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Xenu
Nov 19, 2009 6:26 PM
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I'm still a Linux newbie myself, and I can't help you with all of that, but hopefully I can make your life a bit easier with these pointers. I'm running Ubuntu but I've run Fedora 12 on the live CD and looked it over a bit.
1) Ubuntu 9.04 kept freezing during installation too, until I burned a copy of the .iso at reduced speed
2) No Linux newbie has any business trying to use the "apt" terminal command. Instead, go to System, Preferences, and look for something related to Software Installation. This should be entirely automated from there. Try searching for the plug-in there or pick a substitute program from the list.
2.5) If you were ever proficient in DOS, you know that the command line is much more efficient for certain things. Terminal isn't that different.
3) No one pays for those codex. I went to System, Help and SUpport, and searched for DVD. The correct result was near the top of the screen and allowed for commercial playback with a few clicks.
Comment made about the PC Authority article:
My life with Linux: Day 2 - The daily ups and downs of switching to open source?
Stuart Turton spends the second day of his one week odyssey with Linux, battling Fedora and DVD playback troubles, while trying valiantly not to go back to the relative 'safety' of Vista, as frustrations start to boil over.
What do you think? Join the discussion. |
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krazikiwi
Nov 19, 2009 7:11 PM
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It is also worth noting that a lot more software is available via apt-get or the gui installer if you enable the universe and multiverse repositories in software sources. (I think you should find that under system\preferences or system\adminstration.
It is pretty easy to have everything from dvd codecs to embedded flash/shockwave working in no time. |
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krazikiwi
Nov 19, 2009 7:21 PM
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Oh wow.
I just read that article.
This guy should seriously have done some homework.
I almost got the impression that he was TRYING to make linux look bad.
for a start, fedora is NOT an easy to use linux. It is one of the more advanced distros, but is a bit trickier to use.
If he had have looked in almost ANY forum, he would have found that most people consider ubuntu to be the "entry level linux". It isn't as cutting edge as fedora, but it works on most hardware, and is fairly easy to get the feel of.
Also, most fixes that you will find for linux problems on the net will involve the cli. This is because it is generally the quickest and most effective way to solve a problem. copy the command and paste it into terminal. easy, but you have to use ctrl+shift+v to paste into terminal. |
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rolf
Nov 19, 2009 9:09 PM
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I think this should end with Mr Turton being trasfered to another asignement.
He really shows that there has been no homework done at all.
I am also a newbee on linux, but still i can manage to install and configure a distro, sometimes within minutes.
I have a collection of about 30 distros, that I have tried out, some usefull tools, others just distros, be it advanced, easy fat or thin.
My recommandation just today, is the latest from:
Slitaz 3.0 Cooking
Puppylinux 4.3/ and or PupMac(a redesign of PuppyLinux)
Knoppix 6.2(came yesterday)
Mandriva 2010
Or if the writers really wants more trouble, then go for Arch Linux. You will probably be stuch in that for over the weekend and able to deliver a negative report on Linux.
When you do homework on a project like this, I would also recommend distrowatch.com as a very usefull resource.
To explain it by ease, one needs to define the purpose of your Linux wish. What do you want your linux to do for you?
There are somehow more than a hundred different distros aout there, whereas all of them aim specifically at something.
It would be a bit like a transport device running on tires.
They come as trucks in order to serv your transportation of goods, they come as cars that can be simple and just take you from A to B and also there are those made specifically to replace a smaller penis. Then you have those on two wheels.
Before a purchase a device running on tires, I would really do some research before i start off. Whats my needs?
Whats others experiences and so forth.
There is really a community out there to help you with this. Hold your hands trough the process.
If ones makes a fool of them selfs in public like this, and slams Linux, a masacre of the article will be the only result. |
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rolf
Nov 19, 2009 10:05 PM
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Actually I had my 9 years old daughter to install Fedora 12 on a laptop and a stationary.
She had no problem with video. She did some homework and asked me if there was any tricks handy to know when burning that .iso file as she had to, and yes, its to burn it at a very low speed.
I challenge anyone with children to let them try to install and use Fedora in order to see what goes wrong for Mr Turton. |
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blockcentre
Nov 19, 2009 10:35 PM
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I think you guys are missing the point of this. He wanted to see what it was like to simply swap out Windows for Linux in his world. He treated it as the average Windows user would, not someone who is into technology. The technology is an afterthought. It's someone who just wants to get their job done which really is the majority of Windows users.
None of the Linux distros do this well. It almost always ends up with the user needing to dive into Terminal, which is a no-go-zone for most Windows users.
In contrast, Apple does this very well. It's not a big, awkward leap for someone to switch from Windows to OSX. The whole process is generally very simple and this is part of Apple's appeal. It's also the reason why a browser like Firefox has taken off so significantly where others have failed. It makes the transition from the existing product to the new product virtually painless.
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rolf
Nov 19, 2009 11:59 PM
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Well... On the top off this page it says "The best reviews in the business".
That sort of speaks against what you claim here.
I mean... whats next? A new distro and then his going out chasing Silverlight files in order to say that Linux does not work?
When my nine year old daughter can do this, then its expected that the best reviewers in the business shold be able to do it as well. |
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Slatts
Nov 20, 2009 12:13 AM
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I see where you're coming from Block but to me the article reads like a troll.
As for you Rolf, your small penis replacement mobile has me somehow intrigued...8-[
I trust your 9 year old daughter doesn't read your posts.:oops: |
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rolf
Nov 20, 2009 12:36 AM
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hehe... she does not. She does not even speak english yet.
