As you know, at Jolicloud, we believe that the out of the box experience is key. We thank you for taking the time to install and test Jolicloud on your netbook. We want to make sure that as many WiFi, Bluetooth, and 3G USB keys as possible are supported. We have noted however that a few of you have been experiencing some issues.

We test our own netbooks and the sample devices received directly from manufacturers. Thanks to our users we have also been able to test the most popular models, but we don’t own every netbook available on the market. As we are based in France, we can only access the models available in Europe. For instance, the HP Mini is not sold in Europe, despite its popularity in the US. To validate the HP Mini’s compatibility, we use a Compaq equivalent but it is not exactly the same. Even between similar models we don’t always find the same components. For instance, some MSI Winds are sold under the brands Advent or Medion, depending on the country. When you compare the different WiFi cards, 3G modems, webcams, and other third-party add-ons, there is a lot to test!

So we need your continued help to ensure that every netbook works to its fullest potential. If you’re testing Jolicloud and you encounter any hardware problems, please consider sending the result of `sudo lspci -v -nn` (in Terminal) to feedback (at) jolicloud (dot) com. Please let us know what is and is not working, and if you encounter any netbook compatibility issues. If you use Twitter or GetSatisfaction, please be precise in what netbook model you are using and your expected results.

Caféine, iPhone et Jolicloud - My best digital tools, by watata on Flickr.

By listening to your feedback on Twitter and on GetSatisfaction and doing some testing directly with many of you (thanks to all our testers to date), we have been able to fix several reported bugs. These bug fixes will be available to you today via our latest release, the Jolicloud Alpha 2c.

But this new release is not only about fixing bugs on various platforms, it is also about improving the performances of all netbooks by upgrading to the latest stable version of the Linux kernel. More impressive optimizations will follow shortly, but this release should result in your system booting and running faster.

To take benefit of Jolicloud Alpha 2c, all you have to do is upgrade your system, using our automatic-update tool. If you are new to Jolicloud and want to know more about how to update your system, please have a look at this previous post.

Below is a list of bugs that have been solved in the Alpha 2c. If you are interested to understand why we believe jolicloud is more optimized than other netbook distributions, you can refer to this wiki entry.

No sound on the HP Mini 1000 and on the Compaq Mini 700EF: Fixed

There have been issues with the sound produced by the  HP Mini 1000 and Compaq Mini 700EF. This problem has now been fixed. There is one open issue related to a ticking noise that occurs if the soundcard is muted. This last issue is being addressed and will be resolved in a future update.

Internal microphone failing to work on the Samsung NC10: Fixed

There were reports of the Samsung NC10’s microphone not working correctly. This has been addressed by an updated configuration package which adjusts your mixer levels on bootup.

By the way, for all the Samsung netbooks owners, there is a specific tip to adjust the brightness on the Samsung netbooks. At startup, press F2 to enter the BIOS. Then, in the “Boot” section, switch “Brightness Mode Control” from “Auto” to “User Control”. This will make it possible to get the display back to full brightness!

No wireless connection on the MSI Wind U100 and U120, Asus Eee PC 701SD: Fixed

The MSI Winds and EeePC 701SD use a slightly different WiFi card from most other netbook models. This card is now supported in our latest kernel upgrade.

Disabled webcam on the Asus Eee PC 701: Fixed

Jolicloud did support the webcam on the Asus Eee PC 701, but it had to be enabled within the BIOS. Jolicloud now automatically controls the webcam on startup, and this problem should also now be resolved.

Wireless on the EeePC 1005HA and 1008HA was inconsistent: Fixed

The wireless connection should now be more stable on the Asus Eee PC 1008HA & 1005HA after the upgrade to the latest kernel.

Firefox patch to improve general performance

Today’s available updates include improved Firefox performance but we are still working with Mozilla to get an optimized version of Firefox 3.5 for Jolicloud. More news coming soon on this one.

New applet to manage your computer speed and battery life

A new applet is now available in your taskbar to let you manage your computer’s battery life and performance more easily (see the screenshot below).

Almost there: Jolicloud’s new Atom super optimized kernel

We’re constantly working on new features and upgrades to make your experience on Jolicloud better. Our next big release will be our Jolicloud Atom super optimized Linux kernel which will take advantage of the Intel Atom processor installed on many of today’s netbooks.

Some of the features this kernel will provide are: faster boot, faster response, better battery and graphic support. Our coming roadmap is busy and exciting.

Also, for non-Atom netbooks (Eee PCs 700, 900, etc) we are committed to maintaining backwards support for these older models as our objective is to support as many netbooks as possible!

We hope you enjoy Jolicloud Alpha 2c, and look forward to your feedback!