http://www.ComputerBob.com/reviews/review_mandrake.php .
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by ComputerBob
December 3, 2002
Last Updated January 16, 2003
Disclosure: I don't work for the Mandrake company, nor am I affiliated with the Mandrake company in any way. I have used DOS/Windows for over 20 years, and have a lot of experience installing every version of Windows through Windows NT 4.0 Server, but this was my first experience at installing any Linux distribution.
In a continuing effort to find an alternative to using Microsoft operating systems (Windows) and Microsoft software applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook), I've been looking into the possibility of switching to the stable, secure and highly supported Linux operating system, along with its free (or low cost) software applications. With that in mind, for the past 5 days, I spent over 61 hours (yes, you read that correctly), testing the Mandrake Linux 9.0 PowerPack Edition, a 7-CD boxed set that I purchased from my local Best Buy store for $69.99 U.S.D. The unusual diary-like style of this review is due to the fact that it is composed of email messages that I sent to other PC users, and messages that I posted on the forums of several Web sites, including my own, while I was testing Mandrake Linux. For the rationale behind why I bought Mandrake Linux, see ComputerBob's Guide To Windows vs. Linux.
I installed Mandrake Linux this morning. It's got an extremely impressive list of hundreds of apps that you can install. It installed itself into the empty space in my SECOND hard drive instead of in my FIRST hard drive, so my Windows 98 SE drive won't be affected by Mandrake at all. It recognized my sound card but it couldn't make it work. It didn't recognize my printer at all, and when I set it up manually, it prints what look like Rorschach tests instead of text. I was able to connect to my ISP, but unable to browse at all until I powered my modem off and back on. I was unable to see ANYTHING at all on my monitor after it configured it, until I powered my monitor off and back on.
So far, it seems VERY powerful, but it doesn't seem very friendly to me.
I'm thinking that it doesn't like my hardware. For one thing, it set my graphics card to "Generic Voodoo 3), and doesn't have a specific driver for my Voodoo 3 2000 card. This morning, I went into its configuration center and tried to reconfigure my monitor, as a NEC MultiSync A700, as a generic Plug and Play monitor (Linux told me it couldn't find any PnP monitor!!!), and as a generic monitor, with all different settings from 640x480 @ 60Hz all the way to 1024x768 @ 70Hz, but NONE of them were able to sync up without me manually powering my monitor off and back on again every time I logged in or went from one mode to another.
I still have no sound in Linux. It properly identified my 3Dfx sound card, but it told me that I need to go to a Web site to get a new driver for it, and the instructions at that Web site are very complicated for someone who's never installed anything into Linux.
It doesn't like my old Microsoft Wheel Mouse. It automatically detects it as a standard PS/2 mouse, so it works as a regular mouse, but the wheel doesn't work. If I manually change the setting to Generic Wheel Mouse, it gives me Mouse error messages on each bootup and shutdown, but it works as a regular mouse, as long as I don't try to use the wheel. If I try to use the wheel, the cursor goes up into the upper-right corner of the screen, and I'm stuck trying to shut down the computer with just the keyboard.
There must be a string that I can enter into the modem configuration, to make Linux initialize the modem each time it uses it. That would probably solve the problem of me having to power the modem off and back on before being able to use it in Linux.
Regarding my DeskJet 500 printer on my parallel port -- Linux cannot autosense it, so I had to set it up manually. I've tried EVERYTHING I can to try to get it to print correctly, but it still prints grayscale patterns of dots that roughly correspond to lines of text
From what I've read, Mandrake Linux is supposed to have one of the very best installers and one of the smartest hardware detection abilities.
