Re: [expert] Wishes for Mandrake and 9.1

[Jason Greenwood]

I agree 100%. The other thing that MUST work well is USB and hotplugging. I will not go into my trials and experiences here but suffice it to say that as of 9.0 USB detection needed some help. I KNOW this is partially due to hardware vendors not always following standard USB protocols (eg USB Mass Storage Protocol) but if we can anticipate and compensate for this then Mandrake WILL become the distro of choice for desktop users. USB is becoming much more common, especially on laptops and this is one area where Linux can/must do better.

I have gotten a USB external sony memory stick reader/writer to work great on mdk 9.0 but NOTHING else. (ok, a USB mouse but that doesn't count ;) The reader workd out of the box just by plugging it in and I was totally overjoyed but then was dismayed when NONE of my other USB peripherals worked the same way.

My .0002c worth.

Cheers

Jason Greenwood

James Sparenberg wrote:

All,

<soapbox>
    Laptops are the fastest selling sector of the hardware world.  More
and more people are replacing there older desktop with a laptop.  MDK is
far and away the most user friendly of the Linux distro's, with unified
menu's and no removal of user choice ala RH and blew.  (One exception
noted here

http://www.mandrakeclub.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=Splatt_Forum&file=viewtopic&topic=3873&forum=2

)

The one point that is an extreme weakness for all the distro's and
should be a natural for MDK is with laptops. I for one have been
struggling mightily with wirelss for 2 weeks.  Still haven't gottne it
to work right been through 4 cards ... have given up on cardbus ... down
graded to 8.0 and now have a 16 bit pcmcia netgear MA401RA working...
for up to 20 seconds before a hard lockup.  I've googled till I'm blue
in the face and I keep coming up with people talking about not being
able to get wireless working in MDK and switching to SuSe or RH.  OK I'm
a stubborn cuss.  If it will work in SuSe or RH it's got to be able to
work in MDK.  

To the men and women of MDK.  If you want to stand head ans shoulders
above the crowd this is a place where you are uniquely enabled to do
just this.  It shouldn't be this hard.  If I can click on an Icon and
create a self mounting samba share (and I can!) this should be doable. 
Maybe in in the connection Wizard some recognition of wireless?  How
about keeping a database of info to insert in /etc/pcmcia/config for
cards you don't have (I've got some already to include here.) A place
where one of the more knowledgeable members can create a HowTo for
wireless. ( the current howto in the ldp is limited to RH 6.2) Not
everyone is running a PIV 4ghz with 1 gig of ram and dual NVidia cards
on a desktp system.
</soapbox>

<trip>
   Fall flat on face getting off soapbox.
</trip>

James





  

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