Are There Any Heads-ups?

I am about to receive an HP Pavilion a6207c-b as a christmas gift.
I've got my copy of openSUSE 10.3 GM x86_64.
Are there any heads-ups concerning this machine?

Please note that I will be installing a second HD (a regular 40GB ATA drive) as well as an external USR modem. Both items work correctly on my present machine under openSUSE 10.3 GM 32-bit.

The specs follow:

Processor: AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual-Core 4400+ 2.30GHz
Chipset: NVIDIA nForce 430
Cache (L2): 512KB+512KB L2
Bus Speed: 2048MB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM
Hard Drive: 400GB 7200RPM SATA 3Gb/s
Optical Drive: SuperMulti DVD Burner w/LightScribe 16x
Video: NVIDIA GeForce 6150 SE 128MB
Network: Integrated 10/100BaseT
Wireless: Wireless LAN 802.11 b/g
Sound: HD Audio, 8 speaker configurable
External Ports: 6 USB 2.0, 2 Firewire
Monitor: Acer AL1916W

My only suggestion concerns Firefox and Java, the x64 versions dont work. So at install I deselect the Java, after install uninstall Firefox x64 reinstall Firefox x32 then install either Java 1.0.5 or 1.0.6 x32.

Thanks for the quick reply. Now, will this cause subsequent problems elsewhere? For example, will this impede me to use certain java based apps of any kind?

I run Java 1.5 as x86_64 for Open office use and I run 1.6 Java as i586 with plugin for proper Firefox (32 bit FF) operation. You can have both loaded. The only functionality issues seem to be Konqueror used as browser.

Not knowing what your expertise is I will post this assuming you are new, if you aren't then this post may help others thinking about installing onto an HP laptop ,

I agree with MATTB... yes, running 64 bit with the 32 ff will cause multimedia problem. and mattb's s uggestion on the java packages is correct. I have a HP pavilion dv6208nr turion 64/Nvidia and 10.2 32bit works great...no probs at all...

remember to get the wireless driver and have it handy (xp version not vista (thx andy) from hp specs page) Also, this happened twice to me when installing, but I couldn't connect via the lan until I had the Nvidia drivers installed for the nvidia chipset...this was different than my tower with an Ati card, it just connected without the drivers installed. and on another tower I have which also has nvidia, it connected as well without the driver..... anyway, once installed, the lan worked. so.....get the wireless drivers and the two packages available for Nvidia on 10.3 and have them ready to install after your new install of 10.3.

Now I am sure you already now this but I will say it just in case, while installing 10.3 don't forget to install smart and smart-gui (this insures all the dependencies for the smart package manager are installed) once finished with the install, install the three packages, then rather than battling to add repos to yast...go to labix.org get the smart package for your distro (guru's has all the channels you need, I prefer it over opensuse's)
update, update, update and update. The key to have a stable system, is making sure that only the channels for critical update are checked the suse update, the opensuse, plus for software guru's and packman...forget about latest kde packages and get openoffice updated from opensuse not the openoffice channel, I have had problems with OO launching and other minor things. when you update for security reasons and not the latest and greatest brand spanking new packages, you will most likely not be needing to post here much asking questions.... also don't play with beta releases, unless that's your thing, (i.e.) if you install kde4 and things are buggy, well that's to be expected. and don't forget to check the jem report hacking suse 10.3 for your multimedia, etc etc.here's the link

don't forget your tweaks in your running processes and setting the system to empty temp files on boot. First time I played on linux, I soon found myself locked out because temp was filled.....pain in the but...
the powersave option of dimming the lcd when unplugged isn't available for my laptop, there's a package, the exact name slips my mind and I am too lazy to look right now, for nvidia cards which will allow this, it may work for you but didn't for me. so when you unplug the laptop your lcd screen will remain just as bright and effects battery consumption drastically.....

the quick launch dvd button will launch amorok and not a video player...though this is tweakable i believe and not really a big thing.....and my remote works, it's just that I have to set it up each time I start up the system and want to use it....just a couple clicks, and annoying that it doesn't always stay loaded, my depend on my particular laptop..dunno, but I don't use the control at all anyway....also forget about using the dial in modem, so if you are on dial up.....

use ndiswrapper for that wireless driver....once the .inf file from inside the .exe file has been extracted and saved somewhere on your system...
I created a folder and placed it inside my home directory for safe keeping.

have a blast!!

P.S. I don't know if you have other systems i suppose you do since your posting, but just in case, when your laptop comes, go into vista, find the file for the wireless drivers (I haven't checked the specs page for your particular model, but I would assume it is the same as mine. I may be wrong and you can adjust how you use this advice accordingly, but your wifi will most likely be broadcom) if you can't find the driver files (which if you been using a pc for at least a few weeks you should be able to do :lol: :lol: ), there are a few ways to extract the .inf file, the crudest is reinstalling the driver in vista and making note of where the installer wants to put the executable's files and go get 'em. Again you may already know this, but if someone else is thinking the same thing as you and they don't know any of this, this thread may prove informative.

and one last thing, do you really need 64bit? if you don't, I suggest sticking with 32 bit on a laptop. it will save you from a few annoying little hassles.

Although my expertise of linux-geek level (LOL), I appreciate your reply, and am using it as a good checklist.

Smart and its gui are "always" one of my priorities when installing a new system. Although I understand that the YAST packaging system is better in 10.3's x86_64 version.

Just out of curiosity what are you going to do on the laptop which would require 64 bit?
if you do go 64, expect browser/multimedia problems to overcome.....

Just out of curiosity what are you going to do on the laptop which would require 64 bit?
if you do go 64, expect browser/multimedia problems to overcome.....
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You assume incorrectly that my system is a laptop. It's a desktop system. Would 64bit help encode avi's quicker (I assume this because I thought that there was lots of processing going on).