starling review 12-14-09

8/14/2019 Starling Review 12-14-09

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Review of the System76 Starling NetbookI wanted a netbook for traveling. I plan to use it primarily for checking e-mail, browsing the Internet,writing documents, listening to music and watching movies. I may also at some point use it as an e-book reader and podcast player.

I'm a moderately competent user of computers. I have a little -- but not much -- experience with Linux.

(Want to cut to the chase? Look at the bottom of this page for a blue chart listing Pros and Cons of the

Starling)

Date of review: June 2009UPDATED: July 19, 20092nd UPDATE: July 30, 20093rd UPDATE: August 6, 20094th UPDATE: August 13, 20095th UPDATE: August 17, 2009

6th UPDATE: September 30, 20097th UPDATE: December 5, 20098th UPDATE: December 13, 2009

Manufacturer: System76 (located in Denver, CO, USA) This company sells server, desktop, laptop,and netbook computers, all preloaded with the Ubuntu Linux operating system.

Model: StarlingSpecs:

Display: 10.1" LED Widescreen Glossy LCD (1024 x 576)

Graphics: Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950

Audio Output: Intel High Definition Audio

Networking: LAN (10/100), WiFi Wireless: 802.11 bg

Ports: VGA, 3 x USB 2.0, Headphone Jack, Microphone Jack, SD Reader

Camera: Built-In 0.3 MP Webcam

Security: The System76 Web site claims that a Kensington Lock is included, but my netbook asshipped did not include a lock.

Power Management: Suspend & Hibernate

Battery: includes one 6-Cell Lithium Ion 6th UPDATE: It's now possible to buy an extra 6-cellbattery for $99.

AC Adapter: includes one AC adapter

Dimensions: 10.4" x 7.1" x 1.3" (WxDxH)

Weight: 2.6 lbs.

Operating System: Ubuntu Netbook Remix 9.04 (Jaunty Jackalope) 32 Bit Linux

Processor: Atom N270 @ 1.60 GHz FSB 533MHz L2 512 kb with Hyper-Threading

Memory: 1 GB - DDR2 533 MHZ x 1 DIMM. This is the maximum and no memory can beadded. 4th UPDATE: The System76 Starling has been upgraded and now comes with 2GBRAM installed for the same price as the earlier 1GB RAM version

Harddrive: 160 GB 5400 RPM SATA II

Wireless: 802.11 bg


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Optical Drive: None included but there is an option to add an external USB optical drive. (Seebelow under Options.)

Carrying case: None

Cost: $359 US + options + shipping + your state's sales tax

Options: Check the System76 Web site, because it's possible more options have been added since the

date of this review.

USB External CD-RW / DVD-RW Drive ( +$85.00 ). Model shipped to me was nu ExternalSuper Slim DVD Burner ESW860

6th Update: Extra 6-cell smart lithium ion battery (+$99)

6th Update: Additional AC Adapter (+$39)

1 Yr. Ltd. Warranty and 1 Yr. Technical Support (included)

6th Update: 1 Yr. Ltd. Warranty + Accident Coverage and 1 Yr. Technical Support ( +$59.00 )

3 Yr. Ltd. Warranty and 3 Yr. Technical Support ( +$90.00 )

3 Yr. Ltd. Warranty + Accident Coverage and 3 Yr. Technical Support ( +$130.00 )

Review

Ordering and Shipment

The System76 Web site is simple and straight-forward. Ordering the Starling online via that Web site iseasy. The one downside I must report is that after ordering my Starling, I received an e-mail fromSystem76 reporting that their Web hosting provider had been hacked and that an "unauthorized person"might be in possession of the credit card number and other information I entered when ordering.System76 said it does not store such information; the hack occurred during processing. Not what onewants to hear, of course. System76 says it has taken steps to ensure that it does not happen again.

I had a few questions about the netbook before ordering. I found a link on the System76 Web site forcontacting the Sales Department and sent an email with my questions. They were answered clearly andpromptly by Thomas Aaron.

