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Posted: 8/10/2006 2:31:26 PM | I am sick and tired of windows, but I am by FAR not a programer. Is there any sense in switching to Linux? Will i just do damage to my computer since i do not know anythign about it? I just want my computer to run faster. Will there be crazy compatibility issues and will i have trouble installing everything? Let me know what you think.  | |
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Posted: 8/10/2006 4:29:28 PM | | do a search on linux threads, there are plenty and there is plenty of good advice and links to sites where you can get a free linux cd. I would suggest ubuntu and knoppix because you can run them under windows by just sticking the cd in the drive and booting. if you like what you see, go for it and install ubuntu. | |
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Posted: 8/10/2006 10:50:23 PM | I consider myself pretty good with computers. and linux was the worst thing i ever tried to do, dont waste your time unless you wanna spend weeks learning how to do things as simple as play a flash movie in your browser, or install a program without automatix.
I think they purposefully designed it the way it is so they can have some belief that they are "smarter" than those other people using other os's | |
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Posted: 8/11/2006 1:07:11 AM | I recommend downloading a Linux Live-CD. Linux can run directly from CD so you can navigate and get the feel for linux. There is also an option to install it to your hard drive without losing your Windows partition. I do recommend backing up your important data before doing it. Even though I haven't encountered any problems...accidents do happen.
Recommended Live-CDs: Simply Mepis, Kanotix, Knoppix
Checkout Simply Mepis first and see if you like it. The website is http://www.mepis.org
Please note: To login to Simply Mepis from the Live-CD. The username is root and the
password is root. Remember to load the kernel 2.6 for newer PCs.
Kernel 2.4 is for older PCs.
Kanotix Live-CD: http://www.kanotix.org
Knoppix Live-CD: http://www.knoppix.com
* With these Live-CDs, you will have Internet access. Linux uses the Mozilla Firefox. *
If one Linux version doesn't support all of your hardware, try another version. One of them will work. Linux is Open Source and is constantly in development.
For the latest releases on Linux, you can go to distrowatch. (http://distrowatch.com) | |
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Posted: 8/11/2006 3:57:08 PM | portalmaster is spot on.
You can test-drive it all you want and not harm your config as it sits. IMHO getting an idea of how Linux works is all good. If you learned computers the "Windows" way it is time to learn how computers work in alternative ways.
Hope this helps, | |
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cjwc
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Joined: 12/26/2003
Msg: 8 | |
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Posted: 8/11/2006 9:57:18 PM | Honnestly, unless you do hosting, development and hardcore coding, there's really no sense. Actually, really, the only thing it's useful for is hosting. All these linux distros are just an attractive way to sway people to an open source operating system that someone with no time cannot operate.
Most people do not have the time it takes to operate and maintain a linux distro. | |
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Posted: 8/13/2006 7:30:02 PM | I was sick and tired of Windows 6 yrs ago so I made the plunge into linux. I use it exclusively now and enjoy the virus-free, spyware-less environment. Before you make the plunge, keep in mind that Linux is not a market-oriented OS. By that I mean any new technology may take year(s) before it reaches linux mainstream. Also expect alot of websites that have weird plugins, etc to not work. Also alot of "commercial" features like Java, Flash, PDF, mp3, etc will require using the command line to set up.
Anyways, I do recommend becoming familiar with those Linux Live-CD's cause if for any reason your Windows goes south, those CDs may at least get you back online or do some disk recovery.
fwiw I use Mandriva Linux. | |
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Posted: 3/19/2007 2:08:56 AM | People who are saying that Linux is not user friendly seem to have tried the wrong distro.
If you are a beginner and don't really want to learn the inside out of an OS then start with Ubuntu. It has a LiveCD that you can try before actually installing it. If you don't like that and you are willing to pay then try Linspire. It is very much like Windows and comes with tech support as well.
