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Grandpa Gets a Dell with Ubuntu Linux Preinstalled
Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 10:55 AM EDT

Groklaw member Tyche got a Dell Inspiron 530N with Ubuntu Linux and when I saw him post that he'd ordered it, I asked if he'd please write up a quick review after it arrived. He has done so, and as you will see, he found getting online so easy he had nothing at all to do to make it happen. Just poof.

Now, he has the skills to set up whatever he wants, really, but even when you know how, it's so pleasant when it just works. And if all your grandpa wants to do is surf, he can do this. So, here's Tyche's review, in case you are thinking about a new computer. I'm thinking about a laptop, and if I do it, I'll let you know how it goes also.

If you follow along by watching the Dell videos explaining each component, you will get more out of this. At least I did. You need to hit the arrow to see all the options to the right, and it helps to hit the icon furthest to the right to see the final ones. For example, the last item is Optional Parts. The default is none. But you can add IEEE 1394a Adapter port, which is included in the price already. I use a Lacie external hard drive for storage and own a Mac laptop, and so for me a Firewire port is important, so I'd want that. But why wouldn't anyone? It's included in the price, so I'd want to be sure to select it. There are a number of other items where it pays to look closely at your options. I also see that as of this morning, you can get $100 off one of these desktops, so you'd pay $499 if you chose every default.

*******************************

Review: Inspiron 530N with Ubuntu Linux
~ by Tyche

On June 30, 2007, my wife and I decided to upgrade my life by replacing my home-made‚ Pentium III computer with a Dell Inspiron 530N with Ubuntu Linux. This would be the first time in almost 10 years that I had purchased a name brand computer. A number of things prompted me to choose the Dell, in particular the fact that Dell had kept the price down but included a number of things that I was interested in getting.

The Inspiron included things like:

1. Intel®Pentium® dual-core processor E2140 (1MB L2,1.60GHz,800 FSB) -- The heart of any computer. Oh, my! Dual processor at 1.6 Giga Hertz speed? That certainly beats my tired old Pentium III at 750 Mega Hertz.

2. Memory: computers needs lots. 1GB Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz- 2DIMMs memory. Twice the memory of my old machine? Better and better. [Note: this is an option, upgrading from the default, which is 512MB Single Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz - 1DIMM. But it's no extra. If you take the default, you reduce the price by $50.)

3. Monitor: 19-inch SE198WFP Widescreen Digital Flat Panel. More space sideways? Yes!! [Note: This is an upgrade, at $20 extra, from the default 17-inch. Note that if you choose no monitor, you subtract $170 from the price.]

4. Video card: despite what they say, bigger is better. 256MB NVIDIA Geforce 7300LE TurboCache video card. A definite upgrade on my NVIDIA GeForce 4 that was struggling with some videos and all movies. [Note: This is an upgrade from the default, which is 128 MB, and it adds $100 to the price and can delay delivery slightly.]

5. Operating system: Ubuntu Desktop Edition version 7.04. Good! I won't have to strip the system and install Ubuntu myself. That would let me get into playing with my new toy all the sooner. [Note: You can get support for 30 days for an additional $65 or for one year of Basic Support at $125 or 1 year Standard support for $275.]

6. CD/DVD drive: 16x DVD+/-RW Drive. Again good. I wouldn't have to install a DVD drive myself, and this one would be sure to be compatible with the system. Also, it was a +/- burner, which meant that no matter which disks I picked up, it could use them. [Note: This is an upgrade from the default 48X CD-RW/DVD Combo Drive, and it adds $30 to the price.]

7. Sound card: Integrated 7.1 Channel Audio. Well, you can't have everything. I'm used to Soundblaster, but I'll try it out and see how it works. If it can play Midi's as well as more normal sound files, I'll be happy. If not, I can always replace it with a different card.

8. Warranty and service: 1 Year In-Home Service, Parts + Labor - Next Business Day warranty and CompleteCare Accidental Damage Protection, 1 Year. OK! Who's been talking about my thumb-fingered abilities with assembly?

9. Speakers: None. This is a good thing. I would be able to select what I wanted, and not have a set of "spares" around gathering dust.

