Favorite Netbook OS?

[cartisdm]

Mint 8, Ubuntu NBR, any other suggestions?

EDIT: Please say why you like your choice too!

[AllRadioisDead]

eeebuntu?

[earthpigg]

none of those, to be honest.

especially not UNR. it adds stuff to the already heavyweight ubuntu-desktop, and would be slower than plain-jane ubuntu.

"hey, these computers have slower CPU's and less resources. Lets make a bigger distro with more stuff in between the user and the apps he wants to run! that is bound to go down nicely..."

what if we took something lighter than gnome or kde or xfce, and then added the bare-minimum to have a small-screen-friendly interface?

http://lxde.org/sites/default/files/images/lxlauncher.preview.png

LXDE (http://lxde.org/) with lxlauncher (http://lxde.org/lxlauncher).

less idle CPU usage, and less RAM usage than anything based on or around GNOME/KDE/XFCE. less RAM used means less of a need and less use of swap space, meaning you can actually use all of that small hard drive for what you wish.

if you think it's a nifty idea, look here (http://sites.google.com/site/masonux/downloads) for 9.04 and here for 9.10 (http://sites.google.com/site/masonux/home/notes-to-myself).

[Isengrin]

I use Arch for everything (I've read some complaints about Archers here but don't worry, I won't try to put Arch inside your nose).

Then I just set a WM according to the screen, like Openbox with a minimal theme and a slim panel.

The gain, is that Arch being a very lightweight distro with a bare system as base, low resource computers run smoothly. \o/

[cartisdm]

none of those, to be honest.

especially not UNR. it adds stuff to the already heavyweight ubuntu-desktop, and would be slower than plain-jane ubuntu.

"hey, these computers have slower CPU's and less resources. Lets make a bigger distro with more stuff in between the user and the apps he wants to run! that is bound to go down nicely..."

what if we took something lighter than gnome or kde or xfce, and then added the bare-minimum to have a small-screen-friendly interface?

http://lxde.org/sites/default/files/images/lxlauncher.preview.png

LXDE (http://lxde.org/) with lxlauncher (http://lxde.org/lxlauncher).

less idle CPU usage, and less RAM usage than anything based on or around GNOME/KDE/XFCE. less RAM used means less of a need and less use of swap space, meaning you can actually use all of that small hard drive for what you wish.

if you think it's a nifty idea, look here (http://sites.google.com/site/masonux/downloads) for 9.04 and here for 9.10 (http://sites.google.com/site/masonux/home/notes-to-myself).

Hry great suggestion! I had no idea NBR was a larger install, I just assumed it was refined for the Atom processors. I will look into all my options!

[earthpigg]

I use Arch for everything (I've read some complaints about Archers here but don't worry, I won't try to put Arh inside your nose).

im an arch user. i kinda think arch is crap on a netbook, to be honest. i want pointy-clicky system administration and stability from an appliance.

what i greatly look forward to is a fire-and-forget lxde+lxlauncher setup that will come with 10.04 LTS.

the only reason my netbook currently doesn't still have 9.04 or 8.10 on it is because i've been formatting it recently to try and get masonux 9.10 up and running.

[t0p]

I like Eeebuntu. My EeePC's currently running Eeebuntu 3 - basically Ubuntu Jaunty with a custom kernel and some scripts to enable ACPI stuff. You can get it with standard Gnome graphic environment (my fave) or the netbook remix interface. There's also a beta version with LXDE.

My EeePC 701 is one of the early netbooks, with a measly 4GB SSD! Luckily, you can get Eeebuntu in a Base version, which comes with a bunch of superfluous software stripped away. I installed the Base version, then added any extra software I felt I needed - better than starting with too much and deleting stuff.

I don't know when a Karmic version will be released. But the current version is cool.

EDIT: If anyone fancies trying out ChromeOS on their netbook, there's a guide here (http://lifehacker.com/5416968/). It covers running it on a virtual machine, and from a USB drive. There's a link to a guide how to transfer a virtual image to a USB stick to run on an EeePC too, which I might check out. I'm not overly keen on the idea of an OS reliant on the "cloud" for much of its functionality - but it's an interesting concept nevertheless.

[Bachstelze]

Stock Ubuntu. Currently running it with Fluxbox on my Eee 701 (though honeslty, I don't use it much since I got my MacBook, I got it mostly to replace my old big Asus laptop).

