Trouble with FTDI (1284p) so can I try Dual booting linux for a fix?

Development Tools IDE 1.x
1

There are several questions tied into the title of this post.
First off my ftdi chip is highly annoying and takes 20 tries sometimes before it is recognized by windows 7 32bit and even then it dies half the time reading serialprintln and has steadily gotten worse as my project progresses. I have emailed the FTDI support for a fix but google searches only mention changing INF files and I'm having trouble finding a tutorial on that. It seems to be a driver issue. My next solution is to try linux with the FTDI(usb to serial).

I am using a board setup called mighty 1284p from:

can I still use this with the linux version or is it windows only... (if not stop here, I have 9 sensors on a board and I am not reworking it)

I'm having problems getting the right keywords on google for adding different boards to a linux arduino setup.

Also what version of linux would You recommend I try specifically for arduino? I have unbuntu dual booted on a tower I have laying around but I followed tutorials yet I am a persistent newb at this stuff. If there is a tutorial out there I can do it.

thoughts and recommendations?

2

INF are the driver. but i've no clue on what have to be changed.

BTW everything should work without any problem in linux.

3

Have you gone to www.ftdichip.com and used their drivers?
http://www.ftdichip.com/FTDrivers.htm

4

he is talking about linux, it is a different question. linux kernel contains a FTDI module that normally is selected, but maybe in an excess of "optimization" this have been cut off from his distribution

5

OP is talking about Linux due to having windows problems.
If updating windows drivers solves the problem, that alleviates the need to get things going in a whole different evnironment.

6

I also see that Linux is listed among the drivers:

Windows Server 2008 R2
Windows 7
Windows 7 x64
Windows Server 2008
Windows Server 2008 x64
Windows Vista
Windows Vista x64
Windows Server 2003
Windows Server 2003 x64
Windows XP
Windows XP x64
Windows ME
Windows 98
Linux
Mac OS X
Mac OS 9
Mac OS 8
Windows CE.NET (Version 4.2 and greater)
Android

Support for Windows 8
There is no official release of Windows 8, but FTDI have validated that our drivers will function correctly with the Developer Preview and the Consumer Preview of Windows 8.