Hello Linuxers,

Please bear with the long mail. I am a new member here and my reason for joining is to get an idea of whats happenning in the Linux community especially in Mumbai. I am a hardware engineer by profession and I undertake maintainence for the SOHO segment. I learnt windows on my own since last 5 years by burning the midnight oil, but my networking knowledge is limitted to connecting machines peer to peer in windows. My first encounter with Linux was when Red Hat 8 was the current one. It loaded well on my Celeron 400 and I could configure the internet accounts and surf online using an external modem. However, the printouts in my LX 300 were never upto the same quality as in my Windows Me. The OpenOffice suite took longer to open in Linux than in Win. But the major problem was that printer could not get setup in OO so I would create docs in OO and open them in some other utility and print them. Ultimately that OS became a learning experiment than a proper day to day usable system.

Now I am currently learning the RHCE 033 module and was provided a set of CDs for Red Hat Enterprise Linux WS and they loaded well on my other P4 running existing XP. But it refused to detect my internal connexant modem though it exists in the kudzu listing as a pci device even with its proper name. The modem CD has linux drivers but even after loading all of them one by one, the modem would just not respond. The driverguide site gave a driver but the 180Kb something tar.gz file finally opened a 8Kb object file which I did not know what to do. Even in this OS, the print quality in my LX 300 is very poor compared to my XP. Again, Open Office simply vomits my paper out whenever print command is given.

I am not telling all this to look for solutions, but to highlight the problems that are making Big Billy have the last laugh. I use legal Windows OS in both comps. and the rest is freeware office, firewall, antivirus, anti-spyware etc. I want to promote Linux to home and small office users but with this situation, I am in a fix how this dream can materialise.

Many of you here have gone through these hurdles and are now master programmers too but what about dealers and sub dealers who want to promote Linux with their normal computer experience and knowledge? They are not programmers. Take any windows OS like 98 or Me or XP, it loads like butter and even when advanced drivers are not available, it performs general functions using its own drivers. A simple task like printing a word file in Linux is a problem when the Enterprise Edition in theory is supposed to be superior and office centric. Without modems, net and email which is a basic office function is impossible. The hardware I am talking about is no unknown one but a basic Intel based PC with a normal popular internal modem of a reputed company like D Link. I must add that the Xandros Linux installed beautifully before the RHEL was loaded and Xandros detected my modem and I surfed the net but again, print quality was lacking as in all other Linux I tried. An engineer cannot be expected to spend too much time on one system, that too for simple tasks of getting a PC up and running smoothly. He has to attend atlest 4 to 5 breakdown calls daily. Through the GUI, I fiddled with a lot of settings but got no result. As a result, Linux has still to reach the SOHO user as a fullfledged alternative to Windows. They are still on Windows. Unbranded computer assemblers that use and support varying hardware, still keep away from Linux.

I have a few suggestions for the developers and OS makers,

1. Have some sort of unity within the Linux community where simple things like driver support is available to everyone across Linux irrespective of freeware or paid versions. A free version that does not function properly makes no sense. The scattering of Linux flavours that have taken place should be re-channelised into one main objective and that is to provide a proper and similar, if not better alternative to Windows. Unity is strength.

2. Is there any development going on in making a Linux utility that converts windows drivers into Linux drivers as per the Linux flavour and kernel? If wine can run fullfledged Windows programs in Linux, this too should be a possibility.

3. Identify commonly used hardware that can be configured to give equaly good results in Linux too especially printers, modems. Scanners is another problem with Linux. None of the flavours I tried could setup my Canon D646u. A driver converter mentioned in point 2 could come in handy.

4. Please have some kernel intercompatibility in relation to device drivers so that drivers written for older kernels work on new ones too. I read in the recent LFY mag that internal modem drivers written for older kernels cannot work on newer ones. Linus Tarvolds could do something about this?

5. Make Linux not only developer friendly but normal hardware engineer friendly too.

Those who found my mail long and boring can send in their flames although I am sorry about that. But this was my experience which I wanted to share with you. As I go on in the RHCE course, I will learn more.

Best Wishes,

Rony.