Best Linux version/distro for XPS2 ?

Fedora Core works fine on my XPS2, I have it running from an external USB2 drive along with OSX86
Note if you want to run it from an external USB2 drive you'll have to create a new init.rd plus a few other things, not for newcomers !! But I can dig out the instructions if you want to try . . .

Jason.

im also interested, when you say a usb2 drive do you mean an external usb2 drive.

bump

Yes, external.

I'll try to dig out all the information as I did it about 4 weeks ago,

Jason.

Edit try this :

http://www.vigla.eclipse.co.uk/usb_install.pdf

Yoiu'll have to adjust it slightly here and there to your own needs :P

If it's your first foray into Linux, I'd recommend Suse. It's a good install process and auto-configures everything fairly well. It's very user friendly....for linux that is.

However, why put Linux on your lappie if you've got an XPS2? Linux is lousy for gaming... "In general.."

Quote Groove75 : However, why put DODGY OS on your lappie if you've got an XPS2? DODGY OS is lousy for gaming... "In general.."

As above, there's many posts asking about Linux thru OSX86, and we as a community are here to answer them. Not everyone uses thier XPS2 for gaming

Jason.

PS, as you've installed SUSE can you explain why and the benefits you've found with SUSE Linux on the XPS 2 over other Linux distros ??

Not flaming, just curious as there aren't many Linux users here. I found 9.3 difficult to install fully inc. all system drivers, but 10.0 or 10.1 beta is getting there

Jason.

SuSE 9.3 proffesional over here ( theproffesional is much better than personal btw)

Nobody is asking the OP to "not ask" about a linux distro. It's also a perfectly reasonable assumption that an XPS2 user would be doing quite a bit of gaming. After all, it is a "gaming" laptop. Otherwise, why pay for the 6800 Ultra or 7800 if you aren't going to use it to it's full capacity, eh? The video card, after all, was made to play games.

Anyway, I'm no Linux expert. I've used mandrake, suse, redhat, slackware, and debian. I thought Suse was the easiest (desktop) distro to install and get running, and it would probably be the only one I would recommend to a friend if they wanted to "try linux" with minimal amount of grief. I don't have it on my 9300, but I read that the install on the 9300 was relatively painless, hence I recommended it.

To the OP: I think doing a dual boot is a good idea, especially if this is more for school research or education. I don't think it should really matter which one you decide to use, just make sure that someone else has tried that particular distro on their XPS2/9300 and had minimal problems. I don't have the url handy, but I read several reviews of people that had installed Suse on their 9300/XPS2 and had a relatively smooth experience. That might be true of other distro's, but in the end, it's all Linux and doesn't really matter. You just want to make sure it's one that "works" for your particular hardware platform. Having to hunt down drivers and hack shell scripts to get things working can be a horror experience for someone new to the OS.

I liked FC for a long time, but eventually got sick of having to reinstall every 12 months. Setting up the wireless is a bit of a pain on FC too--at least it was for me. I switched to SuSE 9.3 even though it is more GUI, but I am pretty happy. Pocket Linux looks nice if you want a lean OS. I haven't tried it yet, so do some research.

Edit: I am going to try that USB drive boot tweak out. It looks like I can do it on SuSE without having to modify anything other than the boot sequence in BIOS.

Good reply, but Linux is a future OS that we all have to grasp one day. In the workplace, school or at home.

And if anyone needs the help to run Linux on thier XPS2 what a good place to start !!

Jason.

I'm installing Ubuntu tonight. Screw Windows; I'm tired of dealing with it's crap. And I am qualified to say that.

Top 10 distros

-Doc

Thanks for that great link Doc. There seems to be a lot of interest in Linux here, and I must admit it has my curiosity piqued. I would like to try Linux as a dual boot, as I am not ready to totally $hitcan Windows yet. Might there be an idiot proof guide showing one how to install Linux onto a partition for a dual boot system? Thanks.....

Ubuntu or Kubuntu are great choices for Linux desktop. I have been using Ubuntu since 4.10 and i love it.

Ubuntu guide must have for all ubuntu users!

Ubuntu 5.10 installation screenshots
Kubuntu 5.10 installation screenshots

I'm currently using Fedora Core 3. Previously I've used Fedora Core 2 and Red Hat 7.3. I just downloaded the ubuntu live cd, figure I'll give that a whirl

Do you have a source for NIC drivers? Looking for a linux driver for the Atheros 5005 chipset.

-Doc

for anyone interested, try downloading vmware player http://www.vmware.com/products/player/ and use the browser appliance http://www.vmware.com/vmtn/vm/browserapp.html

it is a stripped down ubuntu made mostly just for firefox, but it gives you a taste of the UI. BTW, you can also use KDE instead of Gnome(compare the kubuntu and ubuntu screenshots, ubuntu uses gnome by defualt)

Edit: doc, ubuntu supports the integrated intel OOB. if you must use the atheros, you will probably have to use ndiswrapper, which uses the windows druver under linux(a kinda messy/complicated solution, unfortunatly). there are a ton of guides on how to do it, google for one. i personally have never used it so i have no experience.

I've been a Linux (Debian being my choice) user since 1995 and because of my job I needed to test many Linux distros. I've found that one of the best ways to test or play with Linux is to get VMWare which allows you to install and run a number of distros without messing around with your drive and partitions.

If you dont wish to use VMWare there are a number of Live CDs and DVDs out there. These Live disks run entirely from the cd/dvd and can even be loaded into the systems RAM allowing you to remove the disk. Great for learning and can be amazing emergency disks.

Checkout LinuxPickup as they have a good number of Linux cd and dvd distributions along with many Live disks. Their menu makes it simple to view Popular distros, Live disks as well as Specialty and General distributions.

Yay for Ubuntu Doc. thats the way to go.