[cartisdm]

Question. How is Linux Mint able to get away with having all the extra repositories installed but Ubuntu isn't?

[mamamia88]

i just got my netbook in the mail running windows 7 starter and am suprised by how snappy it is. i installed all the crap that came on it and i really like it. think i am just going to leave it on here for now.

[doorknob60]

*hopes not to get yelled at*
Arch. You can make it as light as you want, and it just seems like a very fitting distro. You can set it up the way you want, instead of choosing from a couple choices of different distros. If I had a netbook, I'd certainly use Arch on it.

[earthpigg]

*hopes not to get yelled at*
Arch. You can make it as light as you want, and it just seems like a very fitting distro. You can set it up the way you want, instead of choosing from a couple choices of different distros. If I had a netbook, I'd certainly use Arch on it.

i fail to see how any of that is any different from an ubuntu command line install.

having installed both arch and ubuntu several times:

i am sure an arch install with WM "X" and DE "Y" will take up slightly less ram and hard drive space, and maybe fewer CPU cycles while idle, than an ubuntu CLI install with WM "X" and DE "Y" added to it...

...i am also sure the ubuntu install would be significantly more stable.

[nw2001]

i fail to see how any of that is any different from an ubuntu command line install.

having installed both arch and ubuntu several times:

i am sure an arch install with WM "X" and DE "Y" will take up slightly less ram and hard drive space, and maybe fewer CPU cycles while idle, than an ubuntu CLI install with WM "X" and DE "Y" added to it...

...i am also sure the ubuntu install would be significantly more stable.
Significantly more stable? I have never had stability problems with either distro, Stability comes from experience, Arch gives you access to more stuff that could potentially break things, but thats only if the thing between the chair and the keyboard messes with things in the first place.(Not saying you cant access the same things in ubuntu, its just slightly better hidden away from noobs like me)

Only time I've ever had trouble with stability on either was when for some reason neither distro would grab the correct res for my monitor(Which I fixed thanks to some awesome info online), or on arch when I reformatted and a Xorg version came out that broke compatability with my nvidia drivers, There was a fix from the community though and nvidia fixed it by updating shortly after.

As for Requirements, and Speed, I dont think anyone has ever actually compared the two, so anyone using that as part of their debate is relying on something that hasnt been proven yet anyways.(Arch fanboys included.)
Do feel free to prove me wrong however, I'd love to see a comparison of speed between the two minimal versions of my favorite distros.


TLDR, Its all up to personal taste, no one is right or wrong, some prefer arch, some like Ubuntu, some like Ubuntu minimal. Me? I like both, I just dont have the space to install more than one.(Not to mention I'm incredibly lazy... but thats something else:P)

[Grifulkin]

I also use Arch on everything and I use Arch+LXDE on my netbook and it gets better battery life than WinXP. But yeah I would say install Arch but just because it runs nice on limited hardware.

[doorknob60]

i fail to see how any of that is any different from an ubuntu command line install.

having installed both arch and ubuntu several times:

i am sure an arch install with WM "X" and DE "Y" will take up slightly less ram and hard drive space, and maybe fewer CPU cycles while idle, than an ubuntu CLI install with WM "X" and DE "Y" added to it...

...i am also sure the ubuntu install would be significantly more stable.

It's not a lot different than doing that, either way works well, I just think Arch does a better job at that than Ubuntu does (and Ubuntu does a better job at out of the box set up). Stability? No comment, it depends on a lot of things, and I find both distros very stable, at least until I start messing with [testing] and -git kernel modules and xorg drivers :-P It's up to what you'd rather use on your netbook really, experiment, and see what you like best and what works best. That's what I did, and that's why I ended up using Arch.

[snowpine]

My Dell Mini 9 has been running Arch+LXDE for a while. My EEE 900ha was running Cruncheee (CrunchBang 8.10 optimized for the EEE) but now I'm in the market for something new (currently testing Sabayon).

Ubuntu "significantly more stable" compared with other distros, that's funny stuff. :)

[Pott]

I use Kuki with the custom kernel for the Acer A1 first gen (ZG5 with 512MB RAM, 8GB SSD).
It's got low RAM capacity so it's pretty slow anyway. BUT it's not slower than the stock OS (Linpus) and it keeps the same battery life, which is brilliant. Everything works just fine and it's still Ubuntu, so I was able to put in a Conky file, nice background etc...

