So windows is starting to tee me off with its startup times on my notebook.. granted, given the specs of the thing it ‘only’ takes 30 seconds to get to the login prompt, but then there’s all the time after login to load virus scanners, and all that jazz..
So I decided to give linux a burl, after a 2-year stint without linux on the desktop..
So windows is starting to tee me off with its startup times on my notebook.. granted, given the specs of the thing it ‘only’ takes 30 seconds to get to the login prompt, but then there’s all the time after login to load virus scanners, and all that jazz..
So I decided to give linux a burl, after a 2-year stint without linux on the desktop..
A friend talked me into using ubuntu instead of debian.. – still uses APT, so that’s a plus..
Install took a whole 5 minutes, and apart from having to install the accellerated nvidia driver, it was all pretty seamless.. VERY impressed..
Ive now got evolution setup talking to exchange for my email, can connect to my wireless network, thoughw ould be nice if it connected at boot, or at least did the windows xp thing of popping up going ‘networks detected’, instead of having to open the network configurator, put in my password, and then enable the interface…
the REALLY cool thing though, is the Merlin U-630 3g cards I use.. – one for Three/Hutchinson when in UMTS range (when it roams onto telstra GSM they charge me a BUCKETLOAD), and one for vodaphone for normal GSM usage.. Thought they’d be HELL to setup, but they’re actually insanely easy..
Plug one of the cards in, and they come up as two serial devices – i’m guessing the second is a control cconnection or something? – but the first device works as a normal AT modem.. SO I just set it up in wvdial:
/etc/wvdial.conf:
[Dialer Defaults]
Init1 = ATZ
Init2 = ATQ0 V1 E1 S0=0 &C1 &D2 +FCLASS=0
Init3 = AT+CGDCONT=1, "IP", "3netaccess"
Modem Type = novatel Merlin 630
Baud = 115200
New PPPD = yes
Modem = /dev/ttyS1
ISDN = 0
Phone = *99***1#
Stupid Mode = true
Username = a
Password = a
[Dialer Voda]
Init3 = AT+CGDCONT=1, "IP", "vfinternet.au"
Yep, that’s entirely it.. for normal hutchinson connection, i just run wvdial.. for voa, I run ‘wvdial voda’. That’s it 🙂
Although I would like to find an app that will give me info on whether the card has synced at UMTS or GSM, and what signal strength is like…
next up is trying to get dreamweaver MX, and photoshop CS running under wine… Oh, and itunes too, seems there’s nothing to manage my ipod under linux?
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