[plug] Newbys guide

[Kev]

Timothy White wrote:
> <post length="long">
> Kev wrote:
> 
>> --->o snip o<---
>>
>> This is NOT a flame, just an attempt to explain the reality of the
>> problem.  I, for instance, want to move over from OS/2 (coz the
>> writing's on the wall for OS/2) with a minimum of fuss, without having
>> to understand "compile", "make file", "tarball" etc.
>>
> Hmm. I understand your frustration. I used to 'upgrade' mandrake so I
> could install another software package because I couldn't get RPM's to
> work. I'd boot the installer and 'upgrade.'

Yes, I've given up on Madrake for compound reasons.  Tried 10.0 and 
10.1.  Upgrading apps (with the Mdk RPMs) simply never worked.


> What distribution are you using Kev? From my newbie experience Debian
> (and derivatives excluding Knoppix) has been the best for me. If I want
> a new software package I do a 'apt-cache search' for the keywords and
> then 'apt-cache show' the packages that look interesting and then
> 'apt-get install' and even on dialup I get a stable working system.
> It's even easier with synaptic. No command line.

I have Debian Sarge in at the mo, but it won't recognize my sound card 
or my video card properly.  Sound ->  CMedia 8738 6 channel LX
                             Video ->  Nvidia Riva TNT2 32meg.
The OS/2 driver I use for sound is in fact a port of ALSA and is 
arguably the best sound card for OS/2.  All of the card's capabilities 
are supported.  Sarge will only allow me max of 800 x 600 @ 64K colours 
video.

> I believe that this is possible. As long as most of the software you
> want is fairly standard. Of course if it starts getting exotic then you
> may have to do some exotic things and be prepared for the occasional
> breakage.

 > Give us a list of things that you really need under Linux and I'll
 > tell you if it's possible under Debian/Ubuntu.

Apart from the usual office stuff (and I already use OOo 1.1.4 for OS/2) 
and the usual internet stuff (web, ftp and email and I already use 
Mozilla 1.7.3) I mainly want to record music from records and other 
external sources to create CDs, all sorts of combinations of ripping, 
converting formats and making up CDs, playing all sorts of multimedia 
files and playing Shisen - the most addictive game I've ever come across.

I already know it's possible.  In fact most people in the list would 
laugh at my simple needs, yet I haven't yet found any one distro that 
will configure all my hardware and do that simple list of things.  My 
hardware is VERY garden variety, with absolutely nothing strange or odd. 
  I want reliable USB support and parallel port support for a printer. 
I also want to be able to send and receive faxes.

Oh, the other thing I want is HPFS file system compatability, because I 
have so much stuff on HPFS drives, and I have no intention of scrapping 
my OS/2 until I'm comfortable with Linux.  This of course is where 
"re-compile your kernel" is required, at which point I quit.  Linux has 
the ability to do so many things so much smarter, but nobody does it. 
Have a look into installable file systems as implemented in OS/2 for a 
glaring example.  And as a specific example of how versatile installable 
file systems have a look at http://www.rsj.de/

I currently have a multi-boot system, with OS/2, DOS (for my favorite 
pinball game), Win XP (for my school kids) Debian and another OS/2 boot 
which I use as a maintenance partition.

> For those newbie's who want to try Debian but really don't like to get
> there hands dirty, try Ubuntu. There is an excellent Guide that guides
> you through difficult areas and because it is aimed only at Ubuntu it
> works (for the current version at least.)

I had a look at Xandros on the web, and figured I'd like to give it try, 
But no Xandros users have got back to me yet.

> The last time I compiled something would have been when I was doing
> hobby programming.

Never have and never will.

> My only gripe is because it's so easy to install software that I can end
> up getting software bloat like I used to do under Windows. I have so
> much installed that I rarely use. Pity that there isn't a feature that
> tells you when a package was last used by looking at the atimes of all
> files in the package and taking the last atime.

Well, another thing which should be there is the ability to un-install 
applications just as easilly as installing them.

cheers
Kev