I acquired a Compaq Proliant 3000 server 'cause I thought it looked cool. I tried installing some linux distrobution last year but it was all command driven and I don't know any commands. I'd like to try again but if possible just using a set of CDs?

I don't want to have to deal with libraries or packages or whatever they're called or nasty weird files where I don't know what I'm doing. When I started learning Windows, I didn't have to know about its inner-workings, and I was hoping to do the same with Linux? Thanks in advance for any help.

Do yourself a favor and read linux.oneandoneis2.org/LNW.htm.

If you base choices in computing about how things look, you probably want a macintoy.

Packages are in fact a fairly easy concept to grasp. If you don't want to learn even that, I think you'll end up being one of those trolls that whine about "Linux requires me to learn how to think differently from how I think about windows--so Linux should be changed!".

I think a macintoy is really what you want.

However, if you have read LNW, and still want Linux (I should really say GNU/Linux), sure, I'll help you find something for you. I just want you to be prepared, because with the attitude you're displaying here, you're probably going to be met with a lot of hostility and nothing else.

Anyways, for a jump start, go to ubuntu.com and order the CD set, then play with the Live CD to get a feel of how GNU/Linux looks and works. If you like it, go ahead and install it.

hth --Jonas

Thanks for your help. It's not that I don't want to learn, it's just that I'd prefer a less steep learning curve. I'd like to be able to use it quite quickly and then just pick up extra bits as I go, you know?

I mean it's like learning concepts from science research papers. Most of the stuff written about isn't explained to the uninitiated, meaning you have to read a lot of different papers before you can begin to understand what is being said. If you could find the right material in a text book or somewhere, you'd get started a lot faster.

It's just with so many peices of software that do a similar thing, it's easy to get overwhelmed. When I tried with Debian, I got put off by how I wanted to install X Window and I need to install a hundred other things before I could, but many of these were in someway dependant on each other and I couldn't figure out the order in which I needed to install them all. I wondered why it wasn't possible to download a package that included everything I needed to get started.

Plus the names! Something like qtparted some becomes tqparted, tqparter, tppartner as it all jumbles 'round in my mind.

System spacs are crap. I have a 1200 and a 1600 and an 1800. The bigger numbers are always better for proliants so how does a 1200 whcih is a P2 be less than a 3000?

I'm not sure I understand what you're saying. My Proliant has 1 333 Mhz PII but I'm going to install another = 666 Mhz. What makes you a Proliant fan?

Ah, sorry It just looked like you were trying to say that the Proliant 3000 had a 80mhz processor lol so im like - wtf!

Anyway, SuSe has yast which is great for package mangement.

When you started learning windows, it was already installed and configured. GNU/Linux isn't going to be (okay, you could buy a new machine with it preinstalled, but I take it you don't want to).

These days, I think Ubuntu is the canocical `newbie' distro--it's free (as in free speech, as well as in free beer), and it's (from what I've been told) easy to use. You can order a free CD set on ubuntu.com (yes, they even pay for postage). Play around with the Live CD to get a feeling for how it works--almost-literally take it for a test drive: find out how to surf the web, how to play music files, how to play videos, figure out which word processor is used and where it is, all the stuff you want to do. Then, once you believe you know the system well enough, go ahead and install it. Or go install Debian. Sure, you may need to scratch your head a lot, and/or start yet another "X won't start" thread here on LQ, but it's really not that hard to make debian work, you just have to be patient and persevere.

Because you didn't know about the `gnome-desktop-environment' package (at least AFAICT this is what you're asking for).

use suse and its default install will detect everything and do it all for u and install what u need and more cn be installed easialy, u just search by category in Yast and it tells u what u need to install to get things to run. In this installer all it needs is timezone, keyboard, monitor type, resolution etc.... (very user friendly) and should give u no trouble

Not 10.1, use 10 as 10.1 on 128mb ram leaves u like 2mb usable

If my server has two processor boards, should I install the distribution that was designed for 64-bit architecture?