It's based on Jaunty.

[Psumi]

No netbook OS because I hate netbooks?

[Uncle Spellbinder]

Question. How is Linux Mint able to get away with having all the extra repositories installed but Ubuntu isn't?

All the extra repositories? Mint 8 is based on Ubuntu Karmic. They use the Karmic repos and Mint Repos. the only "extra" is Medibuntu. This is how all necessary multimedia codecs are installed along with the OS.

[alphaniner]

Question. How is Linux Mint able to get away with having all the extra repositories installed but Ubuntu isn't?

You're not supposed to ask such things.

[NormanFLinux]

Kubuntu Netbook Remix and LXDE. Another choice would be Jolicloud but its coming out of Alpha only on December 10th.

[llelectronics]

Try perhaps ZevenOS. It runs very good and fast on my eeePC 701.

http://www.zevenos.com

It has a netbook like app launcher and configuration center called MAGI 2 and is optimized for netbooks.
Its optimized on functionality and not graphical 3D like effects.

[NormanFLinux]

I think the Deskbar can be taken further by allowing application icons to be added to it so you would have a one-click launcher like that in netbook remixes. Right now there is no way to customize the Deskbar. Zeebar works great in that respect so its customizability could be extended to the Deskbar for the next release. And its still missing a Tracker and replicants like in good old BEOS. And yes - the base of ZevenOS is good old XFCE borrowed from Xubuntu.

Its fast and stable.

[llelectronics]

You can modify the links in Deskbar by setting the default application in MAGI 2.
But you are right there is no way to add software to the menu yet.
That has its advantages and disadvanteges.
The best advantage is that you have a slick and clean applications menu no matter how much software you might install.
The disadvantage is when you installed a special software and want to start it quickly you need to do this in a different way.

A Tracker clone is not planned. (thunar and pcmanfm are good alternatives already)
Replicant behavior is already possible via the sawfish window manager.

[NormanFLinux]

Sure, you can modify links in MAGI 2. A better alternative would be to allow a list of applications to be docked to the Deskbar that could be edited as needed, like Zeebar. So the Deskbar can be kept slick and clean with just a few essential applications like at present. The applications list, like Zeebar could be closed and the only thing that needs to be done is to make it vertical so it can be docked to the Deskbar and closed like Zeebar.

The current Linux file managers already show the contents of a folder view just like the BEOS Tracker did. As for replicants, Haiku is working on Repli-Show, a GUI for them and the Sawfish windows manager as you noted already shows them - it would be cool though to display them in a small applet on the desktop.

Back to the Deskbar, while you could put all the icons in Deskbar but then it would get crowded. Much better to have a vertical running list that can be opened and closed by user at his convenience. That would be the only real improvement that could be made to ZevenOS in the future.

[earthpigg]

Question. How is Linux Mint able to get away with having all the extra repositories installed but Ubuntu isn't?

-not a corporation or person with millions of dollars, no one worth filing a law suit against.

-not in the US. only the US and Japan have one specific version of silly software patent laws. if you look at the mint 'about' page where it lists developers, there are several that list their location as "earth" and have no trace of their actual identity... i have a conjecture that many/most of the anonymous mint devs are American.

-if the US banned linux mint from 'operating' in the united states... well, good luck enforcing that.

-the lead dev of Mint is Irish.

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/categories/justice/arrests/extradition_to_and_from_Ireland

Extradition from Ireland to non-EU Countries

You are charged with an offence: punished by imprisonment in Ireland and in the other country for at least a year. Or, you are convicted of such an offence, and a sentence of at least four months has been imposed. This principle, that the offence must be the same in the two countries is known as the principle of dual criminality. You may not be extradited if you are going to be held in custody for the purpose of investigation.

as long as Clem is breaking no EU or Irish laws, he is immune from extradition from Ireland.

[mr-woof]

after trying quite a few out, i've left unr 9.04 on my eee901 and crunchbang installed on a 4gb sd card. Unr works very well, it's quite snappy and I can install all the software i'm used to using from my ubuntu desktop :)

[markbuntu]

I also have kuki on my aspire one. It is very good with this machine since it is specifically remixed for it with a custom 2.6.31 kernel, XFCE, and everything works OOB. It is based on Jaunty so that repo is available.

