On Tue, 26 Jan 2016 19:46:40 +0100 Edward Bartolo <edb...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi All, > > Call me paranoid but I am noticing big companies like Microsoft making > it very difficult to buy a computer or laptop without Windows > installed. > > Are you experiencing the same difficulty and what do you do when you > need to buy a new machine? > > Edward Here's how *I* handle it... For desktops, I just buy the mobo, CPU and RAM from one vendor, to avoid finger pointing. In these days of Windows 10, by hook or by crook, I need to make sure the mobo bios (or whatever it's called these days) allows me to turn off secure boot, otherwise I can only use Ubuntu, Redhat, Debian, and all the other distros I would never use. For laptops, of course, I *could* buy from system76 or penguin-computing and the like, thereby guaranteeing Linux compatibility. But I don't want to pay Apple prices for PC hardware. So what I do instead, and I've done this about eight times, is go to Costco, with their 90 day, no questions asked guarantee (please ask at the counter to determine your exact store's exact policy). Using techniques garnered from the people at the ##windows IRC channel, I shrink the Windows partition, make a new partition out of the free space, and slam Linux on it. DO NOT DELETE ANY OF THE EXISTING PARTITIONS!!!! It's absolutely for sure that both wifi and UEFI boot will be a challenge: It will take awhile. But so far I've been able to do it every time except one (and that one was meant to be my child's Windows machine anyway). If you absolutely can't make the machine run Linux, use the restore partition to put the machine back the way you got it, return it to the store for your money back, and when they ask, tell them you can't use it because it can't run Linux. You notice I leave the machine as a dual-boot, which is much harder than wiping and (if the mobo allows) doing a simple MBR style Linux install. Keeping Windows is a necessity during the warranty period, because when you go to RMA the laptop, custy service will walk you through a series of Windows-only tests to determine the hardware problem. True story, I had a bad battery such that the instant I pulled out the power supply, the computer turned off. They wouldn't send me a new battery until I did a series of Windows tests. Personally, once my manufacturers warranty expires, I wipe out Windows and go 100% Linux. But that's a couple years after I buy the box. SteveT Steve Litt January 2016 featured book: Twenty Eight Tales of Troubleshooting http://www.troubleshooters.com/28 _______________________________________________ Dng mailing list Dng@lists.dyne.org https://mailinglists.dyne.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/dng