More Ubuntu Linux, networking with OS X

While I'm often frustrated with Linux, I do not want people to get the idea that it is impossible to get things done with Linux.  That's absolutely not the case.

While there are lots of times that I can't get Linux to do what I want. When I add OS X into the mix, it is usually easy to accomplish what I want using both systems.  One of my tricks with Linux is to take screen shots of things that I discover and want to duplicate.  While I still have not had time to try some of the suggestions to get my Dual G5 to hook to my Dell Linux box, I don't have any trouble hooking the Linux box to the Mac.

I have Windows sharing and personal file sharing set up on my Mac.  I also have  created another user on the Mac.  On Ubuntu, one of the menus is "Places."  Under that menu one of the selections is "Connect to server."  When I do that and enter the information you can see by clicking on the above picture, I get asked for the password that I set up on the Mac.

From the Mac or the Linux box I can put files into that folder and copy them back and forth between computers.  It's actually pretty simple.  It's very similar to the sharing that I established between my OS X box and the same Dell box when it is running Windows.

I've been dabbling in Linux for a little over two years.  I run hot and cold on it depending on my frustrations.  If you go back and read "The Breezy Badger comes to the rescue," you see that there was a time that I though Ubuntu really had printers nailed.  That was before I recreated a network in another location and started changing things around and adding my HP AIO C6180 printer.  The problem that really drove me nuts was having a printer working and then seeing it not working after an upgrade.

It wasn't too many years ago when that was an Apple problem also so I have high hopes the Linux folks will fix that in time.

I would encourage people to try Ubuntu.  It is exceptionally stable and works very well for the vast majority of tasks.  Maybe I'm subjecting myself to unnecessary stress, but I believe that using Windows XP and Linux in addition to Mac OSX has given me a much broader perspective of the computer industry.

Linux has come a tremendous way from when I first wrote " The Linux Saga Continues" in 2004.  Actually it wasn't much longer before I wrote, "SATA Sucess."  My experiences with Suse finally soured after it completely broke the networking. Each time I logged in, I had to redo the networking settings.  I also gave up on Xandros because it didn't like having another Linux around on the same hard drive.  In general I've seen very good success with Ubuntu.

I still believe the vast majority of the people will be better off with OS X.  Linux is probably really great if you have someone who know Linux close by(like the next cube).  I have no doubt that Linux with good support can be an excellent selection in the enterprise.  As many have noted, I think the home is a different ball of wax.

In this recent release, if my son hadn't told me to go to terminal and type "ifconfig eth0" I probably would have never figured out the IP address of my Linux box. He also had to add that if the command didn't work I should add "/sbin/" before it.  Linux is his job since he manages hundreds of servers worldwide.  Linux makes his job easier because he does most of the managing remotely. For those like him who believe anything more sophisticated than "VI" is a waste of keystrokes, Linux is a very powerful tool.

I think any technology literate Mac user can set up a Linux box for home use, hook it up to a wired network, and get it to work very easily with a simple USB printer.  With a little more effort you can get it to work with a network printer but it might not have all the functionality if it is an AIO (see Some Linux redemption with the HP C6180).  With that system you can have a tremendous amount of very good free software.  Browsing and email and the exceptionally easy Ubuntu updates can be a piece of cake.

There are some gotchas like having to pay some attention to your camera settings when you are transferring photos but they are not insurmountable.  The problems I have had with high end photo printers like the Epson 2200 and Epson 4000 are not going to be something most users face.

One of the things that has helped me be functional on Linux is using Thunderbird for email.  I also use it on Windows.  Firefox is my browser on all three operating system platforms though I use Camino some on the Mac and IE7 some on Windows.

Despite its frustrations, you'll find Linux very fast and more capable than most of us, who have somewhat limited terminal skills.  It you've got an old G4 Mac around, putting Ubuntu on it will give you a whole new view of the world of computers. 

