Install Linux on Thinkpads?

I have been looking at Linux...A LOT. If I get a newer Thinkpad, what problems could I be faced with if I went Linux?

 

I have ThinkPad X200, but I believe all ThinkPads have the same Linux compartibility problems (if any).

1) built-in land-line modem would most certainly be a so-called winmodem. So, no open-source Linux drivers (sometimes there could be binary drivers, but that undermines security and stability of your system). If you need one -- get an external USB modem which is NOT a winmodem (most USB modems unfortunately are winmodems too), I would suggest Zoom 3095.

2) save-to-RAM does not always work. This is a common problem, mostly related to the closed-source VideoBIOS. But usefulness of this feature is questionable, save-to-disk makes more sense, and it works perfectly.

Everything else, including accelerated video, ethernet, WiFi, web-camera, sound, card-reader, 3G wireless modem, built-in GPS reciever, built-in accelerometer, the security chips (TPM), has native Linux support and works almost out of the box.

 

Keep an eye on ThinkWiki.
As they state; " Here you find anything you need to install your favourite Linux distribution on your ThinkPad"

 

Thanks so much, I have that bookmarked and will study it!

 

A problem that could occur with the T400/T500 and is unique to them: The Switched Graphics feature is incompatible with the X server, this means it likely won't run on any of the GPUs if both are enabled. At least that happened when I tried out the Ubuntu 8.10 Live CD with the switching turned on

Easy workaround: Switch them in the BIOS. There might be a solution for on-the-fly GPU selection in the future, but I doubt that it would also be possible to switch off the unused one. This is an absolutely undesired behaviour because a Lenovo T400 with no proper graphics driver installed eats almost 30 watts during idle and gets relatively hot.

 

I want to know how i get started with intergrated intel graphics. I turned switching off, but in the boot Ubuntu crash and then a just blank screen. Descrete graphic card works perfectly, but if i change in the bios to intergrated graphics then ubuntu crash! I have Ubuntu 8.10 installed!
Some help?

 

You have a few options but they all involve uninstalling the ATI driver, whichever one you have installed, either the open source one or the proprietary one. Then you can install the one for the integrated chip, the Intel driver. It sounds like they conflict and you can only have one installed, one or the other.

I guess that is what they mean when they say you can't just 'switch' drivers. You have to change over in the BIOS but you also have to uninstall one and install the other. I could be wrong but I doubt it.

 

Thanks, something like this had happend!