[plug] Starting in Linux

[Matt Kemner]

On Fri, 15 Jan 1999, Ultimate AbandonWare wrote:

> Hi Everyone,
> I am thinking of venturing into Linux and possibly using Debian 2.0.2
> Does anyone think I should buy that?

Different people on this list will have different opinions :)
Some people here believe RedHat is the be-all and end-all, and others
believe in Debian.. There's a few SUSE and Slackware followers hiding
somewhere too, I believe :)

If you choose Debian (which is what I use) I'd recommend waiting a couple
of weeks for Debian 2.1 to be released (which is scheduled some time this
month) because it will have all the latest utilities, and be all ready for
the Linux 2.2.0 kernel release.

> And if so, from where, and for how
> much?

www.lsl.com.au will be a good place to order "Official Debian CDs"
We will probably organise a bulk order on this list.
Alternatively one of us will probably burn you a copy for roughly the cost
of a CD once we have our copy.

> What can Linux actually be used for? Will it help me in my computer studies?

Which university? :)

If you go to UWA, Running Linux at home will definitely help your studies,
since a lot of their 2nd year coursework is done on Linux.
I don't know about the other universities since I only did first year at
Murdoch, and saw nothing but win3.1 boxes when I was there ('95) and
haven't seen the others.

> in my room. Is it worth me purchasing Linux? What would the advantages for a
> 14 yr old be??

With any luck, the popularity of Linux, and other versions of unix, will
rise dramatically in the new millenium, and even just knowing the basics
of administring a linux system should guarantee you a job.
(hey, it worked for me :)

You don't necessarily need to purchase Linux though..
You could always download the base disks from
ftp://ftp.uwa.edu.au/mirrors/linux/debian/dists/slink/main/disks-i386/
and boot off those disks, then use "apt" to install the rest via ftp.

I installed debian-sparc like this yesterday on my sparc classic and was
amazed at how easy it went..
(Mind you it will take a little longer on your modem link than it took me,
but then again the first time I installed linux it took me a weeks worth
of downloading over a 14.4 modem, and it was worth it in the end :)

 - Matt Kemner
System Administrator/BOFH        "Words are too feeble,
Networx Internet                  they cannot contain"
(08) 9 345 3377                   Live, "Stage"