I ordered the Starling on Thursday May 28, 2009. It arrived on my doorstep in Seattle six days later onWednesday, June 3, 2009. Not bad considering I had opted for UPS ground shipping, the slowest andcheapest option. Shipping cost was $13.92. Oddly, I received an e-mail from System76 on SaturdayJune 6, 2009 giving me a UPS tracking number to track my shipment!

Unboxing and Setup

Unfortunately, the packing material was styrofoam peanuts, not the greatest choice environmentallyspeaking. (System76 claims on its Web site to be driven by environmental concerns: "As you may havenoticed, our systems are named after animals. In fact, they are not only named after these wonderfulbeings but dedicated to them. System 76 works to promote wildlife and open lands conservation.")

Here's a picture of the packing box. The external USB optical drive is on the left; the Starling netbookis in a box underneath the peanuts.


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Everything was in good shape and appeared to be of good quality. However, the System76 Web siteclaims that a Kensington Lock is included with this netbook. There was no such lock included withmine as far as I could tell. A diagram of the Starling's ports points to a small lock on the side at the rear,but all I can see there is a hole. How it functions as a lock, I do not know. Because I am not especiallyinterested in having a lock, I have not explored further or complained. UPDATE 2: A commenter onmy blog explains that what the Starling provides is a SLOT for a Kensington lock that you wouldpurchase elsewhere separately.

Minimal instructions/documentation are included. But setup is pretty darn simple. You plug in thecomputer; press the "on" button; and fill in language, time zone, keyboard preference, user name and

password. The whole thing took me less than 10 minutes, and I was deliberate rather than hasty aboutit.

Here's a picture of the Starling as I peeled off a plastic protective sheet from the screen. You can alsosee the power adapter to the upper right.


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Bootup

My desktop Windows XP box takes me 7 minutes from turning on the power switch to having my e-mail client and browser up. My Lenovo R60 Windows XP laptop takes more than 3 minutes to be upand browsing the Web. So I was eager to see what the bootup time on this Starling netbook would be.The time from turning on the power switch on the Starling netbook to having my Firefox browser upwas 55 seconds.

Not surprisingly, the Starling also is much, much faster at coming back to life from "suspend" or"hibernate" states.

Speed and stability

I have been delighted with the performance of the Starling. I sometimes have seen the statement on theInternet that netbooks are slow. For almost all of the tasks that I have been performing, this netbook hasnot been the least bit slow.

For example, while writing this review in the Bluefish editor, I have my Firefox browser up with 6 tabsopen and I have my Rhythmbox audio player playing some tunes. I've got the Pidgin IM applicationopen. The File Browser program is open. I'm also using the Picasa photo editing program. The netbook


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3rd UPDATE: It turns out that many people have had exactly the same wi-fi problem I've had: theyoften have to move closer to the access point to get connected. To its credit, System76 got on thisproblem and has just released an updated System76 Driver that it says substantially increases the wi-firange.

4th UPDATE: I've downloaded the System76 Driver Version 2.3.7 and have found that wi-fiperformance is improved. I can now connect to a network that I could not previously connect to. When

the signal is weak, transfer rates are on the slow side. Moving closer helps in that case. Overall, Ibelieve the wi-fi performance now is satisfactory. For info on the System76 driver update and moredetails on wi-fi performance, go to: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1233219

Screen

The screen displays fonts and pictures crisply. It's bright and pleasant to look at. No eyestrain. The twomovies I've played have displayed beautifully. I was surprised at how well I could read the screen insunlight. The glossy screen does not help, but still, I was able to read the screen pretty well.

The design of the hinge prevents the screen from reclining to a flat 180 degree angle. I'd say it goes alittle less than half way between perpendicular and flat. UPDATE: Most of the time, this is not a

problem, but a few times I have wished it reclined further to avoid glare in a particular light situation.

