Comment 24 for bug 775124

On 03/19/2012 08:08 AM, Evan Dandrea wrote:

> For what it's worth, the fudge factor is there not as a workaround,
> but because we do not want users creating an Ubuntu installation that
> is only just big enough to contain the system files. We should ensure
> they have enough room to be able to use the operating system,
> including storing documents, music, and downloads, for the life of
> the installation.

How can we determine the amount of additional space this requires, for
any imaginable set of users on any imaginable computing device? How can
we compute the value of "enough room"? How do we know whether they will
use the machine mainly for writing text documents, or for storing and
editing large numbers of HD videos? We don't. Yet the users intended
use would have a huge impact on the correct value of "enough room".

The current approach of doubling the OS size is total overkill on
smaller single user systems (at least for users whose primary usage will
not be collecting videos!). This leads me to suspect that the concept
of a "factor" could be a problem. If, instead, "we" make it an offset
instead, say 500MBytes (which is a LOT of typing, for those who will use
their machine mostly for text documents!), that would be fine. An OS
needing up to 3.5GB of space for its default install would then be
permitted to install onto a 4GB SSD.

Is this (500Mbyte fixed size definition of "enough room") acceptable?

I would suggest that, because *any* factor or offset will be a guess
based on an unreliable estimate of their intended use of the machine,
there should be a way for the installing user to override this "enough
room warning" and proceed with the installation "at their own risk".

SUMMARY:

Please can "we": (1) make this freespace check into a warning, not an
absolute installation stopper and (2) set the value of "enough room" to
a fixed 500MB, not to a factor of the size of the OS?

Jonathan

P.S Unreliable guesstimate of space usage for text creation: One user
typing at 60wpm (average 5 chars per word and a space) typing 8
hours/day 5 days/week 50 weeks/year for 10 year lifetime of machine:

  60 * 6 * 60 * 8 * 5 * 50 * 10 = 432000000

So, under 500MB ... and most machines don't have a ten year lifetime :)