Another "Which Linux is for me?" thread

Hello everyone here,
I want to get into Linux,
I have used Windows since I was about 5 (I taught myself to read on a PC...)
Now I feel like I have really gottem all of the features of windows down

But I am still unhappy with Windows being so User unfriendly(when the user know a lot about the O/S and wants to do more controlling) and how much it doesn't tell me (like it has loaded a trojan onto my RAM every time I boot and therefore I can't find it finally got rid of it using a firestorm method)

So I went looking for other O/S'
I looked at:
OS X: I hate all the fanboys...
Linux: seemed like a good choice for me but there are so many versions I don't know what to choose!

I talked to a Linux user at my school and asked him which one I should use after I told him what I wanted he said that I should use Fedora Core... but I am looking for more suggestions

What I know about Linux:
Red Hat is a Linux O/S for servers
beside that 0!

This is what I have ready:
a 30GB unformatted partition

This what the version of Linux must do:
NOT keep me in the dark like Windows does (I know how to use computers I want the O/S to treat me like it)
Play a few high-power games (I heard Doom 3 can run on Fedora Core...idk)
Utilize my new screen (Dell 2005FPW with 1680x1050 or WSXGA+)
use my dual-core processor (an AMD Athlon 64 X2 4400+)
Use/recognize my video card (a nVidia 7800GTX)

I will also need:
An explantion of how to dual-boot it with Windows XP Pro

Looking forward to Linux!!
Thanks In Advance,
-TBird

 

If you're starting off with linux for the first time, i'd recommend trying Ubuntu, it's what I was refered to. Plus there's a very well made site describing in detail how to set up a dual boot config with windows.

To D/L Ubuntu image:

http://www.ubuntu.com/download


the Guide: ( Well worth a read )

http://users.bigpond.net.au/hermanzone/

Hope that helps get you started

 

Well first of all your hardware couldnt be any better for linux support. The AMD64 will definitely help with linux and Nvidia graphics are better in linux.

I too suggest Ubuntu for someone new to linux. RH is just not very good with their package management.

 

Ok I was reading the dual-boot guide you gave me a link to and I immediately had a ?:
What is this "/home" directory?
Is it the actual O/S?
As I read along (It is a real nice guide Thanks! )
I looked at the partition screen and saw the options
Will this allow me to leave all of my other partitions alone and just use the Windows Partitions I created?

Also:
My linux user friend said that Linux versions are set up for specific types of users...is this true?
Like is there one made for gamers?
One for programmers?
Thanks for the help as I expand into Linux,
-TBird

 

The directory /home is sorta like My Documents. Within it all the users setup on the computer will have their own personal folder.

Certain Distros are more setup for n00bs, where as some are way more advanced. You can program/game on any distro since the programs are probably the same. However to install the games/programs dependso n the distro.

Good distros like Gentoo or Debian have amazing package management systems. I have heard even SuSE has improved upon YAST.

 

I use Kanotix ( www.kanotix.com). It's based on Debian and does have very good package (program/application) management. What that means is it won't install C if required pieces A and B are missing for some reason. It will go get A and B, install them, and then do C for you. This usually keeps you out of what's called 'dependency hell'. Kanotix comes with lots of scripts and tools to make the noob's life easier, like isntall scripts for nvidia and ati drivers, network config tools, and such. As the others have said you have a GREAT system for running linux. Kanotix even has precompiled kernels for amd dual core cpu, so you can get the most out of it

 

as for gaming Linux is getting better every day...
I have Quake 4, Doom 3, UT 2004, Savage Demo running natively...
Through cedega (which is sort of like an emulator but not quite since it does not emulate NT code I believe) I play WOW, WC 3 FT, Farcry, CS Source...
Cedega is proprietary (did I spell this wrong?) software but you can try it for free (time limited) and if you buy it it is 15$ for 3 months and you get to keep what you've downloaded so keep downloading the latest releases and you will be playing newer games (hopefully)

Installers like YAST2 for SuSE take care of dual-boot process during installation, you only have to point to it where windows is (99% of the time it is detected automatically) and if it is detected wrong you can edit your grub configuration file to "show" it the windows bootloader and voila you're up and running. You see everything in linux is about knowing the file directory structure first so you know where to look for, this should be an immediate goal for any newcomer.

If you wanna "uninstall" linux you should just use your XP installation Cd and at the recovery console type "Fixmbr" -which will overwrite MBR and remove GRUB/Lilo whatever bootloader you're using- AND delete the linux partition.
As a general rule format a piece of your hdd with fat32 so it will be like a swapping zone bw your windows and linux (where you store mp3, divX etc...) since linux can't write to NTFS (well it can but it's highly experimental and by the time it will write to NTFS MS will come up with a new FS for sure so it'll be useless perhaps)


edit : if you are into gpx overclocking use the nvclock tool, it is easy to compile and almost never fails to install...

 

hey cool noah, i lived in "dependency hell" for all my life, great distro you got there. And for the thread starter, ubuntu will be good for ya. You can get them to ship real nice cds FOC to you too. Takes a bit long though, but the cds are really rewarding.

 

I like Fedora Core
I have been using it for at least a year. I've tryed Ubuntu too but I don't like the package management there. I havent tryed Dapper Drake yet but I might give it a try in some near future.
Btw Ubuntu has great user support. The forum is active and the community is helpful.
It's harder to get solutions to your problems in Fedora Forum so you like gotta find the solutions yourself (not all times ofc).

