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510

Linux Customer Survey

510 points posted to Dell Web Site, Linux by aikiwolfie 11/12/07

I've noticed Dell likes it's on-line surveys. So why hasn't one been done for Linux? If it has can we see the results?

Conduct an on-line survey of customers asking them if they have;

1 ) Heard of Linux?

2 ) Used Linux in the past?

3 ) Intend to use Linux in the future?

4 ) Currently use Linux?

5 ) What are/were the systems specs of the PC Linux was installed on?

6 ) Which distributions have they used?

7 ) Which distribution do they prefer?

8 ) Why did they stop using Linux?

9 ) What problems have they encountered using Linux?

10 ) If they haven't heard of Linux, what do they think Linux is?

11 ) Do they want to buy Dell PCs with Linux installed?

12 ) List the applications you use the most on Linux.

13 ) Are there any applications you would like moved to the Linux platform that are not currently offered on Linux.

14 ) Is there any particular piece of hardware you'd like to see supported in Linux?

15 ) Would you like to see better hardware virtualization support, better bleeding edge support and better thread handling (processors are hardware too)

jorge
11/12/07		 Dupe, ok maybe semi dupe but we've done a few ideas on this, they're pretty old too.
cosh
11/12/07		 1) Sure have! :)
2) Yes.
3) When it supports POWER MANAGEMENT and WIRELESS NETWORKING properly.
4) No because Windows childishly obliterated the bootloader last time I reinstalled Windows, and now I don't know how to get into it.
5) AMD Sempron 2500+, with 256 MB RAM, and 128 MB ATI Radeon 9700. [been meaning to upgrade the memory]
6) Red Hat, Mandrake, Knoppix (Live CD), Kubuntu, PCLinuxOS (Live CD)
7) Kubuntu
8) Windows obliterated the bootloader and I haven't got around to fixing it.
9) Red Hat destroyed the Windows partition during my first encounter with it in 1999 - catastrophe. With Kubuntu - all sorts of problems - one of them was a program called dosfsck or something like that (DOS filesystem checker) - which extremely rudely insisted upon scanning my 250 GB Windows 2003 FAT32 drive in its entirety on startup. Until I found out how to disable it, it took about 15 minutes to boot.
10) I'd have said a make of sports car.
11) No, I want to buy Dell PCs with NO OPERATING SYSTEM, as I have been asking for on IdeaStorm for months. I always buy computers with blank hard disks and sort out the OS's myself. I thoroughly enjoy doing it that way.
jorge
11/12/07		 Oh, great sub-idea-comment cosh!

