Is Freespire/Linspire for complete noobs?

Ice777 · 08-04-2008, 01:05 PM

I just installed Freespire, and was pleased to see that it came with all the codecs needed for mp3, mov, and avi files. After trying it out for about an hour, I also realized that the OS is like Windows in a lot of ways. Could someone really learn any Linux knowledge from using this OS?

lykwydchykyn · 08-04-2008, 04:32 PM

I haven't tried Freespire, but I suppose it depends on what you mean by 'Linux knowledge'. Every Linux disto is still 'Linux' under the hood, so if one digs down into it one will learn some Linux. I've used Debian for about 4 years now, but I probably don't know much Gentoo or Fedora. Do I have "Linux knowledge"?

S3Indiana · 08-11-2008, 01:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ice777

I just installed Freespire, and was pleased to see that it came with all the codecs needed for mp3, mov, and avi files. After trying it out for about an hour, I also realized that the OS is like Windows in a lot of ways. Could someone really learn any Linux knowledge from using this OS?

Freespire is Debian (Linux) at the core, with the tools necessary for daily use - as designed (a desktop Linux distribution). Hope this helps...

2damncommon · 08-11-2008, 01:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ice777

I just installed Freespire, and was pleased to see that it came with all the codecs needed for mp3, mov, and avi files. After trying it out for about an hour, I also realized that the OS is like Windows in a lot of ways. Could someone really learn any Linux knowledge from using this OS?

Since it is Linux, the answer is yes.
What "Linux knowledge" are you referring to?
Freespire consists of the Linux kernel and added programs. It has a chosen GUI desktop. The terminal can be brought up for text commands.

Jevan · 08-19-2008, 10:11 PM

While Freespire (note: I have not used it since a beta of version 1.0) is similar to other easy to use Linux distributions such as Ubuntu and Mandriva (I'm typing this up from the former), Freespire goes a step farther and removes a lot of common Linux terminology. However, you can learn about Linux under the hood from any Linux based system. Sure you may find it weird to go to a different Linux distribution that isn't as Windows like, but you can learn a lot from Freespire or Linspire. If you don't want to mess with getting things like hardware set up, then you are probably in a good spot.

Bill_Gates · 09-15-2008, 04:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ice777

I just installed Freespire, and was pleased to see that it came with all the codecs needed for mp3, mov, and avi files. After trying it out for about an hour, I also realized that the OS is like Windows in a lot of ways. Could someone really learn any Linux knowledge from using this OS?

Firstly I have no idea what a noob is but I am accutely disappointed with my first try with Freespire. I was seduced by the possibility of having easy to install updates and having a configuration that would do what I wanted it to do. Well somebody must be having a laugh at my expense! I cannot find a way to configure a DSL connection. I have tried with the ethernet connection in or out. The connection works well with other systems. I am ashamed to be typing this using Microsoft. I am trying to migrate from Mandrake 10.0 and found that relatively easy to get the internet working via DSL.

Any suggestions?