Best Linux distribution

[<ABX]

I was thinking of learning how to use Linux but i wasnt sure what distribution is the best.

Can i set up Linux to dual boot with Win XP pro and without un-installing Win XP?

[siyan]

If you're starting out then get RedHat or Mandrake.

[Sastraxi]

I suggest SuSE for newcomers, Debian for intermediate, Gentoo for advanced.

[<ABX]

I looked at SuSE (i liked the try from cd) but it said it would take 5 days to download and I Have DSL. I downloaded Mandrake Linux 9.1 and am wondering how much harddrive space i should have on the Partition and what type of file system?

Is there a good tutorial on how to do this?

[siyan]

Originally posted by <ABX
I looked at SuSE (i liked the try from cd) but it said it would take 5 days to download and I Have DSL. I downloaded Mandrake Linux 9.1 and am wondering how much harddrive space i should have on the Partition and what type of file system?

Is there a good tutorial on how to do this?

SuSE shouldn't take 5 days......thats rather over the top. Don't install every package.

Allocated at least 3GB, preferably 5+. The file system will probably be ext3+linux swap, and partitioning (erm...you can think of it as "sub-partitioning") will be done by the installer.

[wrack]

Never used linux before...Tried to install once but ended up loosing all the data on my PC and after that I hate linux...:mad:

[<ABX]

is there a way to transfer my MP3's to linux w/o burning them (2gigs+)

[Pirate]

I liked this edition " Knoppix" . It runs completely off the cd (no installation required) . It's awesome . I played video (but without sound:rolleyes: , I need dirvers) . Anyways , I think , if you install other edition of Linux , you still have access to other partitions .

Hmm , I strongly suggest Knoppix .only 699mb .

[siyan]

Originally posted by <ABX
is there a way to transfer my MP3's to linux w/o burning them (2gigs+)

Yes. If you are using FAT32 then you can mount the partition directly. If you are using NTFS however then you need kernel support for it. I know that Mandrake 9.1 has such support in the stock kernel, but others I'm not certain.

In any case if you're adventurous you can go about recompiling the kernel with NTFS read support. Do note that write support is too risky to be worth it at the moment.

[siyan]

Originally posted by wrack
Never used linux before...Tried to install once but ended up loosing all the data on my PC and after that I hate linux...:mad:

You must have screwed something up big then...

[SomethinCool]

What is a good linux distro that will allow me to learn the commands and stuff? I know how to install it..i've gotten that far. I can use it to an extent. When it comes to installing programs (that arent in RPM form..i was using Red Hat and Mandrake) that require compiling, i can compile it while having the readme open telling me how. When I get an error though, i have no idea what to do lol. Also, everything is like kppp, gmail, xchat, gcc, so i dont really know what programs to install..and the module dependencies..like libraries and programming languages..i dont know what to do there either..:(. So back to my question..what is the best distro for me to learn the commands? (I'm not a complete newbie..)

[<ABX]

Im burning the Mandrake Linux 9.1 CDS now and was just wondering how long this is going to take to Install?

Im using this Tutorial (http://www.linuxbeginner.org/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=92&mode=flat&order=1&thold=0) in-case some one is interested

[SomethinCool]

Mandrake 9.0 took me about 30 min to an hour and it came with 2 or 3 CDs.

[siyan]

Originally posted by SomethinCool
What is a good linux distro that will allow me to learn the commands and stuff? I know how to install it..i've gotten that far. I can use it to an extent. When it comes to installing programs (that arent in RPM form..i was using Red Hat and Mandrake) that require compiling, i can compile it while having the readme open telling me how. When I get an error though, i have no idea what to do lol. Also, everything is like kppp, gmail, xchat, gcc, so i dont really know what programs to install..and the module dependencies..like libraries and programming languages..i dont know what to do there either..:(. So back to my question..what is the best distro for me to learn the commands? (I'm not a complete newbie..)

If you're new you should stick with RPMs and such. Resolving dependencies manually can be hazy.

Other options for automatic dependency resolution are apt-get, apt-rpm, or the vaunted emerge.

[SomethinCool]

Well..ok try setting up Samba if you're a semi-newbie. I think it's hard and i still havent gotten networking to work.

Should a Linux user have some background with programming python, C++, or Perl or another language that you can program in Linux?

[siyan]

Originally posted by SomethinCool
Should a Linux user have some background with programming python, C++, or Perl or another language that you can program in Linux?

You don't need to, although some vague experience programming any modern language is good.

[Pirate]

Originally posted by SomethinCool
Mandrake 9.0 took me about 30 min to an hour and it came with 2 or 3 CDs.
Where did you get it from ??:rolleyes: . I've been looking for weeks for a good link with reasonable speed (not ftp) that works with Internet Download Manager . Can you send me the link plz !

