Was 9 worth the trouble?

[andrew5859]

Good Evening All,

To those of you who are complaining and whinning about having problems with any Linux distro.....stop it!!!....sit and take the time to get to know Linux, study it, learn it, learn how and why it works the way it does. Believe me when I tell you this, because it was something that was told me a few years back when I was frustrated and angry about Ubuntu. There a lot of you who look to be diehard Windows users, and have started from win95 like me....only I started even further back than that...Win 3.11 WFWG (Windows for Work Groups). It's not easy sometimes trying to learn a new OS, it takes time, and there a lot of much more experienced Linux users on here to help (when they can and have time for)....learn from them, listen to them, like FedoraRefugee and others. I talk to myself as well too, because there are times that I find myself complaining about stuff not working correctly. The Dev teams go through a lot of time and trouble to get these distro's to us.....thankfully they're somewhat patient with us, trying to deal with some of us in the process of developing these new versions of Mint or Ubuntu or whatever.

So...next time you decide to come and start ranting about why something doesn't work, try doing a little research first...search specific forums that deal with your type of problem and see if there is someone else who has experienced the same thing, look to see what the remedy was and see if it will work for you. Granted, everyone has a different type of desktop or laptop with different cpu, memory, HDD...etc....at least try to apply the remedies to your situation, if it doesn't work, then look for another remedy that will fit or work. After you have exhausted all other posibilities, then come to this place and ask for advice or help, then wait patiently for the answer, someone is bound to answer that can help.....but don't come here and start ranting right off the bat....if you're unsatisfied with Linux, then go back to using Windows......for me, I'm doing both,because I can and want to, but I'm more inclined to using Linux because of it's stability and security, low consumption of resources, both in memory, HDD, and cpu temps. I'm not perfect, and I do run into and have my fair share of frustrations and problems, but I'll look into the situation first and see if there are previous fixes to the problem before coming here and asking for answers. Most important of all....treat everyone here with respect...they deserve it and so do you.

From me...I want to thank all of the longer time members and the dev team for all your hard work and time you put into this and all other forums, distro's....it's all greatly appreciated....have a great Memorial Day Weekend.

Andrew

[Dodge]

If you don't want to learn Linux, that's your prerogative. However, don't blame the OS on someone's unwillingness to apply themself and learn how the OS works.

Best way to put it.

I've ran into quite a few problems with Mint 8, but they were from being a Noob to it.

People need to think about something. This is LINUX, not Windows. They cannot be the same thing. Hell if they were why would we want it? You had to learn windows, and you have to learn Linux. So either learn it or leave it.

I haven't had time to try 9 yet, but I've been hearing alot of horror stories over ubuntu 10.04 being very sluggish. Maybe I'll get time next weekend to try it out.

[vrkalak]

@ andrew5859

Excellent post!!

At least, someone gets it . . . the entire concept of what GNU/Linux and OpenSource is all about.

[andrew5859]

BTW.....LM9 Isadora main is worth the trouble....as with the previous versions....it's a great distro and so will LM9 KDE Isadora when it comes out...just have to be patient and wait for the dev team to finish all the particulars with regards to testing for the RC ISO....great things are coming our way..

Andrew

[bunstonious]

I agree Andrew

Looks like some quality stuff coming...

[owend]

Yes. It's not vastly different to Mint 8, but in my (obviously limited so far) experience it's a little faster loading/running/shutting - maybe not much but certainly not slower than 8 - and so far rock-solid; a few handy tweaks, and for me the big improvement is Brasero - it works! I had problems in 8, it wouldn't burn (nor did K3B or Xfburn), I had to switch to WinXP or Mandriva to burn, although everything else was good in 8.

The install was the best I've ever experienced: I put 9 on a new partition, without deleting 8 (I'm a coward, in case 9 blew up!). Very smooth, no glitches at all, and 9 found and copied my Mint 8 Thunderbird address books and ALL the emails, and Firefox's bookmarks, without even asking me!! (asking might have been courteous, I know, in case I didn't want them copied, but it took me by surprise).

General point: Linux as a concept is very adaptable compared to Windows or Mac; and if you aren't willing to play with settings, most distros' default settings will give a perfectly workable OS, with the bonus of a large amount of important software already seamlessly installed (apps for mail, web, office, music etc) and a lot more is easily installable, often one-click, through Synaptic or the new Mint 9 Software Manager (although I haven't played with that much yet). If you bear in mind virus/malware worries, buying and installing software and still having to set up a Windows OS, Linux is no more complex even for noobies, and in many ways much easier to set up and run. Anyone who can't/won't get under the lid a bit will probably have problems with any OS, not just Linux.

I would suggest that Mint 9 is probably the best Linux yet in its mix of beginner-friendliness and intermediate-adaptability. I'm not a power-user, but at middle and lower reaches of the Linux universe it'll take some beating (Mint 10?!).

