How can I figure out if my hardware specs are adequate for Ubuntu 13.10?

Question

My Lenovo G505 is a modern laptop which seems to fulfill the official minimums, but GUI interaction is slow, even with Lubuntu or Xubuntu. I'd like to understand if something is misconfigured or if the hardware is really too limited.

I'm not asking for a specific assessment of my specs, but I'd like to know-- how do I figure this out?

(Specs: AMD E1-2100 Dual Core, with 2 GB RAM and an AMD Radeon HD 8210M graphics accelerator)

score 1 · Accepted Answer · answered Nov 29 '13 at 13:18

1

When it comes to graphic card management, you may want to install your card's proprietary drivers. On Ubuntu, this can be done in Systems settings > Additional drivers.

Then, remember that your laptop has only 2GB of RAM, which was extraordinary a few years ago, but not today anymore. Ubuntu is basically running Unity, Compiz and GNOME, three components that are quite heavy, and for some, experimental.

Linux is very light by nature, however, some distributions such as Ubuntu make it quite heavier...

answered Nov 29 '13 at 13:18

John WH Smith

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Thank you. I'll look into those proprietary drivers.
..."running Unity, Compiz and GNOME"...

But with Lubuntu or Xubunti, I am not running these, right? So I'd expect my OS to be faster -- particularly with Linux's reputation, in contrast to Windows bloatware, for running on low-end hardware. Is this right?
– Joshua Fox Nov 30 '13 at 15:42
Compared to Windows, there's no doubt. Xubuntu will be lighter (XFCE), Lubuntu even more. – John WH Smith Nov 30 '13 at 17:39

How can I figure out if my hardware specs are adequate for Ubuntu 13.10?

1 Answers1