Help Me Select an OS

[Nova_77]

looking to get away from Micro$haft products

and i do SMP and would like to play games on the OS if possible..

would like to be able to run ftp and all that stuff also

should i go

lunux (which one)
beos
bsd?

please recommend one that if fairly user friendly or point me to a retail box with manuls/ or good book that covers it all

Nova

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[Nova_77]

ive been checking into VMware anyone like ti opinions?

im gonna dual boot with win2k and some other os linux/bsd/beos

Nova

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[megalex]

easy.. LINUX...
GO FOR IT.. u can do almost everything that you can do with micro$haft and more. not only is linux good in desktop stuff but its an exelent ftp/web/everything server. All programs are free and you can find any type of program at linuxapps.com .. you can play popular games on it like Q3, UT, Q2 ect.. I play UT and Q3 on my linux box and it runs extremely smooth even on my old TNT2.. hehe..

[Nova_77]

ok then which one would be the best one to jump into anyone know of a good book for linux that i can purchase/read

or maybe a certain linux retail version that would give me all the info?

Nova

[DGhost]

You're asking what kind of car to drive...

[Nova_77]

Is ther any difference in how different linux's work or are they the same with different names?

what about xwindows(i think thats what i heard)

Nova

[megalex]

I would start by using Mandrake 7.2.. it shows you what linux can do.. its very user friendly the install is eeeasy. Its wizard based. its the fastest distro i've ever set up.. it also comes with an internet setup/internet sharing wizard for cable modems ect, built in RC.FIREWALL. and my favorite feature is webmin(all the modules come set up from start) :).

[megalex]

oh.. the distros are different cause they come with different applications + depending on the distros the folders where the applications n stuff are installed are different..
X-window is just the gui for linux/Unix just like windows was the gui for Dos hehe.. there are different xwidows enviroments.. the most populars KDE and Gnome, and depending on the distribution they will vary. Mandrake uses KDE as their main but they also let you select from many other desktop enviroments including GNOME.. u can choose anyone you like.. They look 100 times better than any windows desktops plus they have hundreds of awesome themes..

[DGhost]

*cough*

Mandrake 7.2 shows how you can make linux like windows. it doesn't show what linux can do.

Slackware and Debian both show what linux can do. Don't expect a user friendly environment from these tho.

BSD is along the lines of slackware and debian, but its not linux.

if you are looking for retail then BeOS is for sale at BestBuy last i checked - its fast and easy to use. app support is not there, but who knows.

Alot of the time the distros include close to the same amount of software, and usually it is even the same software. the major difference is how they configure the software - redhat has a nice professional looking desktop at the start, mandrake is aimed more towards normal people, slackware and debian give you a bare desktop and let you figure it out from there. for the most part the file system layout is the same or similar.

Another major difference is which libraries they use - i have seen one distribution run a program just fine, but you can't get it to run on another because the library versions are different and the app doesn't like the second set.

megalex is right that X is just a GUI for unix. to clarify on the environment bit tho, X by default does not do anything. it requires another program to tell it what to display, how to display it, etc. that is the Window Manager. another optional component that both KDE and Gnome have is a desktop, where you can place icons on it, etc. One of the major differences between KDE and Gnome (besides looks) is that KDE is both the window manager and desktop environment. Gnome is just the desktop, and requires another program to be the window manager, giving it a good deal of flexibility.

generally distribution doesn't matter unless you are living with the defaults forever - if you start changing and configurating it, each distribution becomes basically the same.

[Nova_77]

Is Linux Software Games And Such obtainable free? I know i can get linux(red hat) for Free if i go downlaod the ISO's n stuff...

Can Debian and Slackware be obtained free?
are there different versions of the OS, Like
Standard Professional server ETC...
If So then i could start out on a more user friendly interface Like Mandrake, Red Hat Etc. Then download the files for the "Power User" versions of linux(Slackware Debian)

Which would you recomend to start out on...
These are what i have seen in stores..
SuSe
Red Hat(whats the difference between the standard pro and other versions)
Mandrake

Which one would be the better of the 3 to try? should i buy the retail package or is there a well written linux book that would be better to get me started..

Nova
Sorry for the long questions


[This message has been edited by Nova_77 (edited 02-02-2001).]