1) Yes
2) Yes
3) Yes
4) Yes
5) Dell WS530, WS650, WS670, WS390, WS410, WS400, WS420, WS330, PE2850, PE2950, PE6300, PE6450, PE1850
Sun Many models, other assorted custom built workstations and servers, including SpinServe & NetApp.
6) FreeBSD, Debian, Suse (for testing, never again), Red Hat (testing, never again)
7) Debian, FreeBSD
8) Never stopped.
9) Nvidia drivers a couple years ago now its much better, Network Drivers at times all fine now.
10) I'd of guessed some kind of virus which is transmitted through Lions.
11) No, I'd prefer No-OS, because we have a standardized installation for our computers and no matter what Dell pre-installs we know it won't be what we want so no sense in wasting the energy in buying any pre-install OS since we're wiping it anyway, its not Green to re-install the OS you didn't want to begin with, is it. Also, we don't and can't trust a pre-install from anyone, its a policy thing, sorry Dell, we can't trust you or your installers.
cosh
11/12/07		 How about suggesting some better questions if you're so smart?
benjesuit
11/12/07		 1 yes
2 yes
3 yes
4 yes
5 Pentium 4 3ghz, 512mb Ram, 80 gig HD, Nvidia geforce 6800go
Pentium III 1.2ghz, 512mb ram, 40gb hd, Nvidia geforce 2 go.
6 Ubuntu, puppy Linux, Linspire.
7. Ubuntu
8. Haven't stopped, use it on a laptop @home. Use Windows mostly because of business and gaming.
9. Driver issues especially Wifi. Resolution issues with Nvidia graphics.
10 N/a
11 Not really. Doesn't matter to me. I can and have installed Linux myself. Would be nice if Dell offers on all systems, an option of subsystems that are Linux compatible.
benjesuit
11/12/07		 @gonzc900, Hey .Chris! ;-)
benjesuit
11/12/07		 Nah, I just figured out who it was. Heard he was back. But didn't know what new moniker until now. I'm usually the last to know about these kinds of things.
benjesuit
11/12/07		 Right then, as you say.
mkmaster78
11/13/07		 1) Yes
2) Yes
3) So long as they don't screw up too bad
4) Yes
5) Dell Optiplex 270, 2gb ram, ati 9200
Intel Pentium 4 631 (Ceder Mill) 3.0 GHz, 1 GB Corsair DDR2 667, ATI Radeon x1600 Pro
6) openSuSE (favorite), SLED, SLES, Red Hat, Mandrake, Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Gentoo, Slackware, various live distros, and many more
7) openSuSE
8) Haven't yet, though Windows is my primary OS
9) Varies from distro to distro, mostly compatibility and drivers
10) N/A
11) Not really, prefer to install myself, though a No OS option might work, would rather buy a Windows PC and install Linux myself, however I want linux drivers readily available.
mkmaster78
11/13/07		 @jorge BTW FreeBSD is NOT a linux distro.
jorge
11/13/07		 It is for me, does the same thing (truer Unix as well), I'm keeping it as one because I consider them all Unix spin offs even Solaris no matter what anyone says.
mkmaster78
11/13/07		 They're all certainly Unix based, however the term Linux applies only to the Linux kernel, and BSD has its own kernel, quite definately not Linux. Otherwise BSD would be covered by GPL, not its own license.
aikiwolfie
11/13/07		 Hey I didn't expect you all to answer the questions here. I meant for Dell to put it on their Dell.com site like they sometimes do. But anyway cheers! And yeah ... suggest a few questions if you think the ones I put up are stupid or if somethings missing.

Linux isn't UNIX. Linux was written from scratch to be compatible with UNIX if memory serves me right. I'm not sure about FreeBSD but I think Solaris came from SCO-UNIX the same as Mac OS was developed from SCO-UNIX.

So I guess I should post the answers I would give since everybody else went to the trouble.

1) Yes! I first used Linux way back in college in 1996.

2) Yes. I've been using Linux on and off for about 11 years. And still failed to learn how to use it properly.

3) Yes I'm currently busting a gut to move over to the dark side. I just need to figure out how to make dmraid work with NVIDIA stripe RAID array nonsense.

4) Yes. Running it off an external USB drive with my XPS 700.

5) What are/were the systems specs of the PC Linux was installed on?

6) Red Hat, opensuse, Knoppix, Ubuntu, Sabayon, Debian, Mandriva and Slackware.

7) Ubuntu for it's simplicity and ease of use. I prefer things to just work.

8) During the times I stopped using it, it was because it was too hard to get stuff to work. Stuff being applications and hardware.

9) Getting software installed used to be a big problem and getting drivers for hardware. Tracking down RPMs for opensuse is a nightmare and I can't work dmraid in Ubuntu. Oh and duko or what ever it's called. I can't work that either.

10) N/A

11) Yes! Hopefully some day Linux will become Dells primary OS. But in the mean time the choice to have Linux on every compatible system would be nice.
mkmaster78
11/13/07		 @aikiwolfie, Mac OS is not from SCO-Unix, it is based off an openBSD project called Darwin. And linux is most certainly from Unix, from a Unix variant called minix. Linus Torvalds wanted his own version, and the rest is history.
phubert
11/13/07		 Good one, aikiwolfie! Yes, it MAY be a semi-dupe, but OTOH, a number of the older ones have 'fallen off the radar', so duplicates aren't necessarily a bad thing if they focus attention on an issue that is WORTHY but never seemed to gain significant traction.
jorge
11/13/07		 Well I say lets continue with our poll here till they do get it going, they can always cut and paste if its not too hard for them.

Questions to add?

