Where To Buy A Machine With Linux Pre-Installed 229
The Berkeley LUG has a neat aggregation of many different places where you can acquire a desktop, laptop, or even netbook with Linux pre-installed. The list starts with a link to Dell's Linux offering, includes many independent vendors, and many updates from user comments, almost all of whom seem to be drinking the Ubuntu kool-aid. "Over the last couple of years, Linux has come a long way in terms of hardware support, and these days it is relatively rare that an installation of ubuntu/fedora will be lacking any drivers for your machine. However, installing any OS can still sometimes be a tedious task and one that scares the wits out of the average computer user. And, for the expert users out there, it's just more fun to buy a computer with Linux already on it and not have to pay the Microsoft tax."
It's more fun to build it yourself (the machine) (Score:5, Insightful)
"And, for the expert users out there, it's just more fun to buy a computer with Linux already on it and not have to pay the Microsoft tax."
Actually, for the experts, it's more fun to build the computer themselves and install whatever they feel like.
Re:It's more fun to build it yourself (the machine (Score:5, Insightful)
Only if it's a desktop. You're not gonna build your own netbook and have it be of any respectable quality.
Driver support (Score:5, Insightful)
If you don't like the default OS, just install your own.
But if you use the operating system that comes on the machine, it reassures you that the operating system will work OK with the hardware. I replaced Xandros with Ubuntu on my Eee PC 900, and I still have trouble with cloning the display and with audio after coming out of suspend.
It's not about shipping Linux pre-installed (Score:5, Insightful)
It's more about getting "clean" laptop without any OS (or proprietary one) installed and hardware compatibility with free OSes.
I'd love to see some vendor shipping laptops "Tested with Ubuntu, Fedora, NetBSD and OpenSolaris".
From my experience (had 3 laptops with Linux pre-installed so far - 2 with Linpus and one with Xandros!), I always had to switch to something else than what came with laptop. With Acer laptops it was easy - hardware was fairly standard. Other thing was with early version of Eee PC, that had all sorts of problems with drivers for almost a year until I could install "stock" Debian on it.
If I even got a laptop from Dell with Ubuntu, I would:
- re-partition and encrypt hard drive
- upgrade to something more recent than 8.04
That means I don't need a laptop with Linux pre-installed, but one without Windows, with fairly standard hardware. I think most of you here would agree with me.
Re:Install Linux yourself (Score:5, Insightful)
Why not just get a Linux CD and install yourself. It's easy to install Linux and one could do it Trust me.
Famous last words.
You aren't going to be there if anything goes wrong.
Re:Netbooks (Score:3, Insightful)
Microsoft would quickly oppose any attempt to sell computers with no OS... on the grounds that it would support piracy
Re:It's more fun to build it yourself (the machine (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:It's more fun to build it yourself (the machine (Score:4, Insightful)
Deep linking [wikipedia.org] when linking to an external website [google.co.uk], is just good etiquette [craigslist.com] and stops me wasting time [xkcd.com]
Re:It's more fun to build it yourself (the machine (Score:5, Insightful)
Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Install Linux yourself (Score:4, Insightful)
You aren't going to be there if anything goes wrong.
Neither is Microsoft nor the hardware vendors.
Re:Install Linux yourself (Score:1, Insightful)
Except the hardware vendors have already tested and certified their various parts against the Windows OS so it will work. The hardware vendors also have support lines to help you. Good luck getting anything but snide comments about RTFM if you needed helping getting something working under a Linux distro you installed yourself.
Re:Microsoft tax is irrelevant (Score:3, Insightful)
Microsoft LOSES market share if you install something else over top?
I would beg to differ -- all machines are still counted as Windows(tm) machines. This allows demonstration of the ABSOLUTE and CRUSHING numerical superiority of Windows.
Re:Even if (Score:5, Insightful)
I thought we paid that tax EVEN IF we bought a Linux laptop.
The "Microsoft Tax" is one of those crazy ideas that clog the geek's mind -
all it really means is that the OEM Windows install makes your laptop a viable mass market product that will outsell Linux by 100 to 1.
Re:Proximity to greatness! (Score:2, Insightful)
My girlfriend, my daughter, my niece and my mother all run Ubuntu.
That joke is way past it's best before date... you might want to try some new material...
Re:Ubuntu kool-aid (Score:4, Insightful)
Ubuntu is not the ideal distribution for someone like me, and, I suspect, a lot of other people who read /.
Hmm, I moved from redhat to debian when potato came out, partly based on slashdot (and linux newbie) raves about apt, so Ubuntu is natural when I want it to just work.
Re:Meh? (Score:3, Insightful)
I don't agree with you, but you do have a point. You aren't spending less, but the problem with the microsoft tax isn't the money I spent. The problem is that the said money is going to microsoft.
When I buy a computer from Dell, I figure they're going to make some profit either way. If they make more profit by selling Linux to me, then maybe it's encouragement to sell more Linux machines. In any event, that money going to dell doesn't bother me. That same money going to microsoft does.
The other viewpoint here is that you shouldn't be paying that money because you aren't buying an operating system. This seems to be the one that you're taking. This being the case, there are other vendors where you don't buy the operating system (TFA mentions quite a few vendors -- check them out). Or you could build your own if you have the time to deal with it. It's a matter of taste, I imagine. Or budget.
So, in short, you have a good point, but there are other arguments to be made as well. :)
Re:Ubuntu kool-aid (Score:2, Insightful)
OK. And did you spit chips when you went to edit
Linux is not costless, it is Freedom enabling. (Score:5, Insightful)
I know no other way to put it in English (the free as in beer nonsense clarifies nothing frankly).
In Spanish it is very simple: "Linux no es gratuito, es libre".
My point is, when I buy Linux services I have full control over my data and support companies that roughly agree with my view of the world.
When somebody buys Microsoft, they are making business with a company that is unethical to say the least (cue for cascade of Slashdot histories about this) and that can (and has) screwed users over access to their own data.
The choice is clear, I made it 10 years ago. If Dell or others provide me with that choice, how they use their hard earned cash is frankly none of my business (well, not entirely, but in general that would be it).
Often people reply to this that one should use the best tool for the job, failing to notice that ethical aspects are also important when deciding which tool is best.
Most people will not allow a bad plumber, with a string of complaints anywhere near their shower or toilette, nevertheless give Microsoft carte blanche when it comes to the most important technology they may be using at home (and work).
Re:Buy a server instead (Score:3, Insightful)
This is the reason we don't recommend to our clients that they do their own purchasing. If we purchase the hardware and configure it for them, we can take the responsibility for doing it wrong, and we also get to deal with the OEM on their behalf.