Hardware requirements should be mandatory

[MASONTX]

I have been looking for some hardware minimums on several different distro's. Most sites make vague statements like "is designed for low resource computers", but give no minimum specs. Seems like every distro should make that prominent on their website. I understand that you can't test on every possible chipset and processor, but ram is the most limiting factor. Why cant they take their office computer, keep a few extra sticks of ram, and try installs with 128 MB, 192 MB, 256 Mb, 384 MB, 512 MB, and 1 GB. They should be able to fairly quickly tell what the real minimum, and recommended minimu ram are. No more vague "I tested this on a computer that was a few years old and it ran fine".

[DementedSnake]

Good idea. I think the main reason some distros don't do this is because the user can install however much they want on their machine. So, the bare minimum would be different for each user. But maybe a "256MB RAM for a default installation" sort of thing would be best.

[Etna]

Good idea. I think the main reason some distros don't do this is because the user can install however much they want on their machine. So, the bare minimum would be different for each user. But maybe a "256MB RAM for a default installation" sort of thing would be best.

It depends on the user.

If you put the minimum required specifications on the download, people with specs that just meet these requirements are going to complain about slow performance and other related issues.

On the other hand, you put 'Recommended specifications' and people start criticizing the OS for being resource hungry. So both ways you lose out.

And anyway, people always love breaking rules because of all that nonsense about 'rules are meant to be broken'. Put in any hardware requirement (minimum or recommended) and users will purposely try to go way below them to see just how low they can go before the OS refuses to install.

And this is a very real issue. Microsoft has had to deal with lawsuits and complains because of these. Users have taken MS to court before because they purchased a computer that only met the MINIMUM requirements for XP/Vista and did not get the full Windows experience which users of more powerful computers could take advantage of. And even with today's Windows 7 stating a MINIMUM requirement of a Pentium 4 with at least 2.4GHz IIRC, you can see idiots trying to install Windows 7 on Pentium 2s and *****ing about no Aero, sloppy performance etc etc.

In short, you just can't win.

[elija]

I agree with the people who have taken MS to court in this instance. If you don't get Aero, and you do get sloppy perfomance AND and you are using specs that MS have said are suitable, they have plainly lied.

I always assume that the minumum specs will give you the full experience; that they are the minimum to use it as it was meant to be used. In my opinion if that isn't the case then you have been defrauded. Pure and simple. Now, MS are not the only company guilty of this by a long shot, but they are the example given above.

In short, if MS have claimed Windows 7 will work on PII and it doesn't then they have a case to answer. If they haven't said that and you try and install it on those specs then they haven't.

To go back on topic, the hardware requirements for Linux distros should be such that a default install runs software that the hardware should cope with smoothly.

[Etna]

I agree with the people who have taken MS to court in this instance. If you don't get Aero, and you do get sloppy perfomance AND and you are using specs that MS have said are suitable, they have plainly lied.

I always assume that the minumum specs will give you the full experience; that they are the minimum to use it as it was meant to be used. In my opinion if that isn't the case then you have been defrauded. Pure and simple. Now, MS are not the only company guilty of this by a long shot, but they are the example given above.

In short, if MS have claimed Windows 7 will work on PII and it doesn't then they have a case to answer. If they haven't said that and you try and install it on those specs then they haven't.

To go back on topic, the hardware requirements for Linux distros should be such that a default install runs software that the hardware should cope with smoothly.

Not the case.

Minimum specs is what is required to get something to 'install and run at sub-optimal levels'. It's called minimum for reason: the focus is on getting the software to run at all costs. It's the bare minimum required to ensure that the software is functional at the minimum level.

If it's a full experience you want, the RECOMMENDED SPECIFICATIONS is what you should be looking for. This will give you all the bells and whistles of the software that you have installed at a decent performance level.

This has always been the case, and every single major software vendor, even professional software vendors, follow this practise. You are deluding yourself if you think your 'minimum specs fulfilled' machine is worthy of deserving the complete 'Recommended' experience.

Besides, for Vista's case, systems with hardware powerful enough to run Aero are supposed to have an additional Aero sticker placed on the casing of the notebook/desktop. But very few OEMs followed this practise. Why? Because they want to clear a whole set of machines which were capable of running Windows Vista at the basic level but without the power to render Aero. And using stickers to differentiate the systems is not good for business. The answer? Dont stick the sticker, and sell all machines as 'Vista-capable'.

[MikeTbob]

In my case, I can usually find the system requirements for most distros by browsing through the website....sometimes you have to dig really deep as they don't seem to make the info readily available in the first place. I agree though, it should be much easier to see the minimum system requirements before you decide to download 600 + MB's. Some folks just can't afford the bandwidth too.

[MASONTX]

With new equipment, pretty much anything will run. With the older systems I love to tinker with, knowing minimum specs will save a lot of time and frustration in downloading and installing. I tend to distro hop and try a number of distro's out on an old machine to see which is the best match, so being able to easily see if a given distro and machine will work together let's me optimize my time.