10 ways to dodge Linux hardware issues

Sometimes, you just have to accept the fact that a piece of hardware won’t work on Linux. But if you approach things the right way–and you have some good troubleshooting techniques–you can often sidestep problems and get your hardware working.

1: Don’t use very old or cutting-edge hardware
It should be obvious why very old hardware is to be avoided. First, it is going to be on its last legs. Second, the newer distributions are less and less likely to contain legacy support for a piece of hardware that hasn’t been sold for five years. But cutting-edge hardware should also be avoided because its drivers will be iffy at best.

Although it’s tempting to want that latest-greatest piece of hardware, many times you will only wind up frustrated because your distribution of choice has yet to catch up with the manufacturers. This is becoming less an issue (as more companies hop on the Linux bandwagon), but it’s still a concern.

Read more at ZDNet