Michael Beijer United Kingdom Local time: 07:13 Member (2009) Dutch to English + ...
May 9, 2011
My main machine is and will remain Windows 7, but I feel like playing around with linux (again) on a laptop, and am wondering which distro to try out.
I was thinking of trying out the new Unity UI on Ubuntu, or perhaps Mint.
Any suggestions would be very welcome!
Michael
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Setti Mulari United Kingdom Local time: 07:13 Finnish to English
Ubuntu
May 9, 2011
I started using Ubuntu some months ago and it's okay. I had SuSE before and kind of liked it as well. Ubuntu is a bit more user-friendly though, I find, as I'm not a Linux aficionado.
The free CAT tools in Linux are, I'm sad to say, quite a bit behind Trados still... I can't wait for the day when I can ditch Trados but for now I guess I have to put up with it.
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esperantisto Belarus Local time: 09:13 Member (2006) English to Russian + ...
Wrong question
May 9, 2011
You'd better ask: which one supports your hardware (unless you're going to have a computer built to your specs)? Just burn a couple of live CDs/DVDs (most distros have them) and find out. And if you have a friend or neighbor experienced in Linux and willing to help, choose his distro.
Besides, if you're not determined to leave Windows, think twice before wasting your time.
P. S. Mine is openSUSE, and I recommend giving it a try.
[Edited at 2011-05-09 18:07 GMT]
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FarkasAndras Hungary Local time: 08:13 English to Hungarian + ...
HW compatibility
May 9, 2011
esperantisto wrote:
You'd better ask: which one supports your hardware (unless you're going to have a computer built to your specs)?
I'd hope that most consumer laptop configurations are now supported by all the major distros now... The "hack your driver" days are over, aren't they?
I myself use Ubuntu occasionally (for play, not work) and I'm reasonably happy with it. Burning live CDs of all the major candidates and trying them out definitely sounds like a good idea. Try ubuntu, fedora, debian etc, see if your graphics/wifi card works correctly, then decide which you prefer.
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esperantisto Belarus Local time: 09:13 Member (2006) English to Russian + ...
Not really
May 10, 2011
FarkasAndras wrote:
I'd hope that most consumer laptop configurations are now supported by all the major distros now... The "hack your driver" days are over, aren't they?
Not really. Web cameras, for example, may be problematic. And sound and video too, especially on cheap models featuring something like ATI Radeons, for some of which neither free nor proprietary driver is good. Actually, if you want a laptop with Linux, find one with Linux preinstalled. As for a desktop, well, replacing the sound or video card may be a feasible solution.
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FarkasAndras Hungary Local time: 08:13 English to Hungarian + ...
Ouch
May 10, 2011
esperantisto wrote:
FarkasAndras wrote:
I'd hope that most consumer laptop configurations are now supported by all the major distros now... The "hack your driver" days are over, aren't they?
Not really. Web cameras, for example, may be problematic. And sound and video too, especially on cheap models featuring something like ATI Radeons, for some of which neither free nor proprietary driver is good. Actually, if you want a laptop with Linux, find one with Linux preinstalled. As for a desktop, well, replacing the sound or video card may be a feasible solution.
I could easily accept the loss of the built-in webcam on a laptop, but not having sound is obviously not an option. Things aren't progressing as nicely as I thought they were, apparently.
BTW there are manufacturers (Lenovo comes to mind) who make linux-friendly configurations and even provide linux drivers for their machines, even for configs they don't sell with linux preinstalled. These would obviously be great candidates for people who want to dual-boot or just run linux.
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Mlinar Montenegro Local time: 08:13 Member (2009) English to Serbian + ...
None
May 10, 2011
The reason is very simple: software tools and file formats in the industry mostly revolve around Windows platform. MS Office, Trados, Wordfast...
Sure, Open Office can open Word files... nominally. Don't try to save in non-native format, though.
If you must use Linux, Ubuntu 32 bit could be a nice choice (beware of the new Unity interface, you may not like it). You can use Wordfast Pro on Linux.
Of course, I'm talking about pro translation. If you wish to translate in FOSS - any platform would do.
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esperantisto Belarus Local time: 09:13 Member (2006) English to Russian + ...
Irrelevant
May 10, 2011
Mlinar wrote:
The reason is very simple: software tools and file formats in the industry mostly revolve around Windows platform. MS Office, Trados, Wordfast...
Your remark is irrelevant as it relates to another issue. MS Office runs in Linux via wine or Crossover Linux (and in my experience MS Word 2007 works even a bit faster than in Windows XP on the same machine). Wordfast Classic runs fine with MS Word 2000, again, via Crossover. Obviously, Trados or Deja Vu X won’t run in Linux, but we are discussing Linux for translators, not Linux for Trados or Deja Vu X users, aren’t we?
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esperantisto Belarus Local time: 09:13 Member (2006) English to Russian + ...
Well,
May 10, 2011
FarkasAndras wrote:
not having sound is obviously not an option.
