[GLLUG] Problems with three internet modem and broadband connection

[Jan Henkins]

Hello All,

On 2016-11-10 10:49, John Winters via GLLUG wrote:
> On 10/11/16 10:28, Marcus Harriott wrote:
>> John
>> 
>> Have you tried blagging a MiFi out of Three?
> 
> Well, yes - as I said.  I've had two free ones from them.
> 
>> Thanks but i want to stick with what i have - change always causes yet
>> more probs...
> 
> Your choice.  The advantage of a MiFi is that you're using standardised
> proven technology (WiFi) rather than a manufacturer-specific interface.
> The latter is always going to be much more prone to issues.

I have to agree with this. Failing that, make sure that you have a good 
data plan on your mobile phone, and simply tether.


>> As for the Lenovo solution - i have already tried this on an S100.
>> Lenovo seem to have hard wired windows into their hardware and (after 
>> 8
>> months) i have given up on trying to load this!
> 
> That's your problem - I didn't just recommend Lenovo - I said a Lenovo
> ThinkPad.  Corners have been severely cut on consumer hardware like the
> S100, but the ThinkPads are aimed at business users and remain
> significantly better.

Amen to that. In general all IdeaPad products should be viewed with a 
healthy dose of scepticism, especially if it is a brand new model. Do 
your research first. Having said that, I have a Lenovo IdeaPad Z360 (1st 
gen i5) that is doing quite well with Linux, although when it was still 
new I had issues with it. Later kernels supported it better, but at 
first it wasn't a really good buy at all.


> Which is why I recommended a second-hand ThinkPad.

Again, I cannot agree more. I have bought two old ThinkPad X200 models 
for silly money (£49 for one, and £65 for the other). Yes, they are old 
and relatively slow (Core2Duo, and supports only up to 8Gb RAM), but 
they are fine for general purposes. My youngest uses one for homework 
and games, and I use the other one as a burner laptop with Ubnuntu 
Studio on it for lightweight music work. The good thing about the 
ThinkPad X series is that they are extremely robust, and you can almost 
always find spares. The X200 might be too old for your taste, so aim a 
bit newer if speed is an issue. What I like about the X200 family is 
that they are really small (only 12" or so), which makes them ideal for 
just chucking in a bag.


-- 
Regards,
Jan Henkins