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Thread ID: 33037	2003-05-05 07:02:00	Linux - some basic thoughts please	Curly (487)	Press F1

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
141546	2003-05-05 07:02:00	We have a spare computer, actually a standby machine, waiting for something bad to happen with one of the others. Have read a lot about Linux but have been somewhat put off by several people here having difficulty getting things going once installing the product or even it seems, just understanding how the OS works. This spare machine is no "Beast", Celeron 300A clocked to 450 Mhz, 128 Mb RAM, 8 Gig HDD ie - really old specs by todays standards. Well anyway.... Is this non beast machine suitable for Linux? What version of the OS would U suggest a total non brainer start with. Is it true that it is a difficult OS to understand and use. Any other helpfull advise appreciated.	Curly (487)
141547	2003-05-05 07:12:00	I am not linux expert but i would say that it should run good on a system like that, the question is what do you want to use it for???	robsonde (120)
141548	2003-05-05 07:33:00	Until recently I was running the latest version of mandrake on a PII-400 & the speed wasn't too bad, although I had 256mb of ram. You will probably find things a bit slow if you use the latest release of KDE/GNOME and/or have too much eye candy turned on. Otherwise it should be usable. If you run into any stability problems, drop the clock rate back to the default. Linux will push the hardware more than windows 9x so will be more prone to problems. As for reccomendations, lycoris is one of the simplest, but I found it "boring". I woudl reccomend the latest release of either Redhat, SUSE, or mandrake. Probably redhat because it is more widely used.	bmason (508)
141549	2003-05-05 08:45:00	I have been using SuSE 8.0 for several months now. Speaking as someone who has converted to the *nix after years of using nothing but 'doze, i must say that using Linux as a end user machine is as easy as using 'doze, only differant. Some of these differences took some getting used to, but they are usually very logical, often useful, and simple to grasp Learning text commands is quite foreign to me still, but i am finding them faster, although apart from setting up things, they are not entirly needed. Some of the commands are rather nifty. Hows this? Type: "gg:search criteria" and a browser window will open up a google search for "search criteria" Editing .conf files is something that can't be escaped when setting up servers, otherwise i wouldn't touch them for reasons other than curiosity. I have a windows box that still that runs '98. I use it for nero, but will try the Linux burning programs when i can be bothered moving the burner. Kazaa is the only program that i have not in essence been able to replace with a effective Linux alternative. Last but not least, both computers are of similar spec, both are AMD450 with 256 meg of RAM on VA503+ motherboards. Sam the Linux box goes down when i change hardware or there is a mains power problem. Vanessa the 'doze box goes down fairly regually. .Clueless	Clueless (181)
141550	2003-05-05 10:07:00	Hi robsonde Hah no idea actually, have been reading a lot of the op system of late and it does seem to becoming more popular so... guess I just want to try it out and have a play to see if it is for me.	Curly (487)
141551	2003-05-05 11:03:00	Well, heres my 2 Cents worth: Lycoris would be good for users who are used to Windows, and are so afraid of change that they'd die . . otherwise, try Yoper Linux, or RedHat 8/9! RedHat is great for support on the web, the installer is the damn nicest piece of software Ive every seen, so it makes a very good first impression . However, having been to the ICE Expo, and spent a few hours with the man who created Yoper, if you can spare 90 bucks for the 2 Disc set, it will be well worth it! It is a NZ distro, and he made it simply with the average Joe Bloggs in mind . . . Lycoris Linux is sorta like that, but more aimed at looking like Doze . Yoper is Linux, and its proud of it - All the way! He's put a lot of work into it, and it shows! The text-based installer is a little intimidating, but for the most of it, you wont really need to look at CLI again :-) To try it out, getting your hands on a copy of Knoppix might be a good idea, I picked up the latest 3 . 2 from the ICE Expo, and its brilliant . A great indication of how Linux might run on your PC, and because it loads off the CD-ROM into RAM, it doesnt touch your HDD at all :-) So, it might be a good idea to see if somebody can burn you a copy of Knoppix beforehand . . . and then, i would suggest RedHat 8 and/or Yoper Linux :-) Hope this helps Cheers Chilling_Silence	Chilling_Silently (228)
141552	2003-05-06 04:00:00	I chose to go the Linux way with an old AMD K6 233 with 96MB RAM, 4GB hard drive. I ended up choosing Debian, and by all accounts, the installer on this is not for the faint hearted, but it's not impossibly difficult either. I parked the Linux machine to be next to my Windows machine, so I could look up documentation online while I was getting things up and running. The system ran adequately for web browsing, email etc, under KDE 2.2, but I got inquisitive and decided to install KDE 3.1 for a flashier desktop environment. Looks a bit prettier, but slows things down quite a lot. Why did I choose Debian? It's a completely non-commercial distribution, also it has a convenient download system, so that when updated versions come out, instead of having to download entire CD images, you only need to get the files that have changed since the last version to create a new CD image file. Software installation/removal is dead easy from the command line, and there are gui tools to handle it as well. I'd probably not suggest Debian as your first version of Linux to try, unless you are prepared to be patient, and learn quickly, but longer term, it's well worth the effort. I found with the likes of Red Hat, that while easier for a newbie, you aren't forced to learn your way around the system properly, which can be a disadvantage in the long run. I've done a few kernel builds on different machines now, and even that isn't all that scary once you know what's going on. Even the dreaded winmodems can be made to work, and when they do, they actually work better than under Windows. Networking with Windows isn't too hard. My biggest grumble would be printing, with the numerous different systems devised, and the process of installing drivers.	vkiwi (3729)
141553	2003-05-06 06:17:00	I run machines alot older than your "old" pc :D My recommendation would be Mandrake; based on Red Hat and they have tweaked it to make it easier for the newbie . It should run fine on your pc . If you wanted to try Linux without "loading" it, you could try Knoppix (see Trademe . co . nz for some suppliers) .	Dolby Digital (160)
141554	2003-05-06 06:42:00	Geez would'nt you just believe it, see my latest post ME difficulties. This spare/backup machine is no long that, as another machine had some sort of fit and is now in handcuffs for it's own protection. But nevertheless, appreciate the advise, rest assured, when everything is back in order and the cuffs removed, will try Linux - slowly at first. Again thanks.	Curly (487)
141555	2003-05-06 08:30:00	The man from Yoper claims he has WinModem support for every possible WinModem that has been able to run under linux to date!	Chilling_Silently (228)
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