My friend was looking out for a middle range Laptop and he finally settled for Acer Aspire 4520.
In India it comes for around RS 29,000.
Specs are
Now this is a decent Laptop with a very decent price. Best of all it comes with Linux pre-installed. As he knows that I am always around to help him with " Linux problems" so having a Linux desktop was infact exciting for him.
Now acer is very wise ( if not cunning), it ships this laptop with Linux installed, however, attaches a small footnote that
Acer recommends Windows Vista Business.
Now the Limited functionality with Linux directly translates into many devices not working properly, notably the integrated webcam. My friend was Linux Literate ( as he calls himself, becoz he had heard about Ubuntu). Though I prefer PCLOS or OpenSUSE over Ubuntu, he wanted the same OS that comes with Dell. Surely he trusts Dell more than his friend. He wanted to download the Dell modified Ubuntu, but I somehow convinced him to use Linus Mint instead.
As he was Linux literate and an Indian, he wanted to do things on his own -- Good for me. He himself downloaded the Mint Daryna ISO, burned it and tried booting. All he got was a blank screen. Finally he called up his Linux Tech Support and gave me his prized laptop. I knew that the blank Screen was due to lack of Nvidia drivers, so I selected VESA mode and Mint booted into a beautiful desktop.
The Linux geek in my friend suddenly woke up and he again took the Laptop from me and went ahead with the install. I must say that Mint install is one of the easiest I have seen. On the first hard disk boot, Mint gave a pop-up about Driver for his Nvidia card, again the install was a breeze. After the re-boot ( I do not understand why a display driver install would require a re-boot, why can't I simply re-start X Server??), there was yet another pop-up informing about the updates to Mint. My friend selected that also and felt proud about his abilities to work with Linux.
Next he installed Compiz-Fusion and was soon rotating the Desktop Cube, by this time he was comparing himself with Linus Torvalds and boasting of how easily he adapted himself to Linux.
I thought that the work is done and now we have another success story. Well !! it was just the beginning.
Next week he bought a wireless router and had some trouble connecting to it. The Linux Tech Support went to his house and helped him configure and connect to WAP2 secured wireless router. Now he wanted to talk to his friends using Windows Messenger. I guided him to aMSN, however, aMSN still does not support VOIP, though it might support voice chat in next versions. The only option left for "talking" to windows friends was using Skype. Luckily Mint support Skype very well and my friend was able to set it up correctly on his own.
His next call was to help him configure and use his Webcam. Thanks to Mint, the webcam was auto detected. Skype has a beta version for Linux which enables Video chatting. Though a Beta software might sound danger to most people, but my friend was enthusiastic. He said the he likes living on the edge, using the "bleeding software". I don't know where he came across these terms, but was more than happy that he is willing to help himself in solving this problem instead of blaming Linux for not having required software.
Mint also has the latest version of Nexuiz , an excellent FPS game and my friend told me that he has used Synaptic to install it and was playing it with other online players.
Its been a full month and he has never called me again for help with his Mint installation. I presume that he might require a little help when he wants to play some windows only games. I must say that Mint is an excellent distribution and could really help in turning users to Linux. The best thing about Mint is that it configures the entire desktop on its own and allows the user to make easy changes as per the needs.
Read The full Article..
In India it comes for around RS 29,000.
