Ubuntu 10.04 on Nokia Booklet 3G

Its always true that in place of complaining about something, one should rather act on behalf of that. Like I always say one doesn’t need to have a super brain, Just do your bit. After complaining hard about having Windows 7 Starter on this very real thing, its time to try the sweet heart Ubuntu (Latest edition 10.04) on it.

This was not new as Iain Wallace already succeeded once and many others might also would have tried out. Now, it was my time for doing the same, though with updated version of Ubuntu that I downloaded just by tonight 10.04.

I already mentioned that I was to try this for sure before this thing may leave me. Tried MeeGo first, but it was a total No-Go after a few of my tries. May be I should have attempted a little more, but it was better to check the thing that already tested before. Was that really much easy?

Ubuntu didn’t bugged me a lot about the Installation part at least. It was a trial device and I didn’t got a DVD from them (not in package even, if I am right), so I was sure not thinking about going over a HDD Install for sure. I took the USB Stick way.

Install was kind of no-brainer to get it running right. I was to download ISO from this link and also Universal USB Installer (quite a handy tool for other OSs as well) from this link. Install the Universal USB Installer on your Windows, select the ISO and target a USB Stick of adequate size (at least 2GB would do). Follow the wizard and you are ready with bootable USB stick.

Insert it in Nokia Booklet 3G, press F12 while booting, choose USB Stick as first boot device and then here you go. An operating system that is asking for just 250 MB of RAM in comparison of 700-800 MB of RAM that a Windows 7 Starter takes. Sure, you could feel the instant performance benefits.

What’s now? You could spot easily that it go everything like perfect, either it be Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, 3G, Battery monitor or anything. What’s more you expect? I even configured my SIM very easily to provide Internet. You haven’t even thought of installing any drive and all till now for sure as everything just going perfect.

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But yes!! there were few minor issues as well.

I found that touch pad working but little bit less smooth than Windows 7 Starter, though after a while, I felt like it was only my perception. Next was keypad layout. As Nokia Booklet follow UK-79, while the detected one was US-101, sure the first thing to notice was location of ‘@’, but being a blind typing person, you don’t feel that anything going wrong very soon. Although I didn’t tried much, but there must have been some UK-79 Layout inside as well or it was my fault that I did an Install of Ubuntu Desktop Edition, Netbook one was expected to not having this problem and also would have been more lighter OS.

One more problem I found that Ubuntu or any other OS decreases the claimed 12 hour battery backup and we get a battery backup of around 6-7 hours only.

Now, the biggest hurdle was as everyone seems to knowing about. The Intel GMA500 graphics chipset that is very famous for its resistance to Linux, even Wiki says that the support is not optimal. In fact, only Ubuntu seems to even trying otherwise all other Linux flavours seem to giving up including their own MeeGo. Funny na!! Chipset is of Intel, Booklet is of Nokia and Meego is of Intel+Nokia, but still MeeGo a no-go for Nokia Booklet 3G. Yes!! I have tried MeeGo on and it didn’t worked.

Next part was to install graphics driver and then VLC, mplayer etc.

Installing graphics over older versions might been a little bit harder, but Ubuntu really have tried hard to provide the support with newer version. May be it was a hard way to Ian Wallace and other to go through script way, but now it seems to be simplified much. Thanks to the Ubuntu Page, it was just so easy.

I tried a while for installing VLC or mplayer, but was struggling. After a while, I came to know that it was necessary to enable multiverse repository, before doing any kind of non-propriety install. Nothing harder, I was to System->Synaptic Update Manager-> Settings-> Repositories and then to enable multi-verse repository there. Just after the same usual sudo yum install mplayer etc worked lke a charm and I was able to watch the movies easily on my Nokia Booklet 3G running Ubuntu 10.04. Even if I don’t install these players, inbuilt player itself was able to download codecs and play such contents (with multiverse repository only).

As my device was trial, so I was avoiding messing up with the Windows 7 Starter Edition provided with it. The option was to use USB boot only and so were the limitations. May be I was doing something wrong or I was creating USB Boot from a Live CD rather than some Ubuntu Install, whatever.. but I was loosing the changes I make in the OS. Sure, not an issue, if you wish to install OS directly on HDD. But I missed to axctivate 3D acceleration as it was asking for a reboot.

As I said its remarkable to have a light OS running on Nokia Booklet 3G to explore its true potential and as expected this thing is a tank, in build, in performance, if its not in Windows 7 Starter side. So, my complaints with OS end here.

At the end, here is my video of Ubuntu running on my Nokia Booklet 3G. Though it doesn’t involve steps related to Multimedia and multiverse repository, but shows the booting and configuring my SIM to make use of SIM slot for internet. Sorry for low light …

Later on I faced the issue with keeping my settings saved with the USB stick, but as I didn’t had an Ubuntu Install ready, so struggled a little to bring 3D support on it. Wiki suggested me a better alternative, Jolicloud, definitely worth trying. I will come up with a post of JoliCloud running over Nokia Booklet 3G soon.

Nitish Kumar

https://nitishkumar.wordpress.com

http://scifireviews.wordpress.com

http://nitishkumarsays.blogspot.com

 

 

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