Oops my last post wasn't published it seems.

I need help installing nvidia drivers (for nforce 630a/720 onboard gpu)
in BackTrack 5r3.
I'm very new to Linux like 3 days
Tried downloading a .run installer but didn't work. Some "precompiled kernel not found" error. It tried to connect to nvidia ftp to find one but couldn't succeed.
I don't know how to compile a kernel but I have tried getting some "kernel ready" messages but after setting it up and leaving X-server it stills giving me same error about kernel.

What can I do guys?

on bt5

you do not

Backtrack is old and unsupported and was REPLACED YEARS AGO

bt5 was based on the now long unsupported ubuntu 10



do not use !!

So if I want to learn linux from scratch, what distro should I try?

And sorry for double posting but previous one wasnt shown in recent posts

If you want to "learn linux" you need to use it to get your normal stuff done. This means you will need to have access to a Windows PC while you're finding your feet (either by dual booting or having two dedicated computers).

As far as which distro to use - you will get many, many answers depending on people's experience and prejudices. Mine lead me to suggest OpenSUSE (the updated version of the one I started with) or PCLinuxOS as distributions which don't feel too alien to Windows users, then start trying different distros to see what suits you. But you should have a look here http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...xp-4175502495/ and here http://distrowatch.com/ to see what's available. And keep coming back to LinuxQuestions.

And don't forget that "Linux isn't Windows", expect things (like installing software) to be different.

Thank you.

May I ask: Terminal "commands" varies from distro to distro, often? Meaning if I manage to learn how to install software via terminal in OpenSuse would be different in Linux Mint?

Also, I want to know if there is a way to make profit of my current OS (BackTrack). If there's a way to "update" or "upgrade" to make it usable again? I don't really mind going thru tricky steps. In fact, I like it but have googled a bit and couldn't find a real answer. Must confess that even searching info is hard for me because I really don't have any insight about anything than Windows. Still, I want to keep going. BackTrack motivates me 'cause have listened it's hard or advanced. I just need a initial kick. Promise to learn by myself once I have a base knowledge.

Backtrack is dead - no longer maintained. But even when maintained it was a very special purpose distro and not for people learning Linux.

Are you tying to learn Linux or are you interested in penetration tools?

package management (= software installation) varies from distro to distro - but there's much less package managers then there's distros. i think the big players are just a handful.
but the vast majority of "terminal commands" is the same across all linux distros, along with other things like basic directory structure, naming conventions,...

about backtrack, no, you can't "make it usable again".
and i, too, have to ask: why do you think you need backtrack? why not start with one of the *buntus, or linux mint, or even debian if you're feeling frisky?

Whatever distro you choose, downloading and installing directly from Nvidia's .run file (i.e. "the Windows way to install a video driver") is basically a method of last resort. Your GPU is supported by the 304.xx series, and Nvidia will continue to update the 304.xx series with support for new kernels/Xservers until the end of 2017.
http://www.nvidia.com/object/IO_32667.html
http://nvidia.custhelp.com/app/answe...y-gpu-releases
Most distros should have a 304.xx package available, even if it's from a 3rd-party repo (Fedora has RPMFusion, for example).

Also, don't assume you even need to install the binary Nvidia driver. The open-source nouveau driver worked very well on my 8400GS.

I know a lot of folks who used to use Backtrack have moved to Kali Linux (I was going to say "Backtrack became Kali", but that may be oversimplified.) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kali_Linux

I always thought the worst part of Backtrack/Kali was the older packages from Debian stable releases, but it looks like they're now offering a rolling release based on Debian testing: https://www.kali.org/news/kali-linux...dition-2016-1/

Thank you for taking your time to answer my questions. I'll be reviewing the info you gave me.

About why BackTrack (or any penetration suite) over other distro is mainly because it motivates me more to learn linux. I work with Windows, and Windows software so don't really -need- to learn other OS but the true is that I like to, and having and OS with that pretty awesome presentation (like a hacker aimed OS ) make learning more attractive. I know that's silly and I'm sorry but that helps me more focus on my goals. Like a purpose because, as I said, I dont really need to learn anything new for my work. Just to know something new and have fun.

Thank you so much for your help and the given time.

just consider the outcomes first
if one is not careful and thoughtful in using a pen-testing system ( cracking)
Then one can end up standing in front of a JUDGE in a court room
( and then there is the issue of " picking up the soap in the jail shower ")


if you REALLY want to learn

install Fedora 23

fedora is the newest of the new
it tends to be SO NEW that you need to hack most programs to build on fedora

fedora is the testing of the "newest of the new" and as such
often NEEDS to be fixed

now fedora 20 to 23 have been better than the old fedora 4 ,5,6 days of 10 years ago

BUT
it is a CHALLENGE and with the very very short lifespan of 13 months and a NEW version every 6 MONTHS that is often rather different than the old version , it needs work all the time

and you WILL learn

Don't worry. I'm an adult (28) and I'm not looking for a way to set offline a server and tell my friends I did. Actually, I prefer to get into the site and unplug the workstation in that case. But that won't happen too.
Just looking a way to relax after work. Yeah, learning new things relax me. I dont rule out the chance of hacking into my brother-in-law laptop just to change his wallpaper to a monkeys eating banana one and watch his face

THanks for the suggestion too. I will pass, however. Fedora seems kinda programmer oriented OS. I hate algebra. Also I like my knowledge to last less than 6 months and count for something after that.

Guess that Ubuntu based distros is my starting point. Now I'm stuck in the desktop environment. xfce looks good. I've read Linux Mint has a bit slower interface. Cinnamon looks good too.

BTW what do you think about Debian?

Doesn't Like math want's to be a hacker...

Doesn't know Linux wants a pen testing distro...

Just pick a distro and install it, once you like math again and have a few years of Linux under your belt revisit this idea


If you were my brother in law and you hacked my computer then I think I'd hack yours back with my KA-BAR

Fries with that?

Bottom line: If you're not experienced enough to keep Kali/Backtrack/Blackarch running - it's not the distro for you...