Specs are
| Model | Acer Aspire 4520 |
| Processor | Athlon 64 X2 Processor - TK-53 (1.7GHz, 512kB L2 Cache combined) |
| Chipset | Nvidia nForce 610M chipset |
| Memory | 1GB DDR2 (667 MHz) |
| Optical Drive | DVD Super Multi Double Layer: RAM R/W 2X, CD/DVD Read 8X/24X, CD-R 24X, CD-RW 10X, DVD-R 4X, DVD-RW 2X, DVD+R 4X, DVD+ RW 2.4X |
| Video Graphics | Nvidia GeForce 7000M onboard graphics capable of up to 256MB VRAM (shared) |
| Monitor | 14.1-inch WideScreen Acer CrystalBrite LCD (glossy display) capable of 1280×800 resolution |
| In-Built Speakers | Built-in High Definition Audio compliant audio chip, Built-in speaker and microphone |
| Connectivity | 10/100/1000 Network Card, 56k Modem, 802.11 b/g Wireless LAN, Bluetooth 2.0+ EDR |
| Battery | 6 cell Lithium Ion |
| Interface | 1 x VGA port/Mini D-sub 15-pin for external monitor 1 x Headphone-out jack (SPDIF) 1 x Microphone-in jack 1 x RJ11 Modem jack for phone line 1 x RJ45 LAN Jack for LAN insert 4 x USB 2.0 ports, 1x IEEE 1394 port 1 x Infrared Port (FIR supported) |
| OS | Linux ( Drivers for Windows Vista Provided) |
| Additional Features | Carrying bag |
| Dimensions | 342 (W) x 247 (D) x 35/38 (H) mm |
| Weight | 2.60 Kgs |
| Warranty | 1 year International Warranty |
Now acer is very wise ( if not cunning), it ships this laptop with Linux installed, however, attaches a small footnote that
The Linux that is pre-loaded is a free version and would have limited functionality until another operating system is installed.
Also please note that Acer recommends Windows Vista Business.
Now the Limited functionality with Linux directly translates into many devices not working properly, notably the integrated webcam. My friend was Linux Literate ( as he calls himself, becoz he had heard about Ubuntu). Though I prefer PCLOS or OpenSUSE over Ubuntu, he wanted the same OS that comes with Dell. Surely he trusts Dell more than his friend. He wanted to download the Dell modified Ubuntu, but I somehow convinced him to use Linus Mint instead.
As he was Linux literate and an Indian, he wanted to do things on his own -- Good for me. He himself downloaded the Mint Daryna ISO, burned it and tried booting. All he got was a blank screen. Finally he called up his Linux Tech Support and gave me his prized laptop. I knew that the blank Screen was due to lack of Nvidia drivers, so I selected VESA mode and Mint booted into a beautiful desktop.
The Linux geek in my friend suddenly woke up and he again took the Laptop from me and went ahead with the install. I must say that Mint install is one of the easiest I have seen. On the first hard disk boot, Mint gave a pop-up about Driver for his Nvidia card, again the install was a breeze. After the re-boot ( I do not understand why a display driver install would require a re-boot, why can't I simply re-start X Server??), there was yet another pop-up informing about the updates to Mint. My friend selected that also and felt proud about his abilities to work with Linux.
Next he installed Compiz-Fusion and was soon rotating the Desktop Cube, by this time he was comparing himself with Linus Torvalds and boasting of how easily he adapted himself to Linux.
I thought that the work is done and now we have another success story. Well !! it was just the beginning.
Next week he bought a wireless router and had some trouble connecting to it. The Linux Tech Support went to his house and helped him configure and connect to WAP2 secured wireless router. Now he wanted to talk to his friends using Windows Messenger. I guided him to aMSN, however, aMSN still does not support VOIP, though it might support voice chat in next versions. The only option left for "talking" to windows friends was using Skype. Luckily Mint support Skype very well and my friend was able to set it up correctly on his own.
His next call was to help him configure and use his Webcam. Thanks to Mint, the webcam was auto detected. Skype has a beta version for Linux which enables Video chatting. Though a Beta software might sound danger to most people, but my friend was enthusiastic. He said the he likes living on the edge, using the "bleeding software". I don't know where he came across these terms, but was more than happy that he is willing to help himself in solving this problem instead of blaming Linux for not having required software.
Mint also has the latest version of Nexuiz , an excellent FPS game and my friend told me that he has used Synaptic to install it and was playing it with other online players.
Its been a full month and he has never called me again for help with his Mint installation. I presume that he might require a little help when he wants to play some windows only games. I must say that Mint is an excellent distribution and could really help in turning users to Linux. The best thing about Mint is that it configures the entire desktop on its own and allows the user to make easy changes as per the needs.
