My new Ubuntu tablet...

Ubuntu released that thay are working on a tablet to be released next year,  I did not want to wait, so I built one.
I have been using tablets for a very long time, longer than most think tablets existed.   I had a Dauphin DTR-1 running Windows for workgroups 3.11 pen edition back in the 90's.  This little device was the very first tablet ever made, specifically designed for the FBI, but I got my hands on one. It had an amazing 1.5 hours of battery life and a screaming 486dx processor.  I graduated to several Fujitsu tablets over the years and finally ended on the ipad2.

But I want a Ubuntu tablet!  So I bought a used Fujitsu Stylistic 5011d and started the process of installing Ubuntu!.

$100 later and a week of waiting for the ebay item to arrive I had one well used tablet with no OS.
First upgrades.   1gb of ram instead of the stock 512,  80gig 5200 rpm drive, and a better wifi card.  The battery is holding a charge for now, but I should get one before they dry up on the cheap used market...

I built a Ubuntu install USB stick from a live CD. set the boot order on the tablet and booted from the USB stick.   Starting with a generic Ubuntu install just to get the OS on there.

Step 1 - install ubuntu from USB stick.  Not too hard, the live CD will make the usb installer.
Step 2 - install fjbtndrv   by doing the following....

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:khnz; sudo apt-get update; sudo apt-get -y install fjbtndrv

Step 2.5 - the keybinding for fjbbtndrv is wrong for the two portrait rotations.  they rotate but the wacom does not rotate correctly... http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?func=detail&aid=3187962&group_id=196222&atid=956591 that is how to fix it, it's not a high priority bug so it will probably not be fixed in the next release.

Also note: if you put the tablet to sleep in a rotation, waking up the wacom rotation will be wrong, Still working on a fix for that.


Reboot.

Step 3 install apps that make life more fun.  Xournal for handwriting notepad.

Thats it to get a functional Ubuntu tablet.   I'll post more about added tweaks and awesome programs to add to make the tablet even better.

Step 4 - to fix Ubuntu's broken Broadcom wireless support  go to http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=1859668 for more information about it.   It seems that Ubuntu's support for Broadcom is completely borked because of developers not actually testing it.

After playing with a Linux/Ubuntu tablet for a while I am formatting the drive and installing XP tablet edition.  Why?  well simply Linux sucks on the tablet.  The OS has no tablet extensions for handwriting input that are seamless.  you have to launch a separate program and juggle.  Also the killer app on a tablet is Microsoft's One Note.   this piece of software makes a tablet full of win, and unfortunately there is nothing at all like it on Linux.  Actually Windows XP tablet is out of the question,  Windows 7 actually runs faster on this tablet than XP when you upgrade it to a 5400rpm drive and at least 1 gig ram.  Install went effortlessly from a $35.00 usb dvd record drive I picked up at Staples.  Only the display drivers have a problem.

How to get the display working click here to follow the procedure on how to get the Intel 855GS chip-set to work.   It seems that Intel in their infinite stupidity never bothered to make a driver for windows 7 for this chip-set.   Thanks Intel!

In reality, Linux on a tablet is useless.  I tried to make it work for something other than a web browser, The failing point is that the on screen keyboard and handwriting is not integrated into the Window manager.  Linux NEEDS a version of gnome designed for Tablets and handwriting.

UPDATE: The latest Ubuntu release will not install on the tablet.   Because it does not have heavy 3d rendering the Ubuntu devs disabled installation.