Keyboard and Touchpad

The touchpad is located immediately under the space bar; it is not centered either on the spacebar or thecomputer itself, but rather is slightly left of center. There might well be an ergonomic reason for this.However, I must confess that I am not a touchpad person, so I can't opine credibly on the touchpad. Iprefer a pointing stick -- there isn't one on this computer -- but I most prefer a mouse. In fact, I havehooked up a USB mouse and am happily using that.

At 2 inches wide by 1-1/8 inches deep, the touchpad is pretty small. The buttons are on either side andeach is 3/8-inch wide and 1-1/8 inch deep.

8th UPDATE: A contributor to Ubuntu Forums says that touchpads are not supposed to be centered onthe computer but rather on the "home keys" where touch typists place their fingers when they begintyping. The touchpad, he says, should be placed such that a vertical line that runs between the "G" and"H" keys bisects the touchpad. On the Starling, the line between the "G" and "H" keys runs about 5/8"from the right edge of the touchpad and about 1 3/8" from the left edge. In other words, it does notexactly bisect the touchpad. I notice that on my desktop computer's keyboard, the "G" and "H" linedoes bisect the spacebar. On the Starling, that G-H line also bisects the spacebar. However, center pointof the spacebar is slightly to the right of the center point of the touchpad.

Another review I read somewhere of the Starling mentioned that the keys had a stiff feel. That seemstrue, though it's not a bad thing; in fact, it makes the keyboard seem sturdy and high-quality to me. I

like the feel of the keys a lot.

As is true with netbooks in general, the keyboard is smaller than a standard-sized laptop or desktopkeyboard and takes some getting used to to avoid hitting the wrong key or inadvertently brushing thetouchpad. I've found that the more I use it, the better I get. It does not seem like a big problem. Ofcourse, people with large fingers might have a different view.

6th Update: My typing experience improved greatly after I turned off the touchpad. That ended theproblem of unpredictable results from inadvertently brushing the touchpad while typing. To turn thetouchpad off, go to the "Preferences" section and click on the "Mouse" icon. Then click on the
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1233219http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1233219


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"Touchpad" tab and uncheck the "Enable touchpad" box.

WebCam

I'm new to Web cams, so I was wondering how to use the Web cam on the Starling. I did a Googlesearch on something like "Linux Web cam" and saw a reference to Cheese. I recalled seeing a Cheeseapplication when I was initially perusing the applications that came with the Starling. I opened theCheese application and was immediately presented with a button that said "Take Picture." I clicked onit and here's what I got in my rather dark study:

At 0.3 megapixels, it's not exactly a powerhouse cam, but serviceable enough.

USB External Optical Drive

Because I wanted to watch movies on this netbook, I decided to order the optional USB external optical


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drive. System76 gives minimal information on its Website about the drive, other than to say that it isCD-RW DVD-RW. Cost is $85. The model I was sent is a nu External Super Slim DVD BurnerESW860.

This drive is available from nu and from other online retailers for $63 -$73. I can't see that the drivesent by System76 would differ in any way from one that you would order elsewhere online. In fact, thedrive came with a "Nero 8 Essentials" CD that appears to be Windows-only software. And the box lists

only Windows XP and Vista under the heading "OS Compatibility," so it hardly seems as if the drive isa special Starling variant.

I was a boob and hastily hooked up the USB cable from the burner to the netbook and couldn't seem toget the netbook to "see" the burner. I did online research to no avail. I recruited my husband to help andafter awhile he saw that I might not have the cable hooked up properly. Aha! Once I hooked the cableup right, the drive immediately showed up on the netbook.

Below is a picture of the USB 2.0 cable. It's got a micro-USB connector at one end and two regularUSB connectors at the other end. I used the wrong regular-sized connector. If I had paid attentioninstead of just hastily plugging in the first one I grabbed onto, I wouldn't have had problems.

And here is apicture of theStarling and the nudrive and its box:

There was minimal documentation with the drive. It's true that all you do is plug it in and the deviceshows up on the netbook. But it is up to you to figure out the software you need to use to play DVDs.


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(More about that in the Adding Software section below.)