Cheers. | |
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Posted: 3/19/2007 4:10:50 AM | LOL I Just LOOOOVE Window Fanboys who are uneducated when it comes to linux.
 Please don't feed the FANBOYS | |
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Posted: 3/19/2007 5:18:40 AM | OP, I know how you feel. A few months ago I fragged my computer, as many times prior I went looking for my windows install disk only to find it to be completely destroyed. Seeing as I bought the comp from Gateway I call them up and see about the possibilites of a replacement disk. Apparently they can't so now my only option is either find a ghosted copy of xp or switch over to linux.
Tk
(Yay...gotta love money hungry....yeah...don't need me to go on lol.) | |
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Posted: 3/19/2007 7:24:04 AM | Amazing how the hard core Microslush users come out of the wood work pooh poohing trying Linux when someone like the OP asks about runnin it on their computer 
I'm far from a computer guru and can assure anyone out there that this is no longer a requisite for runnin a Linux OS. I use Ubuntu 6.06 and the only real issues I have with it are from a lack of hardware manufacturers supporting it, which can be challenging at times. If you do your research before purchasing new hardware and seek out products that are supported for Linux distros most of these issues can be easily avoided.
Secondly, if you are wanting an OS that happliy plays with any Microsoft application you may encounter, here again there are challenges that will arise. Through a bit of research and fiddling around you can usually get most Microsoft stuff to work, but not all of them. One huge step forward in this regard though is Ubuntus ability using Open Office to easily interface with Windows "Word" docs which didn't work at all under my old Linspire OS :>)
I heartily recommend Ubuntu for anyone who might be unsure of takin the Linux plunge. You can DL the OS to a CD (<- yep, the whole OS fits on a 700 meg CD ) or request a free copy online and take it out for a spin without fear of changing your current configuration by runnin it "Live" from your CD drive. Then if you decide to load the sysytem on your computer the amazing choices of other free software titles available in the Synaptic Packages Manager are truly amazing !
If your end goals are increased system speed and online security, both of these are definite benefits from using a Linux OS ! My system is fairly modest by todays standards and it operates at speeds rivaled by systems of much better specs than my own.
Kim | |
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Posted: 3/19/2007 1:46:14 PM | Linux can be very good but the quality of distributions varies
Ubuntu has a lot of good experience behind it
HOWEVER
booting off a Live-CD to test compatibility with your system is all well and good, but installing Linux to the hard drive means repartitioning the volume
IE, dividing it into sectors which will be seen as different disks to installed operating systems. This IS risky and there is a constant risk of a failed partitioning scheme leaving the data on the disk unattainable
Before you repartition your primary drive, copy anything you don't want to lose onto a CD, DVD or external hard drive. No partition manager is foolproof or failproof. | |
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Posted: 3/19/2007 3:02:05 PM | | Open SUSE is my fav as it's the only one that installs like butter on my SATA RAID setup, tried K & Ubuntu and didn't like them at all even though they seem to be all the rage lately. XanderOS is a nice and simple smooth installing distro for Linux newbies too... | |
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Posted: 3/19/2007 3:29:29 PM | Partitioning does involve some risk, but when you're ready to give it a shot, the Knoppix distro comes with a great tool, Qtparted. You can boot from the disk and partition in live mode.
Linux isn't really so scary, and the learning curve gets smaller every year. I personally like Fedora 6.
Do test compatibility and back up.......good advice from deusxmachina. | |
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Posted: 3/19/2007 3:49:02 PM |
I think they purposefully designed it the way it is so they can have some belief that they are "smarter" than those other people using other os's
It is not really a belief thing... Maybe some people install a Linux/Unix OS just to show off but I don't think that many. I don't know anyone who did that.
Linux OSes are modeled after Unix OSes that have been around for a few decades.
They were not designed for Windows people though nowaday some Linux OSes do try to get Windows users. It is not something like ReactOS (Windows clone). They are Unix-like OSes, not Windows-like OSes.
