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The whole juggernaut that is now Linux on Dell started as the brainchild of two core individuals, Barton George (Senior Principal Engineer) and Jared Dominguez (OS Architect and Linux Engineer).
It was their vision that began it all back in 2012. It was long hours, uncertain futures and sheer belief that people really did want Linux laptops that sustained them. Here is the untold story of how Dell gained the top spot in preinstalled Linux on laptops.
[...] This first attempt at Linux on laptops failed mainly because most non-technical users were blinded by the cheap price and didn't understand what they were actually buying.
[...] This time the duo had the right initial market. It was big, commercial web-scale operators and their developers who were crying out for a fully supported Linux laptop.
People who do technical work, like Linux. People who don't, don't.
(Score: 0, Flamebait) by ElizabethGreene on Saturday November 18 2017, @03:20AM (3 children)
> First, identify all the vendors for all the hardware in the computer.
...
I haven't had to do this since Windows 7. Today I use the (Free and open source) Microsoft Dvd/USB creation tool to explode the iso on a usb stick, put it in the PC, and boot the USB drive. Pick the OS, pick Clean install, Next, Next, Next, Finish.
Then I click the box for my privacy choices, and I have to make a choice.
If I sign in with my @microsoft.com email (I work for the man.) my machine will automatically join our Azure AD. It will bitlocker the system, push down our VPN profile, and set up my access to the company app store so I can grab Office, etc.
If I sign in with my Xbox account (my @gmail.com email) I'm at a usable desktop. My desktop background shows up automagically, my onedrive works, my bookmarks are in edge. From here I install adblock plus for edge from the Microsoft Store (Yes, that's a thing), sign in to Skype, grab and install my software essentials from my OneDrive.
In the background, while I'm doing the above, the system scampers out to Windows update and pulls down any drivers I'm missing plus the latest cumulative updates. It just works.
Today's Microsoft is not Mr. Gates or Mr. Ballmer's Microsoft. It's different and better.
(Score: 2, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday November 18 2017, @03:56PM (2 children)
You're right! This is sooo much better.
Explain to us again the part where you disable the telemetry, firewall off the Microsoft services, download the drivers for the things that you install for your particular needs that aren't included with the ISO, and otherwise get to have a computer where you have some semblance of control? We love that part!
(Score: 1) by ElizabethGreene on Monday November 20 2017, @03:40PM (1 child)
Question on that: Do you have the same concerns about telemetry and privacy for your mobile devices? E.g. an iPhone or Android Phone? If so, how do you handle those?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 20 2017, @06:23PM
I can't really speak for the GP, but I sure do worry about the phone. The options seem to be, if anything, more limited. Generally, I try to buy phones that are campatible with an installable OS (e.g. lineageOS, etc.). This isn't perfect (Apps are an issue, although xprivacy helps and supposedly the newest version of Android has more built-in controls), but a non provider OS is generally better than anything that comes from a provider.