[PLUG] Warning About SuSE 8

[Robert]

The trouble with posting more details is I could spend all day writing down
error messages or steps I took to get nowhere.  After hours of frustration
with Linux I do what most people do and give up.  More people have tried
Linux then stick with it. The last thing I will do after a few late night
hours of frustration while trying to scan a picture is log onto a newsgroup.
I went to bed instead.  The next night I scanned in Windows 98 and thanked
God for Bill Gates. I also put Linux away for a month.

I did spend some more time with SuSE 8.0, nearly 6 hours now, and I now say
it is the absolute worst Linux I have ever used.  It absolutely refuses to
detect my modem, refuses to link up with my network printer, and is
generally useless.  In my opinion it is a degraded version of 7.2.  Since
the older version worked fine with my computer modem and the new version
can't even detect it, what else am I supposed to say?  I like Debian much
better.  It refused to install on my computer so I never wasted hours trying
to configure it.  SuSE should have had the grace to do the same.

As for SuSE help, one of the things that made me go to Red Hat 7.2 was that
after months of trying to get SuSE 7.2 to work with my network, I decided
that instead of just reading portions here and there of the supplied "SuSE
Linux 7.2 Network" book, I would read it from the beginning, cover to cover.
In the beginning I found the following description of the book:  "Although
installation support is extensive, any network setup is not included."  In
other words, it a damn book on theory, not actual practice. It lacks actual
setup procedures for networks.  I should have known better than spend any
more money on 8.0 or waste my time trying to set it up.

Most people just give up.  I stuck it out with Linux, and get frustrated as
hell trying to get it to work. If I was doing it all for fun I could
probably post every error message or click that did nothing.  But I was
relying on it, making it all the more frustrating when it doesn't work.

I am putting Linux away now.  I am not sure when I will want to boot into it
again. I am limiting myself to Windows for the rest of the day so I can have
a restful nights sleep. Linux will have to wait a few weeks or until I get
some fresh enthusiasm.

Robert



"Russell Evans" <revans at e-z.net> wrote in message
news:mailman.1020034882.30869.plug at lists.pdxlinux.org...
> On Sun, 28 Apr 2002 14:18:56 -0700, Robert said:
>
> >
> >  So we arrive at today. SuSE 8.0 installed alright, easily in fact.
Weird
> >  though, it does not install a number of programs any newbie would
normally
> >  use by default, so I choose them individually.  Among them Netscape
6.2, CD
> >  burning software, and Mozilla mail (even though Mozilla browser is
there,
> >  by default they leave out the mail program!?).
>
> SuSE 8.0 default install with office assumes you will use KDE 3.0 and that
> comes with Konqueror and Kmail.  The reason Mozilla is installed is so
that you
> can chose to use the geeko engine if you like and the mozilla plugins.
Netscape
> 6.2 is really Mozilla with marketing.
>
>
> >
> >  I thought I had modem installation and internet access down to a
science
> >  now, even in Linux, but the new SuSE has proven me wrong.  In Red Hat
my
> >  modem is found under /dev/tty/S4.  The new SuSE only goes as far as /S3
and
> >  even if I manually enter /S4 it will not work.  No amount of
experimenting
> >  with settings was able to produce a recognizable modem. I went through
> >  every  listed setting. So no internet access.
> >
>
> As noted in other posts, you seem to be making some mistake in posting or
> configuration. In Yast2 that is a hardware icon that will probe your
hardware
> and give you a very nice read out. You can use this to find your modem
> settings.
>
> >  I gave up on that and decided to now try the CD burning program, but
found
> >  it is as defective as any other Linux CD Burner program I have ever
(not
> >  been able to) use(d).
>
> As you don't say what CDBurner program you are using there isn't anyway to
know
> what your issue is. I assume you read the manual on setting up an IDE
cdrom, if
> you are using one. The SuSE manual is one of the best parts of the
> distribution. At $40 a crack, I would get my money's worth and read it.
>
>
> > It also detected my scanner automatically, but
> >  whenever I click on anything to do with the scanner, nothing happens.
At
> >  least with Red Hat, it scans an image, lets me look at it, and then
refuses
> >  to save it!
>
> Click, click, click, and nothing happens. I assume you're venting
frustration
> here and not really looking for help. If you are looking for help, some
more
> information will be needed.
>
>
> >
> >  SuSE 8.0 does have some nice new screen backrounds, but the fonts and
menus
> >  are typical Linux at its worst or near worst. I don't feel like wasting
> >  time fiddling with it since it is probably the best it can ever be and
I
> >  will probably reinstall the whole mess again hoping it might, God
willing,
> >  detect the modem next time.
>
> I think you will be wasting your time reinstalling in hopes of finding
your
> modem. Since you bought the distribution you should use the install
support
> that came with it. I have found the SuSE support helpful and timely in the
two
> cases were I needed it.
>
>
> >
> >  Although I spent the week hating Microsoft and hoping all the school
> >  districts would ban new Windows purchases and get Linux instead, I now
am
> >  spending the weekend greatfull that a company like Microsoft provides
an
> >  operating system that actually works right out of the box.
> >
>
> What this really means, is that Mircosoft had the money, or market share
to
> make the hardware vendor supply the hardware documentation or write a
driver
> that worked.
>
> Linux has neither and so hardware support is not universal and sometimes
even
> the best installer fails on supported hardware.
>
> We all have bad installs. I spent Friday night trying to Win2K on a box
and
> that install was unsuccessful. The box would take Win98se and XP but not
W2K. I
> of course, bought W2k for it, not either of the others, so I was very
unhappy.
> What can you do? Relax and make lemonade is all.
>
>
> Thank you
> Russell
>
>
>