Passing on Ubuntu 804
For years, my home office has had a configuration of three machines: one that I consider a server, one that I consider a desktop, and one that is a laptop. Initially, they were all Windows, and eventually Windows XP, but over time I tried out various permutations and ended up with all running Ubuntu.
My server continues to run Ubuntu, now 710, and I will probably update it to 804 eventually, but being a server that works, I’m in no hurry.
I recently converted my desktop machine to a Mac Mini. For a number of reasons, including one that I wasn’t ready to mention at the time: to work on my new book. I didn’t participate in the recent history meme as it would have revealed too much information about my activities. But suffice it to say that my Mac usage is somewhat a-typical. I hardly touch the Mac keyboard at all. Most of my activities involve me ssh'ing into the Mac, and scrolling through a PDF using a mouse.
This brings me to my laptop. It, too, has recently been replaced. My trusty T42p, after years of hard use, was starting to fall apart. I was issued a new T61p. While I am aware that there are models of the T61p that work well with Linux, this does not appear to be one of them. The issue is the NVIDIA display. When I do a fresh install of Ubuntu 804 on this machine, the display is sluggish. If I move a window there are often artifacts left behind momentarily. Video playback is jerky. CPU load is often in the 3 to 5 range, even when the machine is “idle”. The fan is constantly running.
So, for the last two months, I’ve been running XP with CYGWIN. Mostly the SSH client, Firefox, Thunderbird, and Pidgin. I’m increasingly using my server (via SSH) for development where I used to use my laptop.
Clearly, if I’m willing to run XP, I would be willing to try restricted video drivers. The restricted video drivers, either installed directly or via envyng-gtk do address all of the problems listed above, but introduce one new problem. Suspend works. Resume doesn’t. Unfortunately, for me, that is a complete show-stopper.
Another part of the trend is that I’ve gone from three IBM provided machines to two self-purchased machines and one IBM provided machine. Perhaps it is time to go to three self-purchased machines.