Linux

[David R. Felter]

OK, who is using Linux? And what flavor are you using?

I am giving serious consideration to converting all of my home computers to Linux. I really want something that is relatively easy to install and set up. I have looked at SuSe (Novell now), but my curiousity is really spiked when I look at the Mandriva distribution. Does anyone have experience with either of these distributions? I am wanting to start this process tonight (on one pc as a test) and am going to download the Mandriva distribution and get it installed.

Any input is greatly appreciated.

[Brad Mercer]

I installed a version of Linux on my parents' computer a few months ago with no trouble at all. I know nothing about Linux, but I think the distribution I used was called Mepis. It was Debian. There was one point where it wanted me to enter the word "admin" or something easy but not intuitive like that, as a username or password or something. I had to call a geek friend to get that information, but other than that one little stumbling block, it practically installed itself. It didn't take long. I added Mozilla Firefox and Thunderbird as their browser and e-mail programs. My 67-year-old, very untechnological mother has had no trouble at all using it. OpenOffice now inlcudes a database program like MS Access, which was something I needed. I haven't tried running my Bible software on Linux, but I assume with a Windows emulation program of some sort it would run okay. There doesn't really seem to be a good Bible software for Linux, but other than that it looks completely adequate. My daughter is considering switching her laptop over to Linux when she gets back to SNU in a couple of weeks. She already uses OpenOffice, Firefox, Thunderbird and an all in one IM program called Trillian that has a version for LInux, so it won't be much of a leap for her.

Brad

[Jonathan Long]

Why don't you try one of the versions that will run off of a CD?

That way you can see what it's like without reformatting or partitioning your hard drive.

Keep in mind that when running of a CD your system will run very slowly, so it's not a good indication of performance.

Jon

[David R. Felter]

I will look at Mepis! Thanks for that info.

I have thought about using a LiveCD instead of doing the full install. The main reason that I chose to go with the full install is the fact that the 'test pc' is a little used pc in the basement that currently is only being used as an ftp and print server. I want to "test" the ease of installation in addition to getting a good sense of how Linux will perform and the LiveCD just won't give me that information.

[Bob Wright]

We used Mepis for awhile, but switched to Ubuntu. Both are debian based and use apt-get to find and install programs. SuSe is about the best of the packaged versions. Mepis or Ubuntu are both free downloads if you have broadband access.

[Gina Stevenson]

... forget Linux if you've got dial-up, are you saying? Or just certain kinds of Linux?

We used Mepis for awhile, but switched to Ubuntu. Both are debian based and use apt-get to find and install programs. SuSe is about the best of the packaged versions. Mepis or Ubuntu are both free downloads if you have broadband access.

[Brad Mercer]

We used Mepis for awhile, but switched to Ubuntu. Both are debian based and use apt-get to find and install programs. SuSe is about the best of the packaged versions. Mepis or Ubuntu are both free downloads if you have broadband access.

Why did you switch to Ubuntu? Do you like it more? What are its advantages? How does SuSe compare to Ubuntu or Mepis? Have you used a Windows-based Bible software package with Linux? Did it work okay?

Brad

[Bob Wright]

I didn't mean you can't use Linux if you have dial-up, but it is very difficult to download CDs from the web using a dial-up connection. Mepis and Ubuntu are only one CD, but downloading 600 to 700 MB of data using dial-up demands at least some kind of download utility and a great deal of patience. Linux is actually better for internet use after installation. I get faster downloads, and the system is much more efficient that windows. My son was the one who really led the switch to Ubuntu. I do like it better. It has an add program functionality, which I believe uses a graphic form of apt-get to install programs. I installed audacity and some other programs using that function. Ubuntu was actually the winner of research on the best Linux program for office use. Mepis is a great program. If you like it, stay with it, unless you would like to experiment with Ubuntu. Apparently Christian programmers are slow to move to Linux. The Bible programs are not as good, and if I could find a replacement for MediaShout, SongShow Plus, etc. I would move entirely to Linux on my notebook. At present a dual boot system with XP and Linux is my preference.

[David R. Felter]

Bob, is right on with the download times. I have DSL and to download each cd took about 50 minutes to an hour each (3 cds). I kicked off the process using my ftp client (FileZilla) and went to bed. I am getting ready to start the installation process and will update the thread to let you know how it goes.

[David R. Felter]

Update: The conversion from Windows to Linux has not gone smoothly. I downloaded the Mandriva cd's (3 of them) and the installation would start, but I would get an error (file not found) about 10 minutes into it and it would terminate the installation. So I downloaded the Ubuntu cd. It got 29% completed and said it could not find a file (different file than the Mandriva error). Very frustrating.

Now I am downloading the 5 SuSE cd's and am going to try that tonight.

[Jonathan Long]

David,

Are you in a hurry? or could you just order the Cd's There are several places that charge a minimal fee for different distributions. Even if you don't get the latest version... and have to download some updates It might make more sence to buy a CD.....

Jon

[Keith Isley]

I like Ubuntu; have installed it on several test machines. I have noticed that the Ubuntu CD is picky; if the CD isn't completly clean/scratch free, it will error out as described above. Sometimes the burn doesn't go right as well. Usually, if I burn the CD again, I can get it to install.

[David R. Felter]

Last night I made a new cd of the Ubuntu distribution and installed it with no problems. So far I am liking Linux (Ubuntu) very well although I have not set up the ftp server yet, nor have I tried networked printing (that'll come later). But so far so good.