<html><head></head><body><div style="color:#000; background-color:#fff; font-family:lucida console, sans-serif;font-size:13px"><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8322"><span>John,</span></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8402"><br><span></span></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8403">Based on my own experience, I would suggest that the most important thing to bring to an install fest is a notebook and pencil. Take detailed records of what was done and why.</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8495"><br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8527">There are a lot of variables in a Linux install, from which revision of which distro to disk partitioning to personal preferences of the windows manager. It is unlikely that you will get everything "just right" the first time and want to get so you can eventually do future installs on your own.</div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8649"><br></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8465">The second most important thing is to back up any important files to a seperate media before the install. 99% of the time, files will be preserved, but you don't wany your important files to be the 1%<br><span></span></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8496"><br><span></span></div><div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8497"><span>Paul</span></div><br> <div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8371" style="font-family: lucida console, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"> <div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8370" style="font-family: HelveticaNeue, Helvetica Neue, Helvetica, Arial, Lucida Grande, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;"> <div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8369" dir="ltr"> <hr size="1"> <font id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8372" face="Arial" size="2"> <b id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8760"><span id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8759" style="font-weight:bold;">From:</span></b> Rick Moen <rick@linuxmafia.com><br> <b><span style="font-weight: bold;">To:</span></b> conspire@linuxmafia.com <br> <b><span style="font-weight: bold;">Sent:</span></b> Friday, November 6, 2015 3:57 PM<br> <b><span style="font-weight: bold;">Subject:</span></b> [conspire] (forw) Re: Linux install at CABAL meeting<br> </font> </div> <div id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8373" class="y_msg_container"><br>----- Forwarded message from John Dwyer <<a id="yui_3_16_0_1_1446914372248_8374" ymailto="mailto:juanito101@gmail.com" href="mailto:juanito101@gmail.com">juanito101@gmail.com</a>> -----<br><br>Date: Fri, 6 Nov 2015 10:30:08 -0800<br>From: John Dwyer <<a ymailto="mailto:juanito101@gmail.com" href="mailto:juanito101@gmail.com">juanito101@gmail.com</a>><br>To: <a ymailto="mailto:installers@linuxmafia.com" href="mailto:installers@linuxmafia.com">installers@linuxmafia.com</a><br>Subject: Linux install at CABAL meeting<br><br>Hi,<br><br>I read about "installfests" online, and found a local one and your<br>website...<br><br>I would like some help in installing Linux on my old laptop...<br><br>It's a Dell Inspiron 1520 with 4GB RAM, 160 GB HD.<br><br>I was able to successfully download the Ubuntu 14.04 iso 64 bit and install<br>on the laptop.<br><br>The main problem is that it doesn't recognize either the ethernet or<br>wireless, so no network connections. From Googling, I think it's probably<br>related to the drivers. (Broadcomm?)<br><br>However, a lot of the explanations were beyond me, as a Linux newbie.<br><br>I tried some of the solutions, which meant going to another PC and<br>downloading stuff on to a USB and using the USB to load the files on the<br>laptop, but alas, didn't work.<br><br>I'm planning on attending the next meeting (Sat 11/14, 4:00pm ?), so<br>perhaps I could get some tips and help. (The Desktop is quite confusing to<br>me as well, quite a bit different from what I've used in other Linux GUIs,<br>like for Mint or Fedora that I had poked around before. Seems different<br>than what I had seen from Ubuntu as well, it sounds like there was some<br>type of change in philosophy in the Ubuntu fork)<br><br>thanks,<br>john dwyer<br>e-mail: <a ymailto="mailto:juanito101@gmail.com" href="mailto:juanito101@gmail.com">juanito101@gmail.com</a><br><br>----- End forwarded message -----<br>----- Forwarded message from Rick Moen <<a ymailto="mailto:rick@linuxmafia.com" href="mailto:rick@linuxmafia.com">rick@linuxmafia.com</a>> -----<br><br>Date: Fri, 6 Nov 2015 15:55:54 -0800<br>From: Rick Moen <<a ymailto="mailto:rick@linuxmafia.com" href="mailto:rick@linuxmafia.com">rick@linuxmafia.com</a>><br>To: John Dwyer <<a ymailto="mailto:juanito101@gmail.com" href="mailto:juanito101@gmail.com">juanito101@gmail.com</a>><br>Cc: <a ymailto="mailto:installers@linuxmafia.com" href="mailto:installers@linuxmafia.com">installers@linuxmafia.com</a><br>Subject: Re: Linux install at CABAL meeting<br>Reply-To: <a ymailto="mailto:installers@linuxmafia.com" href="mailto:installers@linuxmafia.com">installers@linuxmafia.com</a><br>Organization: If you lived here, you'd be $HOME already.<br><br>Quoting John Dwyer (<a ymailto="mailto:juanito101@gmail.com" href="mailto:juanito101@gmail.com">juanito101@gmail.com</a>):<br><br>> I read about "installfests" online, and found a local one and your<br>> website...<br>> <br>> I would like some help in installing Linux on my old laptop...<br>> <br>> It's a Dell Inspiron 1520 with 4GB RAM, 160 GB HD.<br>> <br>> I was able to successfully download the Ubuntu 14.04 iso 64 bit and install<br>> on the laptop.