Re: [tlug] Need purchasing advice for a linux compatible desktop

[Jim <jep200404@example.com>]

Edward Middleton <edwardmiddleton@example.com> wrote:

> As a general rule buy generic hardware, the driver support is usually
> better.  A lot of the systems makers like DELL really only make windows
> machines. 

Amen brother. 

My experience is that generic hardware is more compatible and 
has fewer wierdnesses than name brand boxes. The generic hardware 
vendors have to be compatible or they lose business. 
They can't play the goofy and nasty tricks that the big 
name brands can. 

Start with a generic motherboard, but don't be too cheap. 

Regardless of name-brand or generic source, bleeding edge 
hardware from any vendor might not have Linux drivers for 
some of the hardware yet. Bleeding edge hardware that has 
been on the market for a while will have those issues 
worked out. This is because bleeding edge hardware that has 
been on the market for a while is no longer bleeding edge 
hardware. 

A problematic area is video drivers. To avoid problems, 
avoid proprietary drivers. Proprietary drivers are attractive 
because they often yield the highest performance, but there 
are bugginess issues, and because they are proprietary, 
the kernel folks will _shun_ you if you use proprietary drivers. 
Stick to the open-source drivers. Since you will likely get 
only ordinary performance from a high-performance board, 
and since you are a newbie, there's little point in you buying 
high-performance video boards for use with Linux.