Linpus is based on Fedora, but this doesn’t mean that it is Fedora. Windows was once a shell for MS-DOS, but this didn’t mean that it was MS-DOS. Installing applications on a machine is ok only if your applications are designed to be compatible with your OS. If your favourite application is not available as a package for your distribution you should ask the developers to provide one or find a friend who is a programmer and can do it for you. Never expect a package for another distribution to work on your distro except by pure luck, and there is nothing wrong with it really, because there is no operating system by the name “Linux” (it’s only a kernel). Debian (it’s what I use), Fedora, Linpus, SUSE, Slackware may all share the same similar components (X is the graphics environment, GNOME/KDE/Xfce is the desktop, GNU are the userland programs, and Linux is the kernel) but in fact they are different operating systems. If a program works across different distros it’s only because it’s very basic and only uses libraries/conventions that happen to be integrated in common components that many GNU/Linux distros use (or may adhere to some kind of standard such as LSB). To cut a long comment short: Don’t put non-Linpus stuff on Linpus if you don’t know how to make it work yourself. It’s like trying to install an MS-DOS app on Windows and expecting to see it available in start menu.

Another view on the choice of Linux or XP for your netbook:

http://tech-talk.biz/2008/09/08/eee-pc-linux-or-xp/

i got to say, im not sure that installing applications are a normal behavior.

i can see that if it had not been for me borrowing it, my parents laptop would not have much installed on it beyond what it came with out of the box.

but then i guess they may not be the best example, as they are probably on their aging way out of the main computer user age group.

but still, what are the most common things installed on windows machines, and how much of that is covered by the preinstalled stuff on the aspire, or the eeepc for that matter (as i would hazard a guess that they cover much the same in their software package)?

i sure hope not that the common computer user is as compulsive a installer as i have been at times. installing random stuff of shareware sites just to see if they can be fun or useful to have around…

and even if they are, im not sure the aspire one, or again the eeepc, is the right machine for that kind of activity given the limited storage space…

>Put Win XP next to the Linux version of the Aspire One on a store shelf and regardless of performance, control, battery life 98% of “average” consumers will choose XP.

When I was at the store, everybody stopped and played with Acer Aspire One; although, there were 30 laptops with Windows. Kids liked the games from it.

I tried to boot one small HP with Vista there. That was unbearable: 5 minutes or more.

Do you really want to buy Photoshop for $649 to use with a 9″ screen underpowered netbook?

I took my wife to see an eeePC. Her first comment was “that’s not Windows. I don’t want to learn that”. Now she’s deciding between the HP Mini-Note and the Aspire One. The HP has the better keyboard but the Acer has XP, which is what she is familiar with.

Ease of use, portability, price and OS familiarity are the key to Netbook success. The majority of buyers are either looking for a smaller companion device, price concious purchasers or those who mistake “small and cute” with “easy to use”. And the current home screens of the Linux variations make them look easy to use to the average consumer.

But the reality is that at this moment in time Linux is not an “easy to use” platform and does not support the programs the average Joe (or Jane) uses every day. No Itunes, Office, Photoshop? Sure there are alternatives but the average consumer doesn’t care. They don’t want to learn anything new. Put Win XP next to the Linux version of the Aspire One on a store shelf and regardless of performance, control, battery life 98% of “average” consumers will choose XP. And if a sales person tried to explain how to install programs in the store every sale would be lost for Linux.

Having said that I think Linux is a good thing. It us faster and lighter on the hardware. I think Linux will develop quickly in the Netbook market. It will become easier to install programs. The GUI will become more polished and user intuitave beyond the home screen.

I’d really like to see MS develop Windows Mobile for these devices. Thousands of programs, many free. Reasonably familiar interface. Instant on. Blazing performance Make an Itunes client and it would be brilliant. Or is it just me…

Gordon

Linux netbooks are perfect for dummies and advanced users.

I’m tired of those dummies who install every possible software on their Windows laptops. Eventually, their systems must be reinstalled each year because of viruses, etc.
Install everything for them, and don’t show how to be root.

For advanced users, it’s very easy to type http://www.aspireoneuse.com and get answers on how to install popular software and add shortcuts to the desktop by editing one file. There are even videos with how-tos.

I was inspired by the unboxing to run out to Circuit City and poke at one of these myself and ended up walking out with one. I had the eee and I was very interested to see the new linpus linux on this one. I think that this is one of the better netbook linuxes I’ve seen. I was disappointed to see that the AAO came with FF2, but the upgrade to 3 was easy enough. I really like that they took the time to write in house communication apps. I was very impressed by how easy the email set up was with my gmail accounts. It was faster and easier than even my iPhone.

