OS-free (or Free OS) Thinkpads

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onix · #1 Post by **onix** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 3:20 pm

I am not sure the T60 is the right forum for this question, but it is the only one I follow, and seems to have the most advanced and sophisticated users.

Let me ask (and poll) how many would like to see OS-free laptops, or ones with corporate-strength Linux (e.g. SuSE, IMO) vs. XP, Vista, 2000, etc. With MacOS also available I wouldn't want to be OS-limited in taking advantage of the excellent build quality of titanium TP's.

This is the article that provoked my question, though I've been wanting to see this for a while.

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070226-8923.html

The other benefit of an OS-free laptop should be a lower cost.

Note from Moderator: I started to move this to Off-Topic but decided the General TP questions conference was a good fit.

joester · #2 Post by **joester** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 4:05 pm

I went with no-OS, but I would prefer the option of choosing one at the time of purchase, or none at all.

#3 Post by **dr_st** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 6:11 pm

I enjoy the convenience of getting a preinstalled OS with the drivers and everything on a laptop, because the things are much more proprietary than desktops.

So I'd rather get a fresh installation of XP (not Vista) with drivers and laptop-specific software (no third-party apps).

Of course, in reality, I'll probably be getting Vista with lots of bloatware.

So, maybe, the best option is no OS at all, and provide a disk with drivers and essential programs, just like motherboard manufacturers do.

BigWarpGuy · #4 Post by **BigWarpGuy** » Mon Feb 26, 2007 7:21 pm

Since I prefer eComStation http://www.ecomstation.com over any version of Windows, it would be nice to get a Thinkpad (or any othger notebook computerr) , I will not have to over write the os that was pre-installed. I am pretty sure most- non -Win users would prefer this too (ie; Linux, ReactOS, etc).

dsigma6 · #5 Post by **dsigma6** » Tue Feb 27, 2007 12:54 pm

I'd go with XP since it's tried and true. However, I am not worthy of the intelligence level in the T60 forum!

pianowizard · #6 Post by **pianowizard** » Wed Feb 28, 2007 12:12 am

It's easier to sell a Thinkpad that has a Windows COA.

RUSH2112 · #7 Post by **RUSH2112** » Wed Feb 28, 2007 12:22 am

I chose Linux (wont run too well on my Thinkpad, so I've been bouncing back and forth between XP and Vista), but not SuSE. Debian (heck, even Ubuntu), Slackware, Gentoo, etc would be better.

#8 Post by **RealBlackStuff** » Fri Mar 02, 2007 11:23 am

Good News for Linux Lovers!

Both Dell and Lenovo are already offering it:
http://www.techworld.com/opsys/news/ind ... e=samechan

egibbs · #9 Post by **egibbs** » Fri Mar 02, 2007 11:57 am

I'm gonna go completely off the charts here and offer what I really would like to be able to buy...

I want to buy a TP that boots into something similar to the Rescue and Recovery environment at startup. I want to be able to email, web browse, do basic file management and document creation (possibly using online tools like Google has) without ever firing up a "real" OS.

I also want to be able to launch a built-in virtualization engine from within that environment, and run any properly licensed OS I care to as a windowed VM inside the startup environment.

Is that asking too much?

Ed Gibbs

OS-free (or Free OS) Thinkpads

Which OS would you prefer?

OS-free (or Free OS) Thinkpads

over ride the installed os?

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