Linux

[Phlux]

I was thinking about downloading fluxbox, is linux an ok operating system? I know everyone talks about FreeBDS but I can't find any information about which to download. Any info would be helpful.

[Cobra]

Linux is really tidy man, however BSD is nice also.

I use Fedora Core 3 as a linux system, and i use FreeBSD 5.2 for obviously a BSD system.. Both are VERY stable and do what i want them to do.

If i had to recommend one for you to start with, i would say have Fedora Core 3 as your primary system which will be enough to get you up and running straight away. Then use FreeBSD as you secondary system to learn when you have time.

www.freebsd.org
http://fedora.redhat.com/
www.fedora.us
www.fedora.info
etc etc..

Just do a google search on either one and you will get millions of links.

Any specific questions on either OS, then just ask.

[Metgod]

I finally have proof that Fedora's slogan is:

Creating more FreeBSD users than any other linux!

And here it is.. Cobby uses freebsd! I found the proof! Just kidding Cobby..

Actually, I'm not too fond of Fedora but some do like it. I use Gentoo but maybe not the best (guess it depends on the user) for someone completely new to linux or unix (at least not with the current install system).

If you can get Fedora to work, maybe that's the way to go.. though I've never been good at suggesting things for new users.

Googling is a good idea too, like Cobra mentioned.

Good luck!

[godaigo]

I just put on Fedora for my Athlon 64 and I wasn't really happy with the way they set up the auto mounts during installation (I assume as newbie that you would go that route at first) and I don't really care for their expert mode interface to allow you to define your own mount points etc. I think for a newbie Mandrake is probably the easiest, but again depending on what you want to do with it Mandarake may not be the best choice. Good luck though. Oh and Fedora has been fine post installation... just my .02 cents...

[Uneek]

Well you all know my position... I prefer BSD, but if I must go Linux I say SuSE. And Fluxbox is the Window Manager of choice for me! VERY nice and lightweight... Google is DEFINITELY your friend...

[Cobra]

Donuts!

Fedora is wicked!

[Tazinator]

AKKK!

RedHat

Screw that....

Im a big supporter of SuSE, and Slackware. If you have a Mac, Yellow Dog is nice too. Its all personal preference really. Some offer benefits over others but at the same time some drawbacks.

What I dont like about RedHat is its full of holes (always a message in Bugtraq related to Redhat a few times a month) and they are slow to update thier RPM's. If you use RedHat AS, you're not going to be able to run the current version of Apache or Postfix unless you compile it or build an RPM yourself (i had to many times). Thats a little annoying coinsidering thier RPM system is supposed to make life easier for installations and updates.

Then you have SuSE, which does a good job of keeping thier packages up to date, but sometimes jumps the gun and rushes them creating some issues in stability and now and then security. Plus it doesnt conform to the common "standards" other versions do, even though there arent a whole lot of Linux standards out there at the moment. So the drawback there is also a learning curve.

Slackware is good, it pretty much started them all so its a good one to learn the ropes I suppose.

Debian is sweet if you are looking for stability, tho you cant expect to run the latest of software using thier packages either. They test like crazy before they certify a version of something for release as a package.

Gentoo, well, it compiles from the source on what you install specific to the machine. So if you are looking for uniformity on multiple machines, not a good one, plus sometimes the installer system is glitchy since it is compiling after all so it requires a bit of skill to navigate those waters.

I need to post a quick rundown on some of the top Linux flavours for people, this seems to be a recurring question as to what brand.

[godaigo]

So since we have some Suse fans, has anyone else encountered major problems with their YAST update basically not being able to complete a single update? I liked Suse when I first installed it, it seemed like it had a lot of good features and of course I really liked the "expert" mode that allowed me to set up everything, especially as opposed to Fedora, but I never did get YAST working, and I especially had a lot of problems with their Nvidia driver support. Anybody else encounter similar problems? (Oh and, as of the last time I checked, I didn't want to pay for the 64-bit version). Cheers....

