Date: Fri, 18 Jan 2008 14:00:18 +0200 From: Manolis Kiagias <sonicy@otenet.gr> To: Zbigniew Szalbot <zszalbot@gmail.com>, "freebsd-questions@freebsd.org" <freebsd-questions@freebsd.org> Subject: Re: FBSD or PCBSD? Message-ID: <479094D2.3000505@otenet.gr> In-Reply-To: <94136a2c0801180110v2e43ea2esc96393c4c3ca56f@mail.gmail.com> References: <94136a2c0801180110v2e43ea2esc96393c4c3ca56f@mail.gmail.com>
next in thread | previous in thread | raw e-mail | index | archive | help
Zbigniew Szalbot wrote: > Hello, > > I have a basic Acer Aspire with Vista on it but I am very unhappy > about the speed of work on it. I do not want to wipe out MS system (at > least not yet) but would like to give FreeBSD or PCBSD a try. > > 1. Am I safe by installing FreeBSD alongside Vista? Will the > installation not destroy MS system? > > 2. I have installed FreeBSD a few times but only with console access, > never with X windows. Would it be better to install PCBSD on the Acer > machine? I have never configured X windows and not sure how long it > could take with FreeBSD (actually I mean things like Gnome or KDE). > > 3. The wi-fi card is probably Acer InviLink 802.11b/g Wi-Fi. Any > chance such wireless card will be supported by FreeBSD or PCBSD? > > Which is a better solution for a home user? > > Thank you very much for your practical recommendations! > > Zbigniew Szalbot > > I happen to have an Acer Aspire laptop with both FreeBSD and Vista. Have a look at some of my past posts for hints on how to install both: http://lists.freebsd.org/pipermail/freebsd-questions/2007-December/164389.html http://lists.freebsd.org/pipermail/freebsd-questions/2007-December/165171.html As for your wifi, I can't really tell you. Mine has an Intel 3945 and lately there has been a lot of progress on the driver (Thank you Benjamin!). I do have a PCMCIA atheros based backup as well. If you need to get to a GUI quickly rather than building it yourself, PCBSD (or DesktopBSD, try www.desktopbsd.net) would be your best bet. Depending on how you choose to setup your system, in pure FreeBSD, going graphical will take you anything from a few hours (using precompiled packages) to maybe a couple of days (using ports). Read the relevant handbook chapters for information.
Want to link to this message? Use this URL: <https://mail-archive.FreeBSD.org/cgi/mid.cgi?479094D2.3000505>