Background: Downloaded Debian sarge 3.1r2 sitting 7hrs(yep 256kbps@30KB/s) and installed it.
10GB - /
10GB - /home
10GB - /usr
256MB - swap

Note: My machine specs is in my sig

Questions:

1) How to install nvidia drivers? (It didn't detect any of my hardware)

2) How to install kernel 2.6.16 smp version? (Old crappy 2.6.8 installed)

3) How to install sound drivers? (It didn't detect my onboard sound)

4) How to install multimedia support? (mp3,dvd,wma etc)

5) How to install firefox, thunderbird etc?

6) How to install other misc? (java,flash etc)

7) How to upgrade to a bleeding edge debian?

In awake of the strong-debian community here who'd rather be pissed at the prospect of questions from a newbie(again), i'll appreciate any help i can get.

HELP
Thanks

Start over. Install Etch instead.

3GB - /
23.75GB - /home
3GB - /usr
256MB - swap

I just posted a howto for installing java on Debian.

Thanks rickh. Are you serious? i mean is it necessary to start over again? Man i have 2 download again? Cant i just upgrade or something?

If you are into Debian you will be using the following commands for the rest of your life to install/reinstall/config etc..In fact there are even more

apt-get install <package name>
apt-get remove <package name>
apt-cache search <package name> --->This will search the package you want. Alternatively you can use Synaptic to install or remove packages.

lspci will list the all the pci stuff on your pc.
lsmod will list the installed modules.

By default Debian installs only the base and you will throwed the command console at your face to install all the necessary packages you want. Which is a great way of learning Debian Linux.

dpkg-reconfigure --->If you want to reconfigure a package.

Before you start searching for the packages make sure you have proper repositories in your sources.list which can be seen in /etc/apt/sources.list

And also you need to apt-get update before you do the installation.

thanks@tuxuser19,

Ive done all the above things which u mentioned and am using synaptic but i need some serious directions towards kernel,nvidia etc.

Edit the file /etc/apt/sources.list and change all references to stable or sarge to testing. Rem (#) references to security.debian.org. Do apt-get update and then do apt-get dist-upgrade as root.

I'm actually quite serious. I usually warn my newbie friends that they should expect to reinstall several times before they get everything right. It's not wasted effort. You'll learn a lot in that process.

You're only giving Debian 30 gigs, and with the disk partitioning you've set up, about 15 of that is going to be wasted. The Etch install will pick up almost all your hardware, although you may eventually want to install proprietary drivers for some things. The upgrade from Sarge to Etch is iffy. Lots of people have problems with the conversion to Xorg. At the link I gave you, you only need to download a 100 mb netinstal disk, although you will need a broadband connection to complete the installation.

I recently installed Etch on a brand new AMD64 laptop, and all hardware drivers except the built-in wireless card installed 'out of the box.' (That was an rt2500 chipset which is known to work fine on Linux, but usually requires a little tweaking.) The only hardware I would expect won't install seamlessly is your TV card.

One other piece of advice ... Don't use Synaptic for you package manager. Use apt or aptitude. I would stick with apt for the time being since more people are familiar with it when you run into questions.

No you dont have to start all over, yes you can upgrade but why?

Do you need bleeding edge? Basic rule of thumb is if you have to ask how to do that you shouldn't be doing that.

To go from Sarge-Stable to Etch-Testing is usually fairly straight forward and painless, you change your sources from stable to testing and go apt-get update && apt-get dist-upgrade.

Now remember I said USUALLY straight forward and painless.

Explain how
I aint a frog in a stagnant pool, im a bird spreading my wings in the open, LOL

1. In regards to your questions, expect to get a million "google is your friend" replies. A search on "debian, install, nvidia, drivers" results in 1,140,000 results.
2. Make sure that once installed that you backup, then edit your /etc/apt/sources.list file to include contrib and non-free repositories:
deb {repository } etch main contrib non-free
deb-src {repository } etch main contrib non-free

## non-free includes items that don't fit within the Free software guidelines, such as Nvidia and FGLRX propietary drivers.
### other repositaries are available. See apt-get.org
3. I use both apt and synaptic. If you are looking for a package synaptic can be great, if you know what you are installing apt-get is better. Many of the items that you are asking about is available via apt/synaptic.
4. A quick rundown on some of the items you are looking for is at wiki.ubuntu.com/RestrictedFormats for the most part can drop the sudo from each command, once you are in a root terminal. Its not 100% compatible as there are some Ubuntu specifics, but its a 98% solution. If you get an error "file not found" then repeat the command with that omitted.
5. alsaconf is the best way to configure your sound. Make sure that the volume is up -- default is often at the lowest.
6. Using etch netinst will give you a reasonably updated system (believe 2.6.15 kernel by default). Use apt-get for bleeding edge.... but expect to break your system.
7. What do you want a "bleeding edge" system for? Is there something specific in the 2.6.16 kernel? You seem to conflict yourself: "do I have to start from scratch", using Etch, etc... and wanting bleeding edge. I would recommend a default Etch install, grab KDE, and then a second partition/installation of Debian Etch upgraded to SID if you really want to try bleeding edge. But at some point you will probably break your system with SID.

Actually Testing the past few months has been more likely to break than Sid.

If you go for Etch or Sid make sure you install apt-listbugs and pay attention to the bugs that are listed before OK-ing the update or install.

I've looked and looked. What is Sid?

I had all but decided to download Etch once I've recovered from installing Mandriva 2006 on a new machine, attempting and failing to get SuSE 10 up and running, changing from dialup to broadband and getting VOIP.

Some comments here are a little offputting. I'd like to know, among other things:

1. Is it really necessary to have recourse to so many sources for information? This is one thing that makes Linux generally so difficult. Is there no comprehensive single Help source?
2. I understand allocating a partition to the system and separate partitions to /home and swap. What is the /user partition?
3. 30Gb?! I've given Mandriva 10Gb for /, which is more than it needs and 2Gb for /home which is woefully inadequate. I would have thought 15 Gb split more or less evenly was adequate. Not so?
4. Is Debian so much better than other distros that it's worth descending into the Dark Ages of command lines for everything?

"Sid" is the permanent name for the Unstable branch.

You are voicing what I like to call "Musacchia's Complaint" after a local friend who is forever bewailing the diversity of GNU/Linux. My suggestion, however unfeeling, is learn to live with it -- it is a necessary & inevitable result of Open Source/Free Software. Elimate the diversity & you might as well go back to M$ or whatever.

It's /usr, & it's where, among other things, most of your non-system software goes. See http://www.debian.org/doc/packaging-manuals/fhs/

I think you'll find that OP used 10G for /, & the later recommendation was for 3G not 30G.

Bad premise, at least in most hackers' opinion: the CLI is not "the Dark Ages". I'm sure others will be happy to explain all the neat things you can do there, scripts for just one example, that you can't do in the GUI. Besides w/ Konsole & other xterms, you can use the CLI w/o Dark Ages eyestrain.


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Any chance it integrates w/ KPackage?

Accidentally re-posted due to new site edit function (or my lack of understanding thereof).