The projected date of shipping was July 31, 2007. This turned out to be too pessimistic. In fact, the machine was shipped on July 18, 2007. We followed the FEDEX shipping with avid interest as it moved from place to place. Wait a minute! "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" was to come out on the 21st. That's not fair! How am I supposed to brave the crowds at my favorite Barnes and Nobel store and assemble my new computer on the same day? How am I ever going to manage to read the book AND do an adequate analysis of the computer for PJ at the same time? Can't be done! Something's got to give. One must keep ones priorities correct. PJ will just have to wait a couple of days.

The reality was less confusing than it sounds. We knew that the computer was on the FEDEX truck and would be delivered on Saturday. I had NO intention of going to the book store at midnight Friday night to pick up my (pre-ordered) copy of the Deathly Hallows‚ and was willing to wait until the computer showed up to go get it. Besides, I knew that in addition to assembling the new computer, I would have to disassemble the old one and recycle the associated parts of it in two different directions -- the monitor to my wife and the rest to my grandson. It was going to be a long weekend. Not only that but there was the transfer of all the personal files and configurations to the new machine (you DO know that all the emails and settings can be transferred from one Thunderbird to another fresh install, don't you?)

Saturday morning dawned bright and early (all the earlier for us, since we were up before the sun. We have cats that insist on being fed at 4:00 in the morning). And then the wait began. And we waited. And we waited. And just as I was going to go to the bathroom the truck showed up (for the sake of Ms. Jones sensibilities I won't describe THAT minor panic). By the time I got to the front door, the monitor was already in the apartment and I got the computer itself and signed for it. I moved the two cartons to my room (my wife and I have had a "separation". We both snore. The first one to sleep got to sleep. The solution was two rooms at opposite ends of the apartment).

Then it was off to the book store to pick up the latest Harry Potter book. Plus an extra one for my daughter. Then it was back home, and I'm left in my room like the donkey who starved to death between two piles of hay (he couldn't decide which one to eat). Finally, I decided to set up the computer first and turn it on.

The first thing that I discovered was that the monitor was capable of full digital performance. Dell even supplied both cords, to allow the customer to decide which way he wanted to hook it up (though the one attached to the monitor was the blue analog cable). I had used a full digital monitor at work (before I retired) and absolutely approved of them. So, obviously, I opted for the digital.

Here, please insert the description of your choice of how I managed to find room on my desk for the new computer, while maintaining the old computer in it's place for the upcoming file transfers. No matter how you describe it, it probably won't do justice to the Rube Goldberg set-up that transpired.

Needless to say, I eventually managed to get the system set up and turned on. Ubuntu was already installed and only needed to be finalized for individual use. This is an easy procedure. Simply answer some questions about language, location (for time zone), and login information (name and password). Then it comes up -- Ubuntu Linux 7.04, code named Feisty Fawn. Since this is what I had been running on my old P-III I was somewhat used to it already, all except for the "desktop enhancements" which wouldn't run on the old machine. Not enough memory or CPU speed.

They certainly run on the NEW machine. I felt like my chair should have a 5-point seatbelt. Ubuntu immediately found my network without even trying and suddenly I was reading Groklaw (did you REALLY think I would go anywhere else first?). It was that easy.

I did bring up another site, the Ubuntu forums. I needed information on how to transfer the files through the LinkSys router. I didn't get the information there, as it turned out; it may be there somewhere, if I had searched longer, but I decided to figure it out for myself. [Note: Here's a page dealing with that question. Many of the questions on Ubuntu forums are by people who installed the operating system themselves; it's obviously easier if you buy it preinstalled.] I next let Synaptic (the package manager and installation program for Gnome windows manager) install 87 updates. This took about 10 minutes, in the background, while I read Groklaw comments.

I also selected some other programs to install (about 48 more programs, in fact) including a firewall. This proved to be my downfall in interconnecting the two computers, but I persevered. The answer was to set the firewalls of both of the computers to only receive and transmit to the other computer. The firewall I use is called Firestarter. Though unnecessary in Linux, particularly behind a hardware firewall (which the Linksys is), I feel more comfortable having one. Then I shared the "home" directory on the old machine by going to the System pull-down and selecting Administrative - shared folders and selecting the directory I wanted shared. I then could SSH (secure shell) between the two machines and begin transferring by copying the sub-directories to the new machine.

At this point, I was able to start reading "the Deathly Hallows". I read it while waiting for the transfer to finish. I read it in the car, while going to get speakers for the new computer (it didn't come with speakers, which was good. I was able to get speakers that included BASS (pronounced base). I read it while trying to figure out how to hook up the two machines. I read it in the car, taking my old computer over to my daughter's apartment to hook it up for her son. I finished it Monday night at about 7:00 (and NO! I won't tell you the ending. However, I've got to go back and re-read all the other books in the series to see how all the loose ends that J. K. Rowling tied off fit into the previous books.)