When I took my new AAO into work, the first comment when I booted it was that it’s just a big iPhone. I think that’s what they are shooting for with these big icon based “easy mode” linux implementations. All they really need is an app store. Package managers are even a standard part of most linux distros, it should be fairly easy to implement. They just need more programs in the default repo and Add/Remove in the settings by default.

In India Acer sells dual core laptops with command line Linux console and advertise their product as “Linux Preloaded”. Who will buy a dual core machine without a GUI? Who will buy a Linux machine without Linux supported hardware parts?
The basic question is not “why anybody would ‘buy’ them”, but the question is, “why anybody will sell them”. Acer sells them to keep their price low. Most of these machines end up running unauthorized versions of Microsoft OS.
We, the Linux enthusiasts are the losers. Our favorite OS and our philosophy gets defamed by this action. But unfortunately nothing is there to stop this malpractice.
The myth of non-userfriendliness of Linux is partly because of this. I have seen those who are new computer users, cannot differentiate between Windows and Linux (with a GUI) and are equally comfortable with any of them, (actually more comfortable with Linux for it’s virus free nature).
I am not a coder, I am a Linux user, but I am using Linux for last 10+ years. Actually I never used Windows XP. The last Microsoft OS I used 8 years back, was an (unauthorized) Windows 2000 Professional.
In my opinion, those manufacturers sell their machines with Linux, have no intention to make their product more attractive or productive to their customers. They know those who use Linux will customize their product according to their need and the rest will convert it to a windows machine. So they don’t bother for integrity, usefulness or support for their crippled Linux machines.

I DISAGREE wholeheartedly with JohnX’s comments. These actions don’t occur in a vacuum. It is only the thrown-together, half-baked implementations of Linux that don’t incur a beatdown from MS.

When ASUS put together something credible, MS was there to apply the pressure. The pressure to Gigabyte caused at least one model to lose its Linux version.

MS is fighting to maintain its premium pricing on many fronts and has chosen its battles well. You can expect the most desirable machines to come with no Linux option or to announce a Linux option then lose it. For a while, a Linux option will be a bargaining chip for mfrs to get the price of Vista/XP down. This is only a credible bargaining chip if some actually use it and sell some machines.

From a consumer viewpoint, more choice is more likely to lead to lower prices, not less choice. Removing these crap Linux distros in favor of XP simply results in a more expensive XP. The smart move for Linux developers is to try to strengthen these half-baked distros. The smart move for MS is to try to replace them with more expensive XP.

Well said Kevin. I completely agree with you that this has to be painless. I think Apple hit the nail on the head with their BSD-based O/S on the iPhone. Nobody cares what operating system is running in the background because the interface is nice and adding applications is a breeze. Until these Linux distributions can provide a similar experience, they’re never going to fly for the mainstream.

I agree wholeheartedly with JohnX’s comments. I had an HP Mini-Note with Linux for about a week in April. I ended up sending it back to HP because I could never get the wifi to work. But I wouldn’t have wanted to keep it even if I had been able to get the wifi working–mainly because the Linux network management tools that were included with the Mini-Note were almost useless. You should have heard the routine the tech support guy told me I would have to go through whenever I wanted to switch from one wifi network to another. There’s no way my wife would have ever taken the thing out to Starbucks if she had to log on as the Administrator, open YaST, change the network settings, save the new settings, enter a few commands at the command line and reboot–just to get a wifi connection. It’s my understanding that there are Linux tools available that are much more user-friendly. But for whatever reason HP did not include them with the Mini-Note. Or perhaps they were there all the time and even their tech support didn’t know about them. I’ve learned my lesson and will stick with Windows and OS X for the time being. Not because there’s anything wrong with Linux, but because my experience with HP’s implementation on the Mini-Note was so bad.

I would describe myself as a seasoned Linux user. I’ve been using (and administering) it for a little over 10 years now, and the thing I hate the most is when some company feels the need to knock together a poor quality spin-off from a mainstream distribution with no attention to upgrades or installing additional apps or long term support options. Yes, I understand that doing things the right way can take more time up front, but in the long run it’s the only real choice. Unsupported forks of distributions will cost netbook manufacturers more money in support and bad press than they could have possibly saved by not doing this correctly from the start.

As a Linux user I can honestly say that I’d rather see netbook manufacturers put only Windows on these then the half-baked inhouse custom Linux distribution(s) they’re using now. Really, it’s not helping anyone!

-John

Very true on the iTunes point and something we specifically point out in the next Podcast. Stay tuned!

Having shown this device to actual “mainstream users” the thing it doesn’t handle is: iTunes. Of course with an 8GB SSD drive it has two reasons it isn’t handling iTunes.

But when the XP version with 120GB HDD becomes readily available I expect it to sell like hot cakes to mainstreamers.