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Up close with the Eee PC - part 2: Installing unsupported programs
Sure, the Asus Eee PC comes with a cool new user interface that makes the tiny laptop with the 7 inch screen easy to use even if you know nothing about Linux. But can you play Doom on it? Well yes, we're pretty sure you can, but we didn't try.
What we did try was adding unsupported Debian Linux repositories that let you install a whole slew of applications beside the 40 or so that the Eee PC ships with. In part one of our series we looked at the "easy mode" interface. Now let's take a look at some of the hidden goodies Asus packed into this little box.
For example, you can pull up a terminal, open Konqueror, and use the Synaptic package manager to install programs. Since the Eee PC is based on Xandros Linux, you're probably best off installing applications from Xandros repositories, but you might have some success installing any Debian based packages. For example, I added "deb http://http.us.debian.org/debian/ stable main" in order to install Audacity.
For more tips on adding repositories and making advanced changes, check out the EeeUser forum and Wiki.
If you have any more questions about the Eee PC interface, feel free to leave them in the comments. In the meantime, here are a few notes:
- The VGA-out port works like magic, and can even power a 1280 x 1024 pixel monitor with ease
- Web applications like Picnik and Snipshot work great in Firefox.
- The battery seems to be good for the stated 3.5 hours.
- The keyboard certainly isn't as comfortable for typing as a full sized keyboard, but it sure beats a Treo/BlackBerry/Sidekick/iPhone thumb pad.
Comments
21
Subscribe to commentsjorgeJan 25th 2008 4:00PM
Does anybody know how to use the eee's webcam with skype?
I dowloaded the beta version of Skype to my eee pc and everything works fine EXCEPT the webcam. I turned it on manually and I can see myself but not on the Skype screen and of course, the other person can't see me. When I go to the skype options menu the webcam test screen is black eventhough the camera is turned on.
josearoldanNov 2nd 2007 10:23PM
I'm looking into getting one of these to use it for basic email/web surfing and maybe travel around with it since I don't do anything that requires high end programs. It would be a great replacement for my rock solid 5 year old Thinkpad R30 :D. Also I was thinking if it would be possible to hook it up to an external cd-rom and install Ubuntu or something on it?
tobeversNov 3rd 2007 12:03AM
Both part 1 and part 2 of the videos list as no longer available when trying to view them.
steveNov 3rd 2007 9:08AM
Have you guys gotten VNCviewer to run on it at all? Please let me know! That would probably be the most useful app for me besides Web Surf/IM.
Brad LinderNov 3rd 2007 9:09AM
I haven't tried VNC because I use www.logmein.com to connect to other computers on my home network. But I might just have to give it a try.
KevinNov 3rd 2007 2:45PM
Thanks for answering my earlier question about the battery life :)
Next question... what version of SDHC does it support? How large of an SD card are we able to insert for extra storage?
Water BottleNov 4th 2007 12:04AM
I don't suppose the eee can run the slingbox software. It'd be great to have a lightweight computer just for streaming to other TVs.
Brad LinderNov 4th 2007 12:08AM
I don't believe there's a Linux version of the SlingPlayer available, but I could be wrong. You can, however install Windows XP on an Eee PC if you happen to have a spare license lying around. The computer ships with detailed instructions for installing XP and in the future Asus plans to offer a versino with XP pre-loaded, which will probably add about $40 to the price if we can believe what we've been reading. Seeing as we'd originally heard this would be a $200 laptop, I'm a bit skeptical about any price related rumors though.
ShagbagNov 8th 2007 4:37AM
Is it possible to install any linux distro on to it, eg. a user's favourite distro?
Brad LinderNov 6th 2007 12:55PM
It's possible, but I wouldn't recommend it. Because of the Eee PC's non-standard screen size and hardware, you might find that menus don't look right on the small screen and your favorite distro might have issues with the wireless card or other hardware.
That said, a lot of hackers are already working on these problems and it's probably a safe bet that we'll see Eee versions of Ubuntu and other distros coming soon.
TJNov 7th 2007 8:16AM
Brad - does the Eee have enough oomph to run the logmein.com remote control software? I'd like to use it to control my windows machine via the logmein.com remote control browser option.
Brad LinderNov 7th 2007 8:17AM
TJ: Logmein works great. The Eee PC also has a remote desktop client, so you can control any machine running VNC software as well.
RBNov 15th 2007 12:01PM
Hi, im confused!! Is it possible for me to install (Ebays turbo lister) on my eee pc. Every time i double click the exe. i get a screen asking what i want to install with or open with etc. Is it possible for me to install?
THANKS!!!!
Brad LinderNov 15th 2007 12:02PM
RB: Unless you installed Windows XP on your Eee PC, then the answer is no. The Eee PC runs Linux, which means it doesn't know what to do with Windows executable files.
You could try installing the program using WINE, a Windows emulation layer for Linux (www.winehq.com), but if you've never used WINE before, I'm not sure I'd recommend trying it for the first time with your Eee PC. It will take a lot of customizing to get it right.
tre4Nov 18th 2007 11:40PM
Kevin:
I've been using a Patriot 16GB SDHC card in my eeePC for 2 weeks now: No problems at all.
IanNov 30th 2007 9:38AM
Is it possible to use built in webcam on the eeepc with skype? MSN? Flixn?
amberDec 15th 2007 9:19AM
you can use the built-in cam on the eee with Skype...just need to download the beta version: http://www.skype.com/intl/en/download/skype/linux/beta/choose/
sean percivalDec 12th 2007 8:46PM
I blogged about how i installed xp on my asus:
http://www.seanpercival.com/blog/index.php/2007/12/10/how-to-install-windows-xp-on-the-asus-eee-pc/
ClaudeDec 23rd 2007 2:33PM
Does anyone know of a GPS application that can be installed on the eee?
NickDec 29th 2007 5:21PM
There is a guides here: http://www.eeeguides.com/2007/11/installing-windows-xp-from-usb-thumb.html
for install xp to the EEE pc with a usb flash drive.