12) List the applications you use the most on Linux.
13) Are there any applications you would like moved to the Linux platform that are not currently offered on Linux.
aikiwolfie
11/13/07		 I stand corrected.

http://www.levenez.com/unix/



And then I got confused.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unix
premcv
11/13/07		 I got more confused...
http://www.ugu.com/sui/ugu/show?I=ugu.flavors
cosh
11/13/07		 .
aikiwolfie
11/13/07		 12) Firefox, Thunderbird, Bluefish Editor, gFTP, The GIMP, OpenOffice and Doom 3 when I have a need to kill things.

13) Vue ... The awesome 3D landscape rendering program that's now in version 6 and does so much more than just landscapes! It's also available for the Mac so it shouldn't be too hard to make a Linux version. More games too.

I'm guessing there's more than a wee smidgen of politics at play when it comes to UNIX/Linux histories.
premcv
11/13/07		 1) Have! :)
2) Yes.
3) Yes, when most drivers for all video cards are available without issues.
4) Yes, occasionally when I visit my cousins.
5) AMD Sempron 2500+, with 2gb RAM, and 256 MB ATI 9200
6) Kubuntu, PCLinuxOS (Live CD)
7) Ubuntu
8) I don't have a system yet. (Been planning to get around to buy one, will be in a couple of months)
9) Sharing between Windows and Linux was a problem I remember from long, but I know this is not a problem now-a-days.
10) An animal of some sort?
11) Hmmm, jee, why not? But what are the models they have for Linux, that is important for me.
mkmaster78
11/13/07		 12) YaST, VIM, wine, Cedega, Beryl (am attempting to Compiz Fusion but with no luck) and various others, way too many to list.
13) IE7, iTunes, Microsoft Office (because OpenOffice is trash, KOffice isn't too bad though), Safari, Visual Studio .NET (all versions) and many more games and apps than I have time to list.
benjesuit
11/13/07		 Agreed Mkmaster. Openoffice is under par as compared to MS office.

Anyway...

12. Most of the apps that come with Ubuntu. Wine, Parallel's workstation, Audacity, Sun Java.

13. 90% of the windows only apps. Business apps that I use. Midi apps. Pro music mixing apps. And of course, gaming.
aikiwolfie
11/13/07		 Why do you say OpenOffice is trash? It works fine for me. What is it that you don't like?
jorge
11/13/07		 My answers to 12 & 13

12) vi, apt-get, dpkg, matlab, mathematica, dx, opengl (Mesa, etc.), R, nwgrid_tools, gcc, perl, csh, bash, sh, (all sh's as in scripts), ldap, apache, mysql, procmail, exim4, sendmail, pine, mutt, alpine, openoffice, kde, python, flexlm, cups, xorg (all), bzip2, and many more!

13) These are mainly due to user's comfortableness not mine, MS Office, PhotoShop, CorelDraw, Canvas, Illustrator. For me most games to draw it more attention and whiz bang.
mkmaster78
11/13/07		 @aikiwolfie: It's really badly written, especially its Windows edition. It is the only program I know of that opened a vulnerability that allowed the same virus to attack Windows, Linux and Mac OS X. But I don't want to go too deep into that, not wanting to start a flame war, it's just my opinion and part of my response to the previously posted questions.

EDIT: This is really something I don't want to start an argument over, and my opinion of OpenOffice is not near as bad as my opinion of X Server.
sugarbear
11/13/07		 Hmmm! People with the name chris. helmecj01, gonzc900. Will the real chris please stand up.
phubert
11/14/07		 Open Office on Linux looks GREAT! I'd never seen it until I installed Ubuntu on a spare machine here. All my ideas about OO changed instantly.
It's great that it's cross-platform, but to really appreciate it you need to see it on Linux!
premcv
11/14/07		 LOL sb!

