#  >  > Computers Can Be Fun >  >  > Computer News >  >  Linux

## NickA

After reading DD's very informative post on WAG, I thought it was about time to try out one of it's main competitors, Linux.

I downloaded Knoppix live CD version of Linux - this is basically an operating system that can be run straight from CD or DVD without having to install it on your hard disk.

I've given it a quick couple of hours trial and would say it's got everything Windows has got and a bit more, but there are so many options and programs that it all seems a bit confusing at first - but I guess that will change after a while and the more complex functions will in the end become useful for getting things customized just the way you want it.

I would think the live-CD is useful in it's opwn right as a recovery tool when either Windows or your hard drive break down.

Anyway, I'm ready to take the leap, but not the full leap - I'd like to install Linux on my hard drive, whilst still running Windows on the same hard drive. Is this possible? If so, how? and which version of Linux would be most suitable?

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## Marmite the Dog

You will need to partition your HD.

I'll hand you over to our expert, Frankie.  :Reporter:

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## buadhai

Try this one:

Ubuntu Linux

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## NickA

OK, I'm downloading a utility to partition my drive for Linux, then I'll need a utility to choose my OS at startup....

Now, just to decide which version of Linux....what's good about Ubuntu, Buadhai?

What's the difference between each version?

Where's Frankie?

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## NickA

A selection of distributions....
Debian
Fedora
Gentoo
Mepis
Nitix
Mandrake
Red Hat
SUSE
Slackware
Santa Fe Linux
Yellow Dog

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## ChiangMai noon

What's that selection of distributions thing about nick?

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## NickA

That's what I want to know!!!

Frankie is in here somewhere, but he's either keeping quiet or writing something very long and complicated!!!

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## Dougal

http://distrowatch.com/

Go here pop pickers, for the top 100 .

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## NickA

Ubuntu is no.1 - that's 2 votes for it so far...

...but what is the difference between each distribution?

Is it really important to get the right one? or are they fairly similar? or easy to change between?

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## buadhai

What's different is how user friendly they are and how ready they are, out of the box, to support various hardware combinations.

I'm basing my recommendation of Ubuntu on the raves of an Aussie friend of mine who is moderately geeky, but not terribly technical. He was able to install Ubuntu easily and get it up and running to the extent of doing e-mail, web browsing, web page editing, etc., without major problems.

You can try several and see what fits.

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## lom

> Frankie is in here somewhere, but he's either keeping quiet or writing something very long and complicated!!!


Most likely he is busy recompiling his Linux kernel  :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic):

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## Butterfly

if you want a nobrainer, Knoppix can have a full install

Lindows.com also have a nice version, that will do everything for you, partition and Boot loader automatically, also a nobrainer

be careful with partition software, some will fuckup your partition map and you won't be able to boot anything

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## friscofrankie

if you have your hard drive partitioned into a "C:" and "D:" drive the move is relatively simple ( if there is room on your system usually "c:" drive)  Simply move everythng up to the c: drive and delete the "D:" partition.  you now have a clean partition to install the Lynux to.

if you're full of crap (er, your hard dirve that is), or deleting partitions is unerving to you buy another hard drive.  Most linux versions come with GRUB and/or LILO.  Lilo is older and most folks these days prefer Grub,  I use LILO.  These two apps allow you to  boot mulitple OSes.  If you ever have to reinstall windows it will wipe your loader from the boot partition and you'll have to reinstall I've got a boot image (on floppy!) that will allow me to get to my linux partition and reinstall the loader.  There are drivers that will allow you to mount your NTFS partition on your linux system.  My Win system is FAT so it just found it and mounted it for me.  Makes it nice to have everything available while in Linux.

For a distribution of Linux I use Slackware, an extremely stable Linux distribution.  A bit more geeky on the install but if you've ever installed a DOS version earlier than 6.xx and used fdisk you should be ok.  Just watch out you partiition a place for all the "data" and whiz-bang stuff you're gonna find you want to go.  Don't know about Urdu (whatever). Read up a bit on partition schemas and the why and wherefores.

They all usually have all the different window managers and appelets available.  You'll have KDE, Gnome, fvwm and couple of others,  (For a real experience try Black Box  :Very Happy:  ).  KDE has a lot of cool apps including an office suite that's pretty small and tight. they wil run on other mangers though.  I had to install a true type font server so I can use all them tt fonts available out there.   I'd recommend for your first try one of the larger distributions, again notyhing against Unbutu, I've just never played with it.  I'd recommend SUSE, it's got a the same rock solid base and bit more of a guided installation.  Fedora is a feature rich easy transition for windows users but not one of my favorites.

Get them from http://www.linux-iso.org  if fact, you can get most of the major distro there.  
also try, http://linux.org for some reading material.  They've got a link to an online "classroom" (free) right now might want to check it out.

Slack is great, it's one of the oldest distribution packagers around and the honcho there, Patrick Volkerding, insists on rock solid reliability.  The DL was only two cds worth and you can get it from http://www.slackware.com  (or any of the above sites).  There are "how-tos" and "mini how-tos" up on the net and if you get stuck Google is your very good friend.  Very easy to find out all you really need to know without ever buying a book.

I hate GUI interfaces being forced on me to configure my system and much prefer entering commands in a conf file and seeing (or not) errors.  for me, a much easier and direct way to control my system without trusting MS to take care of me.  (we all know they have our best interests at heart right? ).  

If your palms get sweaty editing a config.sys file you may have some difficulty adapting to Linux.  Most things work out of the box these days and there are modules for hot plug and hardware identification.  Bt the occasional odd-ball piece of hardware might bite you.  My camera plugs in and I can mount it just like a drive.   Might be alot easier than I am making it sound, in fact I am sure it is.  I have not stayed up with the GUI or automated installs or config scripts, as I mentioned I fuckin hate 'em.

I recently did an install of Fedora, fuckin hated it but I was testing the GUI install.  VERY windows-like with all the help, bells and whistles you could possibly want.  

You might also look at OpenBSD or NetBSD other *nix like systems.  I've used Open BSD and most of the stuff out there runs just fine on it.  

Remember one thing, most of the software you download for your new OS will be source code.  I have yet to find a distro of linux or BSD that does not come with compilers to handle just about any damn langauge the apps will come in.  install is basically reading the REAEDME file and following directions.  

Compiling and installing is a snap but if you don't fancy that sort of install research for a distro that supports some sort of decent "Package manager"  almost every major app out there will come packaged as such and if it doesn;t you can always try your hand at compiling.  Once you've done it you'll find it really is easy as hell and much more reliable.

I installed Linux on this box over a year ago.  I have not upgraded, "recompiled the kernal" or had to tweak anything in that time (well I added some developement software and that true type thing).  I have absolutely no problems, never get a warnings telling me I'm a thief and I would never consider using Windows as my main working OS.

In my work I must have a windows partition for testing in IE and there are some convenient applications that are unavailable except on Windoze (I'm working on one of 'em).  Thing is if it's only available on Windoze I tend to distrust the developers abilities 

I haven;t installed OS wide Thai script support yet and now that my most recent project in production I may play with my system a bit add some hardware and that Thai support.  Maybe try and find a free copy of Half life for linux...