[megalex]

yep all the linux need to have a free downloadable version thanx to the GPL licencing. Non comersial games are free..
some of the commercial ones you can convert or buy to linux like UT and Q3..

about the distros it depends.. if you are used to Unix/Dos command prompt based systems and like to spend time (and if you are a newbie in linux a LOOOONG Time) setting up your linux then you could go with Slackware, Red Hat, Debian.

I have not tried SUSE but i've read some reviews and they say the new version is good enough for beginners..
but for the easiest distro out there you cant beat Mandrake and i bought mine for like 20$ at wallmart..

Red Hat sells different boxes.. the difference is that some bring more apps than the others.. Also you dont want the Proffecional Server unless you want a SERVER plus its $$$.

[Nova_77]

could somone kindly point me to the mandrake linux kernal download site??
how big is the install??
have a spare 1.5 gig in closet...

Nova

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[megalex]

<a HREF="http://www.linux-mandrake.com/en/ftp.php3">GO HERE</a>

[burly]

As a fellow newbie I like redhat. i had too many probelmes getting my sblive to work with SMP and mandrake
I started with linux about 2 years ago and have just got fully into it the last week or so but I have used the following distroes
RedHat 5.2 , 6.0 , 6.1 , and now 7.0 server
Mandrake 7.0 (I think)
corell linux
Debian (I liked this one but it was a bitch to configure)
slackware (looooots of time not progress)
caldera open linux ok but also hard to set up with smp and sblive!
other than linux i have uesed BeOs 4.5 FreeBSD and of coaurse Microshaft. linux is the best choice I must say

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system 1 supermicro p6dbe/w 2xPIII550 @ 616,256Mb PC100,9.1g SCSI10k,10xdvd,10x4x32cdrw,Geforce2MX,Sblive!/w Creative FPS2000 digital,10/100nic,win2kpro,17" mon
system 2 Jabil mobo via kt133/w 1.2Ghz "thunderbird" Athlon,256Mb ECC PC133,40g ultra100 7,200rpm,Geforce2 GTS 64MB DDR Ultra,Sblive!/w Boston BA7500 digital,16xdvd 12x8x32cdrw,Wavlan PCMCIA adapter,11.5MBs PCMCIA wireless nic,winME,22" Flat tube mon,
system 3 Abit VH6 /w CeleronII 700 @ 874,128Mb PC100,20g ultra66,28x40cd-rom,TnT2 Ultra,soundblaster 128d/wcreative speakers,10/100 nic,winMe/RH 7.0 Server,15" mon

[megalex]

hey read <A href="http://www.freeos.com/articles/3399/">this article</A>.. its pretty good for starters..

[Adcadet]

Just my $0.02, but I installed Red Hat Linux 7.0, and have been loving it ever since. Getting used to Linux took me a while, but the learning was well worth it. I wish I could run all my apps in Linux, but I can't. Oh well, guess that's why God invented Tri-booting (Win2K, Win98, Linux)


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Cheers!
Adcadet
********************
Tyan Tiger 100, Dual P3E 700s (784), Matrox G400 Max, 19" LG Studioworks 995E, Adaptec 3950U2W, 9.1 GB Seagate Cheetah 18XL, 9.1 GB Seagate Atlas IV, Creative PC-DVD 5X, SB Live, 3Com 10bT NIC, floppy, etc. Win2K, Win98, Red Hat Linux 6.2

[Richard999]

Linux is an excellent OS. Although, it will require lots of patience in order to become proficient in its usage.

I highly recommend purchasing a book titled, "Redhat Linux 7 for Dummies." :-) The author, "Jon 'Maddog' Hall" is a big-time linux advocate, and does a good job of holding your hand through the set-up and usage of common Linux tasks.

Benefits: You'll get a full distribution of Redhat Linux 7 and a good, easy to follow to book. Believe me, for Linux newbies this is a must. You WILL need guidance, and I've found it is nice to be able to flip through some pages quickly to get help.

It'll only cost you about $15-$20 as well.

Drawbacks: Redhat, is by no means the end-all, be-all of Linux distributions. In fact, after having used, Debian, Slackware, Mandrake, Redhat, and a couple others. I'd rank Redhat in the lower echelon. Why? Well, Redhat 7 has known issues with the compilers. (They chose to include a beta compiler.) Plus, RPMs while a good idea pretty much suck in the long run. You'll end up more frustrated due to RPMs than just snagging the source and compiling programs yourself.

