LMDE 5 RTL Driver Support

[johnsageek]

I noticed in another post in this forum, that someone was looking for help finding the RTL 88*" Wi-Fi drivers for Linux Mint LMDE 5. I didn't like the replies mainly because of the condescending comments made about the guy being a "Newb" SEE I am NOT a Newb and was having the same problem with using LMDE 5 when I read the other post,
Soooo, I decided to go elsewhere and find a solution. I found the RTL github repository and in very easy to read language, in 5 lines of "instructions" with syntax I was able to download the repository and MAKE the install for the RTL driver set. And I would like to share this invaluable resource.
https://github.com/fastoe/RTL8811CU
In the Linux tradition, we are supposed to be here to support each other, regardless of experience or level of knowledge. Hasn't the world got enough problems without the Linux community becoming part of the problem?

[motoryzen]

Indeed...in true Linux fashion we all SHOULD always strive to be good to each other and so some reasonable level of patience with newbs. on the flip side though, I've still noticed many beginners NOT taking a moment to notice the almost impossible to miss pink section above of Forum rules and the link of how to get help when asking for help...specifically step 5 where it explains how to post system details easily and in a way in which makes is easy to scroll read the content without it taking up much room on the web topic page here.

But it's like time and time again...us veteran users have to remind them to click that link and at least skim-read a bit. Entire point of that step 5 in that link is to save everyone time-wasting speculation. System details often at first glance help everyone or many narrow down the problem much faster than us all just guessing " ok..which distro and which desktop environment are you using? Which version of cinnamon? etc etc ? "

Now I'm curious if you could share the forums.linuxmint.com/particular topic link that illustrates that or those bad attitudes you noticed being shown against a Linux beginner who came here asking for help and was treated poorly.

If that is legit the case, the mod(s) here would be interested in investigating it and will be swift to remove asinine or unhelpful comments ( xenopeek and SMG have been pretty solid so far in keeping this site in good shape socially as well as moem last I recall )

[RIH]

I noticed in another post in this forum, that someone was looking for help finding the RTL 88*" Wi-Fi drivers for Linux Mint LMDE 5. I didn't like the replies mainly because of the condescending comments made about the guy being a "Newb" SEE I am NOT a Newb and was having the same problem with using LMDE 5 when I read the other post,

As a moderator I would be very happy to see a link to that post as a quick search found me unable to locate a suspect.

The Forum takes a very dim view of any poster attempting to belittle another for any reason. Happily it is a situation that I have found rarely happens here and even less often require Moderation intervention.
Trolls deliberately intent on causing disruption do slip through from time to time though on any Forum.

EDIT to add
Any member can highlight any post that they believe infringes the rules by reporting that specific post by clicking on the icon above it. All such reports are automatically forwarded to the Moderation team.

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[johnsageek]

After rereading the forum post, I will admit a tiny bit, that I may have over reacted to the verbiage used. A majority of the responses seemed to be pushing back on using LMDE 4 <DEB> instead using the Ubuntu version, but the individual had consistently expressed a desire to stay put with LMDE, needing help to accomplish the task at hand. I will admit I did misinterpret the dialogue to a certain extent. But nonetheless, here is the link for your review. viewtopic.php?t=327074

Mind you this. I am trying to get a young man involved in the Linux Community of computing. I could have just thrown him into the Deep end of the pool, with Debian. But, I chose to use an older laptop of mine and let him do a LMDE install instead. Trying to and in true Linux fashion, keep it simple but challenging, just enough to stretch those God given brain cells to learn something useful. In my opinion Linux Mint has been a stalwart distro for Windows refugees, keeping that balance for a new generation of Linux enthusiasts. So, with that said, I appreciate your responses and concern. --> Thank you, John

[coffee412]

Code: Select all

After rereading the forum post, I will admit a tiny bit, that I may have over reacted to the verbiage used.

Its very hard to judge emotions from a post. What may seem like rudeness could possibly be just taken the wrong way.

I think a lot of users really do not make the effort to search for an answer on their own and just come to the forums and need to be spoon fed. Ideally, It should'nt be this way. By you going to github and doing exactly what you did is the way to go. Then if you run into problems come here and post with specific questions. When users reply to your post with questions you will then have a better background on the situation and be able to answer them.

I would like to offer some helpful hints to those working on issues and having problems:

1. Open up a text editor before working on the problem and copy/paste notes into it as you work thru your problem. Whenever I am doing anything I always have a text editor open with what commands I ran, Explanations ect... so if I have to ask a question or refer back to something I have it right there. Then I always save it to a text file format for later viewing.

2. Mint is built on ubuntu. ubuntu is built on debian. So if your having some issue you can greatly increase the likely hood of searching for answers or specific commands and howto's by not limiting yourself to just LM.

3. A bit more advanced, If at all possible and your computer has the resources, Do your work in a VM like virtualbox. First install the vm and when its finished/up and running clone it. Then any changes you make you make to the clone. If you screw it up then blow away the clone if you cannot fix it and create another clone and work on that. I do this all the time and always have a clone test VM for such things.

4. Always make a copy of a file before you go in and edit it.

5. Understand that some of the best advice you get in a forum comes from those critical to you and your post.