Linux Laptop, NoteBook, Mobile Phone and PDA Certifications

There are some certifications for laptops provided by Linux distributions and others. But these certifications often are not quite useful. Often they offer only a very rough estimation of Linux capabilities, e.g. installation went well, X works, sound works. This doesn't consider the caveats of Linux on laptops, let's say APM/ACPI, IrDA support and internal modem support (often even some basics like sound are not tested). Nor does it say anything about how much the hardware features are supported by Linux, for example X works doesn't say anything about acceleration or 3D capabilities. If based on specific Linux distributions I consider these certifications as proprietary. Hardware support is provided by the Linux kernel, and the kernel is not provided by a specific distributor. Though I admit some distributors are supporting the kernel development. And very bad: all of the certifications I have seen, do not seem to be included into the wellknown database Linux on Laptops - LoL . For details about the specific hardware of mobile computers see the Linux Mobile Guide - Installing, Maintaining and Tuning of Linux on Mobile Computers . For PDAs there are no Linux certifications yet.

• Open Hardware Certification Project (not laptop specific)
• SuSE Laptop Certifications (by manufacturer)

For TuxMobil Linux Laptop, NoteBook, Mobile Phone and PDA Certifications contact the author.

Werner Heuser <wehe_at_tuxmobil.org>

Other Resources

• laptop manufacturer Linux status survey
• Microsoft tax - refunds for Linux laptops and PDAs.
• vendors which sell pre-installed Linux laptops, notebooks, PDAs or mobile phones.