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Linux: Linux – point me in the right direction!
Mandriva 10.1 vs LE2005
by AussiePete - 6/6/05 6:55 AM In reply to: Mandrake 10.1 rather than Mandriva 2005? by septusI'm on a name and version overload here - thanks for pointing that out - in one FTP site they called LE2005 Mandrake 10.2!
The "official" name is Mandriva (so I have also just found out) and not Mandrake which is the old name. It's bad enough with the funny names, never mind all the versions and different forms they come in (ISO, CD, DVD, live, ftp, HTTP, torrent, official, limited,.... )
Anyway thanks Septus, am back on track!
Peter
A Question We've All Struggled With
by Ashejoe - 6/11/05 4:45 AM In reply to: Linux – point me in the right direction! by AussiePeteWow, I'll bet there isn't one of us "Linux Investigators" that hasn't struggled with the question of "which Linux distro is right for me ?".
I’ve been dabbling in and out of Linux for about 6 years now. I’ll be the first to admit that if your computer needs go no further than Microsoft Office / Internet Surfing / Emailing / Listening to music and Photo Editing, to me there’s little reason to pay the hellishly high prices Cousin Bill [Gates] is demanding these days. Then, when you add product activation, yearly licensing fees, etc. to the Microsoft carta, one has even more reasons to embrace Linux. I’ll tell you, running any variant of Linux with the KDE 3.3 desktop / OpenOffice v2 / GIMP v2.2 / Mozilla Firebird & Thunderbird is super combination that would put a smile on the majority of Windows XP user’s face !
So my first point is ask yourself "which software do I want to run ?" Then, obviously, make sure the Linux distribution contains it.
You can’t beat Knoppix for a Linux distro that will run entirely off a 700-MB CD. It’s incredible, and, a fantastic way to sample what Linux is all about WITHOUT screwing up your hard disk. It’s a tad slow, as you would expect from running entirely from the CD, but it’s still very tolerable. Knoppix is up to version 3.9 of Knoppix now, and it has no problem accessing my wireless network / working the printer & scanner / my digital camera /etc. Mepis Linux 3.3 takes second place in this category. With Gnoppix, Mandrake Live, and SuSe Live rounding out the top 5 in my opinion. I’ve also tried “Dyabolic Linux”. It too runs entirely off the CD, but what might make it interesting to you is that it’s geared towards “Music Enthusiasts”. (and I don’t mean just “listening” to music. But editing and manipulating it as well. Kind of like AcidPro / Sound Forge etc.)
In the full blown category of Linux, (the ones that install on your hard disk and require you to repartition it), again, I’ve sampled numerous distributions. The winner ? SuSe 9.3. Second place goes to Mandriva 2005; with Fedora Core 3, Ubuntu 5.4 and Slackware 10.1 rounding out my top five in this category. What I like about SuSe 9.3 is it’s simplicity (for a Linux OS !!). Installation of the Operating System and application software is almost on par with Windoze. (and let me tell you, installing software on many a Linux systems can indeed become a nightmare FAST !)
Video drive issues with ATI cards has always been my biggest challenge with any Linux distribution. Followed by Scanners issues as it tries to install the “Camera” as a “Scanner”.
Long winded answer... hope it helps.
(NT) thamks, I will reply soon
by AussiePete - 6/16/05 12:59 PM In reply to: A Question We've All Struggled With by AshejoeHave you any comments about GNOME
by Leslie Satenstein - 6/18/05 7:07 AM In reply to: A Question We've All Struggled With by AshejoeI just downloaded and installed Fedore Core 4. It runs just fine thus far.
I am unable to do a physical connection to the internet with this PC, therefore I am researching a suitable wireless card (desktop machine).
Is there a "Linux Big Brother" site where a newbee (2 weeks) like me could get help?
Is there a comparison matrix available to we guys to compare your likes /dislikes and features / lack of features.
Leslie in Montreal
Ubuntu
by slashdevnull - 6/17/05 5:30 AM In reply to: Linux – point me in the right direction! by AussiePeteI've been using Linux since around '95, and have run just about every distro out there.
Currently, I'm more impressed with Ubuntu Linux as a desktop than any distro I've ever run. I find it incredibly easy to install, use, and keep updated.
It's based on Debian GNU/Linux,with some differences rolled in. The Ubuntu team (which consists of Debian programmers/contributors who are paid to maintain Ubuntu) takes the latest "bleeding edge" version of Debian as a base every six months, stabilizes it, and turns it into the next Ubuntu release. This contrasts with Debian's "we'll release it when it's ready" philosophy, which means that their release cycle is significantly longer than every six months.
The other key distinguishing factor is Ubuntu's community. Ubuntu's forums are about the most user friendly that I've ever seen. Newbies are free to ask questions about basics that might get them flamed on other Linux boards.
I could go on and on about how great Ubuntu is, but I'd not do it justice. The best thing to do is download the CD or DVD images from their site (http://www.ubuntulinux.org) and install it. If you're hesitant to install in order to try it out, they have a live cd, so you can try Ubuntu without having it ever touch the data on your hard drive. Just be advised: running any Linux distro from a cd is significantly slower than running it from your hard drive. Don't go thinking that Ubuntu's slow because the live cd experience isn't blazing fast.
For pure server systems, I recommend Debian 3.1 ("Sarge"). My second choice for desktop linux would be any of the latest SuSE distros. They're nice as well, but I prefer the Debian/Ubuntu apt and dpkg based approach vs. rpm for package management. Having used both extensively, I think that apt is quicker and easier to maintain.
