Re: Interfacing to parallel port dongle via USB adapter

You do not know anyone here, much less any degree of "cheapness" they might possess.

Jeff,

I don't think that's always the case -- I recall reading some web page about Lenovo notebooks having Linux options, and prominently on the desktop there was a "readme.txt" file that listed all the functions that *weren't* supported unix Linux. Of course it was small things -- stuff like the hard drive auto-spin down when a drop is detected, extra "function" keys or annuciators on the keyboard, etc., but it's still a little disappointing for the new Linux user to find out that what they just bought hardware-wise isn't entirely supported software-wise.

I have a (cheap) Acer 4520 with an Atheros WiFi card, and while the card itself works fine, there's a hardware enable/disable (toggle) pushbutton that does, indeed, enable and disable the radio in Linux but for the little LED above the button that tells you the radio's power state is always extinguished in Linux (whereas it does work in Vista).

Especially on laptops, it's also typically much harder to find and install all the device drivers under Linux than it is under Windows... but I would agree that Linux has improved a lot in this area in the past, say, 3-5 years.

---Joel

Asus has historically primarily to "enthusiasts" who are used to doing their own support anyway, and while Asus marketing would surely like to extend their reach to a more mainstream market (especially with, e.g., the Eee palmtop PC), they're definitely going to need to seriously invest in their support infrastructure to pull it off.

Joel Koltner wrote:

Those would be subroutines *within* the driver

--but my point was that the drivers do *exist*. As you acknowledged, things have been improving in that regard.

I won't argue that there is a differential between the kow-towing that Redmond gets and the levels of quality that everyone else has to endure.

...and it should be shouted out loud IT'S NOT *LINUX'S* FAULT; Patronize a hardware vendor WHO SUPPORTS YOU. (I'm more in favor of mandated unbundling every day.)

The *smart* vendors have published specs and/or opened the source code of their drivers (especially noteworthy when those drivers are crappy) and have gotten free labor from the driver hacker community which can improve their quality and expand their potential market-- gratis. . . If you surf with JavaScript disabled, insert &no_d2=1 into the Slashdot URL.

But at the end of the day people want or need a brand name laptop, with a good warranty and from a company that is still going to be around in a few years. That reduces the selection quite drastically.