Posted on 11/24/2008 12:42:37 PM PST by Ernest_at_the_Beach
Episode One Thanks to their design as appliances, you can get down to useful work straight away with any of the new breed of Linux-based netbooks. But sooner or later, a fair few folk come up against the unfamiliarity of Linux. And, like the legendary tribe of pygmies, you may find yourself jumping up and down in the head-high long grass shouting out the incantation that gave the tribe its name: "We're the Fukarwi."
This series is designed to address that cri de coeur.
Let's plunge straight into the practicalities by taking a look at Acer's Aspire One - the AA1, as its fans call it. This is a typical Small, Cheap Computer (SCC), in that it runs a simplified version of Linux - unattractively called Linpus - that has been locked down to turn the machine into an appliance. Even a seasoned Linux hacker - and I've been writing about and using Linux since 1995 - has to scratch his head and do some serious Web research before finding the way in. The two chief problems are: a completely unfamiliar simplified appliance-style interface; and the lack of any password to get into the root.
Acer's Aspire One: the appliance of Linux
These two hurdles turn out to be largely illusory. The interface is an old Linux standby called XFCE, tailored to Acer's requirements. And although Acer doesn't tell you the root password, it's left a perhaps deliberate security hole that allows you to change it to the password of your own choice. More about that next time.
(Excerpt) Read more at reghardware.co.uk ...
Some of those reviewed are small laptops,...more than real netbooks.
All us porn stars do.
A150L available in the US now?
I think the Acer Aspire One A150L is also Acer Aspire One AOA150-1577 with 120 GB HD 1GB RAM Windows XP Home being sold online at Walmart.com [click here].
I really want one of these, especially if it has that basic Linux built into the bootup. Most of the stuff I do with a computer is browsing, email, and videos, and junk. I do have some serious desktop firepower for gaming, but I don’t do that day in and day out. I can fire up one of these guys and use the Linux browser for 90% of my day.
Waiting for the price droppages.
Ah hah!
THANKS FOR THIS. My new [actually refurbished] Aspire just arrived. Haven’t tried hooking it up to the net, yet.
Any tips beyond the articles posted?
Great articles.
Much appreciated.
Got mine through TigerDirect.com
After searching through WalMart and a list of other better known places to no avail.
I wanted the one without the hard drive and WITH Linux. Turned out to be hard to find, for some reason.
I can’t tell what kind of machine it is.
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