Basically, there were no Unix OSes for cheap PC hardware. So a bunch of people decided to write a free one. Starts with individual tools. Then enough stuff was there to do a self-sufficient OS.
Don't forget that Linux/Unix is very strong on servers, scientific computing, super computers. Some gaming consoles (PS3), some devices (routers, Cell phones). In some markets like super computers, MS has less than 1% market share. :o | |
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Posted: 3/19/2007 9:11:19 PM | I find Ubuntu great as well. There is good reason why people who use Windows find it very difficult to migrate to Linux, and it has nothing to do with linux whatsoever.
Let me put it this way. Those who ride or have rode the bus on more than a few occasions should remember those busses which you have to push the door open to get out. A fair number of busses still have that. Now remember the first time you went up to the rear door, and it wouldn't open. You pushed, but it would not budge. You feel dumb, you look around, there's a line up behind you and you don't know what the heck is going on, until someone tells you to wave your hand at it and voila! it opens.
For those who do not ride the bus, but drive cars. Sorry, I do not know of a comparitive example, so I'll do one related to the pumps.
Remember the days where the pumps where controlled manually? Yup, with the lever and the analogue displays, and the hand trigger? Yea, that's it. Now remember, just try hard, to remember when you drove up to your first pump that was all automatic! You get out of your car, lift up the pump, look around for the lever but it's not there! Soon you realise that there are these weird buttons. You finally figure out that you press the buttons to get the type of gas you want. So now you put the nozzel in your tank and start to squeeze the trigger and the gas comes out. Oh, and wait! your hand grows tired and you want to flick the clasp so you don't have to have your hand on the trigger but it's not there! oh drat!
What i'm getting at is that in each scenerio, we were acustomed to doing things one way. When something changed, we were puzzled and for a short while daunted at how to adapt to this change, but we did!
It is no different with Linux.
deus-x: Partitioning in Linux has come a long way. Ubuntu for instance recognizes your NTFS and other filesystems, and even other OS's on those partitions. It leaves them alone and adjusts the disk to suit the installation needs, not touching the other filesystems at all. It even puts the necessary OS entries in the boot loader. I was very amazed when I got my hands on Ubuntu. Though, I WILL admit, there were several times, years back, that I cursed and swore at Linux, just like the rest of the people who try to migrate. You just have to 'unlearn' the Windows way, which unfortunatly makes it a lot harder to learn linux than it would be for someone who never used an OS before, such as a 10yr old child or just someone who didn't feel the need to have a computer. | |
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Posted: 3/20/2007 12:20:16 AM | Most people who say that Linux is harder to install than Windows have never themselves installed Windows since it comes pre-installed on most computers. If you try installing Windows and try installing Linux, you will see that there is very little difference.
In fact installing Windows has the extra step of installing drivers for your network card and such but most of the times user-oriented distro's of linux will do it for you during installation.
Linux is really not that hard to install or use. It has come a long ways and will definitely surpass MS. | |
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Posted: 3/20/2007 6:19:29 AM |
What i'm getting at is that in each scenerio, we were acustomed to doing things one way. When something changed, we were puzzled and for a short while daunted at how to adapt to this change, but we did!
Actually, I used only Linux/Unix OSes at home and at school for several years and rarely touch Windows.
When I start working I had a Windows XP laptop and I found it quite difficult. I used Windows in the past (Win 95) and was quite good with it and some summer jobs but it was several years ago. It is almost 2 years and I am still not use and don't understand that well.
*** In other words, if you don't use Windows for several years, you might actually forget about it. It is just that it is difficult not to use Windows (work, university -- in dept other than Computer Science), etc. ***
I have no idea is Linux OSes are user friendly or not... Actually, I don't care because I am very familiar with them. I'm also a Linux/Unix programmer.
