Linux.com: The Horror of All Horrors, or Upgrading a Linux Box

“What is the phrase that gets a Linux person’s blood flowing
and migraine forming faster than anything? (OK, OK! Second …
after “You Know Who” and his OS). Hardware Upgrade! Don’t worry! I
have a few tips and pointers for those pondering hardware upgrades
in their prized Linux machines.”

“First, do your homework! We’ve all done it … bought the
latest and greatest hardware only to find it won’t work with
something already installed on the computer. Look up primary
resources regarding the hardware you wish to buy and use. For a
video card you should not only read the company’s hype on the Web
site, but dig as deep as you can for driver and compatibility
issues. There are many things that can cause a piece of hardware to
be flaky or not work at all.”

“One of the things that we all forget about in the rush for
Linux drivers and kernel support for hardware is actually having
software that can use the hardware. After you find if your
prospective new hardware has device drivers (unless you like the
almost titanic problem of writing drivers, don’t buy it!), you
should consider whether or not your software can use it. If it
can’t, either don’t buy it or look for software that can use
it.”

Complete
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