So, how do I feel about the new machine? WOW! It makes Microsoft's "wow" look more like "huh?" I'm happy.

First, sound. The sound card was automatically found by the operating system, and ready to go for basic things, like mpegs and pre-recorded CD's. I know it can do CD audio, because I put on "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" on Monday night, and it rained in the Valley of the Sun on Tuesday Night (for reference, see Walt Disney's "Fantasia", the Mickey Mouse sequence). Midi (which is electronically produced sound, with no actual basis in reality) was a different story. There are a number of ways to get Midi to work, and some of them require a great deal of effort and knowledge. I cheated. I downloaded a program called Automatix which, in turn, downloaded the programs and codecs that I would need for a great deal of multi-media experience. [Note: Michael Dell uses Automatix on his home laptop, a Dell Precision M90. You probably want to read the FAQ before you download, and if you decide to here are instructions on installing it. And here's a page on the topic of if you even need Automatix any more if you are running Ubuntu 7.04.]

Here, I have to caution you. There are some codecs (basically a codec is a programming explanation of what a sound or video format is for, and how to present it) and descramblers that are legal or not legal depending on where you live. Automatix puts your ability to choose them in one place with a warning. The choice is up to you, whether or not you download them. It's the same with Ubuntu's setup. You can read about the issues on this Ubuntu page on Restricted Formats and on this Medibuntu page and this one on Free Formats, so you can make responsible choices according to your area.

I can actually view movies, like "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" without glitching and hesitation. And with REAL SOUND. Almost theatrical-type sound, including bass that I can feel through my feet and chair. It also plays music files and CD's (I played "The Sorcerer's Apprentice‚" which is why Phoenix Metro got rain. If you don't get the connection, see Walt Disney's "Fantasia").

I'm very happy with my computer. I feel the price was reasonable, and the service was good. In fact, Dell appears to have gone to the "Scotty school of engineering" -- project how long you expect a project to take, then double the time. Then, when you come in under that time, you look like a whiz.


  


Grandpa Gets a Dell with Ubuntu Linux Preinstalled | 328 comments | Create New Account
Comments belong to whoever posts them. Please notify us of inappropriate comments.
Corrections Here
Authored by: feldegast on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 11:00 AM EDT
So they can be fixed

---
IANAL
My posts are ©2004-2007 and released under the Creative Commons License
Attribution-Noncommercial 2.0
P.J. has permission for commercial use.

[ Reply to This | # ]

Off-topic here, please
Authored by: overshoot on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 11:02 AM EDT
There are some handy instructions in red for posting HTML, including clickable
links.

[ Reply to This | # ]

Grandpa Gets a Dell - PJ's Editing
Authored by: tyche on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 11:14 AM EDT
Nice editing job, PJ. And I totally approve of the additional links you
provided (something I didn't even think of). Why, you almost make me sound
coherent and intelligent. <grin>Should I ask you to give my wife
lessons?</grin>

Craig
Tyche

---
"The Truth shall Make Ye Fret"
"TRUTH", Terry Pratchett

[ Reply to This | # ]

Automatix = BAD
Authored by: div_2n on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 11:32 AM EDT
I wish people would stop perpetuating this as a good thing. It isn't. It can and
WILL break your system. Of course, you probably won't see that until you try to
upgrade your distro in place.

When you try to play a media file for which you don't have a codec, it will ask
you if you want to search for a codec to support your file. Go that route and
you will be fine. It's a couple of extra clicks to prevent you from some serious
headaches in the long run.

[ Reply to This | # ]

Dell charges more for Linux PCs
Authored by: Anonymous on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 11:50 AM EDT
It's not obvious at first, but if you compare the bottom line and include the
"free" add-ons which you only get with a Windows machine, it's clear
that for the same hardware, Dell charges more for Linux vs. Windows.

[ Reply to This | # ]

Presario C500 Laptop and Ubuntu
Authored by: Eric Damron on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 12:23 PM EDT
I bought a brand new Presario laptop and put Ubuntu on it. It works flawlessly!

Just the other day I decided to redo the install from scratch and chronicle my efforts so others who want to do the same will have a guide to all the little tweaks etc. including getting the wireless networking up and running.