A CD/DVD Creator program comes with the Starling, but before I discovered that, I had downloadedthe Brasero CD/DVD burning program. Brasero has a good, clear interface, but it turns out that Braserohas a bug. I discovered this after trying unsuccessfully several times to burn a music CD. A Googlesearch quickly turned up the bug. Fortunately, it is very easy to fix. Go to Brasero's Edit menu, click on"Plugins" and then uncheck the "Normalize" box. Now Brasero will work beautifully.

USB Thumbdrive

I popped a USB 4 GB thumbdrive into the USB port and it was immediately recognized by thenetbook. I transferred files from it to the netbook with ease.

Sony DSC H2 12X Zoom 6 Megapixel Still Digital Camera

I connected the USB cable that came with this camera to the netbook. The netbook's file browserimmediately came up showing all of the folders on the camera's memory stick. I easily copied thepictures from the camera to the netbook. I did not need to install any special software to do this. It "justworked," as have (7th UPDATE) most USB devices so far that I've hooked up to the Starling.

Creative Zen mp3 Player (7th UPDATE)

My mp3 player (which I love) has special software for synching with my PC. Naturally, it's Windowssoftware, so I was a bit concerned about how I would load podcasts and mp3s from the Starling ontomy Zen.

A "Going Linux" podcast (Episode #35 at http://goinglinux.com/) that discussed media playermanagement software was a help.

Although Rhythmbox is included with the Starling and works fine as a media player and podcatcher, itdoes not provide a way for you to transfer podcasts and mp3s onto your mp3 player. I tried Amarok but

found that it didn't work, even though it is supposed to have that functionality. It is aimed at the KDEdesktop (the Starling uses the Gnome desktop), so perhaps its seeming bugginess was related to that.The gpodder program also didn't work for me. Next, I tried Banshee, and, thank God, that did work. Ihighly recommend Banshee.

I found that it works best if you do things in a certain order:

1. Open Banshee2. Turn on Zen3. Hook Zen to Starling via USB cable4. Contents of Zen should show up in left sidebar of Bansheev5. Drag 'n Drop podcast and music files from center pane to Zen in left pane

6. Close Banshee (this dis-mounts the Zen)7. Un-connect the Zen

Sony Ericsson TM506 Cell Phone (7th Update)

I'm currently wrestling with getting my cell phone working with the Starling. Once again, it comes withsoftware for synching the phone to the PC, but naturally it is Windows software. I hook my phone up tothe Starling via a USB cable. My goal is to be able to get photos from the cell phone to my Starling. Ihaven't been able to get this to work. I downloaded the Linux cell phone management program knownas Wammu. It's got a nice wizard, but the program is not recognizing my phone. I have a query at
http://goinglinux.com/http://goinglinux.com/


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Ubuntu Forums, so I hope I'll get some help on this.

8th UPDATE:Unfortunately, though people tried to help me with this issue on Ubuntu Forums, theywere unable to come up with a solution. Thomas Aaron of System76 ended up concluding that "it lookslike Ubuntu just doesn't play nicely with whatever kind of formatting/filesystem your phone uses."

When I hook up the USB cable from the cell phone to the Starling, I am presented with four options onthe cell phone screen: phone mode, media transfer, mass storage and print. For the media transfer andmass storage options, log entries on the Starling show that the Starling does recognize that a phone orUSB device is attached. However, I am unable to get access to the phone. The "phone mode" actuallybrought up a dialog that wanted to set up a broadband connection with my phone provider, so for folkswho are looking to do that, that might work OK. I did not try the print option.

Printer

Having read a recent Wall Street Journal article that criticized Linux netbooks for incompatibilitieswith printers and other peripherals, I was worried about what I would face in trying to hook up to myprinter.

I plugged the USB cable from my HP Laserjet 1022 into the Starling netbook. I immediately got amessage saying "Missing printer driver." However, just as quickly I got another message that said: "Forthis printer a proprietary driver plugin from HP is available. Installing the plugin is optional, itcompletes or enhances the functionality of your printer. Without plugin at least basic operations work.The plugin provides the following features: -faster printing. Do you want to download and install theplugin now?"

