Real World Linux Use – What To Test In Live Mode

In this series I’m going to covers the ins and outs of using Linux as your primary home computer operating system. It will cover in a realistic sense what you can and moreover cannot do with it.

A “live” mode of Linux is if the distribution is capable of running solely from a booted CD or DVD.

Ubuntu is a good example of this. Let’s say you download that Linux distribution and burn it to CD. After you do that you can directly boot from that CD into the operating system without installing it to test it out. This is one of the major advantages of Linux because yes, you can truly try it before actually installing.

It is suggested you buy a cheap 10-pack of blank writeable CDs or DVDs so you can test out as many distros as you like.

It is not suggested you use CD/RW or DVD/RW discs because those take significantly longer to write to (that’s the difference between a 4x write and a 32x write!) Use plain blank CD-R’s or DVD -R’s / DVD +R’s. They’re cheap enough and can be found just about anywhere.

Things to note about running Linux in “live” mode

1. It will be slow.

A CD obviously doesn’t have the performance of a hard drive. Access times will be slower so you need to exercise a bit of patience when using Linux (any Linux) in “live” mode.

2. It does take time to boot.

Once again this directly attributes to the fact you’re booting from a CD and not the hard drive.

3. Do not be surprised if some things don’t work.

When booting a live mode, Linux is attempting to auto-detect all the stuff in your computer on boot and certain things may not work at all.

Sometimes you will encounter the instance where everything works (usually on laptops) but this is rare.

In most instances, what doesn’t work are wireless devices (wireless network cards, keyboards, mice ,etc.), printers and some video cards. Note that this greatly depends on what Linux distribution you decided to test out. For example, Ubuntu may not “like” your video card but Linux Mint will and vice versa.

If you want to give Linux the most “opportunity” so-to-speak of detecting everything, here are my recommendations:

• Use wired-only devices if you can
• Use a single-monitor setup only (if you run dual or more monitors, physically unplug those and use 1 monitor only)
• Disconnect anything connected via USB that you don’t need to test Linux with (digital cameras, printers, etc.)

Testing stuff in Linux starts with internet connectivity

It’s generally agreed upon that a computer that cannot connect to the internet is essentially worthless, so that’s our first priority.

If your computer is connected via wired internet, you should have absolutely no problems connecting to the internet.

If on the other hand you use wireless, this may prove to be a challenge to get working.

Assuming Linux detected your wireless card properly and you’re using a Linux distro that has KDE or GNOME as the desktop manager, usually what you need to do is single-left-click a small network icon next to the clock once the desktop loads up. This should bring up some wireless networking options and you should be able to connect and authenticate to your wireless router from there.

You may encounter issues if your wireless authentication is WPA2. If you use WEP or WPA you won’t have problems – but for whatever reason Linux sometimes doesn’t “like” WPA2 if that’s your wireless router’s security setting.

If you have reasonable assurance that:

1. Your wireless router is working
2. Linux can “see” your wireless network card properly
3. Linux can “see” your wireless network but absolutely won’t connect to it

…it’s probably WPA2 that’s getting in the way, so to speak. Try WEP or WPA instead.

Apps you should try out immediately once you get connected to the internet

The web browser

Most Linux distros come bundled with either Firefox or Konqueror as the default web browser.

You’re most likely already familiar with Firefox.

Konqueror is still the default browser in some Linux distros using the KDE environment. You’ll know what it is by a large “K” icon and its ability to (obviously) browse the web.

Chances are you’ll be using Firefox as your primary browser. And yes it will work the exact same way it did in Windows. The only difference is where the options are. In Windows, Firefox options are located by clicking Tools and then Options. In Linux it’s Edit then Preferences. Everything else is more or less the same and yes, Firefox plugins will work the same in Linux as they do in Windows.

Instant messaging

The default bundled instant messaging application in Linux is usually Pidgin. In some Linux distros using KDE you may see Kopete. Both work fine but arguably Pidgin is the better of the two.

If you use instant messaging you will need to familiarize yourself with how to set the app up. Both apps are multi-protocol so you can set up AIM, Yahoo, MSN/Live and Google Talk accounts easily.

It is important to note that yes, you will lose functionality by using a multi-protocol IM program like Pidgin or Kopete. For example, video support (for webcam chat) is usually lacking. With Linux what you get is simply text-only instant messaging more or less.

Another important note: Yes there are from-service specific Linux versions but they’re all terrible. For example, there is AIM for Linux, but it is so unbelievably old and obsolete you won’t want to go anywhere near it. I’ll put it to you this way: It looks like an app from Windows 95 – it’s that bad. That’s bad news. Stick with Pidgin or Kopete.

OpenOffice

In Windows you have Microsoft Office, in Linux there’s OpenOffice. This is a really good office-app suite and you’ll have no issues using it.

It’s suggested however that you switch over to OpenOffice on your Windows computer(s) or at least have it installed there if you need to swap back and forth OpenOffice documents and spreadsheets. It’s free and all it takes is a download and install.

Granted, you don’t need to do that as OpenOffice will “understand” Word/Excel files, but better safe than sorry.

Add/Remove

In a “live” mode you actually can add/remove programs. Yes you will lose these apps once you exit the operating system but you can at least test certain apps out.

To note: Ubuntu is the best Linux distro to test apps with – no question. You can download and test anything from Add/Remove in Ubuntu in “live” mode. This is very convenient and moreover easy.

When going to Add/Remove in Ubuntu, make use of the search feature to search for apps. Try to locate things you would want to do, install those apps and see what happens.

Hardware you should test while in “live” mode

Your digital camera

You should be able to plug in your digital camera via USB and Linux should detect it with absolutely no problems. The camera will show up as a mounted drive that you can click on and browse the photos (which is want you want) on the cam itself.

I have never encountered a digital camera that didn’t work in Linux.

Your printer

It’s a crapshoot whether your printer will work or not in Linux. If you have an inkjet, chances are slim it won’t work because it’s controlled via Windows software that you can’t access in a Linux environment.

There are some general rules of thumb when it comes to printers in Linux:

• The simpler the printer is, the more likely it will work. (Example: A “plain” inkjet would be more likely to work than an “all-in-one” copy/fax/scan/print.)
• Laser usually has more support than inkjet-based because it’s more hardware-controlled than software-controlled.
• If the printer is under one year old, chances are high it won’t work in Linux.
• Older printers (usually) always work better in Linux.
• Linux usually “likes” Lexmark (Dell), Epson and Canon printers most.
• Linux usually “dislikes” HP inkjets because they very heavily rely on software just to operate.
• Linux “loves” business-grade HP Laserjet printers because they are ordinarily almost 100% hardware-based. (Example: If you have an old HP Laserjet III, 4, 5, 5000 or 6 lying around – that’s guaranteed to work.)

Your keyboard and mouse

Obviously you need your keyboard and mouse to operate the computer, but if you have specific software-assigned keys/buttons to either, make sure they work in Linux.

To note: Linux usually will recognize specially-assigned keys/buttons – but you have to manually assign them in the Linux “Control Center” (or equivalent of “Control Panel” in Windows).

Any specialized hardware

This is any hardware that requires special setup in Windows just to use. For example, a Wacom tablet. That needs setup. Test it in Linux during the live mode.

If the special hardware you have doesn’t work, try searching for drivers in Add/Remove (Ubuntu specific).

Up next: Understanding how a Linux file system works compared to Windows.