--- In LINUX_Newbies@
> all the dual core processors have come down in price. Like right now at one store there is an Acer 15" laptop with AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual core processor TK-42 with 3GB Ram and 320GB Hard Drive for $399.
Sounds like a good price to me, too...especially since this box is
likely the model with discrete graphics (ATI Radeon, right?). So far
as I am aware, its primary drawback is a battery life that will max
out about two hours, if that's an issue for you.
> Not a bad price for something brand new. But, the question is, will Linux work well with the dual core processors?
Yes. Multi-core are not an issue today with the newer kernels. In
fact, multi-core Linux worked very well before Windows could take
advantage of them fully, and continue to be more efficient with them.
(Right now, the major incompatibility that is being worked on will not
affect this machine--it is for the new nVidia Optimux graphics
switching tech, which should be working by Summer sometime as I
understand it... a good thing, since that is what I'm considering
buying myself at that time.)
>Plus, the amount of memory so that I can partition the hard drive as I have a couple of games that will take me the rest of my life to get through and I do not want to lose the ability to still play those.
I assume by this you mean to retain Windows on a partition with the
Windows games, then add a Linux partition and make it dual boot. That
in itself shouldn't be a problem...but some games on some laptops can
be rather dodgy due to laptop performance issues--often slow hard
disks and/ or slower CPUs. This machine sounds like it should run most
games, though, so you should be fine with that.
It is possible it may have Vista preinstalled, or if a later one
Windows 7 Home Premium. If Vista, inquire about whether there's a free
upgrade available to Win 7.
Also, look into a utility called "PC Decrapifier" and uninstall all
the bloatware and trialware you won't need on the box as a first order
of business, then defrag the disk to give a clean starting place to do
the repartition and Linux install. That will maximize your space
available and give you a cleaner system when you are running Windows.
You may have a bit of a challenge setting up the wireless, although it
should work eihter out of the box or with a little fiddling. Do
remember about wicd, as that may be easier to get working in the case
you have wireless issues...you should easily be able to use the wired
Ethernet for getting everything working if you have any problems
initially.
When you set up the Linux distro of your choice, the only real reason
you would need a swap partition is if you should use system
hibernation. That would mean having enough swap to store the entire
memory image--so I wouldn't bother with more than 4 GB of swap (as
that is the maximum memory recognized if you should upgrade from the 3
GB it apparently comes with in your case.)
You should also decide whether you will go with 32-bit or 64-bit
Linux. A little reading about any pro and con issues there would be
worthwhile. For this system, I'd probably still go with 32 bit at
least for now, especially if you intend to keep it at 3 GB of RAM.
I am sure there are some on here who have had very good luck with
Acer. Over the years, I have had sufficient difficulties with various
of their peripherals that I haven't bothered with any of their
computers--but that is not a particularly logical reason for avoiding
them. Do read a few reviews, though, and especially any customer
reviews to see if there are any "gotchas" involved either in this
particular model or with similar Acers in general. That said, unless
some show-stopper cropped up, as I said in the beginning it sounds
like a good buy.
David
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