For a thousand baht or so you can get a book thick as your arm with a couple of distros included, but that is really against the Open Source credo, "Don't Pay for Nuthin"

if you want to do some basic research I've got some older books in HTML and CHM or PDF format on some basic, intermediate and advnaced linux subjects, if your interested.

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## Thetyim



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## NickA

> writing something very long and complicated!!!


Hmmm...I've got my hard drive split C: and F: drives (D: and E: are DVD drives, don't know why!) C: has windows on, but only uses 6 gig of 30 gig, F: has all my files on - 70 gig of 120 used.

I'd really like to split the C: partition into two 15 gig partitions - 1 for windows, 1 for linux - any way to do that without re-installing windows as well?

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## Thetyim

FF, you never fail to amaze me.

One minute you are all " hey dude get with the beat" and writing in slang mode and the next minute you are all concise and intelligent.

Which one is you ?

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## NickA

^^Thetyim, you're less of a geek than I imagined :Smile:

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## friscofrankie

> FF, you never fail to amaze me.
> 
> One minute you are all " hey dude get with the beat" and writing in slang mode and the next minute you are all concise and intelligent.
> 
> Which one is you ?


What the fuck can I say to that?  I am me.  The language ain't gotta be comin' from two differnt dudes, you know?
BTW I get laid anytime I want.  I GOT WHITE SKIN & I LIVE IN FUCKIN THAILAND! FOOL!!!
 :Very Happy:

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## Thetyim

> The language ain't gotta be comin' from two differnt dudes,


Pity I couldn't make it to the CM bash.

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## friscofrankie

> Originally Posted by NickA
> 
> writing something very long and complicated!!!
> 
> 
> Hmmm...I've got my hard drive split C: and F: drives (D: and E: are DVD drives, don't know why!) C: has windows on, but only uses 6 gig of 30 gig, F: has all my files on - 70 gig of 120 used.
> 
> I'd really like to split the C: partition into two 15 gig partitions - 1 for windows, 1 for linux - any way to do that without re-installing windows as well?


Fuckin MS installed the system found the CD & DVD then you had to manually create the second part on your hard drive.  POS-OS  :Very Happy: 

I really don't trust software.  I have heard good things about some of the partition management utilities but this is case where if you fuck up anything you may lose EVERYTHING. Yopu wanna mess with it get some reviews off the net.   When you fuck with the partition tables your fuckin with *all* your data.

While I think 15 GB is fine for linux, in the current environment I am leery of a (windows) system partition as small as 15 MB  So much just defaults to the "C:" drive these days. Unless you're a diligent System administrator the thing my get pretty clogged up, Espesially the way Windoze fragments files.    One of my pet peeves about MS and the apps designed to run on them; it really is a "single partition" OS.  Anyway, it is Doable, but I wouldn't do it.  Buy one of the cheapo 20 gb hard drives use it to install linux.  It's worht the investment in time.
A few names in Linux with alot of experience are:
Slackware
Debian (the first!)
SUSE(this is sold by Novell and has a large, experienced corporation with ten times the network experience that MS has  The for sale version is $60) this is very Slackware like with a more "user-friendly," transparent install.  
Fedora (this is usually Red hats coming release and good configurable install or completely idiot resistant. few years experience there but among the others a bit of the newcomer)
There's some others I'd say "hey I never tried 'em but give it a shot"  I really dont; waste time retaining the changes coming out of the industry, this is the kind of thing that changes constantly and getting current is relatively easy.

if you get one distro you can fuck around and make your own if you like mixing and matching really they containe about 95% the same shit.  But what the hell, they're free! Collect 'em all!  trade with your friends!  :Smile:   The real difference is how much they do automatically for you the versions of kernal system utilites and the like.  Go with one of the older established versions
They really all pretty much the same in the end (once you got 'em up and running).

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## friscofrankie

> Originally Posted by friscofrankie
> 
> The language ain't gotta be comin' from two differnt dudes,
> 
> 
> Pity I couldn't make it to the CM bash.


*whenever* you get here i'll buy the first round.
 :Very Happy:

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## RDN

A small input from me: I will soon be trying Linux even though I'm a Dos-turned-Windows user. Remember Norton Commander?   :Smile: 

Anyway, my advice is to repeat what FF said about hard disks: buy another one, preferably IDENTICAL to the one you have now that is your C: drive.

Two reasons for this: you can actually test all those backups you've been making regularly. (You have been doing that, haven't you?). Try restoring a backup of your C: drive from the CD or DVD that you put it on, to the new hard drive. Make sure your restored C: drive is fully operational and has nothing missing.

Now you can keep your original hard disk as a safe copy while you screw around with the new drive and change the partitions and install Linux. If all goes well, continue using the drive. If not, put back the original drive and start again.

This is what I used to do every month or two with my old Dell lap top - make a backup of my C: drive to CD, remove the hard drive and restore the backup from the CD to my spare hard drive.

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## friscofrankie

^Now that's Geeky.
 :Smile:

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## Butterfly

Slack and Debian are the old school distro and probably the best. For a newbie, maybe the new "Desktop" type should be ok

Avoid at all cost Fedora/Mandrake/Caldera/Redhat

They are lame unless you are a server boy and spend all day testing new distros  :Smile:

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## Marmite the Dog

Hmmm...

I've kinda gone off the idea of using Linux now. Frankie's first post gave me a headache!

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## friscofrankie

^sissy
 :Smile:

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## RDN

> ^Now that's Geeky.


Yay! I'm a geek! I'm a geek!  :Smile: 






Is that good or bad?  :Sad:

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## NickA

OK, that wasn't very difficult after alll....

Partitioned my hard drive using Partition Magic, which has plenty of help for setting it up correctly for linux....then installed ubuntu linux. Both Windows and Linux are working fine at the moment.

One preoblem - when I used th Knoppix Live-CD it detected my True pppoe internet connection very easily and was no problem - I can't seem to get it working on ubuntu - any ideas?

Also, if I connect to the internet - do I need firewall,  anti-virus, adware  software for linux???

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## NickA

Ok, again that wasn't very difficult...just searched on the website and it had the solution....

Guess what?.......I used the command line!!!!

In the last 6 or 7 years of using Windows I've used the command line once or twice - 1 day with linux and I'm already using it....

I'm feeling.......geeky!!!

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## mrsquirrel

Nicka

I ran Xandrox as my first try at installing Linux and Ubuntu as a live cd.

When I installed Xandrox the free version there was no problems with anything. This is on a laptop as well. It appears that laptops can cause problems.

DL Acronis disk editor for windows and it will allow you to make linux partitions and act as a boot manager.

If you are a complete idiot like me and decide to pull linux of your machine without thinking about it and then leave that grub loader thingy behind so that it tries to boot an invisible linux Acronis is great.

It lets me boot my computer with out it getting stuck looking for linux whic h isn't there.

If I ever have a bit of spare cash I am going to upgrade my HDD to a 100gb and have a dual boot again

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## NickA

What's the best all round media player for linux?

I need one that can play MP3's, plus all the normal video formats - divx, mpg, wmv etc...

