I'm starting to wonder if anything about Linux is going to be easy. But I remain undaunted in my efforts to use Ubuntu 7.10, or Gutsy Gibbon, to accomplish the same computing tasks for which I use Windows. Now that I've got Flash and QuickTime working in Ubuntu, I feel like I'm nearly there.
I say "nearly" because I'm still running into some glitches, this week relating to getting the full suite of updates available for Gutsy installed. The update failure is a minor inconvenience compared to the crashes I experienced last week whenever I tried to run a Flash or QuickTime video.
After poking around the Linux forums, I found out that Ubuntu installs a la carte: only the truly free supporting software is included in the default installation, which excludes proprietary media players such as Adobe's Flash and Apple's QuickTime. To get these restricted formats to play, you have to install a set of files called ubuntu-restricted-extras.
Once I got them loaded, I checked the Synaptic Package Manager and found their listing. I still had to find, download, and install the Flash Player for Linux. I'm not going to complain about the multiple steps required, though. Compared to Windows' kitchen sink approach to software installation and updating, I'm coming to appreciate Ubuntu's download-as-needed philosophy.
To get Flash, QuickTime, and other proprietary media players to work in Ubuntu, you have to install a set of files manually.
After I reopened Firefox, the Flash and QuickTime files that previously sent Ubuntu into a tailspin ran without a hitch. Even though the process took me about three hours of searching, downloading, installing, downloading some more, and installing some more, I'm becoming familiar with the operating system.
Using Ubuntu's Terminal applet for system maintenance is similar to the old DOS days of living on the command line. You won't save much time initially when you switch from Windows to Ubuntu, but once you get used to the Linux style of computing, I bet you'll spend more time working and less time futzing with your "tools".
That's not to say everything's peachy for me on Linux Street: right now, the update notification icon keeps telling me that there's an update available, but when I run the Update Manager, the file xserver-xorg-core won't download. It's a minor annoyance, I know, but when I close the error dialog box, the updater keeps prompting me to download the update. I have no idea how important the file is--or whether I really need it. All I know is that I can't get it.
Ubuntu's Update Manager can't download a file the Notification alert recommends that you install.
Apart from this minor annoyance, I'm pretty happy about the progress I've made as a Linux neophyte. I'm a long way from wiping Windows off the drives of my other PCs, but it's a heck of a start.
Tomorrow: Five super Office add-ons.
Readers to the rescue!
The first thing you learn when you write about technology is that the people who read your stuff are smarter than you'll ever be. So let me start by saying "Thank you" to all the Linux users who responded to last Friday's post on my travails trying to get Ubuntu 7.10, or "Gutsy Gibbon," to recognize my Linksys WPC300N wireless adapter.
The first suggestions I tried were the ones that didn't entail installing a new app, though ultimately a free download was the fastest and simplest solution. I started by disabling remote mode, as recommended by "argraff." Unfortunately, the adapter stayed silent. "PasterEdB" advised me to add a command to my kernel boot-up options. This might have worked, if I wasn't such a Linux "noob" that I couldn't find the options in question (yes, I'd appreciate someone instructing me how to do so, and thank you in advance).
Two other readers said they had similar wireless problems that were solved by purchasing a $30 program (so much for freeware), and by disabling one of Ubuntu's built-in apps and reloading NDISWrapper. Some suggested I try a different Linux distro, or buy a laptop with Linux pre-installed.
The solution that worked for me was posted by kingargyle1, who recommended that I download WiFi Radar. Just seconds after I installed the program the Linksys adapter sprung to life. I popped in the network password, opened Firefox, and had my Gmail inbox open in no time. If I were a true geek I would've started poking around to determine how the program managed the trick, but I'd rather simply start browsing and offer my heartfelt thanks to the benevolent geniuses who wrote the program and made it available for free. And of course, my undying fealty goes out to kingargyle1 for the help: Long may you reign!
The cure for my Ubuntu wireless-adapter woes was the free WiFi Radar utility, which got me connected in minutes.
I know it's just my newbieness showing, but now that everything's working (apparently), it feels like my six-year-old laptop has been reborn. Now the true test: I'll spend the next few days using it as my lone computer (or nearly so), and report on my Ubuntu experience next Friday.
Monday: The five most useful features hiding in Microsoft Word.
It didn't take long after installing Canonical Ltd.'s Ubuntu 7.10 version of Linux for me to decide I liked what I saw. A quick tour of the Applications, Places, and System menus indicated that converting from Windows to Linux would be relatively seemless. The only fly in the ointment was my inability to get any of three wireless adapters to work with the OS.
World-class applications without paying a dime
I expected to find the Mozilla Firefox browser bundled with Ubuntu, and seeing links on the Applications*Office menu to OpenOffice.org's Database, Presentation, Spreadsheet, and Word Processor apps--all of which are compatible with their Microsoft Office equivalents--was no surprise. But some of Ubuntu's other built-in programs were a nice bonus: the F-Spot Photo Manager, GIMP Image Editor, OpenOffice.org Drawing app, and XSane Image Scanner give you all the graphics functions you're likely to need; and for audio and video processing, you get Movie Player, Rhythmbox Music Player, Serpentine Audio CD-Creator, Sound Juicer CD Extractor, and Sound Recorder.
[Cue late-night-TV announcer] But wait, there's more! For VoIP, use the Ekiga Softphone app; for e-mail, there's the popular Evolution open-source program; and when the IM bug bites, open the Pidgen client (previously known as Gaim), which supports just about every IM system out there. You also get about a dozen games, including Blackjack, Sudoku, and a Tetris knockoff; there's even a version of my favorite time-waster, Mahjongg.
