Well, it was only a matter of time. You’ve installed Linux on everything from your old 386 clunker to your great-aunt’s PC, and now you’re bored and need a new challenge. Or you’re sick of being tethered to a desk when you use Linux. You yearn for penguin portability. The time has come for Linux on your laptop.
The good news is that a lot of people agree with you. Despite the unique challenges of laptop architecture, Linux runs, and runs well, on many popular portables. Thanks to a concerted effort on a number of fronts, Linux can also take advantage of many of their unique hardware features, such as PCMCIA (PC Card) slots, infrared transfers, and power management.
The bad news is that most laptop vendors are about as enthusiastic about Linux as the folks at Microsoft tech support. None of the major laptop vendors contacted by Linux Magazine would participate in this story, including IBM, which claims to sell a “Red Hat Linux Certified” laptop. Go figure. Of the eight laptop vendors we contacted, the only one to provide us with a review machine was Milpitas, CA-based ASL Workstations, Inc. The Linux laptop market clearly has room to grow. Still, LM was able to put its hands on a few laptops, which were put through their paces by the very competent folks at Linuxcare labs.
The Easy Way: Preinstalled
There…
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