Linux

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rebel

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What's the best distro to get? I'm new to Linux and I need something that's easy to setup.
 
It all depends how much you want to get your hands dirty.

If this is your first time, I strongly recommend a "live CD" which you can boot off to explore before deciding to take the plunge and either dual boot, or have a dedicated linux box.

Remember that to all intents and purposes, linux is really just the kernel, so it doesn't matter that much which distribution you choose if you want to get "under the hood" so to speak.

If you just want to noodle in X11 with KDE, Gnome, or XFCE (and many other desktop managers) then any of the main distributions are fine - Fedora (redhat), Mandriva (mandrake), Suse or Ubuntu.

Live CD's :-

http://www.osnews.com/story.php?news_id=9569
 
I just installed Suse on a spare desktop i had lying around, was the first time I had ever seen Linux and its really great and easy to use. If the others are this easy then I suppose it doent matter but Suse works like a charm for me
 
yeah - suse is a breeze to use.

If your going for Desktop Linux, then you have to find one that suits you and your hardware.

If your doing multimedia stuff - like watching videos or mp3, I'd avoid Fedora. Suse or Mandriva are probably the right choice.

Personally, I'm a slackware junkie.
 
Find that the live CD's out now don't support the latest GPU's. It is a problem to load Xwindows.
 
bb_matt said:
If your doing multimedia stuff - like watching videos or mp3, I'd avoid Fedora. Suse or Mandriva are probably the right choice.
Click to expand...
That's exactly what I wanna use it for, for now. Once I get used to it I'll start 'getting my hands dirty' so to speak. Thx for your help guys. :)
 
I've been using gentoo for a while now - but I wouldn't recommend it to someone who has no experience in linux. You basicly start with only the kernel and then add software as you go along. Ubuntu is a good choice for a beginner - their forums seem to be very friendly and helpful. It is debian based.

One of the important differences between distros is the way they update their software. Most are rpm based, but that system is old. Gentoo uses portage and debian uses APT. Read here for more:
http://wiki.linuxquestions.org/wiki/Distro_differences
 
My problem is the lack of documentation - ie how do I set up a web server, something I have wanted to try? And how do I set up a winmodem? And how do I install something when the file I download is some file I don't know what to do with?

Anyone know of a linux disto with exxelant beginers documentation - thanks :)
 
I've tried SuSe, Gentoo, Ubuntu and Impi and I found Gentoo the most tedious. The others were all a breeze. Impi (developed for South Africans) is incredibly easy to setup and works well for someone wanting to learn about Linux...even comes with a Sentech MyWireless connection app. SuSe was a good distro but I found (relatively minor) problems with installing software, etc.
 
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kilps said:
My problem is the lack of documentation - ie how do I set up a web server, something I have wanted to try? And how do I set up a winmodem? And how do I install something when the file I download is some file I don't know what to do with?

Anyone know of a linux disto with exxelant beginers documentation - thanks :)
Click to expand...

The actual problem is that there is way too much documentation spread all over the place !

There is a long standing effort to collate all linux documentation, called, unsuprisingly, The Linux Documentation Project :-

http://www.tldp.org/tldp-redirect.php?url=/

That is one of the best places to start.

Then there is the Linux.org website, one of the many essential places to start learning the basics of Linux, here's a link to free online courses :-

http://www.linux.org/lessons/index.html

As with anything related to learning computers, a LOT of reading will be required, as well as a few headaches !
 
infoseeker said:
I've tried SuSe, Gentoo, Ubuntu and Impi and I found Gentoo the most tedious. The others were all a breeze. Impi (developed for South Africans) is incredibly easy to setup and works well for someone wanting to learn about Linux...even comes with a Sentech MyWireless connection app. SuSe was a good distro but I found (relatively minor) problems with installing software, etc.
Click to expand...
What are you using atm? I always get confused with impi and ubuntu. Since you used both, how do they compare?
 
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