Fly in the Ubuntu ointment: Wireless woes
"Too good to be true," I'm thinking as I work my way through Ubuntu's many options. And indeed I hit the wall when I tried to connect to my wireless network. The Linksys WPC300N PCMCIA adapter worked without a hitch when I booted the laptop in XP, but Ubuntu didn't recognize it. I searched the many Ubuntu forums for a solution and found that the Ndiswrapper utilities I needed to mimic the adapter's Windows driver weren't enabled. I tried the adapter again after enabling the wrappers, but still got nowhere. Next I downloaded and installed the Ndisgtk utility that lets you install device drivers without having to deal with the command line in Ubuntu's Terminal application.
Enable the Ndiswrapper utilities, and download and install Ndisgtk, to allow Windows wireless-adapter drivers to work in Ubuntu.
I copied the driver files from their CD to the Ubuntu desktop, and then pointed to the appropriate .inf file in the Wireless Network Drivers utility it added (via the System*Administration*Windows Wireless Drivers shortcut that Ndisgtk provides). I now had a "Wireless connection" option in the Network Settings window (see below), but no matter how I configured the connection, I couldn't log onto my wireless network.
After enabling the Ndiswrapper utilities and installing the Windows drivers for the wireless adapter, Ubuntu recognized the wireless network, though it wouldn't connect to it.
After going through the same process with another PCMCIA card and a USB wireless adapter and getting the same results, I decided to do some more trolling for a solution on the Linux forums. I tried several of the suggestions offered by forum denizens, but nothing worked. That's when I decided to stick with the wired Ethernet link, which connected to the network right away.
While the wireless glitches made me glad I dual-booted Ubuntu with Windows (so I could simply load Windows when I needed to connect to a wireless network), I was disappointed that I wouldn't be able to use Ubuntu the same way I use Windows, at least not until I figure out why I couldn't get Ubuntu to establish a wireless link. I haven't given up hope of replacing Windows with Linux, but neither am I willing to spend hours searching for a solution to a problem I can avoid simply by loading Windows.
Monday: Save time and trouble by partitioning your hard drive.
Running Linux from a CD in Windows doesn't get you much closer to computing in a Windows-less world. To make Windows and Linux and either-or proposition, you have to set your PC to dual-boot. With Canonical Ltd.'s Ubuntu 7.10, a.k.a. Gutsy Gibbon, the repartitioning is done for you during installation.
Before you install Ubuntu, create a full system backup. Creating a system restore point may not be sufficient, because a misstep during installation could render Windows unbootable. Make sure that you've got your restore CD/DVD handy, and that your system is set to boot from its CD/DVD drive.
Once your backup is completed, insert the Ubuntu installation CD and restart your system. When the Ubuntu logo appears, the option to Start or Install Ubuntu will be selected. Press Enter, or wait 30 seconds for the installation to begin on its own. This runs the OS from the CD. To install it on your hard drive, double-click the Install icon in the top-left corner of the screen that appears after Ubuntu finishes loading.
The first of the seven-step installation asks you to select a language, the next to choose a location, and the third to pick your keyboard layout. Now you're ready to set your disk partitions for dual-booting. You can let Ubuntu do the partitioning by going with the Guided - resize option that's selected by default. This sets the new partition size automatically. You can also choose to set the partition sizes manually by choosing the Manual option.
Once you've set your partitions, you're given the option to migrate some of your Windows settings to Ubuntu. Select the user account, and the folders you wish to make available to your Ubuntu account (you'll also create an Ubuntu account and password to import the folders to). When the account is complete, you'll see a summary of the options you selected. Click Install to confirm the choices and begin the installation. When all the files are loaded, you'll be prompted to restart your PC.
When the PC restarts, you'll see a menu of your OS choices, one of which will be Windows. Make your selection, and get to work.
Tomorrow: Troubleshooting Ubuntu hardware glitches, and getting to know the OS's applications.
This is the year I kiss Windows good-bye. Well, maybe not entirely, but the writing is on the wall for Microsoft's flagship operating system, and all other desktop bloatware: The future of PC software is open source. (I'll add that the future of PC applications is on the Web, which I'll cover once we've got Ubuntu in place.)
Being the belts-and-suspenders type, I'll make the conversion from proprietary to open in baby steps, the first of which is to get a copy of Ubuntu 7.1 (a.k.a. Gutsy Gibbon), the version of Linux from Canonical Ltd. that has a reputation for being complete, well supported, and easy to use. I know the OS only by reputation, however. Wikipedia provides a comprehensive comparison of Linux versions.
There are three ways to get an Ubuntu installation CD: Download the distro and burn it to a CD, buy a copy at Amazon ($13 plus shipping), or request a free CD by mail (allow six to 10 weeks for delivery).
If you go the download route, be patient: The program is 700MB, so even over a broadband link it will take some time to complete. The download is an ISO file required to make an installation CD. Look for an option in your CD-burning application called "Burn from Disk Image" or something similar.
If you use Windows XP, you may need to download Alex Feinman's ISO Recorder utility. The program is free, but the author requests donations. Insert a blank CD in the drive. ISO Recorder should open the CD Recording wizard automatically when the download completes, but if it doesn't, right-click the ISO file you just downloaded and choose Copy Image to CD. Click Next, and complete the recording.
With your Ubuntu installation CD in hand, you're ready to take the OS for a test drive.
Tomorrow: Run Ubuntu from the CD, or create a drive partition for dual-booting the OS with Windows.
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