thanks to your feedback. Good evening Fellow Penguins, I would like to start off that i agree with Effie on most points, how ever if your friend has certain peripherals to be connected they ought to be considered when making the switch.I admit i am not a 100% linux user now i am more of a 45% user of linux, Linux has come a long way and still has a long road ahead and this is what i take into consideration when recommending linux. 1. What level of computer knowledge do they have 2. Have they ever used Linux in the past or are able to adapt to "change" 3. what will s/he will be using i for 4. Are there any Specific requirements (this may be from software to hardware) 5. will it be connected to a network and able to be given support(Daniel you should know about MCA & MITA's intolerance to no control on OSS) 6. what is his estimated Budget and how long those he want it to serve him these are a few questions that can help in 1. purchasing a new system, 2. what OS/Software will be needed and 3. (most important) Availability of Support when something mysteriously F***s up Also if i am not mistaken Dell Stopped Selling the "ubuntu 10.10 or 10.04" laptop as only 20 units where sold locally (got my own contacts), and if he is looking for a cost reduced system it is best to by it with out an OS saves a minimum of €100 off the price. Also effie i am surprised that they even let you user "thier" wifi let alone run a liveCD... I also have some traders that import from mainland Europe and are able to provide me with discounted laptops with no OS should there be a need. Hope i have helped in some small way and not scared him away as most people aren't ready for Change let alone committing to it. Peace, Warren Camilleri p.s i found Mint LXDE quite handy for old systems, unity is favered by my little brother who i kinda forced into using... And i am still looking for a replacement to "Twieqi" in regards to gaming and Graphic design :S hence my usage of "Twieqi" as for general usage i still consider these distros Ubuntu, OpenSuse, and still need to test Mints Gnome as i am a somewhat simple user (mac like user). ----- Original Message -----From: "Effie Ciantar @ GMail" <[email protected]> To: "Malta Linux User Group - general list" <[email protected]> Sent: Monday, April 2, 2012 10:45:30 PM Subject: Re: [LINUX.ORG.MT] Open source Operating system in a laptop Dear Daniel, Last October, I tried to buy a Linux based laptop and had considerable difficult in finding one without windows pre-installed. Eventually, I found that DELL (next door to SCAN in Marsa) had one which they offered with Windows or without an operating system. So I took along with me a live Ubuntu distribution so that I could check that all the hardware was recognised and after I convinced them that the hard disk would not be touched, they allowed me to boot from it and it was OK (they even allowed me to log on into their WiFi to check it!). So I bought this DELL laptop and have had no problems with it. My only grudge is that it does not have F keys - instead, the function of F keys is obtained by pressing the function key [Fn] along with the top-row numeric keys. Of course, certain short-cuts (like Alt-F4 to close a window) with is very quick and easy with a single hand, becomes fiddly as you have to use both hands to press the function key and Alt 4. Nevertheless, I have saved a nice sum for not buying windows and it is serving me well. But before rushing into buying such a laptop, it is worth considering what printer he has. As you know, not all printers support Linux equally well. Also worth considering is what distro to go for - I would suggest something easy and attractive like Kubuntu, Mint or Knoppix. But most important of all, if he has never used Linux before, perhaps he ought to consider a Windows lap-top and dual booting it into Linux. That way, he will always have a fall-back position if he finds a problem until he gets accustomed to Linux. That's my penny's worth :) Effie. On Mon, 2012-04-02 at 19:41 +0200, Daniel wrote:This evening I was talking to a teacher who is a friend of mine and who is interested in buying a new laptop for himself. I told him that he should consider buying an open source one and he seems highly interested even because of the values behind the OS. Would you have any suggestions on what best to look for and if possible cheaper prices as well? Daniel -- _______________________________________________ MLUG-list mailing list [email protected] http://linux.org.mt/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/mlug-list_______________________________________________ MLUG-list mailing list [email protected] http://linux.org.mt/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/mlug-list_______________________________________________ MLUG-list mailing list [email protected] http://linux.org.mt/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/mlug-list --
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