Yesterday, I did an install of Ubuntu 7.10 (Gutsy Gibbon) on the Dell Dimension E520. The install went well; I haven’t experienced any hardware problems (yet), but I’m near tears for all the (minor) experience issues.1
I’ve been using Ubuntu since the first release three years ago, and maybe I should be used to the problems, but with a new installation they are back in my face. My passion for Ubuntu, open source and free culture, also makes it hurt more — probably a good thing.
There is more to why it hurts. Complimenting my natural critical thinking, I have spent over seven years developing an eye for software issues, so my discomfort with each of the issues is definitely heightened, but I’ve learned in working with people on the software problems they are experiencing, that minor problems resonate and eventual exasperate people.2
Part of me is begging the other part of me to switch to a Mac, but my pain is the pain I have the largest stake in healing, so here I am starting to work through the problems.3 Although a high cost, I’m willing to pay it, because I can and the benefits are well worth it! 4
- You might ask what the problems are with Ubuntu on this computer. This is an article for another day. [↩]
- They often won’t even understand why they now hate your product. [↩]
- You might ask why not stick with Vista on this computer. The problems there are far worse as there are serious experience and stability issues, but that is also an article for another day. [↩]
- Also an article for another day
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Sorry to hear about the minor issues. Even though I have no immediate plans to use linux on my laptop, I was very conscious of ordering hardware that I knew the vendors were at least supportive of linux drivers. Happily, I’ve experienced no issues at all setting up my old (home-built) desktop as an opensuse web server.
Arrg.
I want to know what those high cost are and the tearful experience issues are. I’m guessing they are tears of joy. I’ trying to decide whether to go Mac or Linux for my next computer. I’m looing forward to your opinion.
I went to Ubuntu in 2005. I lasted a few months. I found I was much less productive (than in Windows). I was spending hours debugging simple issues, and I just couldn’t get it to feel like home. So I bought a PowerBook. It took me about a week to get back to my Windows level of productivity, and it went up from there. My heart is with Free software, but I can’t be burning that much time wrestling with the operating system. I long for the day that I can move to GNU/Linux with only a minor decrease in efficiency, but it doesn’t look like we’re there yet.
I have no issues and problem with my Ubuntu. Windows is another world, a bad world.
Best of luck getting it all figured out. You should list the problems in another post… maybe we can help?