I have an IBM ThinkPad 390X running linux and have been very pleased with it. The only thing that doesn't seem to be supported is the WinModem. If you go for a ThinkPad, I'd recommend getting it without the IBM 10/100 Etherjet Cardbus adapter and buy one that has more support in the linux community. I'm just about to make the change from a 390X to an A20 model and I'll post my results later to let everyone know how it goes. Jon Erickson NEI College of Technology > -----Original Message----- > From: Mark Phillips [mailto:mbp at geomtech.com] > Sent: Wednesday, October 04, 2000 12:04 PM > To: tclug-list at mn-linux.org > Subject: [TCLUG:22137] Linux laptop questions > > > > I'm in the market for a fairly high-end Linux laptop. So the > first question is: any recommendations? > > Specifically, I've had a Dell Inspiron 3000 (with Windows, not Linux) > for several years and have liked it a lot, so I was thinking about > getting an Inspiron 7500 from Dell, preloaded with Linux, so that I > don't have to spend much time setting it up, and because of my good > experience with Dell in the past. > > The problem is that for reasons that no one at Dell can tell me, > they won't sell a Linux laptop with a hard drive larger than 6GB. > The same laptops with Windows can have hard drives up to 20GB > or maybe 30GB. > > Other vendors that sell laptops preloaded with Linux do offer larger > disk drives. Does anyone out there have any idea why Dell might have > this restriction? Are the Linux drivers for larger laptop hard drives > less stable, for example? > > A couple of related questions: > > 1. If I got a Dell Inspiron 7500 preloaded with Windows (and with, > say, a 20GB hard drive), and then tried to install Linux on it > myself, can anyone tell me what kind of experience I'd be in > for? I've installed Linux on a lot of desktops and servers but > never any laptops, so I'm OK with putzing with it a bit, but if > it'll take me a week to get X up and running, for example, then > I'd rather pay someone else to do it. Also, I don't want to > have to spend a lot of time in advance checking and > double-checking the specs to make sure that all the hardware > will work with Linux. > > 2. Does anyone have any experience with support from some of the > other Linux laptop companies, such as ASL or Tuxtops? Are > they dependable? Can I be confident that they'll still be around > to service the thing if it develops problems in a couple of years? > > I'd appreciate hearing any thoughts about any of these things. Thanks! > > --Mark > > Mark Phillips @ Geometry Technologies, Inc. > Suite 550, 413 Wacouta St., St. Paul, MN 55101 > Phone: 651-223-2884 Fax: 651-292-0014 > mbp at geomtech.com http://www.geomtech.com > > --------------------------------------------------------------------- > To unsubscribe, e-mail: tclug-list-unsubscribe at mn-linux.org > For additional commands, e-mail: tclug-list-help at mn-linux.org > > --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: tclug-list-unsubscribe at mn-linux.org For additional commands, e-mail: tclug-list-help at mn-linux.org