OO on Ubuntu actually looks better, than the Windows version. I've personally seen both of them, and feel that the Linux version is better in UI and aesthetics than its Windows counterpart.
phubert
11/14/07		 MUCH better, premcv! *I* don't like the Windows version. It has to LOOK good for me to use it and it looks GREAT on Ubuntu.
premcv
11/14/07		 Agree, phubert! I've seen them both, and I "LOVE" the Linux version.
mkmaster78
11/14/07		 I could care less how OO looks, though it is uglier than homemade sin, its the fact that merely installing opens a huge security hole in my computer system, one that it said they have no intention of fixing (note: that last is unconfirmed, but certainly believable from that group), that is reason I will NEVER use it again.
phubert
11/14/07		 security hole? and just how would it be accessed? and you think MS Office isn't swiss cheese????????
premcv
11/14/07		 LOL phubert!
mkmaster78
11/14/07		 @phubert: I know nearly all programs (even those from MS) have security risks, however note my above comment. It's not just a security hole, but one that gets opened in all OS's because of this one program, which is just dumb on their part.
mkmaster78
11/14/07		 And this is why I didn't want to start on this, because it would start some form of an argument. I say let's drop this subject and return to the original intent of the idea. I'll go on thinking OO is absolute trash, and you go on thinking as you like, agreed?
aikiwolfie
11/14/07		 LOL. Cross platform compatibility does bring with it some problems. When everybody's compatible, everybody is equally vulnerable. To a point. OO is vulnerable because it was designed to be as much like MS Office as possible. That includes the UI. So I'm not sure why people are complaining about the UI or the virus vulnerabilities and comparing it to MS Office. I just don't get it?

A far bigger security hole than OO are compatibility layers like Wine. They basically give viruses a familiar environment to work in. There's no need to apologize for having an opinion. You're perfectly entitled to agree or disagree with anybody here. I see no need for a flame war. It's only an office application suit. I was just curious is all. MS compatibility does have it's draw backs.
mkmaster78
11/14/07		 @aikiwolfie, a virus can't really do much against the whole system when running via wine, since its run in a sandbox. The virus would think the ~/.wine/drive_c (or however you have your wine config setup) is the root of the system. It could possibly corrupt that, but all you do is delete the folder and start over, your main system is unaffected.
aikiwolfie
11/14/07		 Well unless you're using the root account all software is limited in what it can do to a Linux system. Wine doesn't really create it's own file system. It maps folders in the users home to C:\. So the virus can actually do a lot of damage to the users home directory depending on how the user has things setup.
phubert
11/14/07		 No problem with that, mkmaster78. I -may- have heard of the hole, AND that it wouldn't be addressed, but I'm afraid I simply don't recall it. I've used OO VERY little and only advocate it as a cross-platform alternative to the lock-in standard. It is the issue of lock-in that bothers me most, not the product, itself. Although, I thought WordPerfect had for a very long time been superior to Word (and I LOATHE spreadsheets and avoid them like POISON, so it really doesn't matter whose spreadsheet someone is discussing!), but it seems Corel hasn't managed the applications any better than did Novell... possibly worse. If you wouldn't mind refreshing my memory on the problem, I'd appreciate it. Perhaps I'll REMEMBER it this time. It doesn't matter who the software provider is, we DO need to hold them accountable.
phubert
11/14/07		 otoh - free may well benefit a wide range of users who simply can't afford high-end tools... but they should both be AWARE of risks and be willing to address such problems WITH the providers. If OO intends to truly offer an alternative, they need to do so with full integrity.
sugarbear
11/14/07		 OO is catching on quickly. One of the colleges here has gone to it. I`ve read serveral news colums about it being used more in govt. offices, such as CA. phubert, M$ is just to expensive for a lot of people to use. I`m talking the average at home pc user. I`m still using M$ 2003, and I paid a fortune for it back then. (tax write off for the business.) As far as bugs,virus, and hackers. Someone smart can get into any program and do any thing evil they want to.
premcv
11/14/07		 I agree, sb, Office from M$ is pretty expensive for the average home user. I use the 2003 myself, it was expensive. But if you want anything that is free and has pretty much what Office offers, the OO is for you. I've used the Windows (XP) & the Linux flavors. Found the Linux far better, than the Windows one.
mkmaster78
11/14/07		 Office isn't all that expensive, 2007 Professional is only about $70, not that big a deal.
jorge
11/14/07		 For Free, its worth it, I can use it just fine. How then do people justify MS Office?
aikiwolfie
11/14/07		 I would agree the Linux version is far better than the Windows one. It just seems happier in Linux. Runs smoother, loads faster, closes faster. All complicated software has bugs and security holes. Linux is no exception, Mac OS X is no exception Windows and MS Office are infamous for bugs and holes. Why would or should OO be expected to do any better? Some people might say you get what you pay for. OO is free!