It's still a work in progress but is useful now. It can be found here Just look for the title "Presario C500 and Ubuntu" on the right sidebar.

[ Reply to This | # ]

Dell 530N -- Virtualization/Future?
Authored by: Anonymous on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 01:35 PM EDT
As I understand it, none of the processors offered (E2140, E2160, and E4300)
support "Intel Virtualization Technology (Intel VT)."

How advantageous would VT support be for a Linux-based distro test box for the
foreseeable future? How about supporting occasional use of (ugh!) Windows 2000
in a virtual machine?

With VMware, Virtualbox, Xen, and VT support in the kernel now, I'm confused...

[ Reply to This | # ]

Another view of Ubuntu
Authored by: jplatt39 on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 01:37 PM EDT
Since you're publishing a Grandpa's guide, it's worth mentioning a Grandma named Nancy Reyes who has been publishing her adventures in running an Ubuntu box in the Philippines in Blogger News Network. Her honesty is unimpeachable.

[ Reply to This | # ]

Don't forget the bluetooth with an Inspiron laptop...
Authored by: nyarlathotep on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 02:07 PM EDT

I'm not sure why Dell doesn't offer bluetooth as an option, as I had to order it separately and pay more for the shipping.

It does require a slight modification to the initscripts, but a six step process will have your Dell Inspiron talking with bluetooth devices and eliminate those evil cables and adapters (even thought the new Logitech nano adapters are really small).

I have included full instructions just so that people that may be considering one, and really want bluetooth, will realize how easy it is.

  1. Order the Dell 355 Bluetooth module
  2. Remove your battery and a small hidden locatation is revealed on the side of the battery bay toward the case.
  3. Push the plastic tab to remove the protective door and plug the bluetooth module to the wire inside the bay.
  4. Put the wire and module into the bay, close the bay with the plastic tab, and put your battery back in.
  5. The bluetooth module isn't recognized right away. For whatever reason the module must be reset after boot. I have tested this in both Ubuntu and Fedora. Add the following line to the end of /etc/rc.local
    hciconfig hci0 reset
  6. Last step... recognizing your bluetooth devices. As root or with sudo, issue the following command:
    hidd --search

What would improve the whole process?

  1. If Dell would ship the bluetooth module as an option on the Inspiron steps 1-4 could be consolidated to "Order your Inspiron with the bluetooth option"
  2. If Dell sponsored (either by supporting developers or tasking someone in-house) to write a small Ubuntu and/or Fedora package that included an init script t0 reset the device (perhaps calling the package dell-bluetooth-355) then step 5 would be eliminated.
  3. Step 6 would be greatly improved if there were a GUI (perhaps there is and I am unaware of it) to initiate the hidd search.
And the best thing about using Bluetooth with Ubuntu and Fedora... I don't have to worry about something like this Bluetooth mess.

I wonder if that is really true? Do people that have Windows and Bluetooth really need to maintain a current license for their drivers that can expire?

Anyway, not my concern... my Inspiron E1505 is dual booted: Ubuntu and Fedora.

[ Reply to This | # ]

One argument this should lay to rest...
Authored by: archonix on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 02:17 PM EDT
Every now and then I've heard arguments from people along the lines of
"Linux is too hard to install, how can you expect Grandma to use it?"
or words to that effect. It's been argued that a proper OEM installation of
Linux would render these arguments moot - and here, finally, we see that
demonstrated.

Now there's no excuse left. The one perceived advantage of windows - the
supposedly easy install - is no longer an advantage. In fact, it hasn't been for
quite a while but now, now people can simply plug in and go. Not bad.

---
Graham's Diets:
This week I 'ave been mostly eatin' mashed badger.
--
http://unoriginalmuse.imdanet.com/
Delayed due to copper-eating spiders on the line.

[ Reply to This | # ]

Newspicks
Authored by: tiger99 on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 02:43 PM EDT
Discussion about items in the Newspicks here please.

[ Reply to This | # ]

SuSE, Ubuntu, and Proprietary Binary Drivers
Authored by: Anonymous on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 02:44 PM EDT
I switched from SuSE to Ubuntu and I am more satisfied with Ubuntu. The SuSE
philosophy was to provide all 22,000 packages on the DVD or six CD's. You could
install all at once or as you needed. As you may know, SuSE did offer provide
xine, but not the necessary drivers to view video. I spent three days
researching, downloading, compiling, and configuring driver libraries before I
could watch one of my DVD movies. Then my daughter used it and did something to
stop it from working. I never bothered to go back research what happened. I just
stopped watching videos on my laptop.