Compliments to System76 or Ubuntu for writing a system message in plain English. (Not saying thegrammar was perfect with the run-on sentence.)

I said yes to the download and installation of the plugin. I got a terminal-like screen that gave me threeoptions: d for download (recommended), p for specify a path (advanced) and q for quit. I typed in d andthe download proceeded.

I next got a dialogue box asking me to give a name to the printer and a location: I typed in "hplaserjet"and "study" and also was asked if I wanted to print a test copy. I clicked yes to that and immediatelyheard the sweet sound of my printer coming to life. The test print was perfect.

I did not consider this process burdensome. It took me about 5 minutes and I never worried or puzzledover anything.

Ethernet

I plugged my Cat.6 ethernet cable (it comes from the router) into the Starling's ethernet port. I wasimmediately connected to the Internet.

Card reader

I'm sorry, but I have Compact Flash cards and Sony Memory Sticks but no SD cards, so I was unable totest the card reader.

Headphones and Speakers

Like probably all netbooks and many laptops, the Starling's speakers are tinny and unpleasing. Iplugged in my Radio Shack titanium headphones and the sound was beautiful.


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Microphone

This is the first Starling function that I've encountered that I've been unhappy with. I hooked up aLogitec USB Desktop microphone that cost $30 to the Starling. I went to the Sound and Video folderon the desktop and found the Sound Recorder application and clicked on it. So far so good.

Sound Recorder has a simple, clear interface. Across the top are the following icons: New, Open, Save,Record, Play, Stop. You see a drop-down list of seven different formats to record in: CD Quality AAC(.m4a type), CD Quality Lossless (.flac type), CD Quality Lossy (.ogg type), CD Quality mp2 (.mp2type), CD Quality mp3 (.mp3 type), Voice Lossless (.wav type), and Voice lossy (.spx type).

I tried recording my speaking on four of these types (ogg, mp3, wav, and spx). At first, only the mp3worked, and even it was not very satisfactory -- the volume is too low.

I then decided to install the System76 driver. This driver adds support for devices not nativelysupported by Ubuntu. It is found in the "Administration" folder on the desktop. After doing that, I wasable to get the .ogg recording to work -- at about the same low volume as the .mp3.

The Sound Recorder application has a slider-type volume control, but it was set on the lowest possiblevolume and every time I tried to increase it, it reverted to the lowest setting.

I have not done any online research to see what the problem might be or how my results might beimproved. But my conclusion is that the Starling's microphone function needs improvement.

7th UPDATE:I tried the built-in microphone, though I tested it only in the mp3 format. It worked, buteven with the volume turned all the way up, the volume of the resulting recording is very low. I stillconsider the microphone performance sub-par.

Software

7th update:Ubuntu releases a new version of the operating system about every six months. MyStarling came preloaded with Jaunty Jackalope (9.04). Since then, Karmic Koala (9.10) has beenreleased. However, Starling owners have been cautioned not to upgrade to Karmic until System76 canfix it so that the wireless card will work with Karmic.

System76 is hoping to find a way to deal with the Starling wireless such that they won't have to hasslewith it every time there is a new Ubuntu release. Whether they will succeed at this, I'm not sure. I'mhappy enough with Jaunty but those who are eager to get on to the latest version the minute it comesout are champing at the bit. It's now been more than a month that System76 has been trying to get thewireless working with Karmic.

2nd UPDATE: I recommend that those who have not had experience with Linux download the freeUbuntu Pocket Guide and Reference, by Keir Thomas, which I have found to be a very clear andhelpful guide for using the Ubuntu operating system.

You can do many things on the Starling netbook, such as browsing the Internet or doing e-mail, withouteven knowing you are on a Linux system. But when you go to do more complicated things with yourcomputer involving folders and files, it will probably help to know something about Linux. This bookwill help you.