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## friscofrankie

mplayer
xmms
xine
Juk
noatun
totem

Want more?  Plenty out there.  Honestly go to some of the sites I mentioned  "What's the best"  is really subjective question, ain't it?  What kind of features you like?
The list of multimedia players that support mpeg/mp3/oog-vorbiss/wav/dvd/vcd and so on is longer than your arm.  There's a real player for linux freely downloadable.  haven't found a Quicktime player but I haven;t looked.

you can even get plugins allowing you to use the windows media player and quicktime plugins.

Simply put, what ever you want to do you can do in linux.  Nobody's gonna got all the answers.  The best thing to do is educate yourself.  In fact if you're a compute user you should be educating your self regardless of your OS.  So few people do.  With Linux; it may not be required, but it is certainly a very good idea.

So get your ;linux version downloaded install it.  read a book on linux  Fuck with it.  
What kind of user are you?  Do you install software acceptig al defaults and just let however the shit lands n your system dictate yor work habit?  or do you tweak things a bit to get it "clean" then forget it?  Maybe you like to be constantly fuckin with your shit for grins.  With linux you can have rock solid tested and sure technology or slash your wrists with a saw bleeding edge technology.  Depends on your choices and your inclination. 

Before I posted those links in the previous post I looked through them, listed some distros of linux & read the reviews.  I suggest you do the same.  Anyone contemplating purchasing a computer should take the time to read a bit on the various OS' available.  the fact that most don't and accpet what ever flavor of shit uncle Bill is dishing out is what makes MS rich.
Straight up. Download SUSE this is an extremely stable package.  it has a package manager for installng software, it has some very good mulitmedia apps bundled and there are more that can be donwloaded.  Suse is a "user-friendly install include some virus protection and personal firewall.  unless you want to use it in a Windows network DO NOT install samba.  
Any Os that tries to do, on the netowrk, what windows does will be insecure.

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## mrsquirrel

What about watching DiVX's Frisky F?

Can you get the players and the codecs?

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## NickA

> it has a package manager for installng software,


Right, kind of got the hang of this now - instead of looking for stuff on the web  - you use a package manager that lists all of the apps and you choose them and it installs them for you - much easier than windows although I've had a few not work.

I've got MP3's working, plus all of the normal video codecs - Ubuntu actually comes with a program called Easyubuntu which sets up all the things you need to cross over from windows - codecs, flash, java etc...

I've also been using quite a bit of command line...here's some I've learnt...

sudo apt-get install (name of package)

killall gnome-panel

Great stuff...found this page very useful...

http://ubuntuguide.org/


Still a bit confused about root users and all that - I understand that as a normal user I can use sudo, but how do I give programs sudo right - ie. if I want to delete search engines in firefox???

At the moment I'm logging on as the root user all the time, but this is not advised!

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## friscofrankie

Yeah you can blow your system off with the wrong command  Also allowing applications to run as root; dangerous.
learn to use "man"  just enter "man sudo" at the command line  might give you the info you're looking for.  For more info on "man" enter "man man" this will locate and display your manual pages for the command line utilities you have.

Couple more weeks you'll be writing your own shell scripts, dabbling in Perl maybe eve creating your own GUI frontend for utilities.  

I would still browse the net for apps without totally relying on the package manager.  Rest assured, there is more out on the net, than what you see listed in your package manager.

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## NickA

Well, I gotta say so far I'm quite happy with Linux - seems to be running a lot smoother than windows and I've actually found it a lot easier to install the software I need and getting running how I want to.

If I can get torrents downloading how I want to and a DVD burning app with similar functions to Nero 7, then I'll be able to slowly phase out windows over a month or so!!!

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## NickA

Oh, one question Frankie - at the moment I have Windows on 1 partition, then a linux swap then a Linux partition then a shared storage partition which is NTFS - should I split the storage into two partitions - 1 ext2 partition for linux storage and 1 ntfs partition for windows storage - or is it suitable to store linux and windows stuff together on the ntfs partition????

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## mrsquirrel

NickA

Dunno if you can get it for Linnux but Padus - DiskJuggler is the best CD/DVD burning proggy there iss.
Search on Demonoid or Mininova.

AT the moment I am DL every live version of Linux I can find to test them all. You have inspired me to take the plunge (again) I will however need to test that my laptop's monitor output works and it recognises my printer and scanner everything else will be Dandy.

I am sure that Linux can only read FAT32 not NTFS.

A torrent program would be good.
Is U-torrent for Linux as well?

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## NickA

^I seem to be able to read NTFS fine, I'm just not sure whether it is a good idea to be writing to it or not.

There are torrent programs, I've got Bittornado, but I'm used to using Bitcomet, so I was hoping to get the same or something similar - not worth downloading until I know I can convert from avi to DVD and write a DVD with menus and all that gumph.

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## friscofrankie

i use Both partitions and share data between them.  I develop web based apps and need to check style in IE before production.  At thsi time I only allow root access to my windows partition but dont; really see a problem with sharing data  any of my office type docs are shared between Linux and windows alot of my information  but I do keep my web servers & database servers on separate volumes.  Thing is NTFS is a pretty fucked up file system and there are no utilities for maintenance of an ntfs system in linux.  
linux can read FAT AND NTFS if you have the right utilities installed FAT support is built in NTFS requires additional software.  Looks like Nick took the easy install that found all his shit and installed what it thought he needed.  

eventually you'll want to go over to either reiser or ext2/3fs if you are going to totally eliminate windows.  also before you take the leap read up on partitioning strategies.  you should have separate data like the /home directories also you may want /usr/local on it's own partition. allowig you to install software and that will stay on your system should you decide to install a newer, faster more manly system.
I have /var on it's own parition as well  mainly because I have several databases and about 12 websites I have infact removed slackware and resinstalled without losing any data by using this method.  as long as you have windows I'd say store what you need to share between OSs on the NTFS/Fat32 file system but keep all your apps working on the *nix partitions.

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## Marmite the Dog

> Thing is NTFS is a pretty fucked up file system


Funny that, I have always been told it is better than FAT.

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## Thetyim

I was told that FAT32 was more vulnerable to a virus but otherwise not much between them.

Can you expand, Frankie

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## Butterfly

NTFS is fucked up compared to other Unix filesystem ext2/ext3 but it's much better than DOS/FAT16/FAT32

It's a journal filesystem, it was developped for IBM OS/2 initially using IBM specs.

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## friscofrankie

Very true.  I was comparing it to *nix file systems when I said ot was fcked up.  Fat systems have no security so they could be more open to attack yes.  We could spend hours discussing file systems pros & cons.  if you're gonna go linux 100% then you're gonna want to drop NTFS. 
There are applications out there that will allow you (maybe) recover deleted files on ext2 file systems  Some people have had limited success on ext3 (I am not one of them) systems.  But you'll want to transfer your data to a native *nix file system ASAP when you make the move to 100% linux.  Didn't you state you had 70GB of data?  Buy an HD, man. Lose the NTFS.  if you can't do it right away, do not put it off too long.

