Hi all,
these are my experiences with ML 9.1 beta 2 (installed alongside with
9.0 sharing the /boot partition), I hope they can be of help. If you
think I should add some bugzilla entry, please CC: me in an eventual
reply because I'm not subscribed to cooker list at the moment.
Test system:
Athlon 1.2 GHz
512 MB RAM
LG CD-RW
Panansonic DVD-RW
1 40 MB HD (Windows partitions)
1 60 MB HD (Linux partitions)
ATI Radeon video card
Sound Blaster 128 PCI sound card
Note: I could not install it on my Acer 521TE laptop because of an old
incompatibility of current kernels with the ALI 52xx chipset.
#######################
9.1 beta 2 INSTALLATION
#######################
Estethically unpleasant:
- light brown highlighing on white/blue text (white text, blue background)
- button highlighting
- mouse pointer becomes an ugly watch when the installer is busy
- in some installation windows the lower buttons are cut by the lower
edge of the window
- anti-aliased texts in the "add images" during package installation
look somewhat blurred
- change CD window just a little too small to host the whole text, first
line of text is cut
In the test window, the mouse wheel only works as a button, no sign of
it working while moving it (works after installation).
The mouse pointer can't get out of the installation windows, I suppose
this is intentional at the moment.
The first CD is required again, and not recognized, during system
configuration (I kept inserting it, and the installer kept ejecting it
and asking again for it). At last I had to Cancel use of the first CD.
The correct time zone wasn't listed in the summary window (empty
button). I had to select it manually.
Then the installer went to install my printer: it recognized it all
right (HP LaserJet 6L), but crashed immediately afterward (panic:
swash_fetch).
Installer didn't try to set up the network.
After I checked my graphical configuration, when I went back to the
summary window it reported the graphical interface as not configured.
Clicking again on the button showed the right settings however.
It still is impossible to add or modify items to the bootloader menu,
the window gets messed if you try to do so and furthermore it is
impossible to enter or modify text to specify the root partition.
+ The installer recognized all my linux partitions on the hdb disk,
assigning them the correct mount point (I suppose it read my 9.0 fstab).
################
9.1 beta 2 TRIAL
################
First time I tried log in, kdm just didn't let me do it: I typed login
name and password of my 9.1 user and nothing happened (well, the screen
wavered a little). The second time I tried I got directly into KDE, no
first time wizard.
I hope the default background picture (and the alternative ones) will be
improved in number and quality. Much as I hate to say it, M$ Windows XP
nature-based backgrounds are very effective: beautiful and relaxing
without being distracting.
The Icon + Text description in Drakconf windows looks somewhat weird:
the white text box aside of the icons is graphically awkward, perhaps
the usual Icon + (short) Icon name + Tooltip on an uniform background
would make more esthetically appealing.
Mousedrake freezes while loading (and the "waiting picture" colors are
completely wrong). BTW, the semi-transparent cursor is nice, but not all
users might appreciate it, so there should be the possibility to switch
back to a "solid" one.
Many other config programs just freeze when launched, I suppose the
transition to GTK2 is not done yet; printerdrake pops up again in a
separate window after I click on done.
The 8.2 RPM installer wizard had a nice graphical interface, it went
away in 9.0 and is not here either in 9.1beta, could it be reintroduced
for 9.1 final?
Anyway, the first installation CD is not recognized anymore by
urpmi/rpmdrake, just as happened during installation.
After experimenting with MCC, it froze: clicking on the icons on the
left gave no results.
Xine exits immediately after launch on my box: "all available video
drivers failed". Works fine under 9.0. XMMS, Volume control and other
multimedia apps work fine.
All in all, 9.1 looks very promising. Keep up the hard work!
Ciao
--
Roberto Rosselli Del Turco e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Dipartimento di Scienze [EMAIL PROTECTED]
del Linguaggio Then spoke the thunder DA
Universita' di Torino Datta: what have we given? (TSE)
Hige sceal the heardra, heorte the cenre,
mod sceal the mare, the ure maegen litlath. (Maldon 312-3)
