Salvation - First encounter with GNU-Linux

So I recently bought a used Acer Aspire 5720Z with Intel T2310 Dual Core, 2GB RAM, 250GB harddive and Nvidia 8400GS graphics.

I've always been compelled by the open source mentality and have recently begun emerging from proprietary software to open source solutions. I started off by switching browser from IE to Firefox some two years ago. Secondly, I started using OpenOffice in replacement of MS Office, due to a complaint from an acquaintance saying he couldn't open the .doc-files I sent him and urged me to send them in rtf format.

I've wanted to switch to a GNU/Linux based OS for some time and now that I finally had aquired my own laptop I could do whatever I wanted with it without having to worry about complaints from the other tenants, so I decided to go for it. (When I think back, it appears to me that I might have bought that laptop just so I could trow windows out the ... well window)

I made a live-cd (I actually tryed making a OpenSUSE live cd first, but I accidently burned the .iso file itself to the disc, so I thought maybe some divine force wants me to try something else and I ended up with Ubuntu Intrepid Ibex ^_^ )and prepared for a lot of work. I figured I had to learn a ******** of programming just to get it up and running. You could say I was pretty damn pleased (and a bit releaved) when nearly everything worked out of the box!

Problems encountered: -My Atheros wireless network-card didn't work -If I used a lot of CPU my laptop overheated and shut down -I couldn't get my microphones (both internal and external) to work -The built-in Crystal Eye Webcam didn't work

Solutions: (I think I found every single one of them here on ubuntu forums =D) -installed linux-backports-modules and the wifi worked like a charm -installed a fan-control script; no more hard shutdowns due to overheating -haven't quite figured this one out yet... But it's not all that importent to me. Nevertheless, suggestions are appreciated -For some reason it worked when I lowered the resolution. Fix so I can capture with higher resolution is also appreciated

All-in-all, switching to linux wasn't even close to the hassle I had imagined, and I'm sooo happy I chose Ubuntu and doubt I will find anything better for me in the forseeable future.

Special thanks to everyone at ubuntu forums for very usefull (and life saving) information! =)

Best regards, a freshly converted Ubuntu-user

krisstaar said:

All-in-all, switching to linux wasn't even close to the hassle I had imagined, and I'm sooo happy I chose Ubuntu and doubt I will find anything better for me in the forseeable future.

Special thanks to everyone at ubuntu forums for very usefull (and life saving) information! =)

Best regards, a freshly converted Ubuntu-user

Welcome to the light! I'm glad your transition was smooth and (nearly) trouble free. There was a day when you had to modify config files from a command line (like, black screen white text command line, not the pretty shells in the GUI) just to get a picture, much less proper resolution.

Lots of progress since then, as is noted by your post. Glad you got everything to work and - as you already know - we're always here to help if you need it. :)

Cheers!

great to hear and welcome to the wonderful world of linux.

-haven't quite figured this one out yet... But it's not all that importent to me. Nevertheless, suggestions are appreciated

-For some reason it worked when I lowered the resolution. Fix so I can capture with higher resolution is also appreciated not sure i understand your problem. is the screen resolution not high enough?

wolfen69 said:

not sure i understand your problem. is the screen resolution not high enough?

The resolution in wich the Crystal Eye captures images...

Basically I tested the Crystal Eye with Cheese. At first the light by the cam lit, but no picture appeared. In Settings, the capture resolution was set to 640 x 480 (max and default). With this setting my webcam wouldn't produce an image on my screen. But when I changed the capture resolution to 176 x 144 (and lower) it would...

It's basically what I need for my use, but it would be nice to be able to capture a less pixelated picture, ie. with higher resolution.

Was that any clearer?

Welcome! For your problems:

Cheers.

• I'm sorry, I don't have specific help, but....
• I applaud you for taking the time to search the forums. A lot of people are just like "Aah! x doesn't work in Ubuntu! New thread! New thread! Duplicate! Duplicate!"
• That said, if you spend a reasonable amount of time trying to find the answer, and can't, I think you'd do better to hop over to the "General Help" subforum and make individual threads for the microphones and webcam. People knowledgeable in those areas probably won't take the time to read an "Ubuntu Testimonial & Experience" entitled "First encounter with GNU-Linux"--they'll be much more interested in "[model name] microphone doesn't work" and "[model name] internal webcam only works on low resolution"

Thanks for the tip...

There's already a thread on the webcam-issue... (http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1006097) But there's not too much action going on there yet =/

As for the problem with the mic, I'm going to play around with the settings and google some more before posting in a designated thread