Is this the bug? If so that's from when Gusty wasn't even at alpha testing!
sugarbear
11/14/07		 M$ office 2007 may be $70, but not to everyone. Only teachers and students.
phubert
11/15/07		 Indeed, sugarbear. What is the standard retail price? Then again, there still are many who would strain at the $70 amount! So, free to download or get from a friend (it's perfectly legal to COPY and DISTRIBUTE it (try that -legally- with Office)), not to mention no requirement to 'validate' or 'register'. AND, OO has -extensions- which ANYONE with the skill can DEVELOP freely!
phubert
11/15/07		 So what do we have?

Free as in price
Free as in freedom
OPEN Document Format (already approved as a valid Industry standard)
Free from 'validation' or required registration
Free to COPY and DISTRIBUTE
Full-featured (tell me what features Office has OO does not and OO can list features IT has that OFFICE has not!)
Open platform with extensions API - anyone can develop extensions for it-
NOT owned by a proprietary company that never even attempts to listen to its customers!
Constantly improving with a short release cycle. .. eventually the Windows UI will be every bit as good as the Linux UI!
premcv
11/15/07		 Right, you are phubert! Free as in FREE!
sugarbear
11/15/07		 phubert, here are some prices. Bestbuy- home and student $139.99. Circuit city- home and student $149.99, standard upgrade $239.99, pro upgrade $329.99, pro full edition $499.99. Staples- pro upgrade$269.99, pro full $424.99, ultimate upgrade $539.99. Amazon- home and student $124.99, pro full edition $374.99
premcv
11/15/07		 WOW! Those are surely not cheap! Wonder where the $70 came from?
phubert
11/15/07		 And, note that there's really only ONE version of OO... (actually, there's a 3rd party site that provides an OO distribution with more 'stuff'... but still the same OO). I suppose unless an OO for PDA's is produced (IS there one already???), we won't see any 'stripped-down' versions as we do with Microsoft products!

Well, premcv, sugarbear just researched some RETAIL prices for us... so she cites a 'home and student' VERSION not a 'student and teacher' OFFER, which is separate from retail offerings.
premcv
11/15/07		 Oh Ok, overlooked that! Well, let me see about the Student and Teacher part. Be back in a bit with those...

I don't see any teachers and students edition, what gives?
benjesuit
11/15/07		 For simple to moderate uses, OO is fine. But if you're a busniess power user, it's under par. Much like everything included with Ubuntu, it's not for business power users. And why you won't find Ubuntu or any desktop Linux OS in many major corporations.
phubert
11/15/07		 "in many major corporations"

But, benjesuit, there ARE "major corporations", universities, and cities (in Europe) who ARE implementing Linux desktops. Not Ubuntu that I've heard, and I'm not advocating Ubuntu for everything. But, of the supported distributions, we have SLED and RH and Mandriva as well... all far more established. The CONCEPT and DIRECTION of Ubuntu is what I like. And, I believe it will begin to drive others as well.
petzymathuram
11/15/07		 About Linux on the Dell website:

Is Linux User friendly?
what kind of security does Linux provide it's customers?
How secure will the data be, when Linux is used as a platform?
A demo of Linux applications will be fine..;)
aikiwolfie
11/15/07		 LOL!!! I might be wrong here but hasn't Dell offered Red Hat for sometime now on some of it's business laptops? And what exactly do you mean by "business power user"? Are you seriously advocating that an OS that runs most of the worlds web severs can't handle a few spread sheets and presentations? What do businesspower users do that Linux can't offer? What is it about OO and Linux that is currently "under par"?

If you want a demo of Linux just pick up a Ubuntu CD and boot directly to the CD. Most PCs can do that these days.

http://www.zdnet.co.uk/tsearch/pcs+steve+ballmer+suse+linux.htm
benjesuit
11/15/07		 @ Phubert, I know. That's why I said, "many." The ones that do make up ~1% of business installed use.

@Aikiwolfie, If you look above, you'll see that I use Linux at home. Now as to the rest of your question, business power users are those who use Microsoft's office to it's limits such that they are the main impetus for the improvements to Office. There's a load of things that I can't do in OO that curretly can only be done in MS Office. The grand majority of financial sector as well as engineering sector is pleased that MS finally increased the limits of Excel and Access. Anyway, the list is long and boring.

