How To Install Ubuntu 7.10 (Gutsy) on Dell Inspiron 1520

[ctpaterson]

Hey all,

I've seen bits and pieces about, but no thread that specifically talks about installing gutsy on an Inspiron 1520, so I thought I'd kick one off in the hopes it would help.

A few notes, I did this with the 32-bit final release. I could not get my 1520 to boot from the 64-bit CD. Corrections, additions, and comments are encouraged, especially since some people might have some different hardware than I.

Computer specs are:

• Intel Core 2 Duo T7300
• 2 GB RAM
• 1680x1050 display
• 256MB nVidial GeForce TM8600M GT video card
• High Definition audio 2.0
• Intel PRO/Wireless 3945abg
• Integrated webcam
• Dell wireless 355 bluetooth internal

What's working...

• Sound from speakers + speaker cutoff when headphones plugged in
• High-res screen, w/ Compiz effects
• Plug-in microphone
• Internal microphone
• Wireless
• Bluetooth scans and finds other devices (haven't successfully connected yet)
• Webcam (tested with Ekiga using V4L2, and tested in Skype 2.0 beta)
• NFS (working after "sudo apt-get install nfs-common")
• Suspend (sort of). It usually works...sometimes it doesn't.
• Memory card slot (tested with SD)

What's not working...

• Suspend (sort of). It usually works...sometimes it doesn't.
• Hibernate (got it to return once, but it took a while)
• Bluetooth connections (success has been reported by at least one user - not for me)

What I haven't tested.

• Modem (there are some reported issues)

The good news is that besides the audio, I've had to do very little in the way of post-installation system configuration. Much less painful than feisty. The bad news is that the audio was the main thing that was snarfed - the same problem is happening on several other models.

What I did...

1. Boot from live CD; install
2. Boot from hard drive
3. Enable restricted nVidia drivers
4. Install all Ubuntu updates
5. Perform audio fix (as suggested by "alexander.forster"
   
   • sudo apt-get install linux-backports-modules-generic
6. Reboot so all changes take effect; you should now have sound.
7. You might want to do the following if you find the volume too low (courtesy from alfredska)
   
   • Right click on speaker icon in system tray, and select "Open Volume Control"
   • Go to Edit: Preferences
   • Put a check next to Front. Hit OK
   • Turn Front volume all the way up.
   • Now the master volume control raises and lowers the volume between much greater extremes.
8. Amixer settings so the microphone plugging in to the side will work...
   
   • amixer set Capture 15 cap
   • amixer set Mux,0 3 cap
9. Settings so the digital mic will work
   
   • Run "alsamixer", scroll to the right with the arrow keys until you've selected "Digital".
   • If the Digital Input Source is "Analog Inputs", use the up/down arrows until it says "Digital Mic 1".
   • Hit "Escape" to exit.
   • (I believe switching the Digital back and forth from "Analog Inputs" to "Digital Mic 1" will cause a switch between the internal mic, and the mic plugged into the side -- but I have not tested this.)
   • amixer set Capture 15 cap
   • amixer set Digital 120

Bonus step: "sudo apt-get install compizconfig-settings-manager" to choose from even more effects.

Other Issues (mentioned, resolved and otherwise)

• Aggressive power management seems to be beating up on some laptop hard drives. My machine appears to be affected. More details about the issue here; https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+s...ort/+bug/59695, and there's an ubuntu discussion thread here; http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=591503. I have employed a fix that I've posted here: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.p...05#post3778205. I'll say again here what I said there; do not blindly copy and paste my solution unless you're aware of, and accept the risks that come with giving a complete stranger control over how your hardware behaves. I strongly recommend you get familiar with the issue yourself and decide if the fix is right for you. I present what I have done without reassurances that it's safe, but for informational purposes only.
• alfredska has cracked the nut of 64-bit and is playing well with Vista and MediaDirect here: http://ubuntuforums.org/showpost.php...4&postcount=81
• Or you can try working with XP and Media Direct: http://ubuntuforums.org/showpost.php...&postcount=153
• some people have complained about a lot of noise coming out of their headphones. A potential solution is here: http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=197809
• A possible solution for intermittent wireless connectivity issues: http://linux.dell.com/wiki/index.php..._Module_Issues
• A possible solution for suspend (haven't tried it myself): http://boulderjams.wordpress.com/200...l-suspend-fix/
• Some have complained of incorrect titlebar fonts: http://ubuntuforums.org/showpost.php...12&postcount=5

Thanks to many contributors throughout the thread for filling in a number of gaps and so forth. I particularly wanted to thank alfredska who has become a key resource for a lot of people.