The Ubuntu design, based upon Debian, is to install a simple base system (e.g.,
no ssh) and for you select among the 22,000 packages you wish to download. So
even though I spent a total of several days downloading and installing, I am
happy to have a system that I could configure. The network manager does a great
job of finding wireless connection point as well as switching between wireless
and wireful connections. And automatix did in a few minutes what it took me days
to configure in SuSE.

Nevertheless, what about those proprietary binary drivers being discussed here
on Groklaw without complaint? Or did I miss something and it's okay to use them
now?

[ Reply to This | # ]

Grandpa Gets a Dell with Ubuntu Linux Preinstalled
Authored by: Alan(UK) on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 06:43 PM EDT
This grandpa would like one too.

I have not been a Dell fan in the past - the bottom-end ones seem to have been
cobbled together from obsolete parts. This one seems to be both low-cost and an
up-to-date specification.

I liked the DVI video output from the graphic card AND the DVI input to the
monitor AND a DVI cable supplied. Likewise the USB k/b and OPTICAL mouse.

I think Tyche has got confused by the way the Dell site works. When you select
an alternative option, the total price is adjusted and the option selected now
says 'Included in price' and the figures against all the other options are
adjusted accordingly. Thus 'Included in price' does NOT mean 'Included in
default configuration price'. This had me confused until I worked it out.

There are a few errors in the Dell information - such as saying Ubuntu is
supplied under the GNU GPL.

It is a pity that so few people know about this product.

---
Microsoft is nailing up its own coffin from the inside.

[ Reply to This | # ]

Off Topic who lost China to MS
Authored by: Anonymous on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 07:20 PM EDT
They are having another knock em down and drag em out over
at Slash Dot over who lost China to Microsoft.
http://linux.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/07/28/1816203&threshold=-1

[ Reply to This | # ]

Instead of/In addition to the marketing/sales page...
Authored by: Aladdin Sane on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 07:57 PM EDT
PJ said:

Groklaw member Tyche got a Dell Inspiron 530N with Ubuntu Linux...
The real deal for tech types like me is the Dell™ Inspiron™ 530 Owner's Manual.

"Please always check the Owner's Manual before making a purchase decision," said I.

(Note that Inspiron 530 does not have an additional manual for the "N" version, that I could find.)

---
"You interact with a computer differently when you can trust it to be reliable." --from a blog comment, 2007-07

[ Reply to This | # ]

"cats that insist on being fed at 4:00 in the morning"
Authored by: Anonymous on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 08:37 PM EDT
Dear Tyche!

If your cats insist on being fed at such an unreasonable time, maybe you should
give them some fed-ex. Pun alert... :-)

[ Reply to This | # ]

Felix the cat sez...
Authored by: Anonymous on Saturday, July 28 2007 @ 10:47 PM EDT
Tyche,

Pleez leev me dry cat fud in a bol and sum fresh water each day. Wet food once
in a while an me stop meowing at 4 am.

felix

[ Reply to This | # ]

A couple of questions
Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, July 29 2007 @ 12:25 AM EDT
Thanks for the review, tyche. :)

I have a couple of further questions.

- Did you receive a restore cd?
- Was there any documentation supplied about Ubuntu?
- What package mirror/s does Synaptic/apt point at? I'm
curious whether Dell has their own mirror, or if they
point at one of the others.

-matt

[ Reply to This | # ]

Maybe Grandpa would like a 64bit OS to go with the 64bit hardware
Authored by: Kilz on Sunday, July 29 2007 @ 01:23 AM EDT
Sadly Dell ships the 32bit version of Ubuntu on the 64bit hardware they sell.
But you can download and install the 64bit version of Fiesty Fawn for free. :)

[ Reply to This | # ]

Ubuntu 7.04 on three machines
Authored by: Totosplatz on Sunday, July 29 2007 @ 02:03 AM EDT

I have now installed Ubuntu 7.04 on three machines, two new 64 bit dual core and an old (~1999) laptop just bought on eBay.