With that said, I have to keep telling myself, "It only cost me $69.99 to get a complete OS with hundreds of applications." In fact, there are about 20 items on the main menu, and each of them has 10-20 sub-menus, and each sub-menu has 5-20 sub-sub-menus I've tried KDE, Gnome, and IceWM desktops (in Linux, the desktop manager is separate from the OS itself, so you can easily switch from one to another). KDE looks the sharpest, but IceWM runs a lot faster on my PC. The apps that I've looked at are really nice, and you'd never guess that most of them are freeware. I even tried a couple of the many arcade, board, word, and other-type games. A funny one is called "Tux Racer." It has Tux (the Linux penguin) sliding on his belly down snow-covered hills -- you steer him through a course, around obstacles and try to scoop up as many herrings as you can on the way to the finish line. It's a 3D game, but it runs fast, even on my old PC, and it lets you choose a bunch of settings, like weather conditions, lighting conditions, etc. StarOffice seems to work beautifully -- I was able to open up StarDraw and then create and rotate 3D objects with absolutely no problems (remember how OpenOffice's Draw program locked up my PC every time I tried to do that?) When I did my 4 Linux installations, Mandrake only asked me for the install CDs and the Commercial Apps CD #1. I've written to a friend to ask him how to access the other 2 CDs of commercial apps and other CDs of freeware.
I already know that I won't be able to recommend that my Web site's readers should try doing their own Mandrake Linux 9.0 installations, but for people who have Linux-experienced friends who can solve their installation problems for them, it sure could be a cheap, stable, secure, and fast alternative to MS operating systems and applications.
Two days ago, this past Friday, I installed Mandrake Linux 9.0 on my PC. Actually, I installed it 4 different times, but that's a long story that I'll probably write about some day. Suffice to say, it's a good thing that it takes less than 45 minutes to install Linux and its hundreds of applications from scratch.
Because I installed Linux as a dual-boot with my existing Windows 98 SE, I can choose which one I want to run each time I power on my PC.
I'm using Linux right now, as I type this message. I have it configured to look almost exactly like Windows 98 SE. Despite my best efforts, sound isn't working yet in Linux, because the sound card driver that came with it is bad, and I don't know enough yet to be able to download and install the updated sound card driver (it's more complicated than installing Windows software). I'm also having a minor problem with my graphics card. Every time I start Linux, my monitor loses its sync and I have to turn it off and back on in order to see anything on the screen. After that, it's fine until I log off again, at which time I have to turn my monitor off and back on again. And Linux only recognizes my old Microsoft wheel mouse as a standard mouse, so I can't use the center wheel when I'm in Linux.
With some help from a very helpful guy I met in an online security forum, I managed to install and configure Shorewall, a very powerful, completely free Linux software firewall, so now Shorewall makes my PC "Stealthed" (invisible to hackers) whenever I'm in Linux, while ZoneAlarm continues to do the same thing whenever I'm in Windows.
Anyway, I've spent 51 hours using Linux in the past 3 days (15 hours Friday; 22 hours Saturday; 14 hours Sunday). In fact, Saturday night, I stayed up all night, until 7:30 Sunday morning, getting Shorewall to work correctly, and then downloading and installing about 60MB of every updates and security fix I could find. Since those updates, Linux can now see my old DeskJet 500 printer on my parallel port, but when I try to print anything, it comes out as lines of grayscale dot patterns like little Rorschach tests, instead of lines of text. It's a weird, but not real important problem, since I can still use Windows to print things, but I'll eventually have to solve it if I ever hope to use Linux exclusively.
So far, there are some minor font display annoyances, and the (probably device driver-related) hardware issues described above, but all-in-all, Mandrake Linux appears to be incredibly stable and secure, and it's amazing to find hundreds of high-quality, completely free software applications waiting to be used, immediately after finishing the 45-minute Linux installation. It's a little daunting at first, because there are so many menus, sub-menus, and sub-sub-menus that it takes awhile to learn where the apps you want to run are. Luckily, you can drag anything from the menus onto the desktop to make a shortcut to it, just like in Windows. I'm not a PC game player, but I tried a few of the many arcade, board, card, strategy, sports, and other games that automatically installed with Linux. In Tux Racer, the Linux penguin mascot, Tux, slides on his belly down snow-covered hills. You steer him around obstacles and help him grab as many herring as possible on his way to the finish line. It's a 3D game but it runs impressively fast and smooth on my old Pentium II -266 PC.
