There have been a few posts on these and related topics but nothing comprehensive. It seems to me that Linux is a great deal in terms of cost and its functionality is getting better everyday. It would be nice to have a compilation of important/useful information for those that are interested in making the switch.
Q: How come there are so many Linux operating systems out there? A: They are all Linux distributions that are based on a common core set of programs.
Q: What is a Linux distribution? A: See Linux distribution on the wiki: link.
Q: What Linux distributions are out there? A: See the list of Linux distributions on the wiki: link. A more comprehensive list is available on LWN. DistroWatch tries to track the more popular Linux distributions. See a short list in the quick summary.
Q: Which distribution is right for me? A: Perhaps the best way to find out is to try some of them and decide for yourself. A comparison of Linux distributions is available on the wiki. The Linux Distribution Chooser can provide you with a good starting guess. In addition, you should try LiveCD for those distributions that provide one. A list of available LiveCDs can be found here. Also see this thread.
Q: Will it work on my PC/desktop/laptop/notebook? A: If your hardware is mentioned on the Hardware Compatibility List, then it probably will.
Q: How can I get hold of a Linux distribution? A: You can download ISO images and burn them to a CD/DVD, copy the CD/DVDs from a friend who already has them, buy CD/DVDs from retailers who sell them at a small cost (~$2/CD or DVD plus shipping) or buy a packaged retail distribution. If you are planning to download a Linux distribution, be aware that most distributions now have several CDs or a DVD which means that you will be downloading gigabytes of data. The nice way to do this is to use a BitTorrent client although many distributions will let you download directly from their website or a mirror. See the links in the quick summary.
Q: I now have CD/DVDs for a Linux distribution. Where can I get help installing it? A: In this thread to start with. Also take a look at Linux For Newbies and Installing Linux. Some related threads: thread, thread, thread.
Q: Which filesystem should I use? A: See the comparison of file systems on the wiki: link.
Q: What applications are available for Linux? A: A large number of applications are available for various tasks. See these threads: thread, thread, thread, thread, thread. See details in the quick summary.
Q: Pointers to more resources? A: See these links: thread, thread, thread
Q: Are there any other free operating systems? A: Solaris is currently a free download from Sun. See this thread for details on how to get Solaris and development applications for Solaris. There are also several systems based on BSD Unix such as FreeBSD, NetBSD, etc. See details in the quick summary.
Solaris and OpenSolaris OpenSolaris: website, no binary downloads yet. Solaris Express: download. Solaris: website, download.
Applications for Linux Below you will find a list of applications that are available natively for Linux. Many more can be used with wine/CrossOver/Cedaga.
Multimedia Players for Linux VLC: a very competent player. MPlayer: another excellent player. xine: yet another good player. RealPlayer for Linux Ogle: DVD player for Linux. XdTV: for watching TV under Linux.
Multimedia Editing for Linux Audacity: free audio editor and recorder. FFmpeg: audio/video conversion tool.
System Utilities for Linux TightVNC: VNC based remote desktop tool. Linux NTFS Project: library to access NTFS (Windows) file systems from Linux.
Other Applications for Linux Sun Java Desktop System: bundle of previously mentioned applications and more; not being actively developed for Linux.
CD/DVD Burning Applications for Linux K3b NeroLINUX: Nero for Linux!
For Running Windows Applications on Linux Wine: will run simpler and legacy Windows applications. Win4Lin: proprietary emulator for running Windows applications. CodeWeavers: for running Microsoft Office and similar applications under Linux. TransGaming: products for running Windows based games under Linux! VMware: also see this thread.
Server Applications for Linux MySQL: database. Apache: HTTP server and more.
Lower Cost: Virtually every Linux distribution retails for less than a retail package of Windows, while its functionality is rapidly approaching that of Windows (or even exceeding it in some areas). If you already got a free copy of Windows when you bought your computer, read the other benefits. If you have an older copy of Windows, you might want to switch to Linux instead of upgrading and save money.
Its more than an operating system. It is an operating system plus applications suite. You get applications for all the basic tasks straight out of the box and you can download many others. For many ordinary (and some not so ordinary) tasks, that is all you need. So why pay for each application and its unused features.
No Malware: You do not have to worry about viruses or spyware or other malicious programs. Unless you are working from a root account (not a good idea for everyday use), you don't risk de-stabilising the system or ending up with malicious programs.
Use 64 bit Computing: The major distributions of Linux are available for 64 bit processors today and run just fine on these platforms. You can use the advanced power of your system today without having to wait for Windows XP x64 compatible applications.
Share It: If you like it, you can tell your friends about it and even lend them your CD/DVD so that they can try it for themselves.
Disadvantages of Linux
Hardware support is still not as strong as Windows. In particular, problems arise with wireless cards, printers and scanners.
No simple way to play (Windows) games. You can use Cedaga but it is a monthly subscription service.
DVD playback is not fully supported under Linux. You need to download and install a patch whose legality can be questioned.
maybe this should also be a random tips thread too, otherwise I fear it will just fall off the main page.
Gentoo installation tip:
Boot knoppix, not the Gentoo disk, and then do the installation from there. You will need a working ethernet connection though.
Benefits: You get a nice X Windows environment to work in (i.e. firefox, openoffice, gaim etc) You get the latest version of portage (since you need to download the stage-3 and portage files from an ftp server) Knoppix has auto-detected most of your hardware and an "lsmod" will show the drivers required
Costs: It's a little slower (knoppix will be using some of your resources to run)
You would pick up the gentoo manual at around Chapter 4... It assumes you've partitioned your disk and created file-systems... you start and the part where you untar the stage-3 file and just before chrooting
Well every thing is fine. But is there a simple way to install a software?. (like in Windows Double click exe/zip file and you are done) how to install drivers? How to mount and unmount devices? how to setup network (wired/wireless) I always end up with problem.