Well, some prefer working in silence . And anyway built-in speakers do not deliver real sound quality. For the sake of objectivity: in most cases, sound problems can be easily corrected by one-minute tweaking of config file (in Windows, if you’ve got such a problem, it’s more of a trouble) and/or updating ALSA.
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Danesh Iran Local time: 10:43 English to Farsi (Persian) + ...
Ubuntu 11.04 is OK
May 10, 2011
All in all, Ubuntu 11.04 Desktop x64 works well for me so far. The only headache is its new Unity interface!
[Edited at 2011-05-10 14:47 GMT]
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VojtaDziewiecki Czech Republic Local time: 08:13 Czech to Polish + ...
Linux hardware, wordfast classic, unity
Nov 17, 2011
I don't think hardware is such a big issue on linux, however, I find it a good idea to check linux compatibility of a laptop's wi-fi and video cards before buying it. As for video cards, nvidia and intel are ok, radeons don't have good linux drivers, as esperantisto said.
Just google "your laptop" specifications, then "its wi-fi card" linux, that should give you the basic idea.
I don't know about webcams, never had a problem with sound on linux though.
Esperantisto, you managed to make wf classic work with crossover? I tried many times with wine, and I never succeeded...
I always did it with word 2003, do you think it's worth trying with 2000?
Crossover is AFAIK just wine with paid support, I doubt it would make a difference...
Now I use OmegaT and I must say I'm quite happy with it.
Danesh: If you don't like Unity, try installing xubuntu-desktop, I have been using xubuntu since 2 years and I must say I love it!
[Edited at 2011-11-17 13:07 GMT]
[Edited at 2011-11-17 13:20 GMT]
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esperantisto Belarus Local time: 09:13 Member (2006) English to Russian + ...
Yeah
Nov 18, 2011
VojtaDziewiecki wrote:
Esperantisto, you managed to make wf classic work with crossover?
With MS Word 2000 installed into a Windows98-type bottle, the only working solution I could find. Works quite fine (PlusTools too).
[Edited at 2011-11-18 06:53 GMT]
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opolt Germany Local time: 08:13 Member (2010) English to German + ...
Ubuntu, but ...
Nov 18, 2011
... with the recent interface changes, Ubuntu's star is sinking, I would say. You may get used to this new interface, but it's not for everyone (personally I have just switched to Fedora).
(OTOH, and to give you some perspective, I have just bought a new computer with Windows 7 preinstalled, and I was really, really shocked. I have to explain that apart from booting into XP every three months or so, I haven't had a closer look at any Win interface for many years. I mean, the interface is still highly inconsistent, confusing and cluttered, after so many years. Not to mention its plain default ugliness. I swear I'm not a Linux zealot and I honestly expected MS to do much better in this regard. I thought they had grown up. So it can't get much worse just by trying out Ubuntu ... )
IMHO, Ubuntu is still the most easy to set up distro out there, not only wrt hardware but also in their software and driver packaging. If you're somewhat unexperienced, go for it! Mint as an Ubuntu derivative might be a good option if you don't like U's desktop.
It agree with previous posters that most of the hardware is supported these days, for instance on my new Dell Vostro 460 everything worked out of the box. But sometimes you have to jump through hoops (printers, scanners ...). Some graphics cards are problematic, and some fancy USB devices won't work (e.g. USB sound).
In general, it is best to check for hardware compatibility beforehand, and buy hardware only according to what Linux can support. I have been using Linux almost exclusively for close to 13 years or thereabouts, and there have never been any problems with hardware support at all, including on laptops and on a netbook. It pays to be a bit conservative in what you buy ... plus, even if the set-up is a hassle, it usually works forever once it's done.
Wrt to CAT and MS Word, well, that really depends on your workflow and customers. But in most cases you will need a dual boot setup, or a virtual machine to run Windows. It's all about the MS Word file format really. Most of the other stuff is easy to deal with on Linux.
[Edited at 2011-11-18 11:55 GMT]
PS Oops, I hadn't noticed that this thread started months ago -- sorry for the lengthy writeup.
[Edited at 2011-11-18 12:02 GMT]
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Danesh Iran Local time: 10:43 English to Farsi (Persian) + ...
Ubuntu without Unity
Nov 19, 2011
VojtaDziewiecki wrote:
Danesh: If you don't like Unity, try installing xubuntu-desktop, I have been using xubuntu since 2 years and I must say I love it!
[Edited at 2011-11-17 13:07 GMT]
[Edited at 2011-11-17 13:20 GMT]
Thanks a million Vojta. I managed to get rid of Unity in my lovely Ubuntu 11.4. It works very well.
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. And anyway built-in speakers do not deliver real sound quality. For the sake of objectivity: in most cases, sound problems can be easily corrected by one-minute tweaking of config file (in Windows, if you’ve got such a problem, it’s more of a trouble) and/or updating ALSA.
