Learning Linux, need help picking out Distro.

Kenny_Strawn · 08-15-2010, 03:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by snowpine

I couldn't disagree with this more; the "upstream vendor" (Red Hat) routinely backports the latest hardware support to the kernel to the point it really isn't 2.6.18 at all but rather a mutant super-kernel. My experience with CentOS 5.x as a workstation operating system has been overwhelmingly positive, even on my Dell Mini netbook.

Also as I'm sure you know, there will be a new Red Hat/CentOS release later this year that has 2.6.32 and all the latest "stuff." (You can test-drive the Beta today if you like!)

"CentOS does not support any hardware" is a ludicrous statement.

Yeah, I know. But I would rather have the latest support/kernel and latest GNOME all the time, which is why I would go with Fedora if I wanted something like RH. But it's your choice.

Edit: Oh, and will the new Red Hat/CentOS come with GTK3 (GTK+ 2.90)? If not, will the required build dependencies be in the CentOS repository to be able to git clone GTK3 and build it?

Code:

git clone git://git.gnome.org/gtk+ gtk3

kindofabuzz · 08-15-2010, 04:46 PM

I love how these "which distro for a beginner" questions turn out to be a discussion of linux veterans discussing which distro is better for them instead of actually helping the beginner.

snowday · 08-15-2010, 05:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kindofabuzz

I love how these "which distro for a beginner" questions turn out to be a discussion of linux veterans discussing which distro is better for them instead of actually helping the beginner.

Welcome to the internet.

Digikid13 · 08-15-2010, 11:57 PM

It's perfectly fine, I got Ubuntu 10.4 working on my laptop and now I'm just trying to learn things. ^^

dugan · 08-16-2010, 12:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kenny_Strawn

Slackware?!?! It's not for newbies, and for Windows users is one of the hardest distros to learn, as you have to type commands just to get Internet working (and if you want to get wireless working using net-config, good luck).

Considering that this particular newbie is about to go to college for IT, this might be exactly the kind of experience he would benefit from. Slackware also gives you an extremely well-tested stock install, and makes it as easy as possible to a) change every aspect of it, and b) revert to it when you break stuff experimenting. I certainly benefited from that as as newbie.

And btw, you don't use net-config to get wireless working in Slackware. You just install wicd and use its GUI

.

Quote:

Originally Posted by brianL

Try a few for a few days each, then settle for the one you like best. That's the only way to choose.

It takes more than a few days to really get a feel for any distro. Two weeks would be a minimum, imho.

I mean, we all react the same way when people start threads saying "I tried your favorite distro for a few days and these are the reasons I don't like it."

sag47 · 08-17-2010, 11:02 PM

The best method for partitioning on Windows 7 is...

Click on start, right click on Computer, and select Manage
Go to Storage > Disk Management in the mmc
Right click on your drive and select Shrink Volume...

NOTE: It's better to defrag and optimize your drive using a utility such as MyDefrag because Disk Management will only shrink the volume down to the nearest fragment. Which is why shrinking a fragmented volume will produce undesirable results.

After that install any aforementioned XYZ distro and they all usually detect Windows and setup grub accordingly. If you run into troubles we're here to help you either fix it or assist you with restoring your computer the way you want it.

dugan · 08-18-2010, 08:29 AM

Adding to sag47's sage advice, I recommend installing your Linux bootloader to the front of the partition and not to the MBR. Then you can use a Windows program called EasyBCD to handle the dual-booting. This is the easiest setup, imho.