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Linux Support Progress

posted by martyb on Monday April 28 2014, @03:13PM   Printer-friendly
from the are-we-there-yet? dept.

Techwolf writes:

According to Phoronix, getting support from motherboard manufacturers can be downright hostile for linux users. Some go as far as requiring Microsoft Windows to be installed before getting to speaking terms. With TYAN as about the only motherboard maker (that I am aware of) to fully support linux, my question is: "Do any of you use a TYAN motherboard in a typical desktop use case? If so, what were your experiences, pro and con?

Followup question is: Have any motherboard manufactures changed their tune recently regarding support for linux users?

With the recent end-of-life of free Windows/XP support, Valve's work on its Steam OS, and Android's large market share, how close are we to the point where a user can just install linux (or a BSD variant) and it just works? What hardware (old and new) has been especially problematic for you? What has been your greatest challenge and/or frustration?

 
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  • (Score: 4, Interesting) by GreatAuntAnesthesia on Monday April 28 2014, @03:16PM

    by GreatAuntAnesthesia (3275) on Monday April 28 2014, @03:16PM (#37209) Journal

    > how close are we to the point where a user can just install linux (or a BSD variant) and it just works?

    At least 5 years ago for me. I can't remember the last time I popped a Linux Live CD in the drive of a random PC and didn't have all the major[1] hardware fully supported out of the box.

    [1] Still have occasional trouble with things like fingerprint scanners.

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  • (Score: 2) by Blackmoore on Monday April 28 2014, @03:27PM

    by Blackmoore (57) on Monday April 28 2014, @03:27PM (#37221) Journal

    The last MB i used that has issues? I was trying to install RedHat 4. one update later, and RedHat 5 worked with the MB (but not the onboard sound chip).

    I have NEVER seen an issue after that with the MB. unsupported peripherals, sure - WinModems, Windows Printers, Webcams.. and each of these problems fell one by one.

    Only one problem remains. UEFI. I will honor the day that i can *reliably* replace the BIOS chip with open source - linux on a chip.

  • (Score: 2) by Appalbarry on Tuesday April 29 2014, @03:41AM

    by Appalbarry (66) on Tuesday April 29 2014, @03:41AM (#37502) Journal

    Me too. The bad old days of Linux are many years behind us unless you've got pretty specific and odd things that you need supported. Or are very graphics intensive.

  • (Score: 1) by kbahey on Tuesday April 29 2014, @06:31PM

    by kbahey (1147) on Tuesday April 29 2014, @06:31PM (#37784) Homepage

    I fully agree.

    It has been many years since I ran into something incompatible with Linux for PCs and laptop. Maybe 5 or 7 or more years since I had to hunt down a driver or have a significant piece of hardware not work.

    I use Kubuntu's latest LTS for desktops, and Server LTS for servers.

    It just works ...