If Star Office and OO were so great, believe me, businesses would jump at it considering the low to free cost.

And don't confuse server Linux with desktop Linux and draw a conclusion from that. Two different animals considering the scope of their implementation.
aikiwolfie
11/15/07		 It might not benjesuit. Migration from one system to another does have a cost and it can be a big one. Considering the cost savings in the actual purchase of the software and hardware I'd say the cost of migration is probably Linuxs biggest hurdle here.

If Linux does manage to become a successful OS it will start with smaller companies that are strapped for cash and need something that can do the job at zero cost. Large IT infrastructures are expensive to put in and can be even more expensive to replace.

Maybe Microsoft will do a Linux version of Office the same as they did with the Mac.
premcv
11/15/07		 Nah, wolfie. I think, if M$ would do that but it would be closed-source product, not Open Source. Can't see that happen. We'll have to see, though!
jorge
11/15/07		 Can we get back to the poll?
premcv
11/15/07		 LOL, ay, aye, sir, jorge!
aikiwolfie
11/15/07		 14) Is there any particular piece of hardware you'd like to see supported in Linux?

Yes! Support for MP3 players and many portable devices is still sketchy. I'd like to see that sorted.
jorge
11/15/07		 Good one, but add the new Questions up in the idea for better exposure.
jorge
11/15/07		 Ogh, you did, opps!
aikiwolfie
11/15/07		 One step a head :op
mkmaster78
11/15/07		 14) Better hardware virtualization support, better bleeding edge support and better thread handling (processors are hardware too)
dwood
11/15/07		 1) Yes

2) Recently (yesterday)

3) Yep

4) Yessir

5) AMD Athlon 3800 2.0gh before OC

6) Ubuntu Gutsy Gibbon and Opensuse (both very respectable OSes)

7) Both

8) I didnt

9) What problems have they encountered using Linux? Ubuntu takes over the system in multiboot like a Mongol

10) skip

11) Maybe, in the future.

12) List the applications you use the most on Linux? .-Compiz

13) Are there any applications you would like moved to the Linux platform that are not currently offered on Linux? Xfire, Some Games, etc.

14) Is there any particular piece of hardware you'd like to see supported in Linux? Natively without 3d party drivers; all graphics cards.
aikiwolfie
11/15/07		 I added your question as 15 mkmaster78 since we already have a 14.

I'd agree with the bleeding edge support. All new gear should be Linux compatible. But I don't have an issue with 3rd party drivers. Just so long as they work and there's long term support.
dwood
11/15/07		 yep. I just dont like having to search all the known Linux support sites only to find its a link I missed from the help section of desktop effects.
mkmaster78
11/15/07		 @aikiwolfie, thanks for the add, but that was also my answer to question 14, since the Linux kernel support for the virtualization features built into processors now is still limited, Linux acts very strangely on bleeding edge hardware, and Linux has been slow about picking up better thread distibution in response to increasing processor cores.
dwood
11/15/07		 It will come along eventually- usually much faster than Windows does.
aikiwolfie
11/15/07		 Well it's getting late, I'm tired, it's done. But it was worthy of an add.
dwood
11/15/07		 yep.
winoffice
11/25/07		 My answers to this survey:

1) Yes.
2) No.
3) No.
4) No.
5) N/A as I do not use Linux and never have used it.
6) None - I have not used any distrbution and continue not to.
7) None - I have not used any distribution, so I cannot provide an opinion on preferences.
8) I have never used Linux so how could I have "stopped" using it?
9) I have never used Linux so how could I have any "problems" with Linux?
10) I have heard of Linux and it is an operating system. But I would say "It must be something that is suitable only for geeks, since it ends in X, like Unix" if I have not heard of it.
11) No.
12) N/A as I do not use Linux.
13) I do not use Linux so I do not require it and N/A.
14) N/A as I do not use Linux.
15) I have no idea as I do not use Linux and have not used it.
aikiwolfie
11/25/07		 So I couldn't tempt yu to buy a Ubuntu PC then?
jdelidc
11/25/07		 1 ) Heard of Linux? yes
2 ) Used Linux in the past? yes
3 ) Intend to use Linux in the future? heck yes
4 ) Currently use Linux? yes
5 ) What are/were the systems specs of the PC Linux was installed on?
p4 3ghz
8g flash drive
512 mb ram
6 ) Which distributions have they used? fedora, dsl, puppy, knoppix, ubuntu
7 ) Which distribution do they prefer? fedora
8 ) Why did they stop using Linux? don't intend to
9 ) What problems have they encountered using Linux? games and DVR-ing
10 ) If they haven't heard of Linux, what do they think Linux is? a grocery store
11 ) Do they want to buy Dell PCs with Linux installed? yes but prefer no-os because i want it on a flash drive
12 ) List the applications you use the most on Linux. firefox, xine, ooo
13 ) Are there any applications you would like moved to the Linux platform that are not currently offered on Linux. HALO
14 ) Is there any particular piece of hardware you'd like to see supported in Linux? my TV tuner card, haven't gotten it to work yet
15 ) Would you like to see better hardware virtualization support, better bleeding edge support and better thread handling (processors are hardware too) don't really care. haven't needed to use virtualization much
dwood
11/26/07		 W.I.N.E. and Cedega do the job of porting halo for me lol.
winoffice
11/26/07		 aikiwolfie: No, at least not now and not in the near future.
dwood
11/26/07		 I dont see why you arent open to other operating systems.
aikiwolfie
11/26/07		 I've used a Mac Classic! I am the man.

So winoffice what would Linux developers have to do to win you over?
winoffice
11/26/07		 aikiwolfie: I am not interested in Linux now, but I might consider it if Dell offered multi-boots but Dell unfortunately does not. So I will not buy a copy of Linux with a PC, until Dell offers a multi-boot environment with Windows.
aikiwolfie
11/26/07		 Fair enough.
winoffice
11/26/07		 davmcn: I am more comfortable with Dell doing that because I am afraid that I might do something incorrectly. After all, I bet that Dell has better computer experts than me, including OS installation. Besides, I heard that with some Linux distributions you will no longer be able to start Windows.
aikiwolfie
11/27/07		 Installing Ubuntu is fairly straight forward. It's also a "live" distribution so you can boot from the CD and just use it that way if you're not comfortable installing it. Ubuntu won't touch your hard drive unless you install it. openSUSE also has an excellent installer. The best OS installer I've ever seen actually. But most of the better know and easier to find versions have decent installers and most take the "live" CD rout.
cosh
11/27/07		 I remember Mandrake being very easy (didn't even have to partition it, it had a drive to itself), but oh no way Ubuntu (Kubuntu actually) was a nightmare. The live CD of Kubuntu simply didn't boot at all. The forums suggested this was a known issue of some memory incompatibility or other. Then I had to download the text-based installer CD instead, and despite repeated attempts, to my fury, it wouldn't install directly from the ISO image on the hard-drive (unlike Mandrake did) - so I had to get someone with a CD burner to put it on an actual CD for me. Then the installation itself made me more angry in that it didn't let me control it enough (unlike Mandrake). It just went and did things. And it replaced LILO with GRUB and put the "dosfsck" setting into /etc/fstab so that it took 15 minutes to boot each time until I found out how to disable it. And, (I posted this up above) I can't even get into it any more because I reinstalled Windows, which obliterated the bootloader, and Kubuntu's installer (unlike Mandrake) never gave me the option of creating a boot floppy. :(

I thought it was impossible to install Linux alongside Windows these days anyway because it can't partition NTFS.
aikiwolfie
11/27/07		 The three most recent Ubuntu installers haven't given me any trouble. Linux can now read and resize the NTFS partition. It's actually been able to do that for a while now. Either way if NTFS was the problem it's just a matter of using another drive. My Ubuntu install is on an external USB drive so it didn't need to touch the Windows disks at all. I just disabled the PCs internal hard drives in the BIOS and unplugged them. When I was done installing Ubuntu, I plugged them in and and set them up in the BIOS again.

When the USB drive is on the system boots to Linux. When it's off the system boots to Windows. It's the best dual boot option I've ever taken.
cosh
11/27/07		 That would be the ideal solution if my computer's BIOS could boot a USB drive. Didn't know that about NTFS though - interesting - I thought Microsoft hoarded the secrets of NTFS too closely for anyone else to do that.
seijisensei
11/27/07		 1-4) Yes

5 ) Countless from 386 PCs to Core Duo laptops.

