Hey,

I have an Acer Travelmate 240, and have just formatted my windows infested HD. All I need to convince me that Linux is the future of all things computing is for me to be able to set it up to do the following:

1 - Play Tool and Led Zeppelin, from MP3 and CD
2 - Play South Park and Trailer Park Boys Divx
3 - Browse the net and communicate using GAIM

It's not a lot to ask, so I am fairly confident it'll all work out. Thus far, I have installed Debian using just Disc 1 and about 2 hours of 'Desktop Environment' additional downloads, but my built in sound card doesn't work, and my screen res is locked to 800x600, despite specifying 1024x768 in the setup.

I also have a Knoppix 4.0 disc, which boots straight into a beautiful 1024x768 GUI, with full sound support. The standard knoppix live 'install' is my ideal OS starting point, but obviously it's not ideal for daily use (I need my CD drive!)

So, My questions (I had to get there in the end!) are:

1 - should I be using Debian? It is a little intense for a complete Newcomer such as myself (I admit I am lame, please don't remind me!)
2 - What OS installs with the kind of automatic device detection and driver installation that Knoppix has?

I really need the simplest-to-install Linux Distro, with the most automatic config going, just so I can get an HDD based OS that I can start to learn in. I love the feel of Knoppix, but it is useless to have everything reset every time I start the machine.

ANY advice (even if it's 'Go back to windows and stop wasting our time') would be much appreciated. I never want to have to install or use windows ever again. Oh, and I have a time limit on my learning curve (just to make it more fun), as I am moving to Madrid in just over two months, at which point my Net access is going to be very limited for a time, so I am aiming to get myself sorted before I go.

Thanks guys!

I've installed Mepis and it worked great and was a real easy install. Others say to try out Ubuntu. Both are newbie oriented distros and should be a piece of cake to get loaded up.

F_M

Thanks, I've got Kubuntu d/l'ing overnight - i'll install tomorrow and see how that goes - it sounds pretty ideal, as it's all on one disc. we'll see how the device detection goes. The bummer about installing on a secondhand laptop is inability to take it apart and check components and stuff, and the lack of a manual with tech specs. it was the question about the video bus that threw me on the debian install. Plus, it's an acer, so the 'support' is abysmal...

Fingers crossed.

mofoitk,

Welcome to LQ!

Don't worry about getting ripped on for not knowing stuff, you've found your way to the friendliest forum on the 'net! Just don't go picking fights, and you'll never have to worry about getting flamed!

Anyway...to Linux!

One thing to keep in mind is that, regardless of Distro, Linux is Linux. What one can do, they ALL can do; some Distros may do it a bit differently, and other Distros may require you to set it up yourself, but they all use the same kernel.

If you've already had a successful Debian install, I say run with it.

Here are some links to get you started on your learning curve:
The Rute Users Tutorial and Exposition
The Linux Documentation Project

Edit:
BTW, you CAN install Knoppix to your hard drive. Google and Search for instructions.

Yeah, I can tell this is like some kind of super-happy hippy forum! Thank god... And I am a pacifist, so I won't be picking fights with anyone - it's not going to help me or anyone else, so why bother?

Well, the debian install wasn't exactly successful - knowing that some distros can detect my hardware successfully (i.e. Knoppix) Then at this stage of my learning I'd rather shortcut and install a distro that detects my graphics and audio automatically. I need to get the basics down before I can get my head around manual driver config. I did d/l the ALSA driver for my sound card, but when I tried to integrate some of the code into one of the files in /etc it gave me hassle about me not being the owner - from what I know now I guess I should have logged in as root. Or something... God knows, I'll get there in the end.

I am installing Kubuntu at present, which is looking hopeful already, so we'll see what happens!

Thanks guys!

Good luck with the install.

The forums here are awesome. You will occasionally get a "Google is your friend" type of response, but that is usually because either that person is annoyed with the question coming in all the time, or it's pretty obvious that you hadn't done any work before asking the question. But if you demonstrate that you did do a little research first, and ask it in an intelligent way, like you did, people are thrilled to help. I'm still a newbie, but I've found that by reading the forums and trying to answer other newbie's questions, it's really expanded my knowlege of Linux. I wish I was learning quicker, but full time work, college on-line and a wife and 2 kids at home really have impacted my time to learn Linux.

You should never log in as root. If you need to do anything that requires root access, like installing the ALSA drivers, pull up a terminal window and do an su - give it your root password and when finished do an exit.

F_M

I'm not really sure how newbie friendly SuSE 10.0, as I know my way around. However, I can say that it is easier to install, configure, and use than any other distro. Moreover, it looks and feels so much more professional and exciting and feature rich.

Well kubuntu is up and running, and it's got my graphics and sound all worked out - sweet! However, It is lacking USB support that knoppix has. This is a bummer, but I am working on it. I have one USB 2.0 HDD caddy and a USB 2.0 MMC card adaptor that works as a mass storage device, both of which mounted automatically and on the fly in Knoppix.

Is there a simple USB solution that I haven't come across? I have searched the web for something that allows for easy USB connectivity

I don't mean to keep harping on about knoppix, but it has been the most successful OS thus far, so I guess it's kind of set the benchmark for me. I tried an HDD install, but it failed because of write privelages as I remember.