 

Well, like you TBird i was once new to the linux world, however i took the hard road and chose ArchLinux. It is what i use now, and also what i started with. It is described as not being a distro for n00bs, but i think you will learn far more from that distro than you would learn from other distros. When you first install it you are left with nothing but a text based prompt and you build it from the ground up. I learned so much from that distro, i couldnt see myself moving to another distro.

I would reccomend you start with a few live distros (linux that runs entirely off a CD/DVD). Once you get a bit of a feel for linux, you will be ready to install and configure the whole thing.

Linux is far different from windows in the sense that if you want something done you can do it, but you have to read, and then edit configuration files for them to work. It takes a lot of trial and error for you to fully learn linux, but once you do, you will be able to do anything you could do in windows (within reason) and more.

I would reccomend you read this awesome tutorial: Rute User's Tutorial and Exposition Dont let the name throw you off, it sounds extremely complicated, but it is a solid read. This tutorial will also teach you of several commands you will need in order to use linux.

Hope this helps and happy distros!

 

I started out using Mandrake a bunch of years ago (I think 8 years now) and got tired of trying to find packages that were compatible with Mandrake (Mandriva now), so I switched to Red Hat and followed it to Fedora Core. I've always liked the Redhat package manager, and with FC5, they have a much nicer interface for dealing with installing and updating packages (going through yum, kind of a RedHat Package Manager auto-manager ;-) ). I think FC5 has a wonderful interface (installer is anaconda, very easy) for new users. Linux is never for the unable, but for those willing to learn.
I can't compare it to Debian based systems or SuSe either, since I've never tried either. However, since FC5 is based on Redhat, it has the largest user community of any Linux distro, so online help is never far away. It also means the Redhat packages are easy to find at rpmfind.net, atrpms.net, freshmeat, etc. As far as the active forums comments above, most questions have been asked, and answered for Redhat based systems, so like any good user, read a bunch first, posting shouldn't be the first step.
And nVidia is the way to go for Linux...I have a Thinkpad T60 with an ATI and I have to use a generic driver for it right now because ATI doesn't release source for their drivers (you have to build drivers for your specific kernel), though I'm sure in a few weeks/months, I'll be able to get a compatible driver.

 

what is redhat? fedora core? etc. are they the linux os itself or just the GUI part that handles linux?

 

Red Hat and Fedora Core are different distros of linux. Basically its a different flavor. Distros are different from each other in certain ways.

 

I'll toss in a recommendation for Slackware.

I found it really easy to get installed and running, and there's lots of support online.

www.slackbook.org is good reading if you're new. And, you learn a lot on that distro. Wheras something like ubuntu will push you more towards hand-holding graphical interfaces and the like, Slackware will naturally push you a bit more towards learning how things work, on some level or another. (That's quite a generalization... I don't mean to imply absolutes, just that slackware's more that way than Ubuntu and similiar).

slackware allows you to convert rpms to tgz format for use with slackware's own installpkg program. i've had success using that. and you can always install a program like checkinstall and then install things from source as packages, which is usually much much more straightforwards than it sounds.

good luck in your search.

PS. You seemed a bit confused on what a linux distro is. a kind of simplific explanation would be to say that linux is the kernel, the core of the operating system. You can compile your own kernel no matter what distro you have, though some make it harder than others. The distros ship their own specific kernel configuration, and their own choice of software to go with it, including various window managers and desktop environments.

oh, and a big part of what differentiates one distro from another is what software they include to manage how programs are installed and upgraded. like debian has apt, and slackware has a more straightforwards pkgtools, and fedora has their whole rpm thing.

PPS. if you want slackware to do all the stuff you mentioned in your first post, it's very doable, but you'll probably have to recompile your kernel once, and maybe look into some configuration files and things. As long as you approach things on a case-by-case basis, it's not bad. Google tends to bring up relevant stuff easily. It's just a matter of reading and playing.

another edit: an anecdote on dual booting: i installed windows first, then slackware behind it. during the install it recognized the windows partition and set up lilo accordingly. no work on my part. i imagine other distros will do the same for you.

 

As far as having control goes, I'd say Debian is suitable for you. Steep learning curve for that however, so Ubuntu (which is derived from Debian) might be a better first step. The Debian package managing system (which I believe Ubuntu also uses in some way) is great.

As for differences between distributions, it's all in how they are set up - the actual core of the system is the same for all and most things will work across distributions just fine.

And I'll chime in with l33t_c0w - to get dualbooting set up, first partition, then install Windows on one partition, then install Linux and lilo/grub will take care of everything for you pretty much as far as bootmenus and such go.

 

I'm pretty new to Linux as well. I started using virtual machines and whatnot late last year through Windows, and Ubuntu was the first I used. So when I got my new computer this week I decided to take the plunge and I reformatted my old computer to Ubuntu. I have been using it for a few days, and it is a good startup distro (I've used FC4, FC5, DSL, and SUSE). Ubuntu seems to be set up to help users migrate from Windows. Unfortunately, that means that when something goes wrong, you're so based in the GUI that you don't know what to do to fix it, just like Windows. I'm planning on moving around to another, more complex distro sometime, but right now I'm just getting used to the file structure and program layout again. Ubuntu's package manager is very helpful, I must agree.

 

Try out this little tool/survey.
http://www.zegeniestudios.net/ldc/
It asks you questions about what you want to do and how well you handle computers, then recommends a distro for you.