Again I feel linux mint is a better match for xp than ubuntu. Mint has adobe flash installed by default making it very grandm/a friendly and the control panel is like xp and found in the start menu in the lower left. If you want to configure the modem go to start -> control panel -> networking and there should be something there for modems although I have not configured a modem in probably ten years and it is not simple no matter what os (as compared to plug ethernet into router oh look its working) you may run into issues with winmodems but maybe this has been resolved but good luck finding the 2000 driver now a days anyway. ;-) Oh and the window buttons are on the right so you don't have to explain why having it on the left is better.
Matthias Johnson On Jul 30, 2010 2:23 PM, "Phil M Perry" <[email protected]> wrote: My father is trying to set up an old PC (10 or 12 year old Compaq Presario tower) to give to an elderly friend. She will be mostly doing email and a little Web surfing, and cannot be depended upon to keep OS and AV updates current. The box had Win 2000 on it, and he installed Win XP, but it refuses to fully boot up (apparently needs a new activation key from MS -- I know the disc has been already used 2 or 3 times). At my suggestion, he downloaded and burned a CD for Ubuntu 10.4. He says it (live CD) boots up OK and seems to work, but is frustrated finding things (he uses Vista himself). Does it sound like a good idea to use Linux (specifically Ubuntu) in this situation? He's a competent user but not terribly computer savvy, and she can turn the power switch "on" and not much beyond that. He can provide "local support" only about 5 months out of the year, at most. She's in a very rural area with probably no Linux geeks nearby. I'm too far away to give hands-on support to either of them. To add to the misery, she'll be only on dialup, and I'm guessing that the built-in modem is a WinModem. Does Ubuntu 10.4 have a cleaner way of configuring and using dialup than the 6.06 I last used dialup with? That is, GUI-based configuration and either autodial from Firefox or at worst, an on-screen dialer icon? Any of his old printers he gives her are probably WinPrinters. I know he could look up what's compatible online, but he's already complaining enough about how hard it is to find things with the GNOME screen. Should I gracefully withdraw my suggestion of using Ubuntu? I suggested using it because he wouldn't have to buy any Windows copies (the hardware probably won't support Win 7 or even Vista, anyway), and it could probably survive a year at a time without OS and AV upgrades. Regarding AV, the big problem is that her emails need to be checked for embedded nasties, so that she doesn't spread them around when she forwards things (apparently not all her friends run AV to check incoming mail). I'm open to suggestions on which AV to use (AVG?). The machine has something like .5GB RAM and 20 or so GB of disk, so it's a shame to send it to the dump. Any suggestions on how to proceed will be passed on to my father. Thanks! _______________________________________________ Mid-Hudson Valley Linux Users Group http://mhvlug.org http://mhvlug.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/mhvlug Upcoming Meetings (6pm - 8pm) MHVLS Auditorium Aug 4 - Samba Sep 1 - BOINC Oct 6 - Creating Firefox Extensions
_______________________________________________ Mid-Hudson Valley Linux Users Group http://mhvlug.org http://mhvlug.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/mhvlug Upcoming Meetings (6pm - 8pm) MHVLS Auditorium Aug 4 - Samba Sep 1 - BOINC Oct 6 - Creating Firefox Extensions