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## Wallalai

Nobody have mentioned Archlinux so far, the linux distro I use. http://www.archlinux.org/ 
http://www.archlinux.org/about/


As for my Linux favorites apps:

 Windowmanagers
fvwm http://www.fvwm.org/
_         Enlightenment DR 17 _ http://www1.get-e.org/
More here : http://xwinman.org/intro.php

 Filemanagers
emelFM2  http://www.emelfm2.net/emelFM2
konqueror : the KDE Desktop filmanager/ftp client/internet browser/ssh client

 Image
The Gimp  http://www.gimp.org/
Gqview  http://gqview.sourceforge.net/
Imagemagick  http://www.imagemagick.org/script/index.php
feh  http://linuxbrit.co.uk/feh/
Xsane  http://www.xsane.org/

 Multimedia video
Mplayer  http://www.mplayerhq.hu/design7/news.html
Xine  http://xinehq.de/
vlc  http://www.videolan.org/vlc/
All able to read VCD, DVD, multimedia files

 Multimedia music
xmms  http://www.xmms.org/
Amarok  http://amarok.kde.org/
Streamtuner  http://www.nongnu.org/streamtuner/
Streamripper  http://streamripper.sourceforge.net/

 Burning & ripping
k3b  http://www.k3b.org/
Grip  http://nostatic.org/grip/
DVD:rip  http://www.exit1.org/dvdrip/

 Internet
Mozilla Firefox
Opera
Sylpheed-Claws  http://claws.sylpheed.org/
Pan  http://pan.rebelbase.com/
Skype
Gaim  http://gaim.sourceforge.net/
Weechat  http://weechat.flashtux.org/   or  irssi  http://www.irssi.org/
Azureus http://azureus.sourceforge.net/
aMule  http://www.amule.org/

 Text & editors
Vim/Gvim   http://www.vim.org/
OpenOffice

 Other utilities & gadgets
adesklets  http://adesklets.sourceforge.net/
Conky  http://conky.sourceforge.net/
Partimage  http://www.partimage.org/Main_Page
Firestarter  http://www.fs-security.com/
VMware  http://www.vmware.com/   (1 month free testing license)
sysinfo-linux   http://gsysinfo.sourceforge.net/project/    (beta)

And more...

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## mrsquirrel

NickA 

Whya re you writing to DVD

Just buy a DVD player that plays DIVX and then get half a dozen episodes or more on one disk.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Sorry that awas rude I forgot about your home porn movies that we can buy from your website.

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## NickA

^Yeah, good idea, but it's gonna cost a bit to replace my 3 DVD players - 1 of which is one of those 5 DVD changer thingies!

Frankie - slowly, slowly - no need to rush things, no need to spend money on new hard disks - the best way to learn is from your mistakes, isn't it? So this one will probably go wrong, but I've got no problem reinstalling windows and linux - next time things'll be better, I'll know what I need - none of my data is useful, it's mainly porn, movies and music that can be got again easily.

This is just a test run to see that linux can do everything that I want it to, then it'll be bye bye windows.

I'll have to get some books/e-books on linux and do some reading to find out about all the file structure and command line stuff.

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## mrsquirrel

Why don't you replace your DVD players with PC's and stream the movies off a central server to some tasty 42 inch plasma displays in each room.

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## Thetyim

> the best way to learn is from your mistakes,


Nope,  the best way is to learn from someone else's mistakes
That's why I am cheering for you now.

I tried to partion my HD once and fuked the lot up
Your braver than me, I only tried the Ubunta live CD

When I replace the wife's computer I will keep the old one and play with Ubunta on it.

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## slimboyfat

> Why don't you replace your DVD players with PC's and stream the movies off a central server to some tasty 42 inch plasma displays in each room.


or alternatively buy a cinema and build a liveable space inside.

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## NickA

> I tried to partion my HD once and fuked the lot up Your braver than me, I only tried the Ubunta live CD


Not brave - I just don't do anything important on my PC, it's just for recreational use, so I can afford to lose anything on it. Also, I'm used to reinstalling stuff - my last harddrive was faulty and I ended up reinstalling windows 10 times in a couple of months before realising what the problem was and that it was not a virus!!!! :Mad:  I can have Windows up and runnning how i want it in a couple of hours. With Linux I don't expect to get everything right first time - but 3rd or 4th time I should know what I'm doing!!! :Smile: 

Reading "Linux for Dummies" thanks to Squirrel, don't know if that means he thinks I'm a dummy or not, though!

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## mrsquirrel

I take it you managed to DL it quickly then?

Good stuff.

I always thought you were a bit of a pacafier

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## Marmite the Dog

Can you get Photoshop for Linux?

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## buadhai

You can get: The GIMP.




> GIMP is the GNU Image Manipulation Program. It is a freely distributed piece of software for such tasks as photo retouching, image composition and image authoring. It works on many operating systems, in many languages.

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## Marmite the Dog

But it ain't Photoshop!

----------


## buadhai

Well, you're right. It's not. But then, there's this:

GIMP Shop

----------


## Thetyim

You can run PhotoShop under linux if you have Crossover Office

----------


## buadhai

^ Haven't heard much about Crossover Office lately. Isn't it just sort of a front end for WINE?

----------


## friscofrankie

> But it ain't Photoshop!


It's almost a clone.  Might be too simple for you to use.  :Smile:  The interface is much less cyptic but it has all the power of PS.

----------


## poolcleaner

This thread is all very nice blah, blah... but when you're done chewing the fat..

How about a tutorial on installing and operating Linux.

I can't really follow what you're all saying but you have got me interested in Linux.

----------


## mrsquirrel

Ask NickA for the dummies guide link

----------


## Butterfly

format c: 

reboot

----------


## poolcleaner

> Ask NickA for the dummies guide link


I think it's queued at home for download already.

I'll prolly have to go and research some stuff now. Up until this thread I'd never given it a second thought.

----------


## slimboyfat

> Originally Posted by mrsquirrel
> 
> Ask NickA for the dummies guide link
> 
> 
> I think it's queued at home for download already.
> 
> I'll prolly have to go and research some stuff now. Up until this thread I'd never given it a second thought.


i dunno. it seems a bit risky to me

if it aint broke dont fix it is my policy.

well, until they stop me using pirated windows.

----------


## buadhai

If you want to learn about linux without risking an install on top of what you have (pirated Windoze or whatever), then get yourself something like the Ubuntu boot CD (you can download the ISO image) and try it out.

Ubuntu Linux

Ubuntu Desktop CD

----------


## friscofrankie

> if it aint broke dont fix it is my policy.


Had pick myself up off the floor on this one.  Bill stole an OS, took out the good stuff (broke it) he's been tryin to fix that fuck up now for 15 years!

It's broke man gonna stay that way.

Fuckin MS Windoze been broke since it hit the market.  

All of Bill's horses and all of bill's men can't put it back together again.

----------


## slimboyfat

> Originally Posted by slimboyfat
> 
> if it aint broke dont fix it is my policy.
> 
> 
> Had pick myself up off the floor on this one. Bill stole an OS, took out the good stuff (broke it) he's been tryin to fix that fuck up now for 15 years!
> 
> It's broke man gonna stay that way.
> 
> ...


well its ok for my uses and i dont really have time to fiddle around with or learn linux. u guys carry on

----------


## NickA

> if it aint broke dont fix it is my policy.  well, until they stop me using pirated windows.


Exactly the reason I started this thread - why bother spending time trying to get around Windows methods to prtoect itself from piracy, when there is a perfectly good OS that you can use legally for free.....

