View Full Version : Which Distro Are You?
six_storm
02-28-07, 06:13 PM
I was going to try out Gentoo but the LiveCD wouldn't even load up on my server lol. Ubuntu has worked out very well for me. I've been trying to get friends and family to try it out but of course certain Windows or Mac apps do not work with Linux (preferrably iTunes and IE6 or 7, for college projects and such). Anyone got any ideas?
kokoko3k
02-28-07, 06:19 PM
Wine (http://www.winehq.org/) will load IE6 just fine but NOT IE7.
Itunes 6 works, 7 not.
I've been trying to get friends and family to try it out but of course certain Windows or Mac apps do not work with Linux (preferrably iTunes and IE6 or 7, for college projects and such). Anyone got any ideas?
Ideas for what exactly?-)
If you/they absolutely need IE6/IE7, try IEs4Linux (http://www.tatanka.com.br/ies4linux/page/Main_Page).
Why iTunes? DRMed music? You lose by definition. If it's only about playing music, try Amarok (or Rhythmbox if you avoid KDE). So far Amarok has been the only music player with GUI I've actually liked.
Generally speaking Wine may help you out.
(say... click click and relax?)
No. "They use every single available knob and lever" as in using gazillions of registry tweaks and such.
kokoko3k
02-28-07, 06:34 PM
No. "They use every single available knob and lever" as in using gazillions of registry tweaks and such.Got it, what you call fanaticism, someone calls passion ;)
Got it, what you call fanaticism, someone calls passion ;)
I like that..:thumbsup:
Gentoo was a wild ride for me, kudos to anyone who compiles from stage one and still uses it on a daily basis.
Debian all the way for me though, this n00b likes user friendly. :p
Debian all the way for me though, this n00b likes user friendly.
You must be the first self-proclaimed n00b to call Debian user friendly. :-) I have always loved apt/dpkg and the installer of Debian for their user friendliness and clarity. I never understood why people say Debian is difficult.
When I was new to Linux I used to "tweak" the system to get familiar with it. I would compile my own kernel just for the fun of it -- and to save some precious 300 KiB in kernel size. I would run "apt-get update && apt-get dist-upgrade" once a day even for my home server to stay up-to-date. I would tweak NFS-configuration and run benchmarks to get the best performance out of it. I would run benchmarks for file systems. The list goes on. Nowadays I use stock kernel (I often need to manually fix nvidia-driver package though) even for my workstation, update&upgrade my server only when DSA suggests to do so, and do hardly any "tweaking" except for reading and re-reading system service configuration manuals for some additional security. I haven't lost my passion -- I just channel it differently.
Debian is the easiest distro to configure. Just vi /etc/apt/source.list and look at your 4 basic repos. Now do the same on Ubuntu = Universe, Multiverse, Non-free, blah blah blah...way too much in my opinion but then again, they have any and every package.
I tried Gentoo once and threw my keyboard on the floor after 2 hours. Very time consuming and painful in my opinion...
You must be the first self-proclaimed n00b to call Debian user friendly. :-) I have always loved apt/dpkg and the installer of Debian for their user friendliness and clarity. I never understood why people say Debian is difficult.
When I was new to Linux I used to "tweak" the system to get familiar with it. I would compile my own kernel just for the fun of it -- and to save some precious 300 KiB in kernel size. I would run "apt-get update && apt-get dist-upgrade" once a day even for my home server to stay up-to-date. I would tweak NFS-configuration and run benchmarks to get the best performance out of it. I would run benchmarks for file systems. The list goes on. Nowadays I use stock kernel (I often need to manually fix nvidia-driver package though) even for my workstation, update&upgrade my server only when DSA suggests to do so, and do hardly any "tweaking" except for reading and re-reading system service configuration manuals for some additional security. I haven't lost my passion -- I just channel it differently.
Lol, rpm based distros used to make me absolutely crazy, when someone turned me on to debian/apt-get/dpkg it was love at first sight. :p Maybe "casual user" would fit me better than n00b, but I've heard people say the same about debian being difficult. To each their own I guess. :)
I lol'd at your 300Kib- been there, and it was a great learning experience. I just don't see the need anymore. Remember Yoper? straight out of the box that was so fast it blew me away.
Now I need to get over my addiction to burning and trying new distros, pick one and learn it love it. :p
Debian is the easiest distro to configure. Just vi /etc/apt/source.list and look at your 4 basic repos. Now do the same on Ubuntu = Universe, Multiverse, Non-free, blah blah blah...way too much in my opinion but then again, they have any and every package.
I tried Gentoo once and threw my keyboard on the floor after 2 hours. Very time consuming and painful in my opinion...
Ahaha..been there too! :D
six_storm
02-28-07, 10:10 PM
Ideas for what exactly?-)
If you/they absolutely need IE6/IE7, try IEs4Linux (http://www.tatanka.com.br/ies4linux/page/Main_Page).
