Customer Reviews

Mandrake Linux PowerPack Edition 8.2

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I've been using Linux for about two years and Mandrake 8.2 is the best I've seen yet. Here is what you get with Mandrake 8.2.

Easy to setup with Mandrake's graphical installer drakx. Includes great packages such as cups print server, proftpd, postfix, Star Office 6, Real Player, kamera, chat, and scanner software.

You can choose from 11 desktops including Gnome and KDE. You get games, multimedia, development, and a large assortment of extra printer drivers, and special Mandrake configuration tools to get up and running pretty easy and painless.

I had Mandrake 8.2 installed in about 30 minutes, and it was near painless. It was the easiest install of any Linux distribution I have ever done.

So if you are sick of Windows, and are looking for something else try Mandrake 8.2. Even old Linux hands can enjoy 8.2.

I am a linux enthusiast and have been trying out new linux distributions as they come out for the past 3 years. Needless to say, linux's 2.4 kernel has made some dramatic improvments and so has KDE 3.

While RedHat is suited better for enterprise users, Mandrake and SuSe try to adapt their packaging for the average home user. SuSe 8.0 has to be the "easiest" linux distribution out there now by virtue of its great system configuration tools and streamlined installation. While Mandrake 8.2 has good configuration tools, it lacks the friendliness and wide scope of SuSE Linux.

Two features that caught my eye in this distro are:

1. Mandrake's utility for configuring Samba file sharing and browsing, and
2. Mandrake's font installer. Unattractive, out-of-the-box fonts typically plague Linux distributions, so a good font installer is a must. In tests, the Mandrake font utility was much easier to use than the KDE-based utilities that come with Red Hat and SuSE.

Overall, Mandrake 8.2 has taken some great steps. However, if you are looking for a replacement for Windows, SuSe 8.0 is a better option.

easy install on a dell 8200 pentium4 w/santa cruz sound card w/nvidia 4, viewsonic
digital lcd, wireless logitech keyboard and wheel mouse via ps/2, old panasonic
dot matrix. all working under linux mandrake v8.2. and automatically configured
my dsl connection. soon to kiss mr gates goodbye. my computer came with
win xp on it and it froze on the first day. wiped it out and put on win98 until i
could find a linux distro that would work for me. try it, u will like it!

I've been running linux on my machines for several years, and mandrake is by far the best distribution that is available for those who are new to the linux experience.

A lot of these reviews complain about customer service. I, for one, have never even thought to call someone for help with linux. If you want customer service, then perhaps Linux isn't for you. There are billions of places on the internet to find the answers to your questions without calling some poor geek in California who just started learning the OS and asking him your obfuscated questions and expect to get a clear, concise, fix everything that's wrong with your installation response.

OK. that was a long sentence...my point is...Don't expect customer service, and don't bother those poor people. Get on the internet and search google for the answers to your woes. That's what Linux users do ;-) I've also always thought that http://krnlpanic.com was a good place for some common answers too </shameless plug>

Happy Linux'ing!

I've used Mandrake 8.0, 8.1, and now 8.2. I have also switched to SuSE 8.0. I like Mandrake and I like some things they do. But, the problems are just too numerous to recommend, in my opinion. Mandrake tries to be a little too bleeding edge, and when I was testing 8.2, I had some issues that I could not resolve. On the other hand, SuSE 8.0 ran out of the box for me on both my home-built desktop and my Dell laptop. Absolutely no major issues on either machine.

The other thing is that Mandrake is now releasing 9.0 beta to its testers. I don't understand Mandrake's accelerated release schedule. 8.2 just appeared in stores and they're already working on 9.0. Go figure.

Anyway, keep an eye on Mandrake, they are a nice company and put out a nice distribution. I would just look elsewhere for now.

After some effort, I was able to install Mandrake 8.2. Once it is up
and running it is really slick. A few things did not work, like Xsane
for my epson 1240U scanner. Other than that it was capatible with everything
else that I had hooked to my computer. It even had a slick j-pilot
application for syncing my palm pilot.

I installed RH 7.2 and Debian Woody a combined total of four times in the past week. Just as I was ready to bag the idea of using Linux, I decided to give this distribution a chance.

The installation was easy and, in terms of time, tiny compared to Debian (which is still not complete after 3 days). This only took 45-60 minutes. Everything configured fine and the customization is nice. Everything is running fine for me...

Don't be scared of this distribution of linux. If you can install any other operating system, you can definitely roll this one out with a few clicks. No fancy footwork required.

I've been using MDK 8.2 for a few weeks now and its performance is really good. It requires a good quantity of RAM (128 are okay, but double that and it flies). I run it on a 400 mhz PII with an 8 mb Trident card and it works really well. Its "wizards" are very useful for the new user: they make tweaking your machine a very simple process.

Linux-mandrake is by far the best distribution for anyone who wants to make the change from windows to Linux. I highly recommend this product. It comes with staroffice 6.0 and openoffice which are extremely!!! close to Microsoft office. So if you are tired of having to buy a Windows OS, then buy Microsoft Office! Save your cash and get it all in one!!! Linux is the way to go!

Unless you are courageous enough to venture out on your own without any customer support, this is probably NOT the product to buy. In order to get the 2 months of free customer support the product must be registered using the serial number in the box. However, when I tried to register my purchase, I would get an "Invalid Number" error when I tried to enter the serial number. After making many telephone calls (some of which were not toll free), I was told I needed a new registration number. After many more phone calls, I was given a phone number to fax a copy of my invoice and the UPC code on the box. This I did. I have not heard a word since. Meanwhile, the time remaining on my "Two months" of free customer support is quickly ebbing away.