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Ubuntu netbook

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I'm thinking of buying a Dell Mini 10 netbook as back up. With Ubuntu. Anyone have any experience with ubuntu?
does it run faster?
 
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Run faster than what? That's kind of vague :) On Netbooks, as far as I've seen - XP runs faster then vista, Windows 7 (netbooked version) runs a bit faster then vista, Ubuntu from what I hear is faster than XP on a netbook - but I have only tried XP on a netbook. It wasn't bad except for the screen - they (at least when I was playing with them about a yearish ago) are at an odd resolution - the Dell mini9 1024x600 (which was common for the Eee PC and the MSI Wind if I recall correctly) then the mini10 came out and was a resolution of like 1024x576 - I don't know what the current specs are, but I'd check it out. The screens are small, but even so those to me are low resolutions and caused grief trying to see everything in some programs.

In my general experience I've used Ubuntu (as well as Fedora, slackware, debian, gentoo and suse) on a couple platforms, to me Linux has always been snapier than Windows (unless you're running an extra gob load of daemons ;) ), but it will probably take a bit getting used to if all you've used is either OSX or Windows.

Of course, for me, if I were to get a netbook, there are only two I would consider at this point - either the dual core atom version (which is available, but not many models) or the new one from Alienware/Dell (alienware brand) that has really good runtime, but far superior specs (since it has an option to upgrade to a C2D, better graphics, more RAM, etc. - I mean the thing can run MW2 at an average of like 35fps which beats out a lot of regular laptops!)
 
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I have a 1005HA I have tried XP, fedora core, ubuntu nbr, jolicloud I put win7 on it and I simply love it.
 
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I have used Ubuntu a little. It is actually a nice OS and the best thing is that it is FREE.
 

dtravis7


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Not to be negative against that Dell netbook, but a member here bought one and was very disappointed with the keyboard. Just a heads up. The worst keyboard on a netbook I have used though goes to my Acer netbook. The left shift key is horrible! :D

I tried Ubuntu, Open Suse, XP, Vista and Windows 7 on my netbook (1.6Ghz Atom, 1.5GB Ram, 160GB Hard drive). Ubuntu was nice but at the time there was no WiFi driver without a lot of trouble finding one. Open Suse worked great with all hardware found. XP was fine but seemed a bit slugish, Vista was VERY slugish. Overall the nicest running OS on my Netbook has been Windows 7 like gagnerants already mentioned. Very snappy and better battery life than I got with both Ubuntu and Open Suse.

Ubuntu is an excellent Linux Distro for sure. I would say try it and Open Suse and see which works the best since both are free and you can go back to which ever one you like.
 
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I don't recommend the Dell Mini 10. When I was scouting out the netbooks, I looked at it and decided against it, partly because of issues with build quality but mostly because Dell wanted me to wait three weeks for mine. YMMV.

I ran Ubuntu NBR on an Asus Eee 905 under some pretty harsh conditions; it behaved impeccably.

I would recommend you take a look at the Toshiba NB205. I love the Tosh even more than the Eee because the screen is slightly bigger, the keyboard is almost full-size, and it's got an 8-hour battery life (yes, in the real world:) ).

I hear good things about the new Toshiba NB305, the successor to the NB205, but I don't own one, so I can't offer any useful information on that.
 
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I'm just looking for a go between for my Macbook and smartphone. I thought Ubuntu would run faster than XP.


Thanks for the replies.
 

dtravis7


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I'm just looking for a go between for my Macbook and smartphone. I thought Ubuntu would run faster than XP.


Thanks for the replies.

That it will do.
 

vansmith

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Remember though that Linux will not run any of your Windows apps (if you have any). Some might work using WINE but I wouldn't count on it.

If you're new to Linux, I would look into either Ubuntu or OpenSUSE. Both are solid (I'm partial to OpenSUSE) and will work nicely. Do you plan on using a netbook specific flavour or the regular version?
 
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As mentioned above, a lot of programs are unavailable to Ubuntu...

Windows XP and Windows 7 are superior OS to Ubuntu in my opinion.

