Giving up on Linux...

[xyzzy at hotpop.com]

On Sunday 22 February 2004 11:38 am, WipeOut wrote:
> xyzzy at hotpop.com wrote:
> >... for the foreseeable future on my home system.
> >
> >My home system is an ASUS PVP800-VM motherboard which has hi-speed USB,
> > ACPI, Pentium IV with hyperthread, S-ATA, Intel Extreme 2 graphics (865G
> > chipset).
> >
> >I also have an antique Adaptec 2930 SCSI card for my LS-2000 scanner.
> >
> >Redhat 9 install disks won't even boot on this machine unless I disable
> > the Enhanced IDE (<-- totally bogus!!) ...  Fedora Core 1 is about the
> > same.
> >
> >I decided on FC1 because it uses a later kernel (2.4.22 ... 24?) which
> > seems to support hyperthread and S-ATA better.  When I finally got FC1
> > installed (I had to disable Enhanced IDE, install, compile a custom
> > kernel and then re-enable Enhanced IDE), it was horribly SLOOOOOOW...
> > running a shell in X and pasting a long command line took forever to
> > complete.
> >
> >I figured that this might be due to the graphics driver, so I updated the
> >graphics driver from Intel and then X crashed with a segmentation fault in
> >the closed source part of the driver when attempting to start the X
> > server. Even changing back to the original driver in the XF86Config
> > didn't fix the segfault.  Gotta reinstall?  Who needs this? What a
> > nightmare.
> >
> >The issue here is that Windows XP runs "out-of-the-box" on this system
> > without problems and it is FAST, once it boots.
> >
> >I could try the 2.6 kernel (and I have a LOT of experience with
> > computers), but what's the use?  The 2.6 kernel is not ready for
> > prime-time, not by a long shot, and neither, it seems, is Linux in
> > general.
> >
> >I have seen too many bugs and posts on these topics about
> > SMP/hyperthread/ACPI and other issues that cause the system to lock up
> > after a time of running or not run at all and no fixes seem to be in
> > sight - maybe because these problems are intractable without inside
> > information about ACPI and other things that Intel will give to Microsoft
> > but not to Open Source developers. Maybe Redhat just doesn't care. Who
> > knows?
> >
> >I pity the average user that tries to install and run Linux on their
> > latest hardware.  If I, as an experienced software engineer, throw up my
> > hands, what would a relative newbie who just needs the system to work do?
> >
> >I have real problems seeing how Linux is going to make it to the desktop
> > by 2005 with these kinds of road-blocks.
> >
> >Sad.
>
> Obviously by the fact that you felt the need to post you message here
> you are looking for some kind of confirmation about you decision.. The
> people in this mailing list are all Linux users so I doubt you will get
> any..
>

No, I'm not looking for some kind of confirmation.  I am looking for a system 
that works, and Linux is not working for me.  What, are you saying that 
"Linux users" comprise some sort of religion?

I use Linux at work... I am a kernel hacker at work.  That is my job.  Redhat 
9 works for me at work because the motherboard is not completely state of the 
art.

I am not looking for any sort of consensus or support for my "decision".  I 
would rather that Linux worked for me. It doesn't and THAT is what I am 
bothered by.  It seems that all of the problems with SMP systems locking up 
are not being addressed... where are the fixes for the bugs in BugZilla?  
Where is the vaunted Open Source community in all of this?

> As you said you "have a lot of computer experience" so all I will say is
> enjoy the viruses and worms, the BSOD's, the reinstalls when the
> registry get full of crap, the annual licencing, the having to register
> you products with MS and then having to call them up when you have to
> reinstall, the locking down you freedom to save the files you want
> without being hit by DRM systems and the freedom in general to have the
> ability to rebuild the system as you want it not to be forced into their
> meida player, web browser and MSN services..

I agree with all of this which is why I wanted to put Linux on my home 
desktop.

However, even with all of M$ garbage, the bottom line is that their garbage 
works on my system and Linux does not.

>
> Have fun..