Linux newbie, help please?

May 12, 2002, 06:43 AM

im using windows XP home but I would love to get into linux, can some of you experts like Uberlord or Mize or andrew maybe point me in the right direction to get help on installing it and what I need to do.

Id really love to try it, but im really worried ill mess things up...

can someone maybe type out a procedure from installing to getting started for a complete beginner.

I normally wouldnt ask this as im a newbie but this forum seems really cool and people ask anything and there seems to be an answer.

when I asked on Rage3d I got flamed to a crisp and I dont really want to go back in there.

thanks in advance.

high_ping · May 12, 2002, 07:13 AM

If you have broadband you can download the isos' for Mandrake and or Red Hat. So, first go do that!

You installed winxp, right? Well, installing the latest distro's of linux are just that simple too! Gone are the days of text install, unless you want to...So, just pop in the Mandrake or Red Hat that you downloaded and BAM!, you are off.

For a newbie, I would recommend that you accept all defaults as you install. This will give you a taste of how the installer works. You can go back and add things later if you want, but you will be able to get the feel of whatever distro you chose. I would recommend Mandrake for you, unless you want to go purchase my favorite distro SuSE. SuSE has two version, just like xp, home and professional. I believe 39.99 and 79.99, the difference being the amount of software and utilities that you get. The pro has seven cd's and one dvd full of stuff, that is what I have...oh, and it is version 8.0.

So go forth and let us know how you do?!

May 12, 2002, 08:42 AM

thank you very much, im going to try it out later !!

UberLord · May 12, 2002, 03:25 PM

Also, checkout http://www.mandrakeuser.org - one of the 1st stops you should make with any installation problems (especially network/internet) as their setup guides are second to none!

May 12, 2002, 07:05 PM

Uberlord you rock man, great link thank you both so much.

THIS FORUM IS COOL !!!!!!!!!!!!

UberLord · May 13, 2002, 04:47 AM

Ahhhh - another satisfied customer

May 14, 2002, 12:15 PM

before I install this can someone tell me will browsing the net and my cable modem work ok, all that kinda stuff? sorry for asking dumb questions, just dont know anything really about this.

radTube · May 14, 2002, 12:40 PM

I've successfully installed mandrake 8.2 on two different machines with cable modems. No problems at all. But that doesn't mean there won't be problems if your modem doesn't happen to be supported...

Btw. I strongly recommend getting Opera 6 beta2 for linux (www.opera.com), as it's definitely the best browser for the OS IMHO. For some strange reason it isn't included in mandrake or redhat. And make sure to check out the great new Openoffice 1.0 (www.openoffice.org).

UberLord · May 14, 2002, 05:18 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by radTube
Btw. I strongly recommend getting Opera 6 beta2 for linux (www.opera.com), as it's definitely the best browser for the OS IMHO. For some strange reason it isn't included in mandrake or redhat. And make sure to check out the great new Openoffice 1.0 (www.openoffice.org).

Mandrake, RedHat and others support Mozilla - normally distros only put OSS applications in their free distro's where Opera is closed source.

OpenOffice is what Linux needs - evolution covers the outlook/PIM gap. Now we have a decent office and PIM setup - life is good

UberLord · May 14, 2002, 05:20 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Billy
before I install this can someone tell me will browsing the net and my cable modem work ok, all that kinda stuff? sorry for asking dumb questions, just dont know anything really about this.

Well, I don't either - sorry. All you can do is check your chosen disto's supported hardware list

Where I live its either analogue modem or ISDN - so I've got no experience of cable modems or ADSL in linux. I use ADSL at work, but only for Smoothwall - a dedicated linux distro for pure firewalls.