I've just had an idea which might triple or quadruple Linux usage - charge $1000 for it and then let it be pirated - people will think they are getting a bargain!!!! :Smile: 

As Buadhai said you can try out Linux with no risk at all by using a live-cd (I used Knoppix) and in the end, even if you don't like it, the live-cd is a useful recovery tool in itself.

----------


## dirtydog

Well if NickA can do it then anybody can, time for me to have a try  :Smile:

----------


## lom

> Bill stole an OS, took out the good stuff


I suppose you're talking about IBM OS/2.
But you can't really call it stealing when two partners develop something together, whereafter they disagree about the future, and both of them goes their own ways building something on the former mutual development.

----------


## mrsquirrel

http://www.demonoid.com/files/details/359168/1661800/

Demonoid page for Linux for Dummies Complete Reference Manual.

8 books in one.

Seems ok

I am a dummy and I understand it

----------


## NickA

^ I got it from mininova (they're blocking torrentspy)

----------


## mrsquirrel

Any idea what to do with my printer.

It's a Kyocera FS720 which would appear to be the only Kyocera pritner that doesn't work with Linux.

Any ideas.

----------


## buadhai

> It's a Kyocera FS720 which would appear to be the only Kyocera pritner that doesn't work with Linux.


You may get it to work with GimpPrint....

----------


## friscofrankie

> Any idea what to do with my printer.
> 
> It's a Kyocera FS720 which would appear to be the only Kyocera pritner that doesn't work with Linux.
> 
> Any ideas.


You could read up on printing with linux here: http://www.linuxprinting.org/cups-doc.html

----------


## ChiangMai noon

Think I'll spend the day experimenting on my work computer.
It will look like I'm working too.
 :Smile:

----------


## ChiangMai noon

Yup, having read lots of info, i have decided i want one of these Linux thingies.

I have also decided i am utterly incapable of doing it myself without blowing my computer up or some such nastiness.
So, whenever you have some free time frankie.

 :Very Happy:

----------


## friscofrankie

Ok you download SUSE iso images (there's a link somewhere in this thread).  I'll be by to install it, we'll take notes and give Poolie his tut.  I'll even use the dummies install so that it will be a tut useable by non-geeks. (this not my strong suit as you may already know).
OR...
We could set you up with command line slack.
OK??  :Very Happy:

----------


## ChiangMai noon

> We could set you up with command line slack.
> OK??


Ummmm, alright then.
 :bunny3:

----------


## ChiangMai noon

can't find the link for that iso download.

----------


## dirtydog

Ok, I got me linux downloaded, now I got to burn it, it says I need an ISO software burner, aint all burners that? So do I just burn it as a data disc?

----------


## NickA

Yep!!! I use Alcohol 120%, but Nero would do.

----------


## friscofrankie

for CMN to download
http://www.linux-iso.org
Get SUSE.  we'll do it next week on one of your days off.

----------


## Marmite the Dog

CMN; Can you mount the ISO image on a virtual drive?

 :Smile:

----------


## ChiangMai noon

^
Probably not.
 :Sad:

----------


## friscofrankie

DOn't worry CMN we'll get you fixed up alright
 :Evil:

----------


## ChiangMai noon

If i use this linux thing, does that make me a geek??

----------


## lom

^To become a full geek you must also wear a white coat when you're inside the computer room. And no smoking in there !

----------


## slimboyfat

> If i use this linux thing, does that make me a geek??


maybe not

but it certainly won't make you any more popular with the ladies than you are already

----------


## mrsquirrel

DD Get Padus Discjuggler.

Best there is.

----------


## mrsquirrel

THere are two ISO;

One is a DVD live version the other is a five disk CD version

I have that DL now.

----------


## friscofrankie

> If i use this linux thing, does that make me a geek??


Geek as in "circus geek" or "techno geek"
One you may already be qualified for; the other?
Doubtful man.

----------


## dirtydog

> DD Get Padus Discjuggler. Best there is.


I have the latest nero.

----------


## mrsquirrel

Nero is a oversized pile of shite

Why do you need 100mb to burn fucking DVD/CD's?

DiscJuggler lets you stay in control without all that Nero drive shite etc.

----------


## dirtydog

137mb is only a small program, hell 100 jpgs take more than that before I resize them.

----------


## dirtydog

*Overview of the ten major Linux distributions*

A review of the 10 major Linux distributions out there, giving the pros and cons of each and every one of them

*Introduction*

The Microsoft Windows operating system is developed and released by a single company. It comes with a minimal set of applications (a calculator, a few games, some networking tools, an Internet browser.. etc). Other software can be obtained by users from various sources and installed on the operating system.

GNU/Linux is different. A GNU/Linux operating system is made of a Linux kernel, a set of GNU tools, an installation program, a package management system and a lot of other software components. Because all these components are free to use and to distribute, anybody can assemble and configure them according to their needs and create their very own GNU/Linux operating system. Since 1993, a lot of people and companies have been distributing Linux operating systems. These distributions made it easy for people to get and to install a working GNU/Linux system on their personal computer.

At first only a few distributions were available. Nowadays there are so many, that it would be pointless to compare all of them. The website http://www.distrowatch.com lists more than 350 active distributions and reports new releases almost every day. Of course, some distributions are quite similar, although some others are very different to each others. Depending on your needs you'll prefer some more than others.

All distributions include the Linux kernel developed by Linus Torvalds and the GNU tools developed by Richard Stallman but they don't necessarily use their latest versions. Some distributions even make their own changes to the kernel. Distributions usually differ in the choice of software applications they offer, in the way these software applications are configured and in the way they are installed and upgraded. Distributions also differ in many aspects such as their philosophy towards proprietary software, their priorities between ease of use and efficiency or between stability and latest technology. In fact, every distribution is different and this means you have more than 350 ways to run GNU/Linux!

Of course some distributions are more popular than others. This article is dedicated to the 10 most famous and popular: Debian, Slackware, Fedora, Mandriva, Suse, Ubuntu, Knoppix, Gentoo, Mepis and Xandros.

*Debian*

Debian is one of the oldest GNU/Linux distributions. It was created in 1993 by Ian Murdock who named it after the combination of his own name and the one of his then-girlfriend (now wife) Debra. The Debian project is non-commercial and gathers more than a thousand developers throughout the world. A strict organization and clear guidelines made its releases famous for their stability and reliability. The project is very ambitious and supports more than 15,000 packages on 11 architectures: m68k, SPARC, Alpha, PowerPC, x86, IA-64, PA-RISC, MIPS (big and little endian), ARM and S/390. AMD64 is also supported although it is not officially included in the distribution. Debian is known for its strong adherence to the Unix and free software philosophies, its stability and its huge community. It is also very well documented and translated in many languages. Its software package management is extremely powerful and was adopted by many other distributions. Although it is meant to be a general-purpose distribution, the quality of its releases made Debian a distribution of choice for servers.

