Kubuntu KFA

[D. Michael McIntyre]

If anyone caught my Windows/laptop thread, you noticed I had a certain 
reservation about Kubuntu on my shiny new super el-cheapass laptop.

I'm happy to report that I'm an ignorant luser who doesn't know jack diddly 
about wireless anything, and I'm happy to remain ignorant.

I bought a cheap wireless router at Wally World.  I plugged it into my 
existing wired router.  I figured out the IP address for the administrative 
web interface flummy and told the router to be an access point (would have 
bought an access point, but they didn't have one at Wally World).

Booted Dapper (I already had Dapper burned).  I wasn't expecting the wireless 
to work, given that there are millions of pages about wireless hell on Linux.

Well, it works.  I have no idea how it works, what driver, etc.  It just 
works.  Boom.  Boot the damn thing, and I can google from my laptop, running 
off the live CD, without any wires on it.

I plugged my printer into the wireless router, and then sent a job from one of 
my wired boxes.  It worked.  (The printer has its own ethernet print server 
flummy.)

I'd say my little tribulation is over, and there was no tribulation at all.  
The most difficult thing I have to wrestle with now is trying to decide how 
much space to give Winblows, and how much to give over to the Kubuntu install 
I'm about to put on the thing.

It's a bit of a hard question.  What am I going to use Winblows for anyway?  I 
have to admit some things about it are kind of cool, like having a DVD play 
without having to figure out how to 
mplayer /dev/foo/blah -diddle -piddle -flink.  But when you go to change out 
the crappy looking window decorations and it asks for $19.95, and when the 
proffered solution for the many failings of the crappy Windows desktop is 
$49.95, it begins to become obvious that it ain't worth it folks.  Windows 
users are morons for spending all that money on stupid froofrum.

Three cheers for Kubuntu.  I'm a jaded, cynical son of a bitch, and I'm 
impressed.

The only thing to bitch about is my crappy no name video on this thing is 
coming up in VESA mode at 1024x768 on a display fixed at 1280x800.  I'm not 
sure how I'll figure that out, and it probably loses Kubuntu some N00b L00z3r 
P0Int5 for presenting me with this complication.  No, no, I'm not bitching.  
I'll probably figure something out directly.
-- 
D. Michael McIntyre