The other day I was wondering how long it would take for an Eee PC with Ubuntu loaded on the main memory to boot up. Now I have an answer: 52 seconds.

C.K. Sample has been playing with his new Eee PC for the last few days. First, he went and loaded Ubuntu on a flash drive. Like me he discovered that while you can run Ubuntu this way, you're booting up a Live Install each time you turn your Eee on. That means you have to load the Linux kernel and system files into RAM before your PC starts, which explains why you have to wait six minutes for a fully usable desktop to show up after you hit the power button.

In order to load Ubuntu onto the Eee PC's solid state memory, of course you'll have to reformat the drive and lose the Xandros Linux that comes with the computer. You can always reinstall it using the DVD that comes with the Eee.

Anyway, Sample has step by step instructions for installing Ubuntu, configuring it to work on the Eee PC's small screen, getting the WiFi to work, and a few other tricks. You can find a lot of the same steps on the Eee User wiki, but it's nice to have everything all in one place.