One thing I noticed while browsing the Web in Linux was that the text in ComputerBob.com didn't look as good in Linux as it did in Windows. I did a little research on the problem, then changed my font designations to make "Helvetica" (a Linux font) the first font in each line of my site's Cascading Style Sheets, and that fixed the problem. Now, when someone who has Linux visits ComputerBob.com, their browser will use its Helvetica font to view the text on my pages, and it will display really nicely for them. When a Windows user views my site, their browser won't have the Helvetica font, so it will use the next one font on the list, Arial, which it will have, and my site's text will display really nicely for them, too.
When I'm using Linux, I still have access to all of my Windows folders and documents, but Windows doesn't seem to be able to see my Linux folders at all. So, if I start using Linux to work on documents, I'll probably save them in my Windows folders, so they'll be accessible to both Linux and Windows.
I'm looking forward to learning more about how to do things in Linux. As I've stated before, my goal is to see if I can eventually replace Windows and all my Windows applications with LInux and free or low-cost Linux applications.
But first, I need to get some sleep. (I know I've written THAT sentence before)
I've started writing about my Linux experience. Right now, it's a forum message, but I'll probably eventually evolve it into some type of permanent article for my site. If anyone reads what I write about Mandrake Linux, and they still want to try it, then more power to them, but you're right -- no "common user" is going to go to all the trouble I've gone through. Late Friday night, I even thought about uninstalling Linux, deleting its partitions, and offering my boxed package for sale on my forums. But now, I think it will eventually be worth the trouble to do whatever I can do to learn about Linux and attempt to free myself from Microsoft. The parts that I've gotten to work are REAL nice, and the non-working things have become minor annoyances, rather than deal-breakers
I suspect that most of the problems I'm having with Linux are due to buggy device driver software.
The Mandrake Control Center tells me that the sound card driver that it installed is bad. It points me to a Web site, where I downloaded the supposedly correct driver. Unfortunately, the new driver's instructions don't make it clear that it is even the right driver for my sound card, and the installation requires that I edit a config file "with the right information" to make it work correctly. I'm not sure I know "the right information." It might be less trouble to go out and buy another sound card, if I knew for sure which one Linux would recognize and configure properly.
My mouse is a Microsoft PS/2 Wheel mouse, but that wasn't a choice during my Linux installation, so I configured it as a generic wheel mouse. On its next shutdown, Linux gave me an error message about the mouse. On its next bootup, Linux gave me an error message about the mouse, and suggested that I change its setting to Generic PS/2 mouse, which I did. I suspect that either Mandrake will have to release a new wheel mouse driver for Linux, or maybe there's some other tweak out there that I'll need to do to make Linux work with my wheel mouse.
I'm not having problems installing software in Linux. The 60MB of updates that I downloaded and installed were easy to do with the automatic Mandrake Update feature (similar to Windows Update). It's just that using a console and typing cryptic UNIX commands (DOS in the Klingon language) is not my favorite way to install/upgrade Linux software that ISN'T on the Mandrake Update list.
My monitor is a NEC MultiSync A700 Plug and Play monitor. When I tell Linux to autosense it, it tells me that it can't find any Plug and Play monitors. So, I manually configured it as a NEC MultiSync A700. I can set it to all different resolutions, all different refresh rates, and all different color palettes. I can even set it up as a generic monitor, and manually set it to all different resolutions/scan rates/color palettes. It works wonderfully with every choice, but ONLY if I power it down and back up at each login. Otherwise, it fails to sync up, and all I see on the screen are patterns of colored garbage. So, I think my monitor problem must be a software driver problem, probably with Linux's video card driver.
My printer is an old HP DeskJet 500, connected to the parallel port. Linux told me that it couldn't see any printers connected to the parallel port, so I set it up manually. I was able to send print jobs to it, but like I described in my other message, they all print out as Rorschach patterns of dots, instead of text or graphics. After I downloaded and installed the 60MB of updates Saturday night, I deleted my printer and tried to add it again as a new printer. That time, Linux could see that I had a printer on my parallel port, but it couldn't tell what kind of printer it was. So, I told it what model of printer it is, but it still prints patterns of dots instead of text or graphics. I suspect that the Linux printer driver for this old printer is no good.
