So not so user-friendly...
 

I am still trying to find a sufficiently user-friendly Linux distro that a complete novice could get going on. So far, no luck.

Can someone tell me why, with Mandrake 10.1, the install recognises my perfectly useless onboard winmodem, which it can't of course do anything with, while my plugged-in, switched-on external Rockwell 56K modem is completely ignored?

And why, when I try to configure it manually, does it then see this modem, then go to a really strange page in the configuration wizard asking for my "provider" with a list of European countries of whivch the UK is not one?

I mean, is this supposed to be getting people away from Windows??

Because your trying to use mandrake which has always been the buggy kinda wierd kinda joke of the linux community?

Pick another distro that has a major forum here, or suse, and start over.

Ho hum. I might have guessed.

OK. You reckon Suse is a decent way forward? I can pick it up as a cover disk (to at least try out) at WH Smith tomorrow, and I've ordered the new Ubuntu distro as well.

But... well, really... why does it have to be so hard? Couldn't just one distro maker take a good look at what Microsoft do right, and try emulating it?

* sighs *

Why don't you go to the Mandrake club forum (You don't have to be a member to ask questions) Instead of taking one persons seemingly biased opinion. After all this is is a Mandrake form and not a Suse forum. Which I found harder to get installed. I recently got a win modem working with Mandrake (Although not your modem model)

Disable the completely useless onboard modem in the bios.

Then mdk might be able to setup the other without conflict.

You don't have to use the list, But you'll have to get more advice on that from ppl in the uk using dialup.

Be assured there is a way.

:study:

Also, to be helpfull, ask a more specific question, that way you might get more readers/responces from like people.

Rather than confirmations from other distro users that can backup your negative experience.

You want solutions, not crap.:D

your isp may have the relevent info....

"a Suse forum. Which I found harder to get installed"

The fact that you had problems clicking the word "Next" About 15 times, and typing a username and password when prompted, scares me very much, as that's all there is to installing suse.

What do you expect from a SUSE user answering a Mandrake question?

He blames this on non-existent "bugs" because his realm of experience is with a different (albeit eminently GOOD) distro.

No those are not the reasons.

This is the last thing I'll say and this is a response to "Caeda". Why is a lot of answers just say just switch to this or that distro to fix this or that problem. Thats not any help at all and is very frustrating. When a person is happy with a distro they really don't want to hear switch to my distro to fix your problem. What they don't say is "but my distro has it's own little problems". All distros have their own little problems and no distro is completely problem free. So please don't try to help somebody if your gong to say switch to MY distro because IT'S NO HELP AT ALL. This is one of the reasons I stop asking for help because most of the answers were to switch to this or that distro.

If it's a hardware modem, just try configuring it manually in kppp. I also have an internal software modem that mandrake detects but can't use. I use an external hardware modem that is never recognised or configured during the install, but is setup when i configure kppp for my internet connection

As i said before , if the wizard is giving you grief (i never use it for the modem) just do it manually in kppp.

Cheers

Ta ever so...
 

Well, thanks for all of that!
Mm, did that first off, but the club page hits you with these prices for joining, much more than the bit about "also you can join for free". That's when I Googled some more and found this forum.

I'm not thrilled about paying to join, anyway: I'd rather have a freewheeling forum like this where we can give and take on a more random basis.
Actually, I thought I had! About why it recognises one modem but not the other (though both are connected and switched-on), as well what's with this really strange page listing Euro countries which I can't get past.
Ah, well, that's just it, you see. I can (probably find out how to) disable in BIOS all right, because one day I took a deep breath and went digging around in there. But as I say, what I want is something that novices can use, which is where Windows reigns superlatively - they do make everything amazingly user-friendly (I really noticed the diffs when I started trying out Linux distros last year), and you can learn more by beg/borrow/stealing Windows books.

Linux is far harder to get a decent tome for. kppp, for example, just has me sitting here thinking, what's that? And since the Mandrake distro I have doesn't appear to have a working "Help" menu anywhere, that's another 15 minutes-plus Google work.

Well: I've readied the Mandrake disk set to go the way of all my previous distro's, which is into the bin (though I'll take a look at this "kppp" thing first, you never know).

And I'll wait and see what Ubuntu has in store (never tried a Debian thingy before! Sounds way too geeky for my taste! But we'll see... I did like the Lycoris evaluation cover disk I tried a few months back, but some of the reviews I've read since aren't too flattering, which is putting me off buying it).

You solution would probably be to disable the win modem then run hard drake to see if it will detect the external modem. If all goes well and it's detectd all you really need is the dial up number of your provider and your username and password.

I know you said you are a newbie, but if you don't try out stuff you won't learn, so give things a go even if you are not so confident they will work out, it's all part of the learning process.

"Also, to be helpful, ask a more specific question," I'm sorry about that, I meant your question,(the heading that appears in the main list) no offence intended.

Don't give up! Just post another question about kppp.

Sure someone will notice and think "I can help with that"

I haven't used kppp, I'm on a cable.

Keep trying though, you'll get it.

PS, at the risk of joining the "distro-separatists", debian was much harder to install, when I tried it a year ago.

"He blames this on non-existent "bugs" because his realm of experience is with a different (albeit eminently GOOD) distro."

Alright opjose..

And what does it mean when I've used every version of Mandrake since 6.0, every version of redhat since 5.0, and every version of suse since 6.1?

Gee, I guess it means I might know what mandrake is like huh?

The fact that no version of mandrake has never, EVER, detected and set up all my hardware correctly on any computer I've owned might have a little to do with the fact that I think mandrake is a bit less friendly than other distros. The fact that back in the 8-9 version era it used to be hit or miss when it came to using the built in config tools which were prone to locking up, crashing, and making major screwups on hardware it couldnt idetify might have something to do with the fact I think its buggy.

Know who your talking about before you talk.

To paraphrase: "Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn..."

You may date me and MY experience with that quote.

Nope. All this indicates is that it failed to detect your hardware nothing more.

Hardware detection is not in and of itself a statement or testament to lack of errors in code.

If you want to debate hardware detection capabilities, you are in a completely DIFFERENT arena, and I'd even side with saying that other distros do better jobs...

Only that you've "used" it. Unless you want to elaborate on this, it in of itself means nothing related to relative "bugginess".

As a long time Linux user, I would have expected that you would know that "bugginess" has little to do with the distro itself and far more to do with the release packages included, and maintained outside the distro. That is the versions used.

E.G. Mandrake doesn't write the kernel, etc. yet the current kernel has problems with ACPI. As does SUSE, and all other distros based upon the same kernel.

For any problem someone brings up on one distro, you can find the same problem in another.

Also as a long time user, addressing the PROBLEM is far more succint than merely telling people to switch distributions.


Hah, the post itself was self evident establishing this and bespoke droves of information.


C'mon as a "senior" responder, the answer could have been just a bit better addressed?


Wanna debate hardware detection, and I'll probably agree with you.

Caeda, I have used Mandrake since 6.x and Suse since 7.2. When It comes to hardware detection and support, mandrake is better than Suse in my opinion, but Suse has improved a lot in the last few years particularly with the release of version 9.0 upwards. I just think you are not being open minded and your failure to properly configure or install mandrake causes you to be biased against this distro. anyway if you don't like the distro don't hang around in its forum and give people misguided advice, however, I do respect that your points of view though I don't agree with it.