Unfortunately the lead devs are currently on hiatus. I hope it is not for long.

[aysiu]

I've had two netbooks (Eee PC 701 and HP Mini 1120nr), and I've tried all sorts of supposed "netbook distros."

The one I still like the best is vanilla Ubuntu. The lpia kernel doesn't really offer much over generic i386. And the screen real estate is small, but not so small that I need application launchers taking over my entire screen.

[jollysnowman]

CrunchBang!

[cartisdm]

-not a corporation or person with millions of dollars, no one worth filing a law suit against.

-not in the US. only the US and Japan have one specific version of silly software patent laws. if you look at the mint 'about' page where it lists developers, there are several that list their location as "earth" and have no trace of their actual identity... i have a conjecture that many/most of the anonymous mint devs are American.

-if the US banned linux mint from 'operating' in the united states... well, good luck enforcing that.

-the lead dev of Mint is Irish.


Wow, thanks for the info!

[vicshrike]

crunchbang and unr

[cartisdm]

I just installed Mint 8 and I love the look of it. It's extremely quick and responsive too. I have only been trying for about 10 minutes but I can't seem to get the wireless working. Not a lot of posts on google floating around either so that seems weird to me.

I will keep you updated though!

[earthpigg]

I just installed Mint 8 and I love the look of it. It's extremely quick and responsive too. I have only been trying for about 10 minutes but I can't seem to get the wireless working. Not a lot of posts on google floating around either so that seems weird to me.

I will keep you updated though!

does the corresponding ubuntu version support wireless on this device?

try to find out the answer to that, and try applying the ubuntu solution.

iirc: mint 8 is based on ubuntu 9.10, and 7 is 9.04.

[cartisdm]

does the corresponding ubuntu version support wireless on this device?

try to find out the answer to that, and try applying the ubuntu solution.

iirc: mint 8 is based on ubuntu 9.10, and 7 is 9.04.

Got it! For some reason when I enabled 3rd party drivers it didn't activate the first time so I did it again, rebooted, and DING! Wireless internet.

No, I've noticed it has an option for using "Two Finger Scrolling" for the touchpad. I enabled it just hoping it would be chance work...it didn't. Are the a lot of multi-touch touchpads on laptops now?

[earthpigg]

Are the a lot of multi-touch touchpads on laptops now?

it does not work on my 3 year old laptop, but it does work on my 1 year old netbook.

so... i do not know :D

[cartisdm]

it does not work on my 3 year old laptop, but it does work on my 1 year old netbook.

so... i do not know :D

I did some googling and it doesn't look like the HP Mini 1030nr supports multi-touch....bummer. I'd like to think maybe there is a hack of some sort that could get it working but I don't think it would work since it's a matter of the touchpad technology.... :(

[proxess]

Nothing better than your own build! :guitar:

[cartisdm]

Are the a lot of multi-touch touchpads on laptops now?

So....I'm not gonna say what OS I installed (very mainstream, it gets installed on very shiny expensive computers) but for some reason IT LETS ME USE MULTI-TOUCH. What the heck? Why can't I use two finger scrolling in any Linux distros or even Windows for that matter?

[benjaminsuman]

I'm running UNR 9.10 on my Mini9. It's not the lightest distro, but I like the interface and customizations that they have made for running on the small screen.

[Grifulkin]

So....I'm not gonna say what OS I installed (very mainstream, it gets installed on very shiny expensive computers) but for some reason IT LETS ME USE MULTI-TOUCH. What the heck? Why can't I use two finger scrolling in any Linux distros or even Windows for that matter?

Arch Linux ?!?!?!?!?!? :-o

[scout4536]

Jolicloud, runs perfectly on DELL Mini 10.

[gutterslob]

CrunchBang Lite... it's the best among all those I've tried.

Minimal Debian (Testing) or Arch works well if used with lightweight window managers.

Tried Moblin... impressive, but still needs a lot of polishing.

Ubuntu Netbook Remix is decent, but nothing special.... Kubuntu Netbook Edition looks great (if you like all the gloss), but feels very slow and buggy.

Just my 2 cents.

Cheers.