It is true that the Ubuntu Netbook Remix operating system that is installed on the Starling is not exactlythe same as the regular Ubuntu operating system: specifically, the desktop differs. But there are somany other similarities that this book will work just fine for the netbook version of Ubuntu.
http://www.ubuntupocketguide.com/index_main.htmlhttp://www.ubuntupocketguide.com/index_main.html


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Included

The desktop you see when the Starling boots up looks like this:

8th UPDATE:Down the right side of the screen are various folders holding documents, pictures,music, etc. This also is where external drives show up when they are connected. (It's essentially the"Places" menu on the classic Ubuntu desktop.) Click on any of these "places" and the File Browserapplication launches and shows you the contents of that folder.

Down the left side of the screen is a list of "folders" or categories or sections that contain icons tolaunch software applications. (This left side essentially features the "Applications" and "Systems"menus of the classic Ubuntu desktop.) When you click on a category, the icons within that categoryshow up in the middle of the screen. When you click on an icon once, the application is launched.

The Preferences section, by the way, has a "Switch Desktop Mode" that allows you to see either theUbuntu Netbook Desktop pictured above or the Classic Ubuntu Desktop shown here:


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Here is the software that comes included with the Starling:

Favorites:

Cheese (Web cam application),

Evolution Mail and Calendar,Firefox (Web browser),Help,Pidgin instant messaging application.

Accessories:

Add/Remove (for adding or removing applications),Calculator (choice of basic, advanced, scientific, financial or programming),CD/DVD Creator,Character map for the keyboard,Disk Usage Analyzer,

Manage Print Jobs,Passwords and Encryption Keys,Take a Screenshot,Terminal (gives you a command line so that you can interact directly with the OS via typedcommands),Text Editor (gedit),Tomboy (a fancy note-taking application that allows you to link to other documents).

Games:

AisleRiot Solitaire,

Blackjack,Chess,Five or More,Four-in-a-Row,FreeCell Solitaire,Gnometris,Iagno,Klotski,Mahjongg,Mines,Nibbles,Robots,Same GNOME,Sudoku,Tali,Tetravex.

Graphics:

Cheese (again),F-Spot Photo Manager,


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Drawing application of the Open Office Suite.

Internet:

These are all repeats from the Favorites category:Evolution Mail,Firefox Web browser,

and Pidgin instant messaging program.

Office:

Dictionary,E-book reader(FBReader),Evolution e-mail (once again),Presentation application from Open Office SuiteSpreadsheet from Open Office SuiteWord Processor from Open Office Suite.(Open Office is a high-quality, capable suite of office applications. On the Starling, however, it does

not include a database.)

Programming:

This category contains no applications. (It's possible that I myself added this category through the MainMenu preferences application mentioned below -- I forget.)

Sound and Video:

Movie Player,Rhythmbox (music player),Sound Recorder (for use with microphone).

Universal Access:

CellWriter (a handwriting recognition program that, after you've trained it, turns your scrawled lettersinto typewritten ones).

Preferences:

About Me (enter your personal info),Appearance (themes for your desktop),Assistive Technologies (settings for disabled users),Bluetooth,

Default Printer,Display,Encryption and KeyRings,Keyboard settings,Keyboard Shortcuts (you can add new ones or remove existing),Main Menu (allows you to add or remove the "folders" or categories that run down the left side of thedesktop),Mouse settings,Network Connections,


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Network Proxy,PalmOS Devices (Gnome Pilot),Power Management,Preferred Applications (allows you to select which applications you want to handle basic tasks such ase-mail, Web browsing, music player, terminal emulator, etc.),Qt 4 Settings (appearance of your user interface),

Remote Desktop (allow other machines to look at your desktop),SCIM Input Method Setup (don't know anything about this),Screensaver (select from a long list of options or select "blank"),Sound (settings are beyond my ken),Startup Applications preferences (select or unselect which programs launch at startup),Switch Desktop Mode (choose either Ubuntu Netbook or Classic Ubuntu desktop. The default for theStarling is the former),Windows (preferences for selecting and moving windows around).