Be prepared to be pleasantly surprised by the clean user interface and the wide number of applications available for free.  You will end up amazed that something as functional as Linux can run on almost anything and it has been created mostly for free.  I'm just sorry companies that are charging for it have been unable to significantly improve the user experience beyond what I see for free in Ubuntu.

You will also end up appreciating you Mac more.  Using a Mac reminds me of a webmail interface.  You just log in and everything works.  Linux is more like a regular fat client for email.  You have to know the settings, but once you get those in there right, things go very well.  In large companies there are people to help with email configurations so people aren't often forced to use webmail.

Small companies often rely on email outsourcing and webmail clients because it's just easier.

It all depends on what your needs are and what you're trying to accomplish.  While most of us are better off with Mac OSX, but there are places where Linux or Windows end up being better.

Linux in coastal NC might not be the best choice given the challenges of finding even a few local Mac users.
 

Still competition is good even for operating systems.

Comments

[Jeff]

In response to a MacAddict article I tried loading Ubuntu on a PowerPC Mac 8500. Problem: the Mac will not start up on the Ubuntu install CD. What is the deal to get that to work. I was hoping that Ubunty would run faster on that old system than OSX (via xpostfacto) and OS9.

[Mike]

Linux is great. But unfortunately it is not easy, and anyone who says it is is spinning a line.

Now I recently tried Kubuntu. I tried the live CD and it seemed OK. So I made free space on a Windows laptop and installed it onto that. Where did that leave me?

With a laptop that could no longer boot into Windows.

Somehow the Kubuntu install had damaged or deleted a Windows file and I was left with a problem. Additionally, although I could boot into Kubuntu, I couldn't connect to the net with it. I wasn't sure what was wrong, and I could find no setting I could alter to help. But on the third reboot it finally did it. Why? Who knows.

So then I was left with a Kubuntu install using a fraction of my hard disk. I no longer trusted Kubuntu, so I booted the latest Ubuntu and installed to the whole hard disk. Well, fine, and on the whole it worked better than Kubuntu, although both are pretty ugly - uglier even than Windows and certainly uglier than OS X.

But you know what? I could not get wireless to work. Believe me I tried - I read everything online, and I tried all the suggested steps. But no go. And the odd thing is that I had been able to use wireless with far older versions of Ubuntu. They obviously changed something and it broke things.

By now I'd had enough. I didn't want to go through the pain of getting the codecs for MP3s and all that - and still probably not be able to play DVDs. I didn't want an install crippled by poor multimedia support *and* not have wireless available. No go.

*Sigh*. Re-install again - put Windows back on.

Now, I want to be quite clear here, I am *not* "blaming" Canonical for the poor performace of Ubuntu and Kubuntu on my hardware. This is all touch-and-go stuff and don't-do-it-if-you're-not-prepared-for-problems stuff.

What I am saying is anyone who says Linux is easy is talking through his hat.

Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see the Linux vendors make big inroads on the desktop and give Microsoft a well-deserved bloody nose. I just don't think it's going to happen any time soon.

In particular two prerequisites are lacking. To work well Linux is going to have to come *pre-installed*. And it must be on hardware that has *open* specs and is known inside out and catered for in the distro. As it is, I've heard of people buying Linux actually pre-installed on computers from small distributors and *still* having problems with soundcards and the like.

The other issue is that, one way or another, the multimedia problems need sorting out.

[Brian]

You screenshot finally made the networking of my Ubuntu (Edgy) and G5 possible. I'm a visual learner. The Linux box quickly and easily logged on to the mac. I'm still having a problem logging in from the mac to the Linux machine. Do you perhaps have a screenshot of what that login screen looks like? Do I need a specific path to the Linux shared folder? Great post.

[linux photoshop]

Linux along with Windows and Mac has pushed themselves to the limit on providing people what they need and to really convince them on choosing just one. Altering the bugs from the previous versions of their OS has opened another window on choosing the best out of them.