distro and, after trying ZenLive, he decided to install Zenwalk. Every piece of hardware on his laptop worked fine after the installation, even the PC Card Ethernet adapter. The system feels more responsive too.
What I learned: Linux rules!
So, give Linux a try. You don't have to uninstall Windows to do it. You even don't have to install Linux if you try a live CD, but consider that live CDs run slower than a normal installation.
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Here are just two cases related with hardware support, one of the big Linux myths.
Case 1: Linux may be as good as Windows.
I bought a webcam about two months ago. When I connected it to my Xubuntu 6.06 installation, it did nothing. After a call to
dmesg, I realized the camera was recognized as a webcam but the driver (kernel module) was missing. A quick search led me to the appropriate driver. Once the driver was installed I could use the webcam.I plugged the same webcam in a PC with Windows XP at work (I don't use Windows at home) and it needed a driver installed in order to work too. The difference: The camera includes a CD with the driver for Windows.
What I learned: Windows does not have better hardware support than Linux. Manufacturers have better Windows support.
By the way, since Edgy Eft (version 6.10) Ubuntu installs the driver for that camera by default, so now the camera works out of the box, literally. No driver installation required.
Case 2. Linux can be better than Windows.
A friend of mine received an old Pentium III laptop as a gift with Windows XP installed. The gift also included a briefcase and a PC Card network adapter, but no drivers CD. It seems that the previous owner never used the Ethernet adapter, because the drivers were not installed. So, the LAN card was useless.
I suggested him to try a lightweight Linux distro and, after trying ZenLive, he decided to install Zenwalk. Every piece of hardware on his laptop worked fine after the installation, even the PC Card Ethernet adapter. The system feels more responsive too.
What I learned: Linux rules!
So, give Linux a try. You don't have to uninstall Windows to do it. You even don't have to install Linux if you try a live CD, but consider that live CDs run slower than a normal installation.
Add to: del.cio.us | digg | blinklist | netvouz | Other
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