Administration:

Authorizations,

Calibrate Touchscreen (odd since the Starling does not have touchscreen capability),Hardware Drivers,Language Support,Log File Viewer,Login Window preferences,Network Tools,Printing configuration,Services (everything is grayed out so not sure what you can accomplish with this),Software Sources (use this to add repositories of software to Synaptic Package Manager),Synaptic Package Manager (application for automatically finding, downloading, installing, configuring,updating Linux software),

System76 driver (supports devices not natively supported by Ubuntu),System Monitor (gives realtime monitoring info about CPU, memory and network),System Testing,Time and Date settings,Update Manager (checks if any software you have on your Starling has updates available for downloadand will download the updates if you say yes),and Users and Groups.

Adding Software

My experience has been that installing software on the Starling is usually much faster and easier than

doing it on Windows. There are some exceptions. It depends on which software you are wanting toinstall.

You will be able to get most free, open-source software that is not already installed on your Starlingeasily through the Add/Remove or the Synaptic Package Manager applications that come with theStarling. I personally LOVE these two applications -- it is a breeze to install and update software usingeither one of them. (Add/Remove is simpler to use but lists less software. I generally just use Synaptic,which is plenty simple to use.)

There are hundreds if not thousands of applications out there that you can add via this easy process. I've


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added Hearts (game), Brasero (CD/DVD burning program), and Bluefish (html and programmingeditor).

Here is information on using Synaptic: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/SynapticHowto

But to get non-open-source software, you must generally first add software repositories through theSoftware Sources application that comes with the Starling. Once you have added the repositories, youcan use Add/Remove or Synaptic to install the applications. (A third, distinctly less appealingalternative is to manually install applications. I try to avoid this if possible.)

If you want to play DVD movies, go to this Web site to learn how to install the needed software:https://help.ubuntu.com/community/RestrictedFormats/PlayingDVDs.

To add the Skype application, go to this URL for guidance:http://knowledge76.com/index.php/Installing_Restricted_Formats

I had trouble installing Google Earth (mainly because of the Google EULA that I needed to agree to,which was hard to do in the Terminal window). I finally did get it installed. I guess I wouldn'trecommend trying to install it.

Here are some other Web pages that may help with installing software:

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/InstallingSoftwarehttps://help.ubuntu.com/community/Repositories/Ubuntuhttps://help.ubuntu.com/community/Medibuntu

Support

I have found support to be a mixed bag, though now that I think of it, my husband got no support forthe Apple iMac he bought a while back and I've never gotten any support for the Windows machinesI've bought, so maybe Linux support is better than average.

As I mentioned above, System76 representative Thomas Aaron responded promptly when I e-mailed

himpriorto buying the Starling. But when I mistakenly thought my new external USB optical drivewas not working (because I had plugged in the cable wrong), I sent Thomas Aaron an e-mail tellinghim it wasn't working and asking him for suggestions. I sent the e-mail on June 3, 2009 and never haveheard from him. This despite statements on System76 literature like this: "We take pride in building oursystems to suit all of your computing needs. If you have any questions or concerns do not hesitate toemail or call us." (Note: Thomas Aaron says on Ubuntu Forums that he did respond to my e-mail. Thatcould be true, as on rare occasions I have not received e-mail that others have sent me.)

Another problem is that the documentation you are referred to on the System76 Web site is out of date.It does not apply to the new Ubuntu Netbook Remix 9.04 OS that is on the Starling. And there's almostno documentation at all on the Starling itself.

OK, that said, here are the pluses. System76 Support is conducted as a section of the Ubuntucommunity forums. I did post a question there and got two good answers within a day -- one fromThomas Aaron. 4th UPDATE: After having the Starling for more than two months, I can now say thatthe System76 Support on the Ubuntu Forums is quite good. You can almost always get good answers toyour questions fairly quickly there.