I get a lot of rpm or tar.gz etc. I do not know how to compile/install. if you can provide a link for that, then that will b great. Thanks for the help.
legzakimbo said:maybe this should also be a random tips thread too, otherwise I fear it will just fall off the main page.
Gentoo installation tip:
Boot knoppix, not the Gentoo disk, and then do the installation from there. You will need a working ethernet connection though.
Benefits: You get a nice X Windows environment to work in (i.e. firefox, openoffice, gaim etc) You get the latest version of portage (since you need to download the stage-3 and portage files from an ftp server) Knoppix has auto-detected most of your hardware and an "lsmod" will show the drivers required
Costs: It's a little slower (knoppix will be using some of your resources to run)
You would pick up the gentoo manual at around Chapter 4... It assumes you've partitioned your disk and created file-systems... you start and the part where you untar the stage-3 file and just before chrooting
Random tips are welcome too. I am aware that many people will have some difficulty in installing/using Linux. While this thread cannot be a definitive resource for troubleshooting, there are some common problems for which there is a small and simple solution. I would like to see them here.
buyus said: But is there a simple way to install a software?.
depends on the package type. For gentoo (ebuilds) it's: # emerge -uDav <package name>
how to install drivers?
If they're not built in to the kernel, you build them according to the developers directions and then: # modprobe <driver name>
How to mount and unmount devices?
mount /dev/hdXY /mount/point umount /dev/hdXY
how to setup network (wired/wireless)
This is a little more in depth. I use a program called quickswitch. I set up the config file however I want it and then run: # switchto home-wireless to move from wired ethernet to wireless
I've set it to boot to home-wired by default by a flag in my grub.conf
I do not know how to compile/install
Typically, it's:
$ bunzip -c <file.tar.bz2> | tar xvf - $ cd <appname> $ ./configure && make # make install
but there is nearly always a readme file included.
If you have any more specific questions feel free to ask
I've been wanting to install a good distro for a long time but came up with compatibility problems. More than install help, anyone know of Linux tech support at a reasonable charge? If there were a LUG in my area, I'd like to find someone who could walk me through it step-by-step. I'm in the Tampa, FL area.
tiger0721 said:can someone tell me WHY it might be a good idea to use or at least try out Linu? I've seen mention of it in various places.....thanks
it's good if: 1) you don't like virii 2) you don't want to re-install every 6 months 3) you don't want spyware 4) you like free stuff 5) you want full control 6) you don't want to reboot every time an application is patched 7) performance is just as good after 6 months of running as it is one minute after booting
it's not good if: 1) you game 2) you expect everything to just work immediately (not to say it's broken, but some apps make you copy a config file to the appropriate location first) 3) you don't want to touch the command line
jitinarora said:I am looking for good software for doing backups under Linux. I have an external hard drive for this purpose. Can anyone give me any references?
Depends on what you are looking to backup.
easy home directory backup could be something like this.
cd /home/jitinarora
tar -cvf - * 2>>/tmp/error.file | compress > /mnt/external_drive/backup.tar.Z
tiger0721 said:can someone tell me WHY it might be a good idea to use or at least try out Linu? I've seen mention of it in various places.....thanks It's called LINUX. Have some respect for this OS, it's a better alternative than Windows. I edited my comments, but believe the average Linux user has more brain power than the average Windows user. Exactly why the hackers choose to attack your OS.
Bill Gates created Windows. Linus Torvalds created Linux. Get schooled & come back when you're ready for a real man's operating system.
SeriusBlack said:tiger0721 said:can someone tell me WHY it might be a good idea to use or at least try out Linu? I've seen mention of it in various places.....thanks excuse me, it's called LINUX. Why is it the average Windows user can't even be bothered with spellcheck? teh Intenret is a grate place. yes it iz.
Bill Gates created Windows. Linus Torvalds created Linux. Get schooled & come back when you're ready for a real man's operating system.
Hey SeriousBlack, easy on the noob.
To find your local LUG, google is the best option. Try something like this. Also, many companies provide tech support for Linux, including the major vendors. One way to get support is to buy a support subscription from the company from which you bought a distribution. For instance, if you opted for Linspire, then you can buy a support package from them. Such support packages typically also include free access to additional apps, updates and upgrades for a specified period of time. You may also get other features such as discounts on other commercial softwares.
buyus said:Well every thing is fine. But is there a simple way to install a software?. (like in Windows Double click exe/zip file and you are done) how to install drivers? How to mount and unmount devices? how to setup network (wired/wireless) I always end up with problem.
I get a lot of rpm or tar.gz etc. I do not know how to compile/install. if you can provide a link for that, then that will b great. Thanks for the help.
Yes, many distributions now include some program that provides functionality similar to that of the Windows Control Center. I can vouch for SUSE which has the excellent YasT2. You don't even have to download the app; you just search using a keyword and check a box against the desired software. It will automatically download and install it for you. Uninstall and hardware configuration are equally easier with YasT2. The same applies for installing drivers (they are considered to be another software package), for mounting and unmounting drives (also do-able from the command line), and setting up network. For wireless cards, if your card is not supported, you may need to use ndiswrapper and google search to get you started.
I suggest that you get the book SUSE Linux 10 Unleashed from Amazon/eBay. It is a good and gentle introduction for the beginner and also includes a DVD with the full 32 bit version of SUSE Linux 10. Great for getting started.
SeriusBlack said:Bill Gates created Windows. Linus Torvalds created Linux. Get schooled & come back when you're ready for a real man's operating system.
Now that's what I'm talkin' 'bout! Dang time that BSD and OS X got some respect!
I like how you mention in the quick notes thing there no virses, maybe you should also mention instead of virsues you get rooted and then your screwed.
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