[wellylug] Is SUSE a desktop distro? (AARRGGHH!)

[scanning at paradise.net.nz]

Howdy Brent,

I have to say that I am very surprised that SuSE failed to detect the onboard
NIC. I have had a few other distros (Gentoo for one) automatically assign these
to IEEE 1394 but never SuSE.

Perhaps it is a bug with the Personal version or it could be a bug with the el
cheapo cover disk. All I can say is don't trust greying strangers who palm these
things off on you late at night ;)

As far as trying to install the LinGIS disk, you need to change the disk label
from the standard install disk to the new disk. Not to sure about the ins and
outs of that LinGIS install though..... 

If you are still interested give me a ring and we can try the Pro version. Try
9.7.6 with a 1.3.2.5 which should do the trick.

Obviously I won't take this kind of defamatory comments about my favoured distro
lying down!

Simon

Quoting Wood Brent <pcreso at pcreso.com>:

> 
> After a frustrating evening playing with SUSE, I think I owe Mandrake
> an
> unreserved apology for thinking about using something else. Sigh.
> 
> Some comments to vent my spleen.......
> 
> 
> To be fair, it might just be a problem with the freebie SUSE 9.1
> personal
> edition, loaned to me by a fellow Luggite, & the US$90 Pro version may
> work
> fine, but if my experiences are at all typical, anyone trying SUSE 9.1
> personal
> to get into Linux not only won't upgrade to the Pro version, they will
> forget
> about Linux as a viable option at all.... Sad.
> 
> Nforce network not recognised, not even in the list of supported
> network
> hardware.
> 
> So, use another PC (running Mandrake which auto configured everything
> incl
> Nforce drivers). Download all the Nvidia driver files & write to CD.
> Stick the
> CD in the SUSE box, & it won't recognise the new disk. Still thinks the
> old one
> is in there.
> 
> umount/mount (at this oh so standard /media/cdrecorder mount point)
> Sorry.
> Still the old disk. A reboot fixed this. Back to MS Windows install
> techniques!!
> 
> run the Nvidia install, which used to work fine in my old Mandrake
> systems,
> v8/9/10 community. Seems to work fine here too. Gives the right msgs,
> no
> errors.
> 
> Only SUSE still doesn't know I have a NIC of any description.
> 
> Play more with YAST. I can tell it to configure a NIC as eth0 using the
> nvnet
> module. It goes away & runs its config update, all fine, lots of nice
> ticks in
> the GUI as SUSE checks off the changes. No errors. Sweet.
> 
> But I still don't have a NIC.
> 
> 
> OK, prob all my fault for not RTFM in detail in full. Of course, this is
> Linux,
> ready for everyman's desktop right? Taking on Windows in ease of setup
> &
> reliability!!!!!
> 
> 
> So from the Nvidia site, helpful instructions for SUSE users. 
> 
> 1) install SuSE 9.1 kernel sources and compiler
> 2) The installer requires <source tree>/scripts/basic/fixdep to exist.
> If it is
> missing the driver build will fail. You can build it
> using something like:
> % cd /usr/src/<kernel>
> % make xconfig
> select "file->save" to save .config
> % make scripts
> 3) Use installer kernel source option to point to kernel sources
> location
> % sh NFORCE-Linux-<arch>-1.0-0283-pkg1.run
> --kernel-source-path=/lib/modules /<kernel#>/source
> 4) modify /etc/modprobe.conf file for nvsound and nvnet drivers as per
> the
> "Configuration" section of the release
> notes. (e.g, add "alias snd-card-0 nvsound" and "alias eth0 nvnet")
> 5) reboot
> 
> Every novice playing with Linux can do that without thinking twice!
> Kernel
> sources, on the single CD of the SUSE 9.1 Personal Edition? Yeah
> right.... Just
> download them over your cable modem. Hint- no network available.
> 
> 
> My first play with SUSE 9.1 unfortunately reminds me of setting up Linux
> 5
> years ago. 
> 
> 
> So I'm unimpressed. I know SUSE 9.1 does work on my hardware coz others
> are
> running the Pro version on the same setup. The Nvidia chipset has been
> around
> for a couple of years, so supporting it in a very recent distro is not
> difficult, Mandrake isn't the only one to do it out of the box. LiveCD's
> all
> over the place do it just fine. I don't know why a major league distro
> like
> SUSE 
> has such a problem. Even Debian & Slackware work :-)
> 
> (BTW, This isn't the only problem with hardware recognition, I'll leave
> the
> others for now).
> 
> I also wanted to play with some software which was set up for SUSE. Just
> point
> YAST at it--- yeah right... but not really fair to blame SUSE, the
> package is
> at v0.1. Some work to do there too. 
> 
> 
> From my few hours with SUSE 9.1 personal edition, I'd firmly say it
> ain't worth
> it, with several other much more friendly distros around. I just hope
> no-one
> actually buys it at about $30 US..... 
> 
>  
> Apologies for the rant. It was just so frustrating to see how far back
> this
> release of a supposedly credible product has taken Linux.
> 
> 
> Brent
> 
> 
> -- 
> Wellington Linux Users Group Mailing List:
> wellylug at lists.wellylug.org.nz
> To Leave: http://lists.wellylug.org.nz/mailman/listinfo/wellylug
>