About an hour ago, I was ready to repartition the Mandrake partitions on my PC's hard drive and give my whole boxed set to the first person who walked by.
Why? I'll get to that in a moment.
The GOOD NEWS is that a very helpful person in the ExtremeTech.com forums was RIGHT when he told me to try setting my printer to print from CUPS (a Linux printing method) instead of from LPD (the default Mandrake Linux printing method). Not only does it work great, but it is the ONLY method I've tried that gives me normal printouts instead of Rorschach patterns. Cool!
The reason I got so discouraged is because I followed that same person's, (and, to be fair, two other people's) advice about editing two of Linux's configuration files to set up my mouse as a wheel mouse. I figured out how to find and edit those two files with no problem. There were no error messages after I saved those files or even when I shut down my PC. On my next bootup, the dual-boot screen asked me if I wanted to run Linux or Windows, just like always. I chose Linux, and the startup sequence began. Like a long list of DOS commands, each Linux service started with an [OK] message until the very bottom of the list, when my PC gave me one red [FAILED] message before immediately clearing the screen. I think it said something like "devf daemon [FAILED]." Anyway, immediately after that red FAILED message popped up, the screen cleared like it normally does right before it automatically boots me into the KDE desktop (similar to the Windows desktop). Unfortunately, instead of bringing up the KDE desktop, it stopped at a command prompt, asking me for my username and password, to log in to "localhost." The dreaded white text on a black screen.
Of course, I could log in, since I'm the one who set up the usernames and passwords, but then what was I supposed to do? As a Linux newbie, I had NO CLUE as to what I should do to get the KDE desktop going, and the Mandrake User Guide, as "friendly" as it is, appears to be totally geared toward using the graphical user interface, and is TOTALLY USELESS if anything goes wrong that causes you to be dumped into command prompt hell.
I tried booting with my Linux boot disk, but it still gave me one red [FAILED] message and dumped me back to the command prompt. I did a CTRL-ALT-DEL (the only thing I knew how to do that seemed to actually DO something) and rebooted from that same floppy disk. That time, I waited for the command prompt and issued a /sbin/lilo command, as the "helpful" Mandrake Users Manual had suggested. A bunch of messages flashed onto my screen, telling me that it was doing something. After it was done doing whatever it had done, I rebooted my PC again, ending up back at the command prompt a few minutes later. I don't remember what I did to cause it, but, somewhere along the line, it told me that something wasn't synchronized. Then it seemed to scold me for editing my configuration files manually, and told me that if I want to do that, I should then do something-or-other afterward to keep something-or-other important things synchronized. It also told me some mumbo-jumbo about netconf --status and netconf --update commands. I wrote those down, but they meant nothing to me. It asked me if I wanted to synchronize things or continue with things the way they were. I clicked on the button to tell it to go ahead and synchronize (and hopefully fix) things. A few minutes later, there I was, back at the command prompt, steam starting to rise from my ears.
That's when I started feeling that sinking feeling you get when you realize that you left your wallet on the counter at the airport, or that you've just locked your keys in your car. For a few horrible minutes, it seemed like it just might be worth it to throw away the whole computer with several years work of work stored in it, and pay big bucks for a brand new PC, just to once again be able to turn on my computer and have it do what I expect it to do -- what it's SUPPOSED to do.
After steaming for awhile, I finally got the bright idea to "reinstall" Mandrake over itself, using the install CD. I booted from the CD, told it to "upgrade" my existing installation, and then went through the entire install routine all over again. Twenty-five minutes later, my PC rebooted, and the dual-boot screen asked me if I wanted to run Linux or Windows. I chose Linux, and it booted into Linux, automatically logged me in, and brought up the KDE desktop again, just like it was supposed to.
