If Ubuntu works flawlessly..

[Kannokki]

Just a quick question here.
If Ubuntu 11.04 works flawlessly on my eMachines E642G laptop, is it possible to get Arch Linux working flawlessly too ?

Currently I'm dualbooting Ubuntu and Windows 7, and I'm thinking about ditching both of these to learn something new. The thing I'm most worried about is my wireless.

If Ubuntu works, Arch works, right?

[snowpine]

Theoretically yes. The Arch Beginners Guide (which you should read immediately, if you haven't already) explains how to set up wireless networking.

My advice is to keep Windows, keep Ubuntu, and set up a triple-boot with Arch. Or run Arch inside of Ubuntu using VirtualBox.

Out of curiosity, what are you hoping to learn from Arch that can't also be learned from Ubuntu?

[Kannokki]

I'm not very happy with my current Ubuntu installation. I was messing around with Unity, Gnome and XFCE. I'm currently in a place where I can't get a new LiveCD to re-install, so I can't easily fix these mess-ups.

Out of curiosity, what are you hoping to learn from Arch that can't also be learned from Ubuntu?

I was reading random articles about Arch one day, and found this Installing Arch Linux, part 1: What Do You Want?

But now I want to build the house. I want to learn where the boards
go, where the pipes are, how everything is connected and why it
works.

I feel that in Ubuntu, someone else did all the work for me. I installed Ubuntu, because I believed that Ubuntu is the easiest distro to get working on my laptop. First I tried Fedora 15 LiveCD, and the wifi didn't work. Then I installed Ubuntu, and It worked out-of-the-box.

[doas777]

I feel that in Ubuntu, someone else did all the work for me. I installed Ubuntu, because I believed that Ubuntu is the easiest distro to get working on my laptop. First I tried Fedora 15 LiveCD, and the wifi didn't work. Then I installed Ubuntu, and It worked out-of-the-box.

there is some truth to that.

Arch is very flexible, so yes, in theory it is very possible to make everythign work well. that said, ubuntu does add drivers to their kernel image that do not exist in the vanilla, and they also provide some nice mechanisms for installing/upgrading proprietary drivers that Arch lacks. you can always install whatever drivers you need manually, but they need to be reinstalled with each kernel upgrade.

[snowpine]

A good first step is to figure out which wireless chipset your laptop has.

lspci

Also which module Ubuntu uses to make it work.

lsmod

Once you have that information you can make your wireless work in any distro (including Fedora).

ps You can also do a "boards and pipes" install of Ubuntu if you wish: http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntu/minimal

[Kannokki]

I think I'm going to give Arch a try. This laptop is my "number 2" computer, so it really doesn't matter if it's unusable for a while. I'll install Arch over Ubuntu, And if I can't get it working, I'll install Xubuntu. (I can't stand Unity or Gnome 3. )

[Bucky Ball]

Do a Ubuntu minimal install and work your way up. Build it as you like, or compile your own kernel. That way you will be building it and installing only what you want (right down to hardware drivers and modules if you like).

(PS: You can install xfce in Ubuntu, naturally, if you can't stand Unity or Gnome, without installing Xubuntu. Having said that ... I generally run a stripped back Xubuntu.)

[Kannokki]

ps You can also do a "boards and pipes" install of Ubuntu if you wish: http://www.psychocats.net/ubuntu/minimal

This caught my interest. I shall read more about this.

[Kannokki]

Thanks to everyone posting in this thread. I shall mark this thread as [SOLVED]

[snowpine]

I'll repeat my advice above about using "lspci" and "lsmod" to learn more about your hardware before you make the leap.