PC# 3 - Toshiba NB505 - Linux Lubuntu 14.10

My Journey with Linux: Installing Lubuntu on a Toshiba Netbook

Linux distributions have come a long way since I last attempted to install Ubuntu in 2009. My recent experience with Lubuntu 14.10 was effortless in terms of installation, and the layout is incredibly intuitive. I was literally up and running within minutes, and within about two hours, I had completely switched to Linux on my Toshiba Netbook NB505.

Specs

The Toshiba is a weak machine, and its specifications are nothing to write home about. It has a puny Intel Atom N455 processor running at 1.67 GHz, 1 GB of RAM, and a 250 GB HDD. Running Windows 7 Starter was a painful experience; while I managed to tweak it for reasonable functionality, tasks like watching a full movie or browsing the internet were nearly impossible. Basic typing was about all the Netbook could handle. However, with Linux, the Netbook has received a new lease on life. While it has only marginally improved boot times and overall task performance, it now makes watching movies and browsing the internet much more feasible. There is still some lag, but it is significantly reduced compared to Windows 7.

To be honest, I believe that a simple RAM upgrade to 2 GB would have resolved my performance issues on Windows 7 and likely improved Linux performance as well. Regardless, Linux is free to try, providing an excellent opportunity to learn something new. Here are the basic steps I followed to transition from a Windows machine to Linux.

Installation Steps

Step 1

Download Lubuntu 14.10 and UNetbootin (I did this on a faster machine, the HP running Windows 8.1).

Step 2

Create a USB boot disk from the ISO using UNetbootin.

Step 3

Boot from the USB. Try Lubuntu first to see if it works properly.

Step 4

If everything seems okay, you can proceed with the installation. Make sure to check that all the miscellaneous function keys (volume control, Wi-Fi, display brightness, etc.) work correctly.

Dual Boot OS

For now, I'm keeping Windows 7. If Linux proves to be better suited for my needs, I’ll decide whether to format the drive and create a single partition.

Closing Thoughts

I ended up doing two installations:

1. Dual Boot: I initially tried to keep the Windows 7 partition, but it became corrupted, and I couldn’t access it.
2. Linux Only: I wiped the entire machine and installed only Lubuntu 14.10, deciding against trying to recover Windows 7 or starting over with a fresh installation.

Problems Encountered

I encountered some immediate issues, primarily with configuring the miscellaneous function keys. I had hoped to resolve these later, but after searching online, nothing seemed to help. The problems included:

1. Volume Up/Down and Mute buttons did not work.
2. Display Brightness controls were unresponsive.
3. Wi-Fi remained off (the rfkill list all command indicated a hard block; there was no physical switch, just a function key that didn’t work).

Despite these challenges, everything else functioned well. While I could have lived with most of the issues, the Wi-Fi being off was particularly frustrating. After several attempts to resolve it, I decided to try another distribution, and Elementary Luna did indeed solve the problem (more details in another post).

Update (3/3/15): Back to Lubuntu, Sort Of

For whatever reason, Elementary ran really slowly. Although it fixed the miscellaneous keys, it sometimes performed worse than Windows 7, with constant 100% CPU usage. 

I decided to test Lubuntu 14.10 again, and to my surprise, all the keys worked. I opted for a dual-boot installation, so I now have both versions on the Netbook. As long as it works, I'm satisfied!