Best Netbook for Ubuntu

[Kernellinux]

Greetings all!

I am a happy Fedora user that has ventured into your side of the galaxy. (Hey, at least I'm not a Windows user).

I was asked to help purchase a netbook that will have Ubuntu installed for a guy's daughter. He originally picked out an Asus 1025C but returned it becuase 1. The screen resolution on 12.04 did not support past 800x600, and 2. "TuxRacer2" does not run properly (which isn't terribly surprising given that it only has 1gb of ram). The end user is not experienced in linux at all. His daughter's school uses ubuntu exclusively on the laptops they loan the kids so apparently she's familiar with the UI. So the question is...

Who has a netbook that just installed Ubuntu on and didn't need tweaking, to get it working properly. I defaulted to 12.04 but some internet research seems to suggest that 12.04 is still a little premature and that 11 is a more stable platform. I searched through the forum but most questions are about how to get Ubuntu to work on a given device. What do you all think?

Thanks in advance.

[ajgreeny]

To be honest, on a netbook I would not suggest Ubuntu at all, but rather Xubuntu or Lubuntu, though I accept that Ubutnu may be preferred as it is the GUI already known by the eventual user. Is the school using 12.04, which is very different to most previous versions with the gnome desktop, as it is using unity.

I suggest you find out which GUI/DE the daughter's school uses, and if it is classic gnome you could perhaps still use Ubuntu 12.04, but follow the info at http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1966370 to turn it into the standard desktop that she is used to.

[DingusFett]

I've heard good things about the eeepc range, but either way with a netbook you'll find it fairly slow simply because of the processors and ram. I'd spend the little bit extra for a 14" laptop or similar that can be had reasonably cheap with ~4GB of RAM.

As for resolution, it sounds like a graphics drivers issue.

[carl4926]

My Asus eeepc runs fine with Ubuntu. In fact I have a better experience than with l/xububtu

[mastablasta]

I've heard good things about the eeepc range, but either way with a netbook you'll find it fairly slow simply because of the processors and ram. I'd spend the little bit extra for a 14" laptop or similar that can be had reasonably cheap with ~4GB of RAM..
that would also make it a lot heavier. if i want a netbook (which i am thinking of getting) it is because they are (can be) much lighter than classic notebooks. yet are cheaper than ultrabooks.


As for resolution, it sounds like a graphics drivers issue.

yes it would seem so. Atom 2700 apparently has bad graphics driver support.

[idoitprone]

that would also make it a lot heavier. if i want a netbook (which i am thinking of getting) it is because they are (can be) much lighter than classic notebooks. yet are cheaper than ultrabooks.


yes it would seem so. Atom 2700 apparently has bad graphics driver support.

well atom 2700 does not have intel graphics. It has a powervr chip inside

I might recommend the op to consider getting amd bobcat solutions
cost mayebe 50-100 dollars more but the benefit out weigh the cost, since its a better computer overall. Amd do not cripple their chips.

[audiomick]

I've had a Lenovo Ideapad running 10.04 LTS (the previous but still supported long term support version from April 2010). It installed and just ran. I can't remember having had to tweak anything.

Do check which version the school is running. I could easily imagine that they are still on 10.04, which reaches End of Life next year in April.

[Nytram]

I'd also recommend an Asus EEE netbook, I'm running Gnome Shell on mine (not tried Unity) with good performance and all the hardware is compatible out of the box.

[cortman]

I run an Acer Aspire One 722, and while it contains a few scary things for Linux (ATI graphics, for one), and is a little picky about distros, I think it's the best netbook option available AFA pricing, specs, and form factor. Mine has an 11" screen at 1366x768, which I like to gloat to my Apple-mongering friends has better resolution and DPI than their iPad or iPad2. :) (it honestly does).
I run Bodhi Linux (http://bodhilinux.com/) on it and it runs like a dream- elegant and super fast.

[philinux]

Moved to Cafe.

12,04 runs really well on my Acer Aspire 1410.
I dual boot it with the win7 home premium 64 bit that it came with. I only use that for skygo from bskyb.
http://www.umpcportal.com/products/Acer/Aspire%201410/

[Dragonbite]

Too bad System76 and ZaReason are not selling Netbooks anymore. A 14" laptop is the smallest available from these people.

I have a 14" IBM Thinkpad and the nice thing about that, over a netbook, is the larger screen. At the same time, the Thinkpad is fairly thin and light, compared to the rest of the family's Dells.

Oh, and it runs Ubuntu 12.04 pretty well even though it is an old machine.

[Copper Bezel]

I use an Asus Eee S101 with Ubuntu and Gnome Shell. Launching apps takes more time than it ought, and there's stuttering when running a video and typing at the same time, but it's certainly usable. It uses an SSD, and I did have to upgrade the RAM.