Does Compatibility with one distro imply compatibility with another?

[Brigand]

Hi there, i've been reading this excellent forum for a little while now, following tutorials, and learning how little I actually know about linux!

Anyway, I'm considering buying a new laptop when I visit Canada in around 2 months time (UK Prices are stupidly inflated) and i'm looking to purchase one that has Linux pre-installed so I can teach myself (linux first then later pen-testing with Backtrack). What i'm wondering is, if I was to purchase a laptop like the newly released HP Mini-Note which has Suse linux as an option, would I be correct in assuming that, as it is compatible with Suse, It will be compatible with any other Linux distro (i.e. Slackware / BT)? or will there be proprietry drivers that HP has licensed for that specific Suse distro.

By Compatible I mean very little / no tinkering required to get all onboard hardware working correctly (so i can get to grips with the OS & not be frustrated that the hardware i've purchased isn't being used fully). I've read that the Asus EEE is pretty much compatible straight out of the box, but i'm looking for something a little more robust.

Please don't get me wrong, I'm not looking for someone to custom build me a linux distro or be spoonfed or anything, just looking for some assurance that i'm not wasting cash on a machine that's crippled by poor software support / availability.

Details of the HP Mini-note can be found here:
hxxp://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/us/en/sm/WF25a/321957-321957-64295-321838-306995-3687084.html

Any help / guidance would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers.

[Archangel-Amael]

As for compatibility It might or might not work.
There probably isn't an easy answer for this that one should use when determining what sort of laptop to purchase.
As you have stated you want to learn *nix first, so once you are at some sort of advanced user level then you should be able to make most things work for yourself. Or at least be able to understand how to make it work if someone gave you instructions or whatever. If you had to compile programs or tweak drivers etc. Then this would be no problem.
Also there is the BT Working Hardware section of the forums you could look through to see if the laptop you want to buy has been reported as working or not.
Also check the wiki section.
http://backtrack.offensive-security....hp/HCL:Laptops

In most cases the "newest bleeding edge" hardware may cause problems just because there are no open source drivers for it.
So it may even be beneficial to purchase a laptop that has been out for a while.

[Brigand]

Thanks for the reply Archangel.amael I really appreciate your advice. And I guess your right, it's probably best not to worry too much about hardware compatibility, and brush up on my *nix skills first. Then it won't be as daunting if there's extra effort required to get a particular device working.

Cheers!

[Archangel-Amael]

Thanks for the reply Archangel.amael I really appreciate your advice. And I guess your right, it's probably best not to worry too much about hardware compatibility, and brush up on my *nix skills first. Then it won't be as daunting if there's extra effort required to get a particular device working.
Cheers!

No problem
Like I said if you want to learn to use linux then BT might not be the best choice to do so. Ubuntu seems to be about the easiest to get up and running for alot of people. And besides Pentesting and BT are probably not going away any time soon.

[Brigand]

No problem
Like I said if you want to learn to use linux then BT might not be the best choice to do so. Ubuntu seems to be about the easiest to get up and running for alot of people.

I've been pointed in the direction of ubuntu already, and i've had some (limited) success with it, I guess the next step is to start reading as many books as I can get a hold of, I've seen many recommendations dotted around the forum already.

And besides Pentesting and BT are probably not going away any time soon.

Let's hope not! or this is going to be a seriously wasted few years of my life

Again Archangel, thanks for the guidance!

[pimpplaya]

New egg has some great Acers laptops that are around 300$ that are great for linux.