During what turned out to be my 5th installation of Mandrake Linux 9.0 since this past Friday, I noticed that the Mandrake installation AGAIN told me that I don't have any sound card installed, and AGAIN set up my mouse as a Standard PS/2 mouse. I went into Mandrake Control Center, to see if I could find any choice for setting it to Microsoft Intellimouse. What I found was that Mandrake only provided 8 mouse choices under the "PS/2" heading. Only one of them was Microsoft -- the Microsoft Explorer mouse, listed in the subcategory called "other." The only Microsoft Intellimouse choice that appears at all in Mandrake's extremely sparse list of mouse choices is the Microsoft SERIAL Intellimouse (mine is PS/2).
At least my printer is working now.
Whew, this stuff is discouraging and exhausting!
Yesterday, I spent another 10 hours looking for answers and trying to solve my Mandrake Linux problems. That means that I spent a total of 61 hours on those problems, including having to install Mandrake Linux from scratch 5 different times and having to manually edit two Linux configuration files (which caused the need for me to install it the 5th time) -- all in the first 4 days after I bought Mandrake Linux.
I've been told that the reason the KDE desktop wouldn't start up was because I had manually edited two of the Linux configuration files, to try to fix the mouse problem, and KDE refuses to run if the mouse isn't configured correctly. To get KDE to work, I would've had to open a command line interface text editor at the command prompt (a moot point, since there isn't one installed by default) and manually edit the two Linux configuration files BACK to their original values (which I don't even remember). Reinstalling Mandrake from the original CDs fixed the no-KDE problem by setting my mouse back to being a Standard PS/2 mouse, which allowed KDE to run again, but without the use of the mouse's center wheel.
After all my efforts, and with the advice of several helpful people on the ExtremeTech.com forums, the printing problem is finally solved, but the mouse, monitor, and sound card problems remain.
I've developed a love-hate relationship with Mandrake Linux 9.0. I love its look, stability, and the fact that it comes with hundreds of applications. I hate the fact that, after spending $69 and 61 hours on it, I haven't been able to get it to work correctly on my PC. As a result of all the problems I've had with it, today, I've changed my whole philosophy about using Linux.
I'm not going to spend any more time trying to get Mandrake Linux 9.0 to work trouble-free on my PC. Why? Because, even if I were to finally solve all the problems I've had with it, I certainly wouldn't be able to recommend Mandrake Linux 9.0 to other Windows users. Of course it's possible (and even probable) that it would install, configure, and run on other people's PCs without any problems at all. My concern is that very few Windows users would have the knowledge, skills and persistence to be able to go through everything I've gone through to try to fix any problems that would arise if anything went wrong with their installations. Because it has an excellent reputation and it comes with so many great applications, I would be happy to try a future version of Mandrake Linux, but I'm done trying to use Mandrake Linux 9.0.
Instead, I'm going to try some other Linux distributions. If and when I find a distribution that works for me the way it is supposed to work "right out of the box," then I will continue to use that distribution and spend the time that it takes to see if it can eventually replace Windows on my PC.
In the meantime, does anyone want to buy a slightly used Mandrake Linux 9.0 Power Pack edition? Make me an offer.
After reading that many others have had similar experiences, I've decided to share my own really bad experience with Mandrake's lack of customer service.
NOVEMBER 8: I ordered Mandrake 9.0 PowerPack Edition from the online MandrakeStore.
Other than the immediate order confirmation email message, I never heard anything about the status of my order.
NOVEMBER 26: I wrote and asked them to cancel my order and refund my money.
NOVEMBER 29: I bought the Madrake Linux PowerPack Edition at my local Best Buy store.
DECEMBER 2: Mandrake wrote back to say, "We apologize for the delay in order. You order is been shipped. you will be getting it any time now." (You order is been shipped???)
DECEMBER 2: I replied, asking if anyone there actually READS the messages they receive, and reminding them that I had CANCELLED my order a week before they told me they had shipped it.
They never replied to my December 2 email. I don't know if they ever shipped a product to me or not, because I put a sign on my front door, announcing that I am refusing all packages from Mandrake. I don't know how long it will take them to issue a refund on my credit card, or if I'll have to do a charge-back with my credit card company.