My only complaint is that the spiffy graphic installer only allows the creation of 4 partitions, and SWAP counts as one of the partitions. I used the text-based installer which came with the "alternate" flavor of ISO and that worked just fine. Also Ubuntu now provides for formatting using JFS, which wasn't available earlier. I especially liked it when I tried to use "co" (rcs checkout) and it told me that it wasn't installed, but I could get the package using apt-get, which I did. Very nice: it gave me the exact command to use.

I used to install Mandriva, but it has had problems with video cards on the 64-bit machines.

I have installed a lot of Chinese character input and typefaces on the laptop, and it seems that Ubuntu especially shines in that arena - the ease of getting the character input stuff installed and working was a relief. The typefaces aren't working for me yet, but when I get back to it I feel confident I'll be able to get it going.

Greetings from Zhuhai, Guangdong, China

---
All the best to one and all.

[ Reply to This | # ]

Grandpa Gets a Dell with Ubuntu Linux Preinstalled
Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, July 29 2007 @ 02:45 AM EDT
Just installed Ubuntu on a somewhat older IBM ThinkPad T41; went flawlessly.
Wireless works, display works, even games work very well at high detail levels,
and all of the desktop eye-candy seems to perform well. The ability to use JFS
as a bootable partition was a very nice bonus.

I normally use Fedora on my systems, but for the laptop Ubuntu seemed a good
choice, and I've not had any issues. I have to say that the good folks at
Ubuntu have put together a very usable package, and it's dirt-simple to
install.

(Imjustabigcat, not logged in)

[ Reply to This | # ]

If you were to ditch Windows, would you go to Linux or Mac?
Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, July 29 2007 @ 08:42 AM EDT
ZDNet
If you were to ditch Windows, would you go to Linux or
Mac?
http://blogs.zdnet.com/hardware/?p=662

Linux 46%
Mac 43%
Combination 11%

[ Reply to This | # ]

667MHz memory is slowing you down
Authored by: Anonymous on Sunday, July 29 2007 @ 11:44 AM EDT
You have a 1.6GHz machine with an 800MHz frontside bus. So why install only
667MHz memory? That means the CPU will be slowed down to 667MHz on the memory
bus and possibly even 1.3GHz if there is not an acceptable stepping rate to
match, which means you could have bought a 1.3GHz CPU for less money and the
same performance. (I have no clue what Dell offers.)

[ Reply to This | # ]

Grandpa Gets a Dell with Ubuntu Linux Preinstalled
Authored by: JamesK on Sunday, July 29 2007 @ 04:22 PM EDT
"And just as I was going to go to the bathroom the truck showed up"

Delivery drivers and telemarketers have a way of knowing the appropriate moment
to make contact. ;-)


---
OOXML - WYSIWTF

[ Reply to This | # ]

Way to go!
Authored by: inode_buddha on Sunday, July 29 2007 @ 08:51 PM EDT
Way to go! I introduced my Dad to Linux some years ago, he is an engineer of
some 70+ years. I expected all sorts of questions and problems. But Lo! He took
to it like a fish to water and just started *using* it like normal. Pretty much
like I do, he just had to be shown where to surf, email, and keep his pics of
the grandkids.

In the rare event that he actually has to get technical, he does it in FORTRAN
and its available at zero extra cost.

As for myself, I've just a lazy-beam attached to my head. And yes, the pun is
intended.

---
-inode_buddha
Copyright info in bio

"When we speak of free software,
we are referring to freedom, not price"
-- Richard M. Stallman

[ Reply to This | # ]

1394a Adapter Port
Authored by: Benanov on Monday, July 30 2007 @ 08:44 AM EDT
"But you can add IEEE 1394a Adapter port, which is included in the price
already."

There's a patent license of 0.25 USD per port to a consortium (Apple wanted to
charge 1 USD but that didn't fly), so it's not exactly included in the
price--it's just part of the default configuration.

--BK

---
That popping sound you hear is just a paradigm shifting without a clutch.

[ Reply to This | # ]

Dell Printers don't work on Linux
Authored by: Anonymous on Monday, July 30 2007 @ 04:39 PM EDT
Dell makes a good machine, but be careful with their printers. Most of their printers will not work on Linux. See http://linuxprinting.o rg.

[ Reply to This | # ]

Phoenix Metro?
Authored by: Anonymous on Wednesday, August 01 2007 @ 01:52 AM EDT
You took a trip on the Phoenix Metro in the summer? Oh deities, return that
computer and spend the money on a payment for a car with AC!

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