Members Derek5272 Posted November 8, 2008 Members Share Posted November 8, 2008 I'm getting a new old computer next week (my dad's building a new one, I'm taking the old). I want to put Linux on it. What are good distros to use? Right now, I have a copy of Knoppix and Ubuntu sitting on my desk, but I want to install/mess around with a few different distros so I can see if I like one much better than the others. I may also try running OSX on it for kicks, and see if works better on the Intel-based system than it did on my AMD system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Annoying Twit Posted November 8, 2008 Members Share Posted November 8, 2008 Planet CCRMA? http://ccrma.stanford.edu/planetccrma/software/ This is a music forum, after all. Though, it's a bit limiting to have to use Fedora 8 (or earlier) as a base. I'm using Fedora at the moment, but would probably trial SuSE on a new computer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lokidecat Posted November 8, 2008 Members Share Posted November 8, 2008 Ubuntu 8.10 was recently released. Looks great. The new network manager is fantastic. otherwise, I had some good times with OpenSUSE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members philthygeezer Posted November 8, 2008 Members Share Posted November 8, 2008 I just put Unbuntu on an old Laptop. Works great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members misterhinkydink Posted November 8, 2008 Members Share Posted November 8, 2008 I prefer Debian installed via 'debootstrap' as I like to control what 'extras' get installed. Ubuntu is Debian-based so I'd recommend that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members PaulyWally Posted November 9, 2008 Members Share Posted November 9, 2008 Definitely try Debian. That's what I run. I've never had problems installing Debian. Debian (arguably) has the best packages, and most variety of packages. And a base install of Debian (with X Windows) is really lