Just recently I upgraded to a bigger hard drive (From 40 gigs to 120 gigs) so I decided to give Linux a try so I made a 20 gig partition. I tried all of the current version major varients of Linux including RedHat, Mandriva, SUSE, and (K)Ubuntu. Plus Linspire and its free version Freespire. Though, ironically enough, Freespire has more features in it than Linspire.
Let me tell you Linux is still not ready for primetime when it comes to device support, especially when it comes to audio and video. Some worked fine with my Audigy 2 and some didn't. The same with my Creative Labs PC-CAM 300 webcam/digital camera. None with my Microsoft VX 3000 webcam. They all supported my iPod Video, though. The only variant that worked well with all of my equipment was Freespire. In fact it, and Linspire were the easiest to setup and install updates with.
All of this made me appreciate Windows more. Yes, its bloated and such, but it still handles much better than Linux.
da_monumental_1 The Learned
Joined: Mar 28, 2003
Posts: 152
Location: Lumberton, NC
Posted:
Mon Dec 04, 2006 4:38 pm
Ever try a Windows install?
Well, I just did a clean format and reinstall on this Toshiba S2692. Guess what? NO NETWORK! I had to download all
this
via a linux rescue disc. Next time, I guess I'll have to slipsteam a personalized Windows SP2 cd and be sure to include the damn drivers, especially the
network ones
. (This has been a problem of Windows since the Win95 days and it's still a problem with Vista)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
What's the point of having one of these affixed, when the majority of your hardware doesn't work after a clean reinstall?
Seriously, use whatever tool that does the job. No OS is perfect. All have strengths and weaknesses. Just be sure to check if your hardware is supported next time you test the alternative OS waters.
P.S. Did you know there's a Linux channel in IG IRC? You could have asked for help. By the way,
both of your cameras are supported
. Both use the SPCA5xx/GSPCA(newer) driver. I have a similar cam that has the same hardware as yours and it works fine. I actually use eight of them as security cameras via
Zoneminder
. Try running a video surveillance system on Windows2K3 with more than three of these devices.
I don't want Linux dumbed down or made userfriendly. I want people to stay on Windows. If they switch, I don't eat.
Eyedunno Grand Poster
Joined: Aug 14, 2005
Posts: 1301
Location: Okaya, Japan
Posted:
Mon Dec 04, 2006 8:25 pm
A little off topic, but why not just use both hard drives and install Linux to the 40 gig one?
sjc Thinker
Joined: Nov 12, 2006
Posts: 423
Posted:
Mon Dec 04, 2006 8:43 pm
da_monumental_1 wrote:
Ever try a Windows install?
Well, I just did a clean format and reinstall on this Toshiba S2692. Guess what? NO NETWORK! I had to download all
this
via a linux rescue disc. Next time, I guess I'll have to slipsteam a personalized Windows SP2 cd and be sure to include the damn drivers, especially the
network ones
. (This has been a problem of Windows since the Win95 days and it's still a problem with Vista)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
What's the point of having one of these affixed, when the majority of your hardware doesn't work after a clean reinstall?
Seriously, use whatever tool that does the job. No OS is perfect. All have strengths and weaknesses. Just be sure to check if your hardware is supported next time you test the alternative OS waters.
P.S. Did you know there's a Linux channel in IG IRC? You could have asked for help. By the way,
both of your cameras are supported
. Both use the SPCA5xx/GSPCA(newer) driver. I have a similar cam that has the same hardware as yours and it works fine. I actually use eight of them as security cameras via
Zoneminder
. Try running a video surveillance system on Windows2K3 with more than three of these devices.
I don't want Linux dumbed down or made userfriendly. I want people to stay on Windows. If they switch, I don't eat.
I've still had far less trouble with Windows than I've had with Linux. I did check to see if my hardware was supported. Most claimed that what I had worked, and I did use those drivers, but their operation was quite spotty. Its not as if I'm a noobie with this sort of thing. I have over 25 years experience with computers and not just with Windows. Plus, I don't like the idea of having to compile programs. Yes, there is .rpm and .deb, but there is still a lot that have to be compiled. As I had said, the only one which worked decent enough was Freespire. SUSE was the worse one. I also preferred the KDE desktop environment over Gnome.
BTW, there are programs under Windows which do allow for using more than a few webcams at a time.
Last edited by sjc on Mon Dec 04, 2006 9:07 pm; edited 2 times in total
sjc Thinker
Joined: Nov 12, 2006
Posts: 423
Posted:
Mon Dec 04, 2006 8:48 pm
Eyedunno wrote:
A little off topic, but why not just use both hard drives and install Linux to the 40 gig one?
I tried that first thing. It didn't work even though the CMOS of my motherboard does have the option in it. I have the 40 in an external USB enclosure now and it doesn't support booting according to the manufacturer. I'm using that for backup storage of my downloads instead until I can burn them to CD/DVD.
Eyedunno Grand Poster
Joined: Aug 14, 2005
Posts: 1301
Location: Okaya, Japan
Posted:
Mon Dec 04, 2006 10:08 pm
sjc wrote:
Eyedunno wrote:
A little off topic, but why not just use both hard drives and install Linux to the 40 gig one?
I tried that first thing. It didn't work even though the CMOS of my motherboard does have the option in it. I have the 40 in an external USB enclosure now and it doesn't support booting according to the manufacturer. I'm using that for backup storage of my downloads instead until I can burn them to CD/DVD.
I apologize if this is too obvious, but are you sure you had the jumper settings on the drives themselves properly set to either master for the new drive and slave for the old one (I personally feel most comfortable with this), or to cable select for both (and the new drive in the master position on the cable)?
sjc Thinker
Joined: Nov 12, 2006
Posts: 423
Posted:
Mon Dec 04, 2006 11:31 pm
Eyedunno wrote:
I apologize if this is too obvious, but are you sure you had the jumper settings on the drives themselves properly set to either master for the new drive and slave for the old one (I personally feel most comfortable with this), or to cable select for both (and the new drive in the master position on the cable)?
I had it all set properly. My main drive is a SATA now while my older one is an IDE (ATA). If it weren't set right I wouldn't be able to read from it at all. Both Windows and all of the linuxes picked the IDE up as well with no problem otherwise.
Eyedunno Grand Poster
Joined: Aug 14, 2005
Posts: 1301
Location: Okaya, Japan
Posted:
Mon Dec 04, 2006 11:46 pm
Wow, I'm really behind the times. I'd never even heard of SATA. I'm thinking it would be sweet to run Linux from a flash disk plugged into SATA, with /home/ and other stuff that tends to get updated frequently on a standard HDD.
sjc Thinker
Joined: Nov 12, 2006
Posts: 423
Posted:
Tue Dec 05, 2006 2:31 am
Eyedunno wrote:
Wow, I'm really behind the times. I'd never even heard of SATA. I'm thinking it would be sweet to run Linux from a flash disk plugged into SATA, with /home/ and other stuff that tends to get updated frequently on a standard HDD.
Serial ATA is up to around an equivalent of a DMA 300, Mine is a 1st gen at only 150. An ATA I think can only go up to 133. My older drive is a DMA 66.
Aren't flash disks for USB?
da_monumental_1 The Learned
Joined: Mar 28, 2003
Posts: 152
Location: Lumberton, NC
Posted:
Tue Dec 05, 2006 7:06 am
sjc wrote:
I've still had far less trouble with Windows than I've had with Linux. I did check to see if my hardware was supported. Most claimed that what I had worked, and I did use those drivers, but their operation was quite spotty. Its not as if I'm a noobie with this sort of thing. I have over 25 years experience with computers and not just with Windows. Plus, I don't like the idea of having to compile programs. Yes, there is .rpm and .deb, but there is still a lot that have to be compiled. As I had said, the only one which worked decent enough was Freespire. SUSE was the worse one. I also preferred the KDE desktop environment over Gnome.
BTW, there are programs under Windows which do allow for using more than a few webcams at a time.
Not for what I need. I wouldn't dare put a video surveillance system on a WinTel box.
Everyone's experience is going to be different. Use whatever does the job. Like I said earlier, every OS has it's strengths and weaknesses.
sjc Thinker
Joined: Nov 12, 2006
Posts: 423
Posted:
Wed Dec 06, 2006 6:30 am
Right now I'm trying out a pre-cracked copy of Vista Ultimate Edition, with all of the crap taken out (vLite) until my copy of Home Basic comes out at the end of next month. So far so good, but I hope the new compatible drivers are ready soon.
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(This has been a problem of Windows since the Win95 days and it's still a problem with Vista)
Try running a video surveillance system on Windows2K3 with more than three of these devices.
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