Linux beginner needs help with jargon

Guys I just started using Linux, specifically Pinguy OS

I'm very very new at Linux and the jargon. Can someone help me?

1. What is Debian? Is it an interface, code, OS?? What? It seems to be the underlying foundation for Linux..

2. What is KDE, LXDE, Gnome, XFCE? They also seem to be some GUI.

3. There are a lot of tweaks to be done. How do I get to the Boot loader and the GRUB menu? What is the Terminal? How are the 3 different?

Thanks!

 

1. Debian is an OS, or distribution, as we like to say. Oh and, you'll probably see these around: .deb files are installer files used on Debian-based distributions. It's like an .exe file.

2. These are different desktop environments (so yes, GUI's), which are basically collections of programs that give your computer a certain look. Ex: Each of these desktop environments have a different program to use as the file manager. GNOME (the most common GUI) uses Nautilus. My current DE, called ROX Desktop, uses ROX-Filer.

KDE is the heaviest and "flashiest" DE. GNOME is a bit less flashy, but it is the most common DE and has lower system requirements. Xfce requires less from your system still, and is not as flashy as GNOME. LXDE is the least demanding of the GUI's you listed. However, there are many more DE's than those few.

GRUB is a boot loader. I think getting to it may be different for different operating systems. I believe you have to hold shift at boot for Ubuntu, but I'm not positive. Perhaps it is the esc key.

I guess you could say the terminal is the Linux equivalent of Windows's Command Prompt. However, if I am not mistaken (I don't know much about Command Prompt), the majority of terminal emulators have more functionality. It's quite a valuable tool to learn more about the terminal emulator commands for your distro. In Ubuntu, for example, I can install many programs all at once with only one line of command!

Happy Linux-ing!

*Disclaimer* I am not an expert. :/

 

Hey thanks.

 

Just a bit more info.

The Linux OS by itself is actually quite small and minimal. Distributions like Debian are Linux with a bunch of other programs, tools and preconfigured settings so Linux runs like what you would expect from a full OS off the bat.

The two main distributions that alot of other distributions are at least partially based off of are Debian and Red Hat. The popular Ubuntu Linux is based off of Debian.

The redhat version of the .deb installer files are .rpm if you ever run into them.

 

Ok so .deb = debian
.rpm = redhat

And .exe = windows I assume?

What is Linux mint based off of?

 

Mint is a debian (deb/dpkg) based distro as far as package management is concerned.

 

Linux Mint is based on Ubuntu, but beware of Mint, as it redirects Google to a Mint-specific page to generate advertising revenue. Creepy.

 

I believe this is only in the Firefox search bar. It's not creepy. I'm fairly certain you can change this in the settings and they're pretty open that they do this to gain revenue. It's not like they're trying to hide the fact.

Oddly enough, Mint doesn't allow you to remove Firefox. You can, but then it installs a bunch of random web browsers. If you uninstall those, it installs Firefox again. It's a weird bug that I suspect was done on purpose.

 

Agreed and I don't have a problem with them doing it. They build a nice distro and if that means they have a way of generating some revenue, it's fine by me.

 

Don't think of Linux packages like of Windows executables! They are not regular programs. Rather think of them as special archives:
deb (file format) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

The comparison to Windows *.exe files might somewhat work if you think of them as setup.exe files or zipped installed .exe files. It's more complicated, but when you're getting started that should probably suffice.

 

I would say that a .deb or .rpm package is more similar to .msi or .cab installer packages.