You do not have to deal with the hassles of finding an alternative program to the one that is unavailable to Ubuntu.

If you are only doing some simple word processing and web browsing, Ubuntu would be a good choice. But if you want to do many things on your netbook, I would stick with XP / 7.
 

vansmith

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As mentioned above, a lot of programs are unavailable to Ubuntu...
Just like they are unavailable on OS X? I only mentioned that as a warning and not as a way of saying that Ubuntu would be a poor choice.

If you are only doing some simple word processing and web browsing, Ubuntu would be a good choice. But if you want to do many things on your netbook, I would stick with XP / 7.
Such as? You can do about 98% of what you would do in Windows in Linux. Sure, you can't game but you wouldn't do that on a netbook anyway.

To the OP - what will you be doing with your netbook?
 
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Just like they are unavailable on OS X? I only mentioned that as a warning and not as a way of saying that Ubuntu would be a poor choice.

Such as? You can do about 98% of what you would do in Windows in Linux. Sure, you can't game but you wouldn't do that on a netbook anyway.

To the OP - what will you be doing with your netbook?
Photoshop, Final Cut Studio, MS Office.

I suppose you wouldn't really use a netbook for video/photo editing though... =/
 

dtravis7


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Well, Final Cut is not available on Windows! :D So for once Windows is missing something. :D
 
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SpinningCompass

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I'm just looking for a go between for my Macbook and smartphone.
Apple supports MobileMe under Windows, but MobileMe isn't fully supported by Linux yet. You can use Firefox but it's not the same. Do you plan to keep contacts and e-mails synchronized across Macbook, smartphone, and netbook?
 
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I'm only getting the Netbook as for email/browsing that's it.
I will NOT use any Microsoft OS so that's out of the question. I figured give ubuntu a shot.

I can get the Dell 10inch screen,250GB HD for $250.
 

dtravis7


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I'm only getting the Netbook as for email/browsing that's it.
I will NOT use any Microsoft OS so that's out of the question. I figured give ubuntu a shot.

I can get the Dell 10inch screen,250GB HD for $250.

Sounds like a great deal. Go for it. Like I said either Ubuntu or Open Suse will do you well for what you want to do and it's a lot safer on the internet than a typical Windows install.

The main reason I installed Windows 7 is I was a beta tester as well as testing the RC. When it dies in a few months I will probably go back to Open Suse.
 

vansmith

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If you find that Ubuntu doesn't do the job for you, you can always experiment with other Linux distros later on. As you can tell by my own and dtravis7's responses, openSUSE is a solid choice. ;)
 

dtravis7


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There are so many different distros of linux I can't even remember 1/4 of them! :D

Ubuntu is always a good distro to recommend as it's very easy to set up and use. Some distros are a pain even for seasoned Linux users like Van. I find Open Suse about as easy to set up and use as Ubuntu and that is why I recommend it also.

I bet Van could name 90% of all linux distros without even straining his brain! :D He is the person I go to if I have an linux issue I can't figure out.
 

vansmith

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Oh yeah, some are quite the challenge. Getting X to work in Gentoo was painful and I didn't even get it working. And when will Slackware add dependency handling package management? End rant.

openSUSE is nice to setup and Yast, despite being semi-bloated, is a fantastic tool for system administration. As for names, let's see: Debian, openSUSE, Fedora, RHEL, Arch, Slackware, Gentoo, Ubuntu, Vector, Zenwalk, Mandriva, PCLinuxOS...
 
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Instead of Photoshop you can use Gimp. Free and very powerful.
Instead of MS word you can use Openoffice free and just as good if not better than Word, though some complain of compatibility issues... Saying that, a lot of new Word docs can't open on older versions of Word and vice versa.

There is not a lot you can do on Windows that you cannot do on Ubuntu/Linux.
Most of the software you need is there in a different guise and it's usually free!

After a few days playing around, Ubuntu will be as familiar as Windows is.

Ubuntu will boot off a USB stick and/ or CD. This will allow you time to play and get used to it before deciding to properly install it.
 

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