SUSE/UBUNTU Linux On A HP Mini Note

ElliotReid

After some help if possible. Writing it as simply as I can cos I have NO idea whatsoever about linux so please be gentle with me!

I have this: http://www.ebuyer.com/product/145008 for college.

It has SUSE on it and I'm basically getting nowhere. Don't know how to install/delete etc things and the built in MSN (Gaim) just throws me out.

I downloaded this: http://www.ubuntu.com/getubuntu/download

I did all the tests and it says it's working fine as a CD. I put it in mums external drive and it loads up and I get a menu saying stuff like 'try without installing' which i did - ended up with it going so far then the orange line under the menu turning green with lines on it and then getting a black screen with just a flashing white line top left.

So - I tried to install it properly and got the same result as above. It worked fine up to 3/4 through the install with the orange light going along the bottom when it turned green and I got the lines down it again and the black page.

I restarted all and have SUSE 10 back again and so all is ok there but I'm back in the same boat. Ideally I'd like XP on it but I can't afford that and UBUNTU is apparently an 'easy' linux so I tried it and bleugh. I did have a play with an EE once and that has Xandor (?) and that seemed much easier.

Any hints/info greatly received. Thanks.

asininity

Sounds like you have some hardware issues. What version of ubuntu have you got? Also have you read the documentation on SUSE? AArr I see its the openchrome problem, your graphics. Before you boot up you need the "xforcevesa" boot option without the quotes.

adouglasmhor

Sounds like you have a corrupt download of ubuntu, try downloading again and go onto the Ubuntu forums for advice too.


On openSuse when you open the menu from the toolbar at the bottom there is a bit to the right for either add/remove programs or synaptic package manager or yast then follow instructions once you open it to add or remove packages.

ElliotReid

Thanks guys

I have this one: Ubuntu 8.10 Desktop

I've read as much as I can about both of them through stuff I've found on the web as v little was delivered on Tues with the netbook. I'm gonna have a look in WH Smith's after college tomorrow to see if I can pick up a linux magazine (if there is such a thing like there are all the PC ones)

Will download it again now and have a try to see if it changes anything

Thanks again!

asininity

Save you money on the mag it probably wont help. Pop over to the ubuntu or suse support forums they are awesome resources, and stick with it its a learning curve but worth it. If not only for the money you'll save on future os's.

ElliotReid

Fantastic, thank you very much I've been reading the ubuntu one and it seems pretty easy to use and I admit that wednesday and today are my first real looks at linux so I'm pretty much learning everything from the off whereas I'm pretty Windows savvy.

Thanks again

fwor

asininity's right that you'll have to accept that, whichever Linux distro you choose, it will inevitably take some learning to get used to.

The forums are excellent, but there are also some very good wikis about such as

http://ubuntuguide.org/wiki/Ubuntu:Intrepid

One other thing: many distros can be driven from different desktop graphical interfaces, each of which look different. For example, Ubuntu, Kubuntu and Xubuntu have Gnome, KDE and XFCE respectively. If you can afford the bandwidth, it would be worth downloading a copy of each and trying them as LiveCDs to see which you prefer the feel of.

Alternatively you can just install one of them and then use apt-get to add the other desktops, which you can switch between at login.

asininity

OK heres a possible answer for the ubuntu which confirms what I mentioned about chrom/openchrome graphics (had this sort of problem when I first started out with linux). Try following this thread:

http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=749693