[Tazinator]

Never really had a problem with YAST although I dont use it much outside of the updating function, though thats never been an issue. Might be a setting in your network configs somewhere causing the problem. If I had an exact error message I could probably tell you what it might be.

The 64-bit version is free. Its if you want the source and devel packages on install they want you to pay for the media which I think is 60 or 70 bones.

ftp://ftp.suse.com/pub/suse/x86_64/live-cd-9.2/

[Metgod]

I think you have a good point about Gentoo, but considering I don't have the multiple machines, I love it. It is awesome if you can handle it / have the time to invest.

The thing I like about Gentoo is that it actually runs fast. I know others have said the same thing to me: that most Linuxes are slow, but Gentoo isn't. But I guess that's a matter of perspection.

Either way... the key thing is definitely something I didn't always have (but have for some years now)... that it's all personal preference.

I don't like RedHat either, but it does work for some people, so why not. Actually, I don't like most linuxes.. but love FreeBSD and Gentoo linux.

Maybe it would be a good idea to have a list of Linuxes that are good for neophytes -- maybe something for our research team once that gets started.

[Tazinator]

OpenBSD and NetBSD are my favorites  

Though for the non-experienced I can see both being a hassle.

[PH]

Hello up there ...

I´m using Vida Linux for tree days now, and I´m pretty much satisfaied with it. It´s is based on Gentoo, but it have anaconda and some knoppix work, so all kind of hardware config is done automatically. So, for more advanced gentoo users, the installation process starts on the 3 step. The emerge is a really awesome tool (maybe better than rpm, apt-get, synaptic, dselect ...).

I recommend to take a look at this review: http://www.madpenguin.org/cms/?m=show&id=3321

The major drawback: it is not too much friendly like, and you have to have extra TIME to set up everything you need - from the downloading time, to compiling time ... but the speedy you get after all this, maybe it´s worthy ...  

[godaigo]

Hey Taz, thanks for the link to the 64-bit. It may have been that they opened it up since I looked? (It's been a while). Anyway, maybe I'll give that a try instead of the Redhat. I've installed FreeBSD a couple of times, but I think the reason I didn't stick with it, at least not yet, was a combination of the slightly larger learning curve, and the lack of features right at your fingertips after install. Let me clarify what I meant by "features" though. Basically I meant the warm and fuzzy out of the box easy to use GUI style features. Not the many base features of BSD. Even when you feel like you can handle it, it can be a bit daunting to switch so completely, at least when you first attempt it. You have to face the potential problem that you might either mess up your computer, or just not be able to make it function the way that you need it too. I think in that regard Linux is ahead of BSD on that curve. It lets you get your toes wet without diving in headfirst. Of course this isn't necessarily about that and it may be that it's better to dive in head first. One thing about the head first approach is that you're going to learn fast, because you'll have to! Anyway, I'll stop rambling.... Cheers....

[Tazinator]

Out-of-the-box for user type features like a Winblows box I would say XandrOS or Sun Java Desktop. I havent used XandrOS a whole lot but I installed it as a test and it was pretty nice. Had a lot of nice features and look like a Windows XP box. Plus it appeared to support Active Directory authentication with little setup effort (didnt test that tho).

For 64-bit, Id advise to be on the cautious side. I spent the last week in Denver, CO attempting to set up SuSE Enterprise Server 9 64bit and I gave up and loaded 32bit. I had a hard time getting non-provided packages and apps to install or compile when I had to. I dont know how the Pro version is with 64-bit but the Enterprise was a pain in the ass. Ive also been told by someone they had the same problems with RedHat's 64bit when trying to run and compile things not provided on the CD's or the update site of that distro. Ive also heard nastiness about RedHats new clustered file system. 64bit Linux Distros are still a little green so I would wait a little bit for them to break in.

Just some personal experience.

[Tazinator]

Sorry, this is the right link for SuSE 64bit. That other one is a boot CD to run a scaled back OS off the CD. I get confused as some Distros call a current version of their ISO's "Live CD" which is apparently not the case with SuSE.

ftp://ftp.suse.com/pub/suse/x86_64/9.2/iso/

Thats the right location.