[Summersky]

i didnt have to SPEND so much time fixing, rebooting, hacking, trolling on forums, reinstalling, editing boot menus, installing so many alternative apps that are semi similar to windows apps, waiting for web browser to render web pages, poor drivers, pointless 3d cubes and desktop effects as i have on linux as opposed to windows!

you have to realize that people just want to boot into a OS, spend virtually 0 time pondering why this or that has crashed or frozen or reinstall driver graphics out of the blue, spend time learning a not so user friendly app which slows down the individual to get on with their basic computing needs - the way ubuntu is heading, imho, i reckom it will definitely STAY as an hobbyist play time OS and never reach the status as an serious windows replacement.

My thoughts exactly.
Mint 9 is a complete mess. Total disaster. I cant keep it running long enough to fix anything and now the mouse pointer has disappeared. I also have no idea how to convince it that it's not on a laptop. This definitely needs to go back to the drawing board.
I'm reinstalling Mint 8 for now. It wasn't 'stable' as in crash free, but at least it didnt crash on bootup.

[dawgdoc]

ive only en-counted 2 operating systems that have been buggy as hell.

Windows Me - my god - as buggy as ubuntu
Ubuntu in general

not 1 issue with 98SE, 2000, XP nor W7, not 1 that i can recall that i classed as or had a major bug in them that made me put either ISO into the RIP folder on external backups.

My experiences have not been the same.
Install Building a few computers, I have had issues installing windows. Mobo drivers, optical drive drivers not available at install, video not right and having to download drivers
Drivers Who has not heard of Vista's video issues and BSoDs for the first year, which MS blames on nVidia's drivers.
Software Going from Win98 to XP definitely caused me to loose some software. The same has been true for those upgrading from XP to Vista.
Hardware Am I the only one who has not been able to carry forward a printer (or other hardware) from 98 to XP, or XP to Vista? Even though the 3rd party people will build drivers for their products in windows if not in Linux, they do not do so indefinitely. There has been much trouble reported in getting 3 y/o printers to work with windows upgrades. I have a 1Gb Sparq drive does anyone need it, that worked perfectly in Win98? Not any version since. How about a SCSI scanner?
Regressions They definitely happen in Windows.

Mint 7 installed perfectly on my 3 y/o, at the time, laptop. Mint9 has installed on my 6 y/o desktop and all that i have tested with it works. So Mint 9 is worth it to me. I will soon be putting it on the laptop.

It may not be perfect with you. Windows is not either.

[Summersky]

Mint9 has installed on my 6 y/o desktop and all that i have tested with it works. So Mint 9 is worth it to me. I will soon be putting it on the laptop.
It may not be perfect with you. Windows is not either.

I was running Mint 9, (reinstalled 8 this morning), on a 6 year old Dell Dimension 2400 with an Intel 4 processor. Somewhere, I picked up the idea that the buggy-ness might be associated with Intel processors, so I am wondering what kind of processor your 6 y/o desktop has.

Getting Windows Vista to recognize my printer was a day of frustration that nearly ended in violence, but I loved 98 and XP.

[randomizer]

Mint 9 is a complete mess. Total disaster.

That's a rather strong thing to say. By your logic Windows 7 is also a total disaster, because at least one person has had problems with it. IMHO, an OS is a disaster when the majority have major problems with it.

[dawgdoc]

Somewhere, I picked up the idea that the buggy-ness might be associated with Intel processors, so I am wondering what kind of processor your 6 y/o desktop has.

It has an Athlon XP 3200+, my memory could be slipping, it may actually be 7 years old. On install of Mint9, initially it would go to a command type prompt from the live CD or DVD, I had used both in other machines. I could not start the graphical desktop with

Code: Select all

startx

I did less than 15 minutes of searching to find the fix. I have spent much more than this to install XP on homebuilt machines. (It was a problem with KMS and was fixed with the nomodeset boot option. KMS is related to graphics in the kernel. That desktop has an ATI Radeon HD 2400 Pro. I saw posts from others with on board nVidia graphics using the same settings to solve the issue. If you are using onboard graphics, give it a try.

[exploder]

Mint 9 was definitely worth the trouble. Some updates seem to have cured all of my NVidea issues and the OS comes stock with the tools to fix Plymouth. The tools in Mint 9 are exceptional and memory use is unbelievably good, I haven't noticed any memory leaks. The artwork is very pleasing to the eyes and it sort of has a Mac sort of feel to it without being a Mac clone if you know what I mean. The system is quick and responsive in just about every way. Mint 9 was worth the trouble.

[bunstonious]

Mint 9 is a complete mess. Total disaster.

That's a rather strong thing to say. By your logic Windows 7 is also a total disaster, because at least one person has had problems with it. IMHO, an OS is a disaster when the majority have major problems with it.

*cough* Windows ME *cough*

[randomizer]

*cough* Windows ME *cough*

Windows Me was indeed a disaster. I personally couldn't shut it down after a few months, and that's only one of its minor problems.

[Pilosopong Tasyo]

Was 9 worth the trouble?