Debian provides three branches: "Stable" which corresponds to the latest release, "Unstable", which is in perpetual evolution and "Testing" which represents the next release to-be. Although it is possible to use "Testing" and to stay up to date, a lot of people are unhappy with the slow release cycle, which makes the "Stable" branch quickly outdated. For this reason Debian is seen as a serious and stable distribution but not as a cutting-edge and reactive one. This "outdated" reputation combined with the absence of graphical installation or configuration tools made Debian look hard to use and slow to evolve. When it comes to desktop, a lot of people prefer fast release cycle, eye-candy configuration tools, graphical installers and ease of use.. and this is not what Debian is.

Official website: http://www.debian.org

*Pros*: Open-Source philosophy, non-commercial project, strong community, huge selection of packages and supported architectures, one of the best package management, excellent documentation, extremely stable and well-tested releases, modular, fast.

*Cons*: Slow release cycle, text-based installer, lack of configuration tools

*Slackware*

Founded in 1992 by Patrick Volkerding, Slackware is the oldest surviving GNU/Linux distribution. It is very secure, stable and it is often recommended for server installations. The package management is minimal and doesn't deal with dependencies, the installer and configuration tools are text-based and almost everything is done through configuration files. Slackware doesn't offer graphical frontends nor eye-candy configuration tools. When Patrick was asked why Slackware releases do not have code names, he simply replied that there was no need. In fact the distribution focuses on stability and is well known for being bug-free. System administrators usually say that Slackware is the most Unix-Like GNU/Linux distribution. Most packages are used in their pristine form without any Slackware made improvements. Slackware is usually not recommended to novice users although it is easy to configure and probably one of the most formative distributions. What a user learns while configuring Slackware usually applies to any distribution. Rather than using distribution-specific configuration tools, the user has to modify settings in configuration files and so he has to learn about Linux internals which are common to all distributions. For these reason the Slackware distribution is usually used by system administrators, eager to learn novice users or simply Slackware fans 

Official website: *http://www.slackware.com*

*Pros*: Stability, security, strong adherence to Unix principles, speed and performance.

*Cons*: Minimal package management, infrequent releases, limited hardware detection.

*Fedora*

One of the best known Linux company in the world is Red Hat, founded in 1995 by Bob Young and Marc Ewing. In 2003, Red Hat decided to focus on business and stopped releasing its public distribution. The company chose to sponsor a community driven project called Fedora. Red Hat Linux 9 was the last version in the Red Hat product line and was replaced by Fedora Core. This distribution is quite unique and mixes leading edge features and conservatism. The result is a stable and secure system with frequent releases and up to date packages which suits both server and desktop installations. The package management is based on RPM, invented by Red Hat, and it is enhanced by a set of tools like Yum, which bring additional features similar to the Debian package management. Because of its close relationship with Red Hat this distribution is very popular among companies. Efforts were also made to make it attractive to the public and Fedora is full of graphical configuration and administration tools. The installation is also graphical and special attention was put to the look and feel of the distribution. As a result Fedora is a popular choice for both desktop and servers among Linux users.

Official website: *http://fedora.redhat.com*

*Pros*: Widely used, good support, innovation, good-looking desktop, configuration tools.

*Cons*: Not as stable as Debian or Slackware for server use, not as easy and up to date as Suse or Mandrake for desktop use. Fedora is truly a general-purpose distribution.

*Mandriva*

Originally called Mandrake and created by Gael Duval in 1998, Mandriva is based on Red Hat. It uses a RPM-based package management, which is enhanced with a tool called urpmi. Mandriva became famous and popular since its first release thanks to an efficient and powerful graphical installer, which is still considered the best nowadays. The default Gnome desktop environment used in Red Hat was replaced in favor of KDE and some good looking configuration tools were added. Also, Mandriva tends to include new versions of software applications as soon as possible and to stay up to date as much as possible, relying on the users to report bugs a posteriori. As a result, Mandriva is highly up-to-date and even though some of its releases are buggy it remains the best distribution for people who are new to Linux or people who find it acceptable to experience some crashes if this means benefiting from the latest versions of applications.

Official website: *http://www.mandriva.com
*

*Pros:* Highly up-to-date, easy to use, good looking desktop, good community support.

*Cons*: Unstable, releases are initially reserved to mandrivaClub members and then made public after several weeks.

*Suse*

Since its creation, Suse has always been seen as a distribution of choice for desktop installations. It benefits from a powerful installer and configuration tool called YaST. Professional attention is made to detail, the default KDE desktop environment, the boot process, everything is tailored to make Suse pleasant to the eyes and a serious choice for professional desktops. In 2003, Novell acquired the company and made ISOs of Suse releases freely available on the Internet. Novell also opened the development to public participation and released YaST under the General Public License. Since the launch of OpenSuse, the distribution is now completely free. Suse is stable, polished and pleasant to use. It is probably one of the best desktop solutions.

Official website: *http://www.suse.com* , *http://www.opensuse.org*

*Pros*: Up-to-date, easy to use, good looking, stable.

*Cons*: Speed and performance.

*Ubuntu*

In 2004 a distribution which was never heard of before, quickly became the most popular and famous of all distributions: Ubuntu. Based on the "Unstable" branch of Debian, Ubuntu features a fast release cycle, up to date and numerous packages, fast download mirrors, great documentation and even free shipment of CDs. Even though the installer is text-based and the configuration tools are not as good looking or integrated as those found in Fedora, Suse or Mandriva, this distribution quickly became the most used for desktop use. Ubuntu was created by Mark Shuttleworth and is distributed by his company Canonical Ltd. It is not clear whether or not Ubuntu is profitable to Canonical Ltd, but according to the multi-millionaire Mark Shuttleworth, this is not the main priority nor purpose of the distribution. Instead, Ubuntu aims to be an innovative and dynamic general purpose distribution which tackles issues that were not addressed by other distributions. Since its creation, Ubuntu has been the most popular GNU/Linux distribution and every single release is better than the previous one.

Official website:* http://www.ubuntu.com*

*Pros*: Great community of users and developers, great documentation, up to date packages, fast release cycle.

*Cons:* The business model doesn't seem to be viable.

*
Knoppix*

Created in 2003 by Klaus Knopper, Knoppix is a live-CD distribution, which means the user can run it directly from the CD without having to install it on the hard drive. Thanks to an efficient compression mechanism, the Knoppix CD features a huge selection of software. Knoppix also provides a great automatic hardware detection, which is far better than those of other distributions. The CD can be used as a recovery or administration tool, as a Linux demonstration, as a hardware test tool or even as a full GNU/Linux desktop distribution since it is possible to install it on the hard drive once booted from the CD. Releases are frequent and packages, based on Debian's "Unstable" branch are quite up-to-date.

Official website: *http://www.knoppix.com*

*Pros:* Live-CD, excellent hardware detection, good and up to date package selection.

*Cons:* Slow if run from the CD.

*Gentoo*

Created in 2002 by Daniel Robbins, Gentoo comes from the idea of adding the FreeBSD autobuild feature, "ports" into GNU/Linux. Gentoo is a source-distribution, which means that its packages are not binary but source packages. Each package is meant to be compiled on the user's computer in order to get the best performance and speed out of the resulting compiled binary software. Because repositories use source-packages, they are also very quick to get new software releases as soon as they come out. This results in a very fast and highly up-to-date distribution. The package management is also very efficient and easy to use. On the other hand, the installation of the system and of big packages can be very long and tedious, even with a fast processor.