I'm sorry to have to say this, but as a result of my experience with ordering from them, and my experience with trying to get Mandrake 9.0 to work correctly on my PC, I no longer trust Mandrake as a Linux distribution or as a vendor.
MandrakeSoft is in serious financial trouble. Today, the Mandrake Web site's home page stated the following:
"Despite the many financial challenges of maintaining a fully open source business model, MandrakeSoft has always followed the Free Software approach, but in this normally joyful holiday season we are experiencing a serious short-term cash crisis. Everyone who is concerned with the company's future is encouraged to read and distribute the following message."
I don't know what the future holds for MandrakeSoft or Mandrake Linux, but now I understand why I had such a horrible experience with their customer service department. If possible, I hope they can fix their financial problems, fix their software's problems, and continue to be one of the top Linux distributions.
I've changed my mind about wanting Mandrake to continue being successful.
48 days after I originally ordered Mandrake 9.0 from the Mandrake company online; exactly one month after I cancelled that order, after waiting for it for nearly 3 weeks; and 24 days after they had first sent me an email message, telling me that my order had shipped despite my having cancelled it a week earlier -- my order from Mandrake arrived by UPS this morning.
I called UPS and told them to come and pick it up as a refused delivery. I also called my credit card company and put the $81 Mandrake charge in dispute, which means that now I'm going to have to go through the hassle of documenting my ordering/cancelling/receiving/returning Mandrake 9.0 for them before I'll finally get a refund of my money, probably in another month.
The Mandrake forums are bursting with other people's complaints very much like mine. Unfortunately, many people will never see all of those complaints. Why? Because someone has chosen to "rate" many of those complaints off-topic or flame-bait, thereby making them invisible by default to anyone who views the forums. The end result is that, by default, the messages displayed in the Mandrake forums are heavily weighted toward supportive remarks and cheerleading messages posted by the Mandrake faithful -- exactly the type of messages that helped convince me to buy Mandrake Linux in the first place. Hoping to get some help for all my Mandrake problems, I registered on those forums two different times in a two-week period, but they never sent me any registration confirmation, so I was never able to post there as anything but "Anonymous." Add to that the fact that every single time I tried to read more than 1 or 2 forum threads, an error message appeared, telling me, OVERLOAD mode, comments visible only to registred users! Therefore, as far as I was concerned, the Mandrake support forums were totally useless.
It was bad enough that I had already wasted $72 buying Mandrake 9.0 from my local Best Buy store, only to find, after troubleshooting it for 61 hours, that it still wouldn't correctly configure my PC's mouse, video card and sound card. Now it turns out that I'm going to have to fight to get back the $82 that Mandrake charged me online for the order that they shipped it to me 48 days after I ordered it and a whole month after I cancelled that order. And what did I get for all of my time, money and trouble? Several weeks of frustration.
I tried to be patient with the Mandrake company for the past 48 days, but now I'm angry. Here's how I see the situation now. Mandrake's employees had so little respect for me that they did not communicate with me for nearly 3 weeks after I placed my order, even though they had charged my credit card immediately; then they completely ignored my cancellation of that order for a whole month; and then they shipped the product to me anyway. I believe that they brought their current financial woes upon themselves, and they deserve to go out of business.
The sooner the better, as far as I'm concerned.
Every single interaction I have with the Mandrake people convinces me even more strongly that they are totally incompetent at even the most basic concepts of running a business.
Early this evening, I received another email message from Mandrake, telling me, "Your order has been shipped!", with a UPS tracking number so I can track its delivery -- this is the same order that was already delivered to me and that I already refused yesterday.
Enough is enough is enough. I hope to never hear from the Mandrake Company again, and I plan to never, ever buy Mandrake Linux again, at least not from Mandrake's Web site.
According to a
news story on LinuxToday.com, yesterday, January 15, 2003, MandrakeSoft
declared bankruptcy in France. The filing is said to be similar
to a U.S. Chapter 11 Reorganization bankruptcy, because it allows
a company to restructure its debt and attempt to overcome its financial
woes.