[I'm going to digress here and vent my frustrations, but I'll get to my point in the end.]

What I don't get (and maybe I haven't found the right distro for me yet, or maybe I need to read every single 'retard's guide' going) is why Knoppix can boot into a perfectly functional OS that has all the usb support that I need as well as automatically detecting all my hardware and configuring it perfectly, and all on the fly, yet I can't figure out how to set this up in an HDD based distro. I am a competent computer user in a windows environment (I co-ran an internet cafe for 6 months, and have been a source of computing knowledge for many of my friends for years), yet I am completely baffled by all of this Linux stuff. I try and enter commands exactly as I read them online, and in the right place, and I have not had a single positive result. Even getting into the knoppix install, which should have been a case of following to the letter, I had to find the REAL name of the installer... just to have it fail on me. I downloaded Firefox, as I prefer it to Konqueror, and neither of the two hopeful looking 'installer' items in the .gz file (which I HAD unpacked to a folder) did anything other than begin to expand a window from the icon and then stop. I discovered that I could d/l and install firefox automatically using the application updater in Kubuntu, yet after installing I couldn't find firefox anywhere, nor a configuration device that allowed me to make it visible in the menu. I did however get the option of setting the default HTML handler as Firefox, so I know it's in there somewhere. I just can't get to it.

What I'm trying to say is, although Linux has reached the stage where it is far more accesible to the average chump on the street than it has been for years, it is still a complete f*****g nightmare if you've never used it before. There is so much material on it that is sometimes too hard to work out what you should be reading. However, There exist some of the most brilliant forums on the entire internet, populated by a lot of the smartest and friendliest people on the planet. Thank you to all of you guys. You are what is going to keep making Linux stronger, until one day we have a definitive replacement for windows and Mac OS, and another blow to capitalism and inhumanity will be made. ...For Great Justice.

For now, I am going to keep stuggling with Linux. I may no longer be able to use my computer for the simplest tasks, but I swear to god... ANYTHING IS BETTER THAN WINDOWS!

Thank you again guys,

jim

I'm a windows admin in the real world and I've had some issues with Linux. The biggest hurdle I had was getting it thru my thick skull that Linux does not do things the same. It's an entirely new way of thinking. I had such a hard time with the fact that the GUI is not part of the system. You can do a lot without it, some of the experts around here can probably do everything without the GUI.

My suggestion would be to read everything you can. Play with it as much as you can. Install a distro, configure it, wipe the drive and start all over again. Using it is the best teacher.

Just stick with it. It all comes together eventually.

F_M

the best place to start understanding linux is

http://www.linuxfromscratch.org

I started out using knoppix and std , then phlak,pc linux,dsl,feather and so on.
My first distro which i installed about a year or so ago was Debian but i couldn't get past the install so i tryed Mandrake 10.1
I found Mandrake very easy to install and was very newbie friendly.
I've also used Redhat 8.0/9.0 and currently Fedora Core 4 on my IBM T30.
Which i am really enjoying and it feels awkward to go back to windows machines now lol.

I really think Windows would be a hit if they did it as a live distro lol.
That way i wouldn't have to put up with it being on one computer and needing it for certain things.

Misc comments:

1. Welcome to LQ!
2. I just happen to be listening to 'Trampled Under Foot' right now. Sweet! Good call on the tunes.
3. Have fun in Spain
4. More seriously, there is no right or wrong answer when it comes to the "which distro" question. Really the only answer is to try several, and then decide for yourself which one best fits your needs and preferences. Two excellent sources for many of the most popular distros are the LQ ISO and LinuxISO, and if you really want variety check out distrowatch. In no particular order, some of the current distros are Ubuntu, Fedora, SuSE, Debian, Slackware, Mandriva, and others. Obviously, there's no practical way to try out _every_ distro, nor is there any need to, but I would suggest checking out a handful. If you're interested in what other people are doing, check out distrowatch's Most Popular statistics

In any case, if you're looking for a clean, out-of-the-box install, I'd suggest giving SuSE a try. Good luck with it whatever your 'distro decision' might be. Knoppix does an amazing job when it comes to hardware detection, and there is an option to install Knoppix to your harddrive; it may be worth going in that direction if it's working for you

jim, I believe the reason your Knoppix install failed is because Knoppix mounts hard drives read only by default. Since Knoppix seems to be what you want, let's see if we can't get it for you.

Let's start with the easiest method, and see if we can't get you going.
I got these instructions from the Knoppix Hard Disk Installation HOWTO

• Boot Knoppix, at the prompt choose
  Code:

  boot: knoppix lang=en

  and allow Knoppix to load fully, including the KDE desktop.
• Hit CTRL-ALT-F1 to switch to a root terminal.
• type
  Code:

  knx-hdinstall

and it should walk you through the rest of the install process. I recommend you follow the above link and read it thoroughly a couple times before you attempt this, as it appears you'll need to change the default language after the reboot, unless you want it in German.

If you need more, here's the Google search I used to find the HowTo:http://www.google.com/search?hs=ze8&...on&btnG=Search

One word: Ubuntu