For me, it was worth it, although I encountered a few hurdles along the way, namely:

(1) Panels that don't appear when they are created. This one's easily fixed. All it takes after creating a new panel that goes invisible is to add a panel item to an existing one, and viola! the invisible panel appears on screen. I don't have to do the logout-login exercise just to see the panel.

(2) Brasero wouldn't burn CDs/DVDs. It will generate the .CUE and .BIN files, but will give an error when an attempt to do the actual burn occurs. From what I've read, this was an upstream problem. Again, just like the previous hurdle, it's an easy fix -- GnomeBaker works just fine.

(3) The latest incarnation of OpenOffice seems to load s-l-o-w-e-r. No problem. I have the patience to wait a few more seconds for OpenOffice Writer to load up. And if I encounter more problems in OpenOffice, I can always zap it out of existence and install an older version.

(4) My printers used to work in Gloria and Helena but stopped working in Isadora. This could have been the biggest deal breaker if it weren't for a solution I found while searching "Epson T10 Lucid" in Google. So, another hurdle solved.

Despite these barriers, Isadora had enough appeal that convinced me to say the benefits outweighed the drawbacks. Some that I appreciate:

(1) General improvements to the user interface and updated applications.

(2) Bluetooth improvements - It's now easier to directly transfer files and pictures from the cellphone to my computer. I cannot make this happen in Gloria and Helena.

(3) Nautilus' extra pane - Less pain in the @ss (pun intended lol) when copying/moving files around.

(4) Remote Desktop Viewer (Vinagre) - Finally I can control a remote terminal a tad smoother now that I don't have to see the desktop in 24-bit color (8 bit is more than enough).

Like all things though, the YMMV principle still holds true. What works for some may not work for others. I'm lucky I didn't encounter the turmoils others experienced when they upgraded. And am grateful to the developers who put a lot of man-hours and their talent in producing software that benefits society.

My 2ȼ.

[hakon]

No trouble at all. I think it's a great product! I converted from Windows a while back; it is still on my desktop but I haven't used it in a while. Mint 9 is a fine product, and it is free! The start up speed is awsome, and soe are the 3000+ applications available to it. The backup tool is also very useful, and I was able to rebuild my system within minutes.

There seem to be a few flaws left but they'll be ironed out eventually.

I do not have any games installed.

Hakon

[lbdman]

I switched from Ubuntu to Mint 8, and was really surprised at how good it was as I had tried it a couple of years ago and was not impressed with mint at all. It is interesting to see how many people seem to have problems with mint 9, as all the problems listed seem to have passed me by. I did a fresh install wiping the hard drive, then copied over my home folder that I had saved on another disc, and carried on exactly where I left off from 8, with one exception. I cannot delete the emails in evolution so whilst I am going through the 200 odd "saved emails" I am using gmail. Once the emails all saved I shall re-install evolution a fresh.

One thing I might add to those with serious problems, I have had instances where I have installed/upgraded a distro often ubuntu and things have not worked properly, so i just did a re-install of the distro from scratch and second time round things worked ok. As it has worked for me, I would recommend that first before wasting hours scrolling through forums.

[Summersky]

Mint 9 is a complete mess. Total disaster.

That's a rather strong thing to say. By your logic Windows 7 is also a total disaster, because at least one person has had problems with it. IMHO, an OS is a disaster when the majority have major problems with it.

Well, I think your numbers might be a little off, but I was more than a little unfair and I humbly apologize. Tremendous work goes into these efforts and I was clearly out of line.

To be honest, everything I said about Isadora was true in a 6 year old Dell Dimension 2400, which is working much better now with Helena. But I wanted to you to know that I put Isadora in a 2 year old laptop on Sunday and it is beautiful. It rides like a dream. I've had a few minor glitches easily solved on the forums or with tutorials and I had to hook up a different printer, but none of this was difficult. I love Isadora in the laptop and I apologize for disparaging it in the past. Many thanks to all who brought this all together.

[mzsade]

Videos are still jerky, weren't so in Helena, and Gloria was the best in overall performance. But all my drivers installed so smoothly and everything else works flawlessly, so i am not complaining. I watch media on my #! Statler partition on which incidentally, my printer doesn't work.

[shayney]

I found Mint 9 pretty much identical to running Mint 8, which to me is no bad thing as I consider Mint 8 to be the best OS I have EVER used.

However, before installing 9, I had been running ubuntu Lucid through the betas and did a fresh install after release and compared to Mint 9, Lucid seems much faster in EVERY respect.
Boot is quicker, apps load quicker, uses less memory either on a freshly loaded desktop OR with the same amount of apps running.

That's not to say Lucid is better, just that performance is.
Of course Mint has a slightly different default app choice and startup services may be slightly different but to me the difference in performance is quite dramatic.
I don't really understand why since in theory they should surely run pretty much identically.
In the event, I decided to stick with the Lucid install and just add the Mint repo and install the tools.

I still think Mint is the best OS choice, just maybe not for someone who already has a running ubuntu system.