So... to avoid the wrath of Windows lately I've been trying out various other operating systems (it's nice to have a junk laptop that you can do whatever you want with, eh?). So yesterday, I'm cycling through all kinds of Linux distros, trying to find one I like. I started with kUbuntu Hardy Heron, 8.04. It's cool and all, but it doesn't work with wireless internet. And since my laptop has no ethernet port, that doesn't work. Next I try DSL (Damn Small linux, 4.4.8). The scariest part was probably the command line hard disk installation, but I pulled through. I even got the 'net working... for a few hours. Then I spent 2 or three more hours (I was bored, okay?) installing xUbuntu, with Ubuntu's finicky install GUI. So that gets all up and running. I had high hopes for this one, because it already had my WiFi card's drivers and immediately detected our network. I entered the password and it said I was online, with 2 out of 4 bars. But I open Firefox, and it can't connect, despite still having 2 bars. So, I figure, it must be just Firefrox, so I try ping, and (oh, snap!) no response. Software communication failure? I may never know. So today I shift into a new gear: Unix. Not Unix-based Linux, but plain ol' Unix. I go download the "boot only" FreeBSD ISO, burn it with never-failed-me-before Active ISO, pop it in and reboot. I select the kernel and all that, and it starts booting, then prints a peculiar error: "GTX halted." Whatever that means. Which puts me here: all I have to work with is Windows, one blank CD, and an operating system choice.
Monday, November 10, 2008
For once, Windows seems nice
So... to avoid the wrath of Windows lately I've been trying out various other operating systems (it's nice to have a junk laptop that you can do whatever you want with, eh?). So yesterday, I'm cycling through all kinds of Linux distros, trying to find one I like. I started with kUbuntu Hardy Heron, 8.04. It's cool and all, but it doesn't work with wireless internet. And since my laptop has no ethernet port, that doesn't work. Next I try DSL (Damn Small linux, 4.4.8). The scariest part was probably the command line hard disk installation, but I pulled through. I even got the 'net working... for a few hours. Then I spent 2 or three more hours (I was bored, okay?) installing xUbuntu, with Ubuntu's finicky install GUI. So that gets all up and running. I had high hopes for this one, because it already had my WiFi card's drivers and immediately detected our network. I entered the password and it said I was online, with 2 out of 4 bars. But I open Firefox, and it can't connect, despite still having 2 bars. So, I figure, it must be just Firefrox, so I try ping, and (oh, snap!) no response. Software communication failure? I may never know. So today I shift into a new gear: Unix. Not Unix-based Linux, but plain ol' Unix. I go download the "boot only" FreeBSD ISO, burn it with never-failed-me-before Active ISO, pop it in and reboot. I select the kernel and all that, and it starts booting, then prints a peculiar error: "GTX halted." Whatever that means. Which puts me here: all I have to work with is Windows, one blank CD, and an operating system choice.
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