Pogo
07-01-2007, 02:29 PM
I started to post this in the mobile computing forum, but then decided that wasn't appropriate because this is less about asking for tech help than about rant/observations concerning LINUX and notebooks generally both now and in the future.
When I first started working with LINUX on a desktop system about 6-7 years ago (Red Hat / Caldera OpenLINUX), I worked through all the issues common at the time such as pre-install HD partitioning, using an editor to hack a file or two, etc. Given that I remembered life before IDE drives and had written config.sys files to exclude memory ranges, it didn't seem like an impossible challenge. I finally ended up with a dual-boot LINUX/WIN-98SE that was fun to play with.
However, I ended up returning to straight WIN for a number of common reasons; (remember this was 6-7 years ago) lack of applications (accounting), ISP support, problems with WIN emulators, and the slow adoption of LINUX by the corporate world where I was trying to make living.
Recently, encouraged by WiFi speeds on my laptop and my reading about what was available on various distros with the 2.6.x kernel, I started looking again. I have dl'd at least 6 different ISO's for live cd and tried them all. One, KANOTIX, actually seemed to see both the Centrino circuitry on my laptop as well as the winmodem (at least it seems to respond to the AT command series on query although I haven't yet been able to get it to dial out).
I say "laptop" because it would be impossible for me to run my business (accounting consulting) off a desktop system as I travel to clients' businesses, many in rural areas where dialup is the only internet access available. I say "winmodem" because laptops ceased offering serial ports some time ago and even some desktop systems haven't that capability out of the box.
My discussions with some knowledgeable sales people (yes, there are some out there) point to a not-too-distant future where RJ-11, PCMCIA, and serial ports disappear from laptops and desktops to be replaced by various USB devices in the same way parallel ports have become "legacy" components. As any number of us now know, the average USB modem on the shelf lists WIN variants on the box as its operating environment without a mention of alternatives. I found those discussions even more interesting when I visited a site selling a LINUX laptop which specifically stated that the modem in the system wouldn't work under LINUX. At least they put that out up front.
HP won't even acknowledge the possibility of running LINUX on my laptop (their response to my email) even though they link to SUSE on their website. SUSE (and many other distributions) gloss over the winmodem issue by essentially saying that winmodems aren't real modems and besides the chipset folks aren't forthcoming with driver information and etc. I've run into the same perspective trying to follow up on PCMCIA modem cards although I at least found one that advertises a LINUX driver.
I may be able to solve this for now with some luck and a few bucks, but I'm just not sure and my risk tolerance where my business is concerned is way, way low. Worse, what does tomorrow hold for LINUX on laptops outside of the wireless loop where a great number of people still live and do business?
When I first started working with LINUX on a desktop system about 6-7 years ago (Red Hat / Caldera OpenLINUX), I worked through all the issues common at the time such as pre-install HD partitioning, using an editor to hack a file or two, etc. Given that I remembered life before IDE drives and had written config.sys files to exclude memory ranges, it didn't seem like an impossible challenge. I finally ended up with a dual-boot LINUX/WIN-98SE that was fun to play with.
However, I ended up returning to straight WIN for a number of common reasons; (remember this was 6-7 years ago) lack of applications (accounting), ISP support, problems with WIN emulators, and the slow adoption of LINUX by the corporate world where I was trying to make living.
Recently, encouraged by WiFi speeds on my laptop and my reading about what was available on various distros with the 2.6.x kernel, I started looking again. I have dl'd at least 6 different ISO's for live cd and tried them all. One, KANOTIX, actually seemed to see both the Centrino circuitry on my laptop as well as the winmodem (at least it seems to respond to the AT command series on query although I haven't yet been able to get it to dial out).
I say "laptop" because it would be impossible for me to run my business (accounting consulting) off a desktop system as I travel to clients' businesses, many in rural areas where dialup is the only internet access available. I say "winmodem" because laptops ceased offering serial ports some time ago and even some desktop systems haven't that capability out of the box.
My discussions with some knowledgeable sales people (yes, there are some out there) point to a not-too-distant future where RJ-11, PCMCIA, and serial ports disappear from laptops and desktops to be replaced by various USB devices in the same way parallel ports have become "legacy" components. As any number of us now know, the average USB modem on the shelf lists WIN variants on the box as its operating environment without a mention of alternatives. I found those discussions even more interesting when I visited a site selling a LINUX laptop which specifically stated that the modem in the system wouldn't work under LINUX. At least they put that out up front.
HP won't even acknowledge the possibility of running LINUX on my laptop (their response to my email) even though they link to SUSE on their website. SUSE (and many other distributions) gloss over the winmodem issue by essentially saying that winmodems aren't real modems and besides the chipset folks aren't forthcoming with driver information and etc. I've run into the same perspective trying to follow up on PCMCIA modem cards although I at least found one that advertises a LINUX driver.
I may be able to solve this for now with some luck and a few bucks, but I'm just not sure and my risk tolerance where my business is concerned is way, way low. Worse, what does tomorrow hold for LINUX on laptops outside of the wireless loop where a great number of people still live and do business?