My point was simply that different cars servs different needs, whereas its a saying around expensive cars and the male organ.
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sheehanje
Nov 20, 2009 2:25 AM
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Wow, I usually find install Linux easier than Windows these days. I still have to go through Dell Driver hell when installing newer versions of Windows. Anyways, sorry to see you having so many problems. For DVD's, and just about any media, I always download VLC to any linux distribution. It's a great little media player and I highly recommend you download it.
sudo apt-get install vlc
Also, I've given up on CD/DVD installs. I seem to get a 20% fail rate when using them. I use unetbootin now to create a bootable USB, which seems to work much better, but can be a little slower depending on the brand of the USB drive.
Good luck with the rest of your experiment. I've been using Linux for years, so some of the things you have encountered seem trivial to me. Although, I can see how it would be discouraging coming from the Windows world. |
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ruel24
Nov 20, 2009 2:28 AM
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If you wanted to make a change from Windows to Linux, you picked the wrong distro to start with, if you don't want a steep learning curve. Fedora isn't the easiest distro to install, by far. It's also apposed to non-FOSS things like drivers and such, but you can put them on yourself. Honestly, for my first venture into the Linux world, I would have chosen something like Mandriva Linux. It installs very easily, the One livecd version will install all the video and audio codecs and such for you, and there is a very comprehensive control panel application called Mandriva Control Center that makes setup a breeze for whatever the system scripts don't get right. You'll probably never open a terminal and type a single command, ever. |
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ferniefromla
Nov 20, 2009 3:00 AM
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This is a chronicle of ignorance. This guy doesn't know what he is doing. This does an extreme disservice to Linux. Because the outcome is forgone. Given his inexperience what else will he be able to conclude but that Linux is not ready for the mainstream.
Get some help from someone that knows what they are doing. Don't try this with Fedora, use Linux Mint 7 or a variant of of Ubuntu with codecs installed. Better yet, get a machine from Dell or System76 with everything installed and working and then review what it would be like to live with Linux for a week. I would add to that to get a list of people who really know Linux that you can call and get advice from. This is how we all learned Windows.
This article starts with a bias, continues with ignorance and will end by disseminating disinformation and distortion. |
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rolf
Nov 20, 2009 3:22 AM
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Right... The Staff Writer should maybe play around with a didgeridoo instead.
That one is free of all problems like DVD's, installing etc. Its just to press air into it and it just works.
You get the result instantly so there is no need to give up cause the didgeridoo does not like you. |
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JohnF
Nov 20, 2009 11:27 AM
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Glad to see you have Linux Mint (a better Ubuntu; multimedia out of the box, plus Mint Install/Synaptic makes installing software a snap. It's hands down one of more beautiful distro's out there as well). I think you'll like it a lot.
My own favorite is PCLinuxOS; it's a better Mandriva, and appeals to Vista/XP users. You can do almost everything without going to the command line, and Synaptic is a pleasure to use for software installs. It's worth a look-see. |
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swmiller6
Nov 21, 2009 1:49 AM
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I am confused are you using Ubuntu or Fedora? You can no apt-get in fedora.
I agree that solutions to simple things like playing dvd's should be clearly explained when it fails. However windows suffers from the same lack of information when something simple refuses to work. A short search in the forums should fix you right up. |
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reed9
Nov 21, 2009 2:05 AM
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I'm also confused. It's starts out talking about Fedora, moves to using apt, which is a Debian/Ubuntu tool, then talks about Ubuntu.
And also, a simple google search will give you all the info you need to play commercial DVDs. I tried searching "ubuntu play dvd" and the first two hits give workable solutions.
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/RestrictedFormats
http://www.debuntu.org/how-to-play-dvd-under-ubuntu-linux |
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storm14k
Nov 21, 2009 3:33 AM
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Seems like the cover is blown here. How are you using apt on Fedora?
http://www.fedorafaq.org/#apt
It looks like either one of two things is going on. This person either knows what they are doing with Linux, slipped up and said apt, and is trying to make Linux look bad. OR The person actually isn't trying ANY of this and is just going around the internet gathering up what other people claim they can't do (probably from other articles like this) and putting them together into a fake Linux trial. Its pretty sad that you have to make up stories to hide the shortcomings of other OS's. |
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swmiller6
Nov 21, 2009 5:41 AM
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I went back and read day one, He is using Fedora on his work machine and Ubuntu on his personal laptop.
You should stick with one or the other. Commands are not distro agnostic. These systems use two different methods for updating and installing software.
Either way if you can take the time to figure out how to install the codecs for playing dvd's on windows surely you possess the brain power to do the same on GNU/Linux. |
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Xenu
Nov 21, 2009 10:37 AM
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So where's day 3 and 4? Did you give up? |
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Slatts
Nov 21, 2009 6:42 PM
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Here's a link to the authors info page complete with a feedback link.
Let us know how you go. |
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krazikiwi
Nov 23, 2009 5:48 PM
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hmmm, interesting thread.
I read the whole article in the mag today.
Its quite good actually.
especially the bit where he screws up the video driver, then blames ubuntu.
brings back a few memories. (ubuntu 7.04 + me + laptop with ati gfx = lots of re-installing)
I don't think he was really *that* biased.
hmmm, I kinda miss those wobbly windows now. :(
Edit [damn typo's]
Edited by krazikiwi: 23/11/2009 05:49:28 PM |