Thanks .

[<ABX]

Pirate:

He meant 30 - 60 min to install

[Heres the ftp i used 80 - 100 kbps on MTS DSL]

ftp://mirror.mcs.anl.gov/pub/Mandrake/iso/

it supports resume so you can get a FTP Client (CuteFTP works) and resume when you want

if you really dont want to use FTP i could serve them on my website 4 u but you'll have to wait till this friday cuz i dont have DSL in the country

[Pirate]

Originally posted by <ABX
Pirate:

He meant 30 - 60 min to install

[Heres the ftp i used 80 - 100 kbps on MTS DSL]

ftp://mirror.mcs.anl.gov/pub/Mandrake/iso/

it supports resume so you can get a FTP Client (CuteFTP works) and resume when you want

if you really dont want to use FTP i could serve them on my website 4 u but you'll have to wait till this friday cuz i dont have DSL in the country
It's ok . I installed CuteFTP , I leave it download over the night . Thanks <ABX .

[wrack]

Originally posted by siyan
You must have screwed something up big then... You bet it...

[<ABX]

no prob Priate

i have never used linux b4 and way playing around and finaly got my sound card working and every time i click a different window it stops and then keeps going, is this common?

[siyan]

Originally posted by <ABX
no prob Priate

i have never used linux b4 and way playing around and finaly got my sound card working and every time i click a different window it stops and then keeps going, is this common?

Do you have a lot of eye candy on and integrated sound+graphics? PCI bus may be bottlenecked.

[<ABX]

I really new to linux so i just decided to play like a learnt windows

At the mandrake linux 9.1 setup i just intstalled everything

sys specs:

CPU: Athlon XP 1700+
MotherBoard: ECS K7S5A
RAM:512 DDR
Video Card: ATI 3D Rage PRO AGP 2x
Sound: C-Media AC97 (SIS 7012) (Onboard)
Network Card: SiS 900 PCI Fast Ethernet Adapter (Onboard)
Hard Drive: Western Digital 120gig (8mb buffer) (WDC WD1200JB-00CRA0)
USB: (Onboard)

This does not happen in windows XP

[SomethinCool]

Yeah sorry Pirate I meant it took 30 min to an hour to install. (Thanks <ABX for clearing that up).

It would have no way taken me 30 min to an hour to download Linux. I have a 56k connection to AOL...so it took me about 4 overnights for each CD (I got about 160 mb a night). I downloaded Red Hat 2.0, 7.0, Mandrake 8.0, 9.0.It took a really long time but..oh well. It's pathetic i know...

[Pirate]

Originally posted by SomethinCool
Yeah sorry Pirate I meant it took 30 min to an hour to install. (Thanks <ABX for clearing that up).

It would have no way taken me 30 min to an hour to download Linux. I have a 56k connection to AOL...so it took me about 4 overnights for each CD (I got about 160 mb a night). I downloaded Red Hat 2.0, 7.0, Mandrake 8.0, 9.0.It took a really long time but..oh well. It's pathetic i know...
lol...I'm not that dumb :D , I was just asking about the links you had because I looked for a reliable connection for some time and can't seem to find a good link to download with Download Manager .

[Pirate]

SomethinCool ,
btw , What downloader did you use ? FTPCute maybe bcause they told me it's good one for ftp sites !

Thanks

[SomethinCool]

This was a long time ago...maybe a year or so, but i used CuteFTP. I'd use GetRight now just because it has that multiple connection option where it downloads 1-8 segments at once. Basically like a download accelerator.. So i'd either use CuteFTP or GetRight..they are both good.

I'm not sure how great GetRight works with FTP servers, so maybe i'd stick with CuteFTP.

[Pirate]

Have you tried Internet Download Manager ? you can set the segments to 16 . It's pretty faster I guess .:D

[SomethinCool]

I've tried Download Accelerator and GetRight..and they only allow 1-8 segments.

Where can i get Internet Download Manager?

[Pirate]

It's really worth a try . Here you go ...http://www.internetdownloadmanager.com/

[SomethinCool]

Wow..this program has a ton of awards..

This looks pretty good i'll have to try it out. Thanks

[Pirate]

Originally posted by SomethinCool
Wow..this program has a ton of awards..
This looks pretty good i'll have to try it out. Thanks
Yea , and if you find the crack , wow , it would run forever. lol:D

[siyan]

Originally posted by SomethinCool
Wow..this program has a ton of awards..

This looks pretty good i'll have to try it out. Thanks


Awards...ugh. Lots of crappy programs have won lots of crappy awards.

[SomethinCool]

Yeah i thought about that after i posted my comment. Then again, a lot of cool programs get lots of awards, too.