Mageia 2 on Acer Inspire One

Today I performed the easiest Mageia install ever.  It was on an Acer netbook (an Inspire One D257-1408 that came pre-installed with the curse of Windows 7 Starter).

The machine packs an Intel atom N570, 2GB RAM, and a 160GB HD.  When I first saw it, my worry was the strange keyboard configuration: there are functions scattered all over the keyboard.  Besides, I still had the usual concerns: Graphics server and effects, Wi-fi, sound, and the SD card reader.

Mageia 2

So, I booted it using a Mageia 2 Live USB drive (that part was a piece of cake) and, in few minutes, I was showing the owner of the netbook her potential new system.  I quick-tested everything in live mode.  She was very pleased and I was, to be honest, a little skeptical because everything seemed to behave correctly.  It is not that I am suggesting that Linux is inferior because one can run into a glitch here or there.  As a matter of fact, the owner was marveled when she saw some of the function keys that Windows 7 Starter never put to work being activated for the first time in almost a year!

So, after backing up the information on the HD, I wiped it and ran the Mageia installer and, when the process was over, I turned on the machine expecting to hit a boulder any second.

But nothing happened.  Wi-fi was working, the effects were active, sound was operational, hibernation worked, Youtube videos were showing, KDE was responsive...

We still have to remove the Starter letter, er, scarlet letter.

This is, by far, the most successful Linux install I have ever performed.  Of course, I had to get .mp3, .mp4, and .flv to work, but the process was easy because the repositories had everything I needed.

I took the machine home to restore the information and to update the distro.  The little thing is working perfectly and I am very happy.

I hope the owner enjoys her new OS.  She is a brave young woman who has decided to break away from the MS paradigm because she was fed up with viruses and tech service abuse.  But I suspect that her main reason to jump on board the Linux ship is quite different and has to do with...yes, Korean dramas!

I can't blame her. My Linux story is also strange.  Well, Ken, from the Blog of Helios, said it beautifully here: "many of us came to Linux via odd routes".   

That being the case, I'm sure she will benefit from the computer's new capability--Korean input :-)

So, congratulations, Mari, and enjoy your K-dramas on a computer that will not be afraid of that abundant Windows malware that drove you paranoid before. 

리눅스, FIGHTING!