Official website: *http://www.gentoo.org*
*
Pros*: Highly up-to-date, very fast, good documentation.
*
Cons*: Long and tedious installation, can be unstable.
*
Mepis*

Created in 2003 by Warren Woodford, Mepis is a mix between Debian "Unstable" and Knoppix. It is a live-CD which, once booted, features a graphical installation program. Users can simply boot on the CD, try the distribution, and if they like it.. run the graphical installation program. Also, the distribution chose a different path regarding the use of proprietary software, arguing that the user's comfort was more important than the adherence to open-source philosophy. By default, Mepis includes NVIDIA drivers, Flash and Java plugins, Java runtime, multimedia codecs, and other non-free software. The hardware automatic detection is very good and even detects some winmodems. In-house configuration utilities are also provided.

Official website: *http://www.mepis.com*

*Pros*: Installable Live-CD, pre-configured with latest plugins and codecs.

*Cons*: Not yet well-established, poor adherence to open-source principles.

*Xandros*

In 2001 Xandros acquired Corel Linux. The distribution was based on Debian and aimed at making it easy for novice users to use GNU/Linux. Nowadays Xandros Desktop is the most user-friendly distribution on the market and is recommended to first time Linux users. In its Deluxe edition Xandros Desktop also includes a NTFS resizing tool and a Windows compatibility layer called CrossOver, which makes it possible to run some Windows applications.

Official website: *http://www.xandros.com*
*
Pros:* Designed for beginners, easy to use, very stable.

*Cons*: Small package selection, includes proprietary components, only free for personal use.

*
Conclusion*

People often ask "so which distribution is right for me?". The answer is very simple: "It depends!". It depends on your needs, it depends on your experience, on your philosophy or your tastes. It depends on a lot of things, and even if you found the one you preferred among these 10 majors distributions, don't forget that there are about 340 other distributions available, which could potentially suit your needs. If you're ready for the adventure, go and explore. Read reviews, try as many as you can and make your own mind. Otherwise, if you just need something good without the hassle, stick to these 10 major distributions. If you're running a server, consider Debian or Slackware. If you want to install Linux on your home computer for desktop use, consider them all. If you're new to Linux you could try Xandros, Mepis, Suse or Mandriva. Different people have different tastes and this is exactly why GNU/Linux comes in so many flavors...

----------


## NickA

Then you've got the choice of two different interchangable desktops - Gnome and KDE - I started with Gnome, but I'm experimenting with KDE tonight.

Both basically the same, but KDE seems a bit more brash in appearance and slightly more configurable than Gnome - it also came with some nice torrent and MP3 software (Ktorrent and amarok), so it was worth the download just for them!

I still can't work out why each desktop has specific programs written for them, when they run on both anyway!?!?

----------


## ChiangMai noon

I'm uterly flummoxed.
is Linux not just linux.

What's with all these distributors?

how can you experiment with them all.
Doesn't that mean you have to keep re-installing yopur operating system??

----------


## friscofrankie

^Get one of the top ten. have you donwloaded SUSE yet?  Downlad a stable desktop distro and experiement with that one!  pleanty to learn on one distro.



> I still can't work out why each desktop has specific programs written for them, when they run on both anyway!?!?


Some of the apps will run on any WM some require some KDE or Gnome specific libraries these can be loaded on start up or demand.  I use most of the KDE applets and think Gnome has a kind of toy-like appearance.  My desktop is not really all that user-friendly though.

MS's strategy is to ignore standards and force nonstadrad document formats down every ones throat thus keeping a lock on the desktops.  Linux thrives on standards, this is the reason that so many folks can work on stuff that runs on all platforms.  You can even donwload some stuff that will compile and run on any linux and Mac OS X.

Move over to Linux; Fuck MS.  You can print, chat, send/receive email, surf the web, write documents/spreadsheets, create presentations and manipulate graphics with actually more ease than with windows. On less hardware.  There are some fantastic 3-d modeling and CAD/CAM applications available if you look.  Not every thing that runs on linux is free but enough of it is.

----------


## Butterfly

Suse is for pussy, real men use slack

----------


## Marmite the Dog

> Move over to Linux; Fuck MS. You can print, chat, send/receive email, surf the web, write documents/spreadsheets, create presentations and manipulate graphics with actually more ease than with windows. On less hardware. There are some fantastic 3-d modeling and CAD/CAM applications available if you look. Not every thing that runs on linux is free but enough of it is.


I'd love to move over to Linux, but I do too many things for other people which rely on my having the same software as them. I really can't be bothered to run two OSs.

----------


## buadhai

> I'd love to move over to Linux, but I do too many things for other people which rely on my having the same software as them. I really can't be bothered to run two OSs.


Well, the sage advice always used to be to pick the software you need to run and then choose the computer and OS that best handles them. So, you need Photoshop for work then you're stuck.

But, do you really need software compatibility or just file compatibility?

----------


## Marmite the Dog

I have two Pcs. One at work must have Windows because other people use it, but my home PC is just for me. I swap many files between the two computers.

I use MSAccess, WAB and Excel (not a problem with this one) as well as needing to use IE to check stuff and Photoshop. Sadly, I also use MS FrontPage and quite like it.

I really like WMP because of it's playlists and I use various untilites (like Audiograbber) that I couldn't do without.

I'm sure that some of these have compatable Linux equivalents or even Linux versions. Something for the future though I think.

----------


## buadhai

BTW, I downloaded the Ubuntu live CD image for Macintosh and booted up with it this morning. A very pleasant surprise. It discovered all the hardware and used correct drivers, including high-res video. Networking was a snap. the desktop looks good and every application I tried worked flawlessly. A much better experience than trying to run KDE under Apple's X11 (xWindows).

I'll stick with the Mac OS, but it's nice to see how far linux has come over the past few years. It's a definite, low cost alternative for people who just want an OS that works, doesn't cost an arm and a leg, is secure (if anything is) and has loads of free software available.

Definitely worth a look.

----------


## ChiangMai noon

^
Sorry if this is a stupid question, but you may gather that I don't have a clue.

I listen to bbc radio all the time while i am working, i mean pissing about on the computer.
Is real player compatible with linux?

----------


## buadhai

RealPlayer for Linux

----------


## ChiangMai noon

^
That's that one answered then.
Thanks BD.

----------


## friscofrankie

I run two OSs.  Have to.  I may work for a week - ten days in Linux then boot Windows to check for compatibility.  Linux just works better.  I find myself buried in a maze of menus and applets to do simple tasks.  Fucking hate windows. 

Thing is, Microsoft is fucking you and everyone else that even uses their OS.  MS has got to be one of the greatest cons ever pulled on Mankind.   People take the time to learn how to operate a car, typewriter even a shovel requires some technique.  They sit in front of a computer and MS has convinced them they ain't gotta know shit.  It ain't true and it ain't ever gonna be.  

Folks at MS love that shit, it means $$$ in their bank account.  Even if you steal everything they make and use it, it forces other, less resourceful folks to go out and buy, buy, buy.

----------


## Marmite the Dog

^ We all agree Frankie, but I can't simply use a different OS to everyone else because it would be too much trouble for me.

