Cant Connect

[Chong112193]

Thank You Thank You Thank you. That worked perfectly. I was able to understand and learned a few things along the way. I have a lot more questions. I am now going to try to load Java and adobe flash. This Computer is the kids computer and the reason l changed to Linux was because i was sick of all the Junk getting loaded and screwing everything up.
Other then less viruses and malware, what are the advantages of using Linux or windows. Windows 7 seems very stable and much easier to use. It also seems to run an less powerful machines. Again thanks for the help and i welcome all conversation.

Chong

[anewguy]

Glad that worked - be sure to go to the other link and post a thank you there!

As far as Linux versus Windows, well it's just a matter of choice and what works the best for you. I still dual-boot because I have a couple of things that I haven't found great replacements for yet without doing a lot of work converting data (I'm lazy!).

With Linux, I get the freedom of open-source, and mostly free software. It also allows us to "play" a little with things and not worry about reinstalling something and having the software vendor question what I am doing and not giving me another registration try.

But, there are some trade-offs. You found one - wireless, and that is a common one. So are video problems. Both of these are due to drivers. With Windows, most people have bought a computer that already had all the software and drivers installed prior to their purchase. Microsoft makes deals with vendors for producing devices and drivers that work with Windows, and this is done with a lot of non-disclosure clauses. Linux on the other hand wants everything to be open - the source code should be freely available and open to any one who wants it. The OS itself is open and the source is available. Manufacturers don't normally go out of their way to create drivers for Linux for their hardware. Some of this is due to a smaller market than Windows.

There are a lot of very talented people doing all of this work for free. You won't find that with Windows.

Just my take on it.

Dave

[netwarriorwy]

I'm glad to hear your problem was solved. As @anewguy said the great thing in the Linux world is that if we have a drivers problem there are a lot of people outside willing to help by devoloping their own compatible driver verions. Taka care!

[Chong112193]

Please understand I am trying to learn this stuff so if my questions seem stupid its because they are. I am going to try to load Adobe flash player and i have to choose one of 5 options
1)Yum for Linux
2)tar.gz for linux This is the one i think i need.
3).rpm for Linux I think this one is for Red Hat
4).deb for ubuntu 8.04+ Maybe this one
5)APT for ubunto 9.04+ Maybe this one

What is the difference? .deb is for Debian isn't it?

Thanks again for all the help.

Chong

Im not sure what i did but i am now watching videos on youtube. Im headed in the right direction. Now to figure out sound and Java.
Is there a Device manager in Linux to see if my sound card is working?

[xtremesupremacy3]

We can totally understand the confusion between different Linux distrobutions (versions).

Okay, Ubuntu is what they call a 'debian-based OS'...that means Ubuntu uses Deb packages. Most of the time when you are installing from a package like that and the option for a .deb file is available, then that's the one you want to get.

But before you do that, have you checked in the repositories if your package might be there?
If you have no idea what I am talking about then you can do two things to check:

1) Under Applications, you will find the Ubuntu Software Center. Open that up and type in 'Adobe', if it appears on the list what you are looking for, simply click install.

2)Click on System > Synaptic. This is basically the same as the Ubuntu Software Center but without the bling. It works the same though.

What we advice is that before you go to an internet site to download something, to check if it's in the repositories first. That way it is much quicker and more support for it if it requires extra packages.

Let me know if you need further explaining.

Welcome to Ubuntu

[xtremesupremacy3]

Oops, I forgot about the sound question then.

There sure is an option for that.

Click on System, Preferences, then click on Sound.

If all is well, then you should be able to see little sliders.

As for Java, try this:

Click on Applications > Accessories > Terminal

And type the following (or copy and paste):

sudo apt-get install sun-java6-jre

Now, hit enter and when asked, enter your password (dont worry if nothing shows up as you type your password, thats normal).

Now if it doesn't spew out any errors then after a few minutes, you have java.

Arthur

[anewguy]

Yeah, for the sound thing definitely check the sliders and if anything you might need is muted. After all this time, when I saved everything and then installed 10.04 when it came out, I couldn't figure out why my sound wasn't working. I even started a thread on the forum, only to find out my sound was muted! Talk about embarrassing.

Also - understand there is no dumb question! It's okay to be new and need help. Heck, I'm not new and I still need help (of course, people have been telling me that for years anyway!). Everyone has been there, or is still there to some extent, and we're here to help when we can!

Dave

[Chong112193]

You guys ROCK! We have Video we have Audio (i had to un-mute it) Im going to run like this for a while and if the kids dont crash it I will probably delete windows all together. Thank you so much for the help.

[tdlucas]

Just wanted to say many thanks. I followed Dave's clear and concise instructions and this worked like a dream.

As a tip for anyone else in a similar predicament, the file at Ralink has been updated and the extracted folder names are now different. If you want to find the exact tar file that is mentioned in the instructions, you can get it here

Many thanks again guys for your excellent help.

[tdlucas]

Ah. Having successfully installed the Belkin wireless adapter, I now have two sets of wireless networks showing up in my network manager. Could someone please give me some assistance in explaining how to uninstall the built in wireless card (which was rubbish anyway) in my Revo R3610.

Many thanks