<br><br>Looks like Ubuntu 14.04.3 LTS currently the preferred installation. <br>Is that what you have?<br><br>> The main problem is that it doesn't recognize either the ethernet or<br>> wireless, so no network connections. From Googling, I think it's probably<br>> related to the drivers. (Broadcomm?)<br><br>Some initial comments, and this is not intended to discourage you, but <br>rather as background information. Dell Computer is probably the worst<br>practitioner today of what I call the 'chipset du jour problem'. <br>Because they promote the 'Dell' branding as the information the customer<br>is intended to rely on, they feel free to alter without notice what <br>subassemblies and chips comprise each of their models. Two Inspiron<br>1520 units may have very different subassemblies, and Dell is very <br>vague about public information concerning the chipsets it uses.<br><br><br>Anyway, my compliments for having googled to investigate. In these<br>cases, Web-searching on your make & model of laptop with the word<br>'linux' is invariably your first step. In doing that myself, and<br>digging a bit further to find the specific chipsets Dell used in<br>designing your laptop, I come up with this brief... dossier, which I<br>offer for your information:<br><br>Ethernet chip: Broadcom BCM4401-B0 chip compatible with the b44 kernel module.<br>Wireless chip: Like most laptop manufacturers, Dell uses a miniPCI<br> card in the laptop's miniPCI slot, where the slot is<br> customer-accessible and cards are in general quite cheap and <br> easy to swap in and out. Accordingly, if the bundled miniPCI <br> card gives you problems, you _can_ end-run the problem by buying<br> one with better Linux support and selling off the original.<br> o Intel 3945ABG. Easiest, preferred. Use ipw3945 module.<br> o Intel 4965AGN<br> Drivers for these two Intel chips require installation of firmware BLOBs.<br> o Dell 1390<br> o Dell 1490<br> o Broadcom BCM4311 chip requires the b43 kernel module.<br> o Some other Broadcom chips required the b43legacy driver.<br> Both the b43 and b43legacy drivers require installation of <br> firmware BLOBs. <br> <a href="https://wireless.wiki.kernel.org/en/users/Drivers/b43" target="_blank">https://wireless.wiki.kernel.org/en/users/Drivers/b43</a><br> <a href="https://wiki.debian.org/bcm43xx" target="_blank">https://wiki.debian.org/bcm43xx</a><br><br>Stuff that won't matter but may be of interest to you:<br>CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo T7100 1.8GHz <br>Motherboard SoC: Intel GM965<br>DVD-RW: TSSTcorp DVD+/-RW TS-L632H 8X<br>USB: Intel 82801 UHCI, EHCI<br>Bluetooth: Broadom BCM2045<br>Sound: Intel ICH8 HD Audio - intel8x0 (Sigmatel)<br>Graphics chip: NVIDIA GeForce Go 8400M GS. Install the synaptic<br> package for the touchpad. <br> <a href="https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Dell_Inspiron_1520" target="_blank">https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Dell_Inspiron_1520</a><br>SATA chip: Intel 82801HBM/HEM (ICH8M/ICH8M-E family) <br>Firewire: Ricoh Co Ltd R5C83 controller <br>SD card slot: Ricoh R5C843 MMC Host controller, R5C592 Memory Stick Bus<br> Host Adapter, xD-Picture Card Controller<br>HDD: Fujitsu MHW2160BH 160GB SATA<br>Internal modem: ? (I'm not sure there always is one, and this <br> may depend on options selected at purchase time.)<br><br>Useful pages:<br><a href="http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2154459" target="_blank">http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=2154459</a><br><a href="http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1974006" target="_blank">http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1974006</a><br><a href="http://drwho.virtadpt.net/archive/2008/02/19/linux-on-the-dell-inspiron-1520" target="_blank">http://drwho.virtadpt.net/archive/2008/02/19/linux-on-the-dell-inspiron-1520</a><br><br>The first of those links has what is _prboably_ the solution to your <br>problem. It would be good to know from you what specific chips you <br>have. Please open a terminal console and get the results of these<br>commands, and send that back to me. (To do that, you can copy and paste<br>from the terminal console into a text editor, save that to a file, then<br>put that file on a USB flash drive. If you cannot do that, and it's too<br>many lines to transcribe accurately, take a photo of the screen and send<br>me that.)<br><br>lspci -nnk | grep -iA2 net<br>lsusb<br>lsmod<br>ifconfig -a<br>iwconfig<br>rfkill list<br><br><br>Of those, the first three commands are the most important.<br><br>Anyway, sure we can help you at the CABAL meeting. Advance preparation<br>always helps, though.<br><br><br>> I'm planning on attending the next meeting (Sat 11/14, 4:00pm ?), so<br>> perhaps I could get some tips and help. (The Desktop is quite confusing to<br>> me as well, quite a bit different from what I've used in other Linux GUIs,<br>> like for Mint or Fedora that I had poked around before. Seems different<br>> than what I had seen from Ubuntu as well, it sounds like there was some<br>> type of change in philosophy in the Ubuntu fork)<br><br>Yeah, I'm personally just not an Ubuntu fan in general, and think the<br>Linux Mint variants are better options for people inclined towards<br>Ubuntu for some reason.<br><br><br>----- End forwarded message -----<br><br>_______________________________________________<br>conspire mailing list<br><a ymailto="mailto:conspire@linuxmafia.com" href="mailto:conspire@linuxmafia.com">conspire@linuxmafia.com</a><br><a href="http://linuxmafia.com/mailman/listinfo/conspire" target="_blank">http://linuxmafia.com/mailman/listinfo/conspire</a><br><br><br></div> </div> </div> </div></body></html>