6 ) Various RedHat flavors, Ubuntu; not a big fan of SuSE

7 ) Server: CentOS; Desktop: Fedora

11 ) Do they want to buy Dell PCs with Linux installed?
Perhaps. I have yet to do so, however. I buy servers with blank hard drives and install CentOS. For desktops, I like having a Windows license as well so I can dual-boot or run Windows in a VirtualBox (see below).

13 ) Are there any applications you would like moved to the Linux platform that are not currently offered on Linux.
I think if Autodesk were encouraged to port AutoCAD to Linux, you'd see a big shift in engineering firms. I'd love to see a solid MS Access clone for Linux. The open-sourced ones I've tried so far don't cut it.

14 ) Is there any particular piece of hardware you'd like to see supported in Linux?
As always, better auto-detection of wireless cards would be valuable. Graphics are less of a problem these days.

15 ) Would you like to see better hardware virtualization support, better bleeding edge support and better thread handling (processors are hardware too)
I guess. I'm sure the kernel developers work on things like this all the time.

For those people who need to use Windows programs, I recommend VirtualBox over trying to run things under Wine. See http://www.virtualbox.org/ for details.
aikiwolfie
11/27/07		 cosh there have been third party NTFS drivers for a while now. There's also a FOSS project to develop NTFS compatibility. However hard Microsoft tries to guard the secrets to NTFS at the end of the day it's just data on a disk. Data can be decoded fairly easily these days. Besides Microsofts greed for profit let it down. There are third party Microsoft licensed NTFS drivers for MS-DOS, Windows 95, 98, and NT 4x. Which is probably where the Linux developers got their ideas from.

Provided your not using some weird hybrid RAID array like NVIDIA builds into it's nForce chip sets Linux can read and write to NTFS partitions with ease.
dwood
11/27/07		 yes it can. Well, relative ease.

I refuse to post an Idea until one of my Ideas gets looked at by a person from Dell other than for merging!
mattjones
Jan 24		 1 ) Yes
2 ) Yes
3 ) Yes
4 ) Yes
5 ) Various AMD and Intel Desktops, typing this from Intel Centrino 1.6Ghz laptop, 1Gig RAM, 80Gig HDD
6 ) Most of them, RedHat, Debian, Slackware, Ubuntu, ZenWalk, LinuxMint, SimplyMepis, PCLinuxOS, DSL to name a few
7 ) For lower spec machines, DSL is fantastic. Debian for stability. Currently have Ubuntu 7.10 on Laptop
8 ) Since I installed Linux, never stopped using it!
9 ) On older versions, getting widescreen resolution (1280x800) working on laptop - all new distros seem to work "out of the box" on most machines
10 ) N/A
11 ) Depends on the pricing and specs. Dell should offer the same specs as they do to Windows users for lower prices. I would also like to see Dell offer more customisation control
12 ) Firefox, OpenOffice, Pidgin, Azureus, GIMP, VirtualBox
13 ) More games (Football Manager mainly!) - but I can live without this as I can dual boot, VSO software (http://www.vso-software.fr/)
14 ) Better support for WiFi although I use Intel and have had no problems with the newer distributions
15 ) I guess so
jdelidc
Jan 24		 that was a good survey. some of my answers have changed in the last 3 months:

8) when did you stop: changed from "don't plan to" to "never will unless something better comes"
9) problems: don't care about DVRing anymore. youtube is just as good so basically, games. and lately flash player
12) most used apps: firefox, kaffeine
14) what hardware do you want in linux: my IR remote control
tacone
Jan 25		 1 ) yes
2 ) yes
3 ) yes
4 ) yes
5 ) Dell XPS 420.
6 ) Ubuntu.
7 ) Ubuntu
8 ) Didn't stopped.
9 ) Hardware drivers. Please provide a proper driver for Hauppage WinTV 1250
10 ) I heard :-)-
11 ) Yes
12 ) Firefox,XMMS,Vlc,Pidgin,Programming Ides
13 ) Adobe apps
14 ) Hauppage WinTV 1250, Sata Raid
15 ) sure
aikiwolfie
Jan 25		 @jdelidc ... you may be interested in this.
 
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