Also, the Netbook Remix OS is not that different from regular Ubuntu, from what I can tell. The maindifference for the user, it seems to me, is in the desktop interface. I have found that almost all generalUbuntu advice has worked for Netbook Remix. And that's a good thing, because there is a lot ofUbuntu help out there. I found the answers to almost all of my questions fairly quickly either through
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/SynapticHowtohttps://help.ubuntu.com/community/RestrictedFormats/PlayingDVDshttp://knowledge76.com/index.php/Installing_Restricted_Formatshttps://help.ubuntu.com/community/InstallingSoftwarehttps://help.ubuntu.com/community/Repositories/Ubuntuhttps://help.ubuntu.com/community/Medibuntuhttps://help.ubuntu.com/community/SynapticHowtohttps://help.ubuntu.com/community/RestrictedFormats/PlayingDVDshttp://knowledge76.com/index.php/Installing_Restricted_Formatshttps://help.ubuntu.com/community/InstallingSoftwarehttps://help.ubuntu.com/community/Repositories/Ubuntuhttps://help.ubuntu.com/community/Medibuntu


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Google searches or, usually, through Ubuntu online documentation.

Here are some links to Ubuntu help:

http://ubuntuforums.org/ (A bunch of "main support categories" are listed toward the top of the Webpage; click on "System76 Support.")

https://help.ubuntu.com/community (good explanations and how-tos often found here)

http://knowledge76.com/index.php/Main_Page

http://knowledge76.com/index.php/Star1 (not much here)

Miscellaneous

Usable abroad

5th Update: James Broad, who has a European travel Web site and is knowledgeable about electricity,had this to say about the Starling and its power adapter ("brick"): "That brick, and computer, is good togo around the world. The cord will need an adapter plug almost everywhere but that is not much of aproblem. For more details on overseas electricity see my page athttp://tinyurl.com/2y9zvv."

For those who know about such things, here are the data off the Starling power brick: The AC/DCadapter is Delta Electronics R33030 Model ADP-30JH B. Input is given as 100-240V~ 1.2A 50-60HZLPS Output is given as 19V === 1.58A

The Starling: One size fits all

The Starling was initially offered with few hardware options. 6th Update: But System76 has addedseveral, such as an extra AC adapter and extra battery.

System76 says: "To be notified when new features become available, you can create an account on ourwebsite and sign up for our low-volume newsletter. Alternatively, you can follow us on twitter:http://twitter.com/system76"

PROS and CONS (6th UPDATE)

PROS CONS

Sturdy,high-quality feel

Fast and easy to set-up

Most things "just work" out

of the box Performance (speed) and

stability are good

Boot-up is quick

Screen is sharp and bright

Good collection ofapplications are included

Desktop user interface is

Microphone function did not perform well

Documentation is not bad but could be better

Software essential to a few tasks such as watching DVDs

should be easier to find and install. Web cam is a puny 0.3 megapixels

Lid cannot recline flat

In some situations, you might have to move closer to thewi-fi access point to get connected or to get satisfactoryspeed, but most of the time the wi-fi connectssatisfactorily.
http://ubuntuforums.org/https://help.ubuntu.com/communityhttp://knowledge76.com/index.php/Main_Pagehttp://knowledge76.com/index.php/Star1http://tinyurl.com/2y9zvvhttp://tinyurl.com/2y9zvvhttp://twitter.com/system76http://ubuntuforums.org/https://help.ubuntu.com/communityhttp://knowledge76.com/index.php/Main_Pagehttp://knowledge76.com/index.php/Star1http://tinyurl.com/2y9zvvhttp://twitter.com/system76


18/18

easy to use

Machine has been upgradedand now comes with 2GBRAM

Extra battery is available forpurchase

Good support is availableon the System76 section ofUbuntu Forums

Bottom Line: I recommend the Starling. I like mine.

Comment at my blog: http://jah46.blogspot.com/ OR on twitter: [email protected]
http://jah46.blogspot.com/mailto:[email protected]://jah46.blogspot.com/mailto:[email protected]

starling review 12-14-09

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