Ubuntu definately has my vote.
by sstrudwick - 6/17/05 6:20 AM In reply to: Ubuntu by slashdevnullI like many new users have struggled with various distributions of Linux. I have used fedora Core, Debian, Redhat, FreeBSD etc. I downloaded Ubuntu from their website and also printed the documetation from the "Unofficial Ubuntu Guide" at
http://www.ubuntuguide.org/#repositiries
I hade a complete working system including all updates and also attached to my other windows pc's using Samba, and printing to my networked printers in under 3 hours. Finally, an easy distribution for us "Linux Newbies". I really like the "apt-get" approach vs. the RPM approach to get apps. "It Just Works". I also really like their (Ubuntu Developers) mission statement. "Make it totally free and make it work.
New Linux User
by Michael00360 - 6/17/05 5:42 AM In reply to: Linux – point me in the right direction! by AussiePeteWelcome to Linux. I have been a Linux user myself for at least a year now (I still have to use Windows) and I still have to sit and figure some things out on my own. If you are looking for a distrabution that wont make you pull your hair out, check out Ubuntu (www.ubuntu.org). They have their Linux distrabution for Free. You have have it shipped to your mailbox in about 6 weeks or so depending on the backorders. In thier package they include a live cd that you can put on any computer to help you get the feel of their Linux system and an install cd. If you don't want to erase the current file system, you can choose to use existing free space. (Note: partition can not take up entire disk for this method.) Grub (the bootloader that comes with most Linux distrabutions) will recognize the other operating system (Windows or Linux) and put it in the boot menu. Hope this helps.
This sounds interesting
by lunaray - 6/18/05 5:34 PM In reply to: New Linux User by Michael00360Is there an easy way to restore the disk space if you decide to stop using it at a later date? Once you make another partition on the disk, is it there for good? (short of reformating)
Great book and Disk set
by Suunsu - 6/17/05 6:01 AM In reply to: Linux – point me in the right direction! by AussiePeteGreetings,
I found a great dook and disk set from "Cyberguys.com". It is called "Linux for Non-Geeks" by Rickford Grant. The book comes with 2 disks containing a distrabution of Fedora Project which is the free portion of Red Hat.
The book walks you through from putting the disk in the drive to networking, in another word A-Z. I found it to be very understandable and easy to use.
Hope this helps
Another new Linux user.........Suunsu
Which Linux
by mikemerch - 6/17/05 6:06 AM In reply to: Linux – point me in the right direction! by AussiePeteI would recommend you Download Knoppix 3.9.
It runs entirely from a CDRom. You download it as an ISO. This way you can try linux without having to install anything play with it and if you like LUNUX. Then I would recommend that you download a free version of SUSE. In my experience it will install easily on most machines. If you are unfamiliar with ISO there is a wizard on Windows XP to walk you through the burning process.
I run Suse on an older laptop and it gives excellent performance and has a lot of apps.
Linux distro for newbie
by oldwordsmith - 6/17/05 8:35 AM In reply to: Which Linux by mikemerchI'm also a "newbie" having been into linux for 5 years or so. My personal favorite is Knoppix 3.8 right now. What the other posters did not mention is that Knoppix can be installed to your hard drive and run fully from there. I've been doing that for several years between trying out other distros and "fighting" with Win2k. Yes, I "need" Win2k available on one partition for various reasons.
Hope this helps.
Which Linux?
by Bren2K - 6/17/05 8:16 PM In reply to: Which Linux by mikemerchI would recommend Xandros Linux for anyone making a transition from XP to Linux. It is easy and familiar. It also doesn't hurt that it networks with XP VERY WELL.
Two worth considering first...
by Impreza WRX - 6/17/05 9:26 AM In reply to: Linux – point me in the right direction! by AussiePeteSeeing that you are brand new to Linux, you may want to try out a "Live CD" distribution. Seeing that you have a Dial-Up, you may have trouble downloading even one 700 MB disk image in one week. (I know what it's like)
In the better part of the day, you can try "Damn Small Linux" or DSL for short. It is about 50 MB to download and runs off a CD. It has basic features like a graphical interface, file managing, some office stuff and Mozilla Firefox, and is a good "Mini OS" to start with.
You can get it from http://iso.linuxquestions.org
You can also get all the other distros listed in other posts from that site.
Try Puppy Linux
by Trevor 42 - 6/17/05 4:14 PM In reply to: Linux – point me in the right direction! by AussiePeteHi Peter
I recently discovered the Mini-Distro "puppy" Linux and have found it to be ideally suited to some of the old kit that I still try to use (Pentuim I's with 32mb - 64mb of RAM)
I like it becuase it's simple, and straightforward to use and there is a good forum. It resembles an operating system from the late windows 3.11/windows 95 era. It comes with basic applications including a version of mozilla.
The homepage is here http://www.goosee.com/puppy/
I hope that it gives you as much enjoyment as it gives me.
Good Luck
Trevor
Which Linux? - Suse 9.2+
by skecs - 6/17/05 10:00 PM In reply to: Linux – point me in the right direction! by AussiePeteI have to agree with the posts regarding Suse, I've been using Linux for over 6 years and have tried and used quite a few including, Red Hat (5.2 - 9), Fedora Core (1 & 2), Knoppix, Morphix, Mandrake (7-9), Ubuntu, Xandros and Debian.
Since Suse 9.0 I keep upgrading to and staying with Suse. I live in regional NSW (Bathurst) but don't forget about SLUG - Sydney Linux Users Group who are quite friendly to new users. Their web site is at http://www.slug.org.au/ and their next meeting is very soon.
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