__/ [ Kier ] on Saturday 10 February 2007 22:08 \__
> Just thought I would give the SabayonLinux Mini Edition another workout,
> but this time on my Mum's laptop, which is a nice, but unspectacular Dell
> Inspiron 6000.
>
> It took a little while to boot, but once it got going, it was highly
> impressive. I enable AIGLX effects, using the Intel Graphics card, not
> really expecting great performance. I was pleasantly surprised just how
> well it worked. Speedy cube rotation, great wobble effects, cube pan and
> tilt, and all the rest, smooth and easy.
>
> I set up the wireless nic, and was on the net in a couple of minutes.
>
> The wireless mouse is very responsive, but the touchpad is sluggish.
> That's about the only hardware hitch I've found. My USB key was recognised
> at once.
>
> Sabayon is a very good live/install CD (also available as a DVD) for
> anyone wanting to try out Gentoo, as it's Gentoo-based without so much of
> the installation hassle. It has all the eye-candy one could wish, with
> Beryl and all the fancy effects we've come to expect. The Mini Edition is
> KDE-only, and is an attractive desktop with plenty of software to play
> with, including Amarok, with the integrated Magnatune music store
> available - nice idea, that. Just listening to some streamed music from
> them, a live band called Zilla. Never heard of 'em, but they are pretty
> good.
>
> As a pure Live CD, Sabayon performs well, though there are inevitably a
> few lags now and then. This edition would certainly made a great
> demonstration CD for someone who wanted to show off the best Linux has to
> offer, and I imagine the full DVD version is even more impressive. The
> fancy effects are really amazing. Okay, some might consider them
> unproductive, but they are a lot of fun, and for your average desktop
> user, that is an important consideration. And they can always be turned
> off when not required.
>
> Oveall, one for fun, though you could still get work done on it too. Show
> it off to your friends when they start saying how great Vista is. The
> Inspiron 6000 is *not* by any means the top-of-the-range, and it was
> runnig a Live CD, yet it had all the pretties one could wish.
>
> Go on, give it a try, you know you want to... ;-)
I have always wanted to try it. I'll just need to get hold of a PC with a CD
burner (I use very low-end PCs). Thanks for the good reviews. It sounds like
you're on a weekly rotation (exploration gives perspective that's
comparative).
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