Who Is Using Gnu/Linux?

[Nogoodpunk42]

I want to install linux I don't know what to do now. I heard Debian is good but, what is that; the distro? and what's with the GUI? I thought that was part of the distro? Please someone explain this to me. Thanks in advance.

[nightshadow]

Yes, debian is a distrobution or distro for short. Personally I'd recommend trying SUSE, but I don't have any experience with Debian so I can't recommend against that one either.
Each distrobution offers a different selection of GUI's or none at all in some cases. Currently KDE and Gnome are the largest most developed and consequintly most popular, so they are included in most distrobutions. Basically the GUI's are a collection of programs and graphical items that make up the look and feel of the operating system. Changing the GUI can make things look completely different, but basic system operations remain unchanged. Really the best way to see the difference is to install a distrobution and try them out. Unlike windows you can switch between more than one GUI if you've chosen to install them.

If your not ready to make a big switch to Gnu/Linux I recommend trying a "Live" version first, that should help answer most of your questions and leave you with no permanent effects.

[Nogoodpunk42]

thanks a lot - I did know what a GUI was but, I didn't know that GUI's are included and you could switch between them. I have another computer sitting in my closet I was just going to toy around with. what's a "live" version? is that where you boot from cd rather than install to hard drive? oh and one more question...if I have windows plugged into one port on my router and plug a linux system into another port would I get internet on both systems? I'm guessing yes but, I'm not 100% more like 98%. THanks again for your help.

[nightshadow]

The answer to all those questions is Yes, and good luck.

[Nogoodpunk42]

thanks I'll try it tonight

[MorphineInduced]

try Kubuntu or Knoppix if you are interested in just running a live cd for starters

[multi]

used Redhat 6 when that came out switched to Gentoo* sometime in 2002
dual boot with XP
run WindowsXP/98SE and DOS6.22 in vm-ware when in linux
(not usually at the same time ;) )




*Gentoo has a package management system called portage.
Portage is the package management system for Gentoo, and is based off of the BSD's ports system.
It distills the process of building a program from it's source code into one command: "emerge <program name>".
When you type emerge <program name>, it finds an 'ebuild', which is a text file that explains how to:

1. Download the source code for the program you want (lists addresses to get it)
2. Apply any patches (recent updates/changes, they come as small snippets of code that are inserted into the source you just downloaded)
3. Go through the steps of putting together the source code.
4. Install it to the right location, keeping track of it so you can remove it later by typing "emerge unmerge <program name>"

You can sit back and watch that all scroll by when it's building your program for you.

[MorphineInduced]

Thats pretty nifty .... I might try that distro sometime , sounds interesting

[vixenk]

I'm a newb myself to Linux. Talked about giving Windows the boot *no pun intended* for several years but never got around to actually doing it, until like 5 days ago. I tried out Kubuntu first - BIG mistake. I couldn't get a bunch of drivers to work right. For example, Kubuntu insisted on running my resolution at like 800x600 and didn't give me any options to change it in the resolution menu. The Kubuntu forums tried to help me out, but nothing worked, and hardly anything was explained to me, they just threw terminal commands at me right and left *I don't like doing things without understanding what it is I'm doing*. The last thing they suggested caused a BSD at start up, and it was at that point I gave up. I didn't have a clue as to how to fix it short of reinstalling, and I couldn't get to the forums to ask because well, I had a blue screen, lol.

So I installed Mandrake 10 with KDE, and then Mandriva 2006 when I found out Mandrake 10 was rather outdated, lol. No driver issues, and other than the initial figuring out how to install 3rd party software that was packaged in tar.gz and bin files, things have went smoothly. No driver issues, no fuss, just A LOT of research, exploring, and experimentation. I'm having a little trouble understanding the file system itself, but that that was to be expected. I've already learned a bunch of commands to use in the terminal, and UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY DO, lol. The thing I love about Mandriva so far is most things can be done in the graphical enviroment without using the terminal, but the terminal is there if you need/want to use it, and Mandriva doesn't seem to try to babysit you as much as Windows does on its default settings.

I haven't installed any P2P yet, mostly because the main things I use are forums, IRC, and bittorrent. I'll probably install Azureus soon though, as it was the bittorrent app I used with Windows when I needed to run a tracker.

I haven't tried out any desktop enviroments other than KDE so far. I'll probably try them out eventually out of curiousity, but right now I'm happy with KDE. :)

[MorphineInduced]

I am glad everything is going much better for you since you switched to Mandriva ....... the Ubuntu Breezy had the same problems with some of my drivers but for the most part it ran clean .... Im sorry to hear though you were having blue screens with Kubuntu

[The Hunter]

A good friend of mine started using Linux, first trying the live cd versions, and this thread will take you through all of his hits, and misses when going through the learning process.

http://www.p2pconsortium.com/index.php?showtopic=5422

[Spyder810]

If your not ready to make a big switch to Gnu/Linux I recommend trying a "Live" version first, that should help answer most of your questions and leave you with no permanent effects.

Anyone new to Linux should try DSL(DamnSmallLinux),its only about 50MB, it can be installed, run off a cd, run within windows(through use of Qemu) and bootable off usb storage.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Damn_Small_Linux

[SoreVexed]

i used gnu for a while before specializing my own. its nice i guess.

"Software? Sorry officers no software here, I only have hardware! " -----I'm loving it nightshadow!

[Cydor]

Im using SuSE linux 9.3 pro. I switched over from windows xp about a month ago. The programs i use are Limewire, Azureus, Gaim, Firefox, and i run DivxToDVD through Wine. I am liking linux alot better than windows well except for burning dvds. Ive been having a bit of trouble finding a program to backup my dvd movies 1:1. Right now im using GNOME but i use KDE on occasion. Im still learning how to install tar.gz/bz files but im getting it.

just like you...I still don't understand how to install programs in Linux....God, why does it have to be this complicated?.....btw- Am liking SUSE linux very much!

Any one want to give me some directions on how to install programs in Linux?

I appreciate it.......cuse am a Linux Newbie, lol

[pecavi]

just like you...I still don't understand how to install programs in Linux....God, why does it have to be this complicated?.....btw- Am liking SUSE linux very much!

Any one want to give me some directions on how to install programs in Linux?

I appreciate it.......cuse am a Linux Newbie, lol

Perhaps if you give one or two specific examples of what software title you'd
like to install....
Basically, there are .tar.gz files; these are source packages which require compiling. Then there's .rpm (a popular package type for RedHat, SUSE and most linux distros) , .deb packages (Debian and its derivatives), .tgz (Slackware and derivatives)...
sounds complicated, but after a few .rpms you'll get the hang of it...
This link should be of help to lesser experienced folks:
http://www.linuxhomenetworking.com/linux-hn/rpm

p.s.: Try a few rpms before compiling your own packages from source!
p.p.s: In a hurry? Refuse to read HOWTOs?
Try this command in a root shell (terminal): rpm -Uvh any_rpm_package.i386.rpm