[ale] System advice for a newbie

[Preston Boyington]

Tim wrote:
> Good Morning,
> 
> I want to get a new system and put Linux on it. I'm basically looking
> for general advice on purchasing a new system targeted for linux. The
> goal is general use and fun. 
> 
> Some of the systems I'm looking at have integrated network
> and video on
> the mother board (e.g HP Pavilion a700n). I've had problems
> in the past
> with finding drivers for proprietary or off the wall
> adapters. Short of
> doing a BYOS I'd like to avoid these kind of problems.
> 
> Any experience on how to avoid these and other problems
> before buying?
> Anyone hit a wall with integrated adapters? What's been your
> experience? 
> 

The easiest thing I can think of in this situation is for you to look up Linux computer distributors ( such as Monarch computers http://www.monarchcomputer.com/) and see what hardware they are using for their computers (or buy one of their lower end products to play with).

With recent kernels/distributions I haven't had any _real_ trouble with hardware.  To be honest, it's kind of "unsettling" when you can grab a copy of SuSE, Fedora, Debian, or Mandrake and it sets up as easy (or easier) than Windows 98.  After years of "this is the year of the Linux desktop" it's exciting to see Linux computers being actively sold in Sam's Club and other stores.

I still keep a Slackware 2.1 around when I get non-appreciative of how much work people have contributed to making recent distributions work so well with hardware.  I remember having a real sense of accomplishment when getting Linux / BSD installed on a computer and having everything work, now that is (for the most part) commonplace.

Hmm, starting to veer off the topic, must get more coffee...

-- 
Preston