On Friday 28 November 2003 10:42, adam@thebowery.co.uk wrote:
(try finding a DVD copier for Linux) but requires you to restart the machine
Funny you should say that, the easiest bit of hardware I have got working recently was my DVD burner, i just removed the cd burner and put the dvd burner in its place and it just works.
What software was that? K3b refuses to copy a DVD data disc. I agree burning DVDs is easy, but I want a bootable one. I understand mkisofs has support, but needs the right files in the right places and I haven't got my head round all that yet. If you're ahead of me, do tell.
Things are improving fast and in many areas the gap is closing, but Linux on the desktop hasn't got anywhere near the critical mass needed to attract commercial software writers to port their products and make the system a viable alternative to Windows for the average Joe.
The current weak points are installation (although installing windows isn't friendly, it is an evil process the only reason most people don't know this is they buy windows preinstalled) and hardware support (which is a pain in the bum to be honest, my main stressful bits of hardware are my Nvidia graphics card (woo, look a manufacturer supported bit of hardware and look how it doesn't work....) my USB webcam (has semi official support via a non-free kernel module) and my new a4 graphics tablet that i bought from aldi for 30 quid yesterday (this needs a recompile of X-windows with a patch it seems but the support it new so should be merged soonish).
All things the average Windows user takes for granted. Which in Joe's eyes makes Windows "better than" Linux. I'm not agreeing with him because I prefer the way Linux does other things, and because I'm a geek and he's a real person.
-- GT