----------


## Wallalai

A link that could be useful to check USB hardware compatibility with Linux.

http://www.qbik.ch/usb/devices/devices.php

----------


## buadhai

> I find myself buried in a maze of menus and applets to do simple tasks.  Fucking hate windows.


I don't want to start a big debate here, but I'm afraid I have to agree. I was stuck with Windows at work for years. Never grew to enjoy it. Just installed XP on brother-in-law's laptop and it drove me nuts. All this crap popping up all the time "your computer may be at risk", "take the windows tour", "hi, I'm clippy, don't you wish you could use me to clean out your ears?"

There must be some way to turn all that off....

Although Windoze is here to stay, it's nice to see a big crop of user-friendly alternatives out there, just as it's nice to see so many people here willing to consider them.

----------


## Marmite the Dog

> There must be some way to turn all that off....


There is and I have.

----------


## buadhai

> There is and I have.


Please reveal. I can't take the time to figure it out....

----------


## Marmite the Dog

"your computer may be at risk"

Activate or install a firewall & antivirus software.

"take the windows tour"

Only prompts you once.

"hi, I'm clippy, don't you wish you could use me to clean out your ears?"

When he pops up you have the option to disable him. Do it!

----------


## NickA

I think I've decided on KDE, although I liked the simplicity of Gnome it just seems KDE has a bit more to offer.

Now the only thing I can't find at the moment is a complete set of DVD authoring tools like Nero - I can find indiviudal apps to do it bit by bit, but I'm lazy - anyone got any ideas???

----------


## Marmite the Dog

Didn't MrsQ recommend one?

----------


## NickA

^He recommended an alternative to Nero for Windows

Oh, apparently there's Nero Linux, so it's justa case of finding a torrent....

----------


## mrsquirrel

THat was for windows.

Sorry about that.

Sadly my printer is not compatable with Linux.

Fucking stupid thing that it is relies on Windows.

Best value printer to use as well.

Bugger.

----------


## mrsquirrel

YOu could run it in that windows emulater thing WINE though and have a decent powerful burning software.

----------


## lom

> YOu could run it in that windows emulater thing WINE


Maybe, maybe not. I wouldn't run a time critical application inside an emulator.
Get a Linux app for it !

----------


## friscofrankie

> I think I've decided on KDE, although I liked the simplicity of Gnome it just seems KDE has a bit more to offer.
> 
> Now the only thing I can't find at the moment is a complete set of DVD authoring tools like Nero - I can find indiviudal apps to do it bit by bit, but I'm lazy - anyone got any ideas???


if you haven't tried google do so:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q...=Google+Search
Results 1 - 10 of about 6,710,000 for DVD authoring Linux. (0.31 seconds) 

Sourceforge.net ( http://sf.net ) might also be an alternative but usually Google has them well indexed.
http://sourceforge.net/search/?type_...uthoring+linux
Searching projects gives 8130 results

That oughta keep you busy for a few minutes...

----------


## friscofrankie

^ some of this stuff may not be available in a compatible "package."  Don't be afraid to download the source code and compile it on your machine.  Realy is quite simple.  
After extracting a tar ball change to dir and enter the command, "./configure --help" usually this gives you more options than you know what to do with, no problem. Compile with defaults. The README or INSTALL files give simple insructions for making executables for your machine, OPTIMIZED for your machine.  

Couple of the projects on the first page of sourceforge look cool, they use all the available tools and bring 'em all together under one app.  most of the GUI burning/authoring tools just give an easier interface to command line tools anyway.

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## NickA

Thanks Frankie - like you said the first couple on Sourceforge look like they'll do the job, so I'll DL them when I get home :Smile:

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## NickA

Wow, sometimes things are easier said than done - Frankie has sent me on a proper wild file chase - I think I'm getting nearer the end, but each time I think I've installed something it tells me I need another file, with needs another library, which needs another compiler.....

It's been fun though and I think I've got somewhere near where I need to be although it's been a bit hit and miss as half the packages are either crap, crash all the time or are only half implemented.

ManDVD is supposed to do the job, but i haven't got it to work yet, devede works, but doesn't include a menu function, although that'll be fine for films.

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## NickA



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## buadhai

Well, Nick, it's nice to see you have Linux all sussed out.

Well done!

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## friscofrankie

Havin fun are ya?
Thing about installing apps on linux you don't have registry to fuck with you want to uninstall delete the dir I usually install my stuff in /usr/local/%app_dir% maknig it vey easy to remove the thing if it ain't what I want.  It is nice to be able to try differnt apps, dump 'em and move on to the next.  Or is it?  keep looking you'll find what you want and you'll be able to tweak it the way you want.  

if you haven't, here's link to the ManDVD dev page: http://www.kde-apps.org/content/show.php?content=38347
some interesting dependencies:



> DVD Slideshow >= 0.7.5
> mencoder
> mplayer
> MKISOFS >= 2.01
> xine > 0.99.4
> lame >= 3.97
> dvdauthor >= 0.6.11
> mjpegtools >= 1.8.0
> netpbm >= 10.29
> ...


So yeah looks like you;ve got some downloadin' to do  :Wink: .
I don't fuckaround too much with multimedia, 'cvept to make it work in a web page or application,  but from what i've read, all the DVD authoring tools bring together a group of other apps to create the production.  Think you'll find that the professional production are created on some flavor of *nix.  even if it is OS X.
keep fuckin' with it and I'll bet you'll get one hell of a package together to create some whiz-bang videos.  be great for everybody to hear how your progessing in your quest.   I know this has become one of my favorite threads.  "Windows user Makes Good" and all that...

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## NickA

> Thing about installing apps on linux you don't have registry to fuck with you want to uninstall delete the dir I usually install my stuff in /usr/local/%app_dir% maknig


Ah, I was going to ask you about that - when I download an archived app is it OK to extract it to /usr/local/appname, at the moment I'm putting it into /home/programs/appname, but I'm thinking it's probably not the right thing to do!

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## friscofrankie

Hey on an administered, normal system that is the only place you have to install apps (home_dir).  This is fine;  infact, i would continue to do this while testing.  When you get the package you want move it to /usr/local/%appname%

On my machine '/,' '/usr/local,' '/home' and '/var'  are separate partitions. I never install as root but I set myself up as a member of a group "adm," I give full access to /var & /usr/local to this group.  

I will test in my home dir then promote successful apps to /usr/local

When compiling apps many will default to /usr/local and you've got to run configure with "prefix=~userID" or /home/userID.  Continue to do this until you're where you want to be.  Then set the thing up in /usr/local.  more work maybe but afer you've done a few app installs it gets easy and in the long run it pays dividends.

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## NickA

Cheers Frankie, I thought so :Wink: 

(((((I do hope CMN is following all of this and taking notes :Smile: ))))

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## NickA

> if you haven't, here's link to the ManDVD dev page: http://www.kde-apps.org/content/show.php?content=38347
> some interesting dependencies:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 			
> 				DVD Slideshow >= 0.7.5
> mencoder
> ...


After much f'ing around found out it wasn't software that i didn't have, but software that was slightly too old - I had Lame 3.96 and mjpegtools 1.6.0

Anyway, it was certainly a learning experience :Smile:

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