The thing is that I don't beleive that Windows XP is either. I laugh when people say that Windows is user-friendly. Is defragmenting user-friendly? Why not design a filesystem that don't fragment, MS? Is spreading the users' files about everywhere user-friendly? Yes, there is the C:\Documents and Settings\username but a lot of 3rd party apps don't use it. Is an app that refuses to both install and uninstall because it is half way install or installation broken, user-friendly? There are a lot of things in the Windows world (not all MS fault by the way) that is not an issue in the Linux/Unix world.
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BTW, I am currently learning z/OS (mainframe) for my work. It is a completely different platform than Windows or Linux/Unix. So, it will take a while to get use to it. I actually use USS which is a Unix-like emulation layer otherwise it would be crazy! BTW, just to let you know -- z/OS does not have the concept of files/directories. They have some similar that they call datasets. Also, mainframe is so old (started in the 1960) that they have an entire different vocabulary for themselves. So, you kind need a mainframe-server translation dictionary if you know what I mean.
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Posted: 3/20/2007 6:31:35 AM |
Most people who say that Linux is harder to install than Windows have never themselves installed Windows since it comes pre-installed on most computers. If you try installing Windows and try installing Linux, you will see that there is very little difference.
This is so true...
I reinstalled Win95 once for fun after having use a Linux OS for a while. And I found reinstalling it so complex. :o
Win XP might be better than Win 95 -- maybe not that much.
The thing with a Linux OS:
1) The hardware might not be supported. All new hardware will have drivers for the new Windows. On Linux, it is not always the case. However, on Linux once the hardware is supported, drivers are moved from version to version (what's working in Linux 2.4 is working in 2.6 usually). Also, drivers will work both for 32-bit mode, 64-bit mode, and all CPUs supported.
There is only one USB mouse driver -- it just get built for the right CPU...
2) Sometimes you need to read and play with config file, build a kernel and things like that to get it to work. On Windows it will usually work or not work. You don't need to recompile the Windows kernel. You might need to run around the web though for drivers... On Linux, the drivers are provided with Linux.
Let say both are not user-friendly in different ways. :) | |
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Posted: 3/20/2007 11:15:14 AM | | I understand .If you want a great linux operating system .I have tryed many linux operating system and the best one is PCLinuxOS Go to the following site http://www.pclinuxos.com/news.php and read about it .The best part is it is a livecd you download the ISO here http://www.pclinuxos.com/page.php?7 and burn it to disk pop it the cd tray reboot the cd and the way you go .You get fully fuctional Operating System does not touch your hard drive .Any other questions please get back to me . | |
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Posted: 3/20/2007 12:57:45 PM | | you don't need to be a programmer to use linux. heck, you don't need to be a programmer to custom-comple packages. I don't know squat about programming, but I'm pretty much an expert at linux. of course, there are different levels up experts, and I'm probably at the bottom, but linux has so many features its probably impossible to learn them all. I learned about ubuntu a few years ago, and I keep coming back to it. ubuntu is probably the best distro for all users. it is really easy to use, but maintains all the functionality expected from a power-user like myself, so I can have fun tweaking things that honestly don't matter, or take care of just about anything without having to configure a thing. ubuntu is heaven! | |
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Posted: 3/20/2007 1:11:00 PM | I think you should recheck your skills. just the fact you have to use automatix is proof you aren't that good with computers. there are a million ways to install things in linux- that's why it's so good. linux can be anything you want to be, it's all up to you. even if you can't install the program since there isn't a suitable package, you have the option of compiling it. compiling in windows is a pain- that's why they invented cywin (linux running in windows- comes standard with a complete compiling set)
linux is the most customizable os that ever existed, no contest. they didn't make it to make them look smarter. I'll put it this way:
you know those powerful cad, science research, government intelligence, and other programs? you need to be an expert to use those programs, and they're probably even harder to use than linux. but a simpler interface (like windows) would lack the power or flexibility to do the job. linux is still the top o.s. for servers today, because windows lacks that power. linux is the o.s. for power-users- if you can't handle it, all it means is you have a lot to learn | |
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