Stupid colleges across the nation require that you have IE6 only to access certain sites and to turn in certain types of projects. It's gay, I know, but remember that M$ is "t3h sT@nd@rD!!!111"
My girlfriend needs IE6 because she doesn't go on campus very often and needs a solution at home. Someone on the Ubuntu forums made a package of a natively running IE6, but it doesn't work with any Java of Flash plugins. :(
Why iTunes? DRMed music? You lose by definition. If it's only about playing music, try Amarok (or Rhythmbox if you avoid KDE). So far Amarok has been the only music player with GUI I've actually liked.
Generally speaking Wine may help you out.
Why iTunes? Both my girlfriend and I have iPods and downloaded music from iTunes Store. Those songs don't work with Amarok or Rhythmbox. I'm going to try and do some more research on getting iTunes to work with Wine later this week/weekend.
If I can get these two "problems" fixed, my girlfriend will be running Ubuntu in a heartbeat!! :D
evilghost
03-01-07, 08:57 AM
I've installed IE6 using IEs4Linux, very easy.
It's very simple for me...you don't support my OS, I don't support your network or problem.
I had Time Warner / Brighthouse Networks come to my home for cable internet installation and the guy asked where my PC was so I showed him and then he said he had to run a set up CD. I looked at the guy like he was crazy :rolleyes: .
I thought to myself this would be funny so I showed him to my PC loaded with Debian Etch AMD64 and logged in for him. He sat down and grabbed the mouse and attempted to look for the "Start" button. :D
Aw man - it was classic. His response was "Oh, is this a MAC"...
I laughed and told him he could leave the CD with me however I was able to sit down and ifdown eth0 and ifup eth0 with no problems.
Ahaha..been there too! :D
:) , personally, I'm running Gentoo (with XFce4 + Beryl..sometimes) and I kinda like it. And I'm definitely no linux guru.
It is my first distro I've ever installed ...one friend recommended it to me ( he probably wanted to make fun of me :D ). However, the installation was really easy when using the guide on gentoo.org (its from stage 3) and I think, I've finally learned how to administrate my linux system.
So far it works great and I really use it on daily basis..but I really can't compare it to other distros
six_storm
03-01-07, 10:16 AM
I've installed IE6 using IEs4Linux, very easy.
The bad thing about installing that (and IE6 actually have SOME use on a Linux box) is that no plugins work! I have to take test on CourseCompass.com and you have to have Java, Flash and their homegrown "TestGen" ActiveX control. Does anyone know a way to clear this up? I know that IE4Linux is just really supposed to be for viewing and testing websites, but if I could get those plugins to work, then hallelujah, that's just one step closer to getting my girly over to Linux! :D
evilghost
03-01-07, 10:19 AM
The bad thing about installing that (and IE6 actually have SOME use on a Linux box) is that no plugins work! I have to take test on CourseCompass.com and you have to have Java, Flash and their homegrown "TestGen" ActiveX control. Does anyone know a way to clear this up? I know that IE4Linux is just really supposed to be for viewing and testing websites, but if I could get those plugins to work, then hallelujah, that's just one step closer to getting my girly over to Linux! :D
I got craptiveX to work just fine, inclusive of Flash, which IEs4Linux installs AFAIK.
six_storm
03-01-07, 09:10 PM
I got craptiveX to work just fine, inclusive of Flash, which IEs4Linux installs AFAIK.
Yeah, nothing is working for me. No java, no flash, no nothing. :(
Also, I've been trying for hours getting a FTP server going but no luck. I've tried both vsftpd and proftpd, played around with known working config files but I get timed out, even on a LAN. Also, there is no n00b easy GUI like FTP server available . . . . lol.
vsFTPd is virtually as easy as installing it. I use it at home and work and it's great. Just disable anonymous.
evilghost
03-01-07, 11:27 PM
I use SSH only; sftp or scp. I've been able to completely eliminate Samba here at the house via the use of sshfs.
sshfs is absolutely awesome and very fast even over WAN links.
six_storm
03-02-07, 01:23 AM
Well, after a few more tries, FTP doesn't even wanna work. Also, SSH doesn't wanna work for me due to crappy RSA keys not being right on my Mac. Arghhh. I'm sure there's one little bitty thing undone in my config file and I just don't know it. Oh well.
I'm still testing the limits of Ubuntu with add-on software such as other desktop environments, beta programs like Beryl and XGL, system optimization, and just basic everyday things such as web surfing, email, office apps and so forth.
I'm also hoping to install Ubuntu on my girlfriend's PC (along with XP in VMWare Server for college stuff) at some point this year. Still learning teh L1nuX!!!111 :D
Finally got mine back up and running. I'm going with edgy this time, seems SLI was causing my earlier problems.
Side note - I've barely begun to explore it, but beryl is definetly sweet.
Edit: Change that remark on Beryl to "Veeery Sweet!"
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