After you've dabbled in Redhat for a few weeks you really should move on to a better distribution. Slackware, being the best, in my opinion. It is perhaps the only distro that I've NEVER had a problem compiling programs. Is Slackware difficult to deal with? For a newbie. Yes. Extremely. Is it worth it to learn? Absolutely.

Something else you may want to consider. Suse Linux 7.1 is going on sale this week. It will include the latest stable versions of all the big-name Linux apps. (XFree86 4.0.2, Kernel 2.4.0+, glibc 2.2, etc.) You may want to pick up the retail boxed version of this distro and a GOOD book while you're at it. Something like "Inside Linux" by, "Michael J. Tobler."

Good Luck...

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><HR><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Nova_77:
looking to get away from Micro$haft products


and i do SMP and would like to play games on the OS if possible..


would like to be able to run ftp and all that stuff also


should i go


lunux (which one)
beos
bsd?


please recommend one that if fairly user friendly or point me to a retail box with manuls/ or good book that covers it all


Nova

</font><HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

[The_Mad_Godling]

First of all Linux is just a kernel for your operating system. It is customizable and is extremely efficient for low end hardware, being designed for a 486 with 4 MB of RAM. Thos, of course, translates into RAW SPEED on a system with better resources.

Applications that are distributed with this little kernel are usually part of (or the product of) the GNU project started by Richard M. Stallman. Different distros distribute different (ick) compilations of these applications and programs. Lucky for us they're distributed under the GPL, like most open-source. As a result of this, some with political agendas insist on referring to 'it' as GNU/Linux.

If you're interested in a small breakdown of the big distros, here's one...

Red Hat: The biggest name in Linux, undoubtedly. It is to a certain degree bloatware. Good for newbies.

Debian: More advanced, but with more features, it is more "pure" and consists COMPLETELY of open-source programming.

SuSe: A more international distro, it hails from Europe (I think), and it spread more about the globe.

Mandrake: Often thought of as a piggy-back to RedHat (being based on RH) it has only recently "come into its own" as a distro, and, if anything, is easier for newbies that RH itself.

Slackware: The pinnacle of geekhood, Slack is the toughest<?> of all distros, being the least user friendly.

Now... These distros vary only a bit, in the long run. They have slightly different default directories for their .conf files, which doesn't really make much difference once you start messing with the configuration of your box anyway... All Linux users who stick with it long enough eventually get to making their own distribution anyway (there's a HOW-TO for it). This is what one does when one has edited many many .conf files and has rebuilt the kernel several times to accomodate specific hardware on one's machine. You make yourself a distro that is machine specific and very, very efficient. This is the power that is Linux.

Corrections welcome!

TMG

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Hah!

[Bugs]

DGhost is right. You want linux? Grab Slackware.. is the ONLY true disto left.
RedHat, with all its cute little wizards is almost as annoying as Corel linux (what A joke that is).
Slackware is the true-est, and most unix like as far as the os is concerned.
Any distro that has a gui login by default = bad in my opionion.

All linux distros can be dld' free. Thast one of the best parts of linux. Keep tryin' them till you find your flavour of choice
http://linuxiso.org/ has almost evey distro you can think of.

XWindows = Win3.1.. puts a gui front end on all those lovely little commands you can do from console..

As far as i know, all distros handle SMP, just grab a decent kernel to ensure support for newer hardware. all distros rely on the same set of kernels.. www.kernel.org. (http://www.kernel.org.)

2.4.1 is running great her

Have fun.
Down with Window$

btw, there is nothing i can do in widows, which i cant do in linux.


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Tyan Tiger133 rev f* 2xPIII 800EB * 512 PC133 * Promise Fasttrak66 RAID * 2x WesternDigital 15gb RAID 0 * 1x IBM 20.4/7200RPM Deskstar * ATI 32MBage Fury Pro 4x * ATI TV-Wonder VE * Creative SB 512 * 3Com 3c905c * Adptec 2940U2W * USR 56K Sportster * 6x DVD * HP9210SCSI * iomega 100MB Zip IDE - Slack71/2.4.1

[This message has been edited by Bugs78 (edited 02-15-2001).]