Re: Debian Etch Install
Kevin Ross put forth on 12/21/2009 2:13 PM:
> Many systems don't have wired Ethernet, but may have wireless.
Most systems have wired ethernet. Few have _only_ wireless. Most laptops have
both. I'd venture to guess that the few that only have wireless are the tiny
netbooks. Actually, just checked at Bestbuy, and out of 74 netbook make/models,
only the Nokias don't have wired ethernet, all the rest do. The Nokias forgo a
wired controller chip for a 3G network chip/modem.
My whole point in this thread has been that if one has an 802.11 adapter that's
not natively supported by the Debian net installer, then the next option is to
use a wired adapter that is, not to go to CD/DVD install media as the second
option. Then everyone jumped on the band wagon with excuses and scenarios of
why they can't do wired. I called BS. You know why? About 5 billion ethernet
ports have been installed worldwide. That's almost one jack per person on the
planet. Even today, wired connections are far more ubiquitous than wireless
connections, thought the trend is obviously moving toward wireless.
Sure, for some, in some circumstances, it may be slightly inconvenient to grab a
wired connection to do your install. Is that less convenient that buying a
supported wireless adapter in the first place? If you want total convenience
and universal compatibility, use MS Windows.
As for the embedded stuff like arm, those aren't user PCs, so they don't count
in this thread. For embedded/process control systems, those usually aren't
going to be connected to the net anyway. They'll be connected to a CNC machine
or the maintenance control network on an Airbus A380.
Finally, if people are smart, and plan before their purchase, they're going to
buy Debian supported hardware in the first place, so they don't run into this issue.
Installing from CD/DVD media should be an absolute last resort, when all other
avenues are closed. In the case of the netbooks, you will absolutely have to do
a net install, or buy and external CD/DVD USB drive, as they don't have internal
media drives.
--
Stan
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