Ubuntu Linux 6.06 Running on a Toshiba Satellite P20-801

Ubuntu Linux 6.06

Running
On
A Toshiba Satellite P20-801

By Anthony Johnson







Specifications:
Toshiba Satellite P20-801 - P4 3.2 GHz - 17" TFT
Notebook - RAM: 512 MB - HD: 60 GB - DVD±RW / DVD-RAM - 4.5 kg - Battery run time: 1.5 hour(s)
Built-in Devices: Stereo speakers, wireless LAN ( Realtek)aerial, Bluetooth aerial
Width: 41.9 cm, Depth: 29.3 cm,Height: 4.7 cm,Weight: 4.5 kg
Processor: Intel Pentium 4 3.2 Ghz,Data Bus Speed: 800 MHz
Features: Hyper-Threading Technology
Cache Memory
Type: L2 Cache
Installed Size: 512 KB
Technology: DDR SDRAM
Storage Controller
Type: IDE
Storage
Hard Drive: 60 GB
Optical Storage
Type: DVD±RW / DVD-RAM - plug-in module
Read Speed: 24x (CD) / 8x (DVD)
Write Speed: 16x (CD) / 4x (DVD-R) / 2.4x (DVD+R)
CD / DVD Rewrite Speed: 8x (CD) / 2x (DVD-RW) / 2.4x (DVD+RW) / 2x (DVD-RAM)
Card Reader
Type: Card reader
Supported Flash Memory Cards: SD Memory Card
Display
Display Type: 17" TFT active matrix
Max Resolution: 1440 x 900 ( WXGA+ )
Widescreen Display: Yes
Video
Graphics Processor / Vendor: NVIDIA GeForce FX Go5700 - AGP 8x

Video Memory: DDR SDRAM - 64 MB
Audio
Audio Output: Sound card (Realtek)
Input Device(s)
Type: Keyboard, touchpad
Telecom
Modem: Fax / Modem
Max Transfer Rate: 56 Kbps
Protocols & Specifications: ITU V.90
Features: V.92 upgradable
Networking
Networking: Network adapter
Data Link Protocol: Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, Bluetooth, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g
Compliant Standards: IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g, Wi-Fi CERTIFIED
Expansion / Connectivity2 ( 0 ) x memory
1 ( 1 ) x PC Card - type III (2 x type I / II)
1 ( 1 ) x SD Memory Card

Power Device: ExternalVoltage Required: AC 120/230 V ( 50/60 Hz )
Battery
Technology: Lithium Ion

From the offset I feel it necessary to say that this Toshiba notebook as I have found it is made for Ubuntu 6.06. The installation was distressingly simple and hassle free. The installation took just over 45 minutes with 1GB.

On first boot-up the sound card sang-, loudly. The display was excellent. The internal wireless LAN card worked and picked up my access-point-, remarkable. It exceeded all expectations. Only two devices did not work. The internal SD card reader and the 56k internal Win modem. I have a Xircom PC card modem that works fine if you address it as tty s3 or s4.

My computer is dual partitioned as are all of my others. The Windows XP Pro partition is easily accessible as a drive icon on my desktop. It is read-only though but this is good. That what Linux does by default, it protects Windows better than Windows protects itself!

The battery performs under Linux as well as it does under Windows- , which is so so. A huge 17” display and a Pentium 4 3.2 Ghz processor all take their toll.

There's not much I can add to this article except that several other distros I tried just did not cut it. In Xandros 3.0 CE the sound card did not work . In Redhat 9.0 the same. Mandrake 10 Community was a spectacularly unsuccessful.

Ubuntu 6.06 or Dapper Drake has proved to be very stable, simple and clean and a pleasure to use. My printer (Epson DX6000) works, USB storage devices and a portable media player capable of OGG Vorbis playback all function.

For those of you who use MP3/MPEG 4 encoding and other commercial codecs will find the legal restrictions on Ubuntu 6.06 irksome. (Those codecs will not playback with plugins and this means compilation. For some of us this is a stimulant and for others a bore.
For those who simply wish to get essay, letters and e-mails out, Ubuntu possesses all that is required is OpenOffice (Version 2).

Ubuntu 6.06. Load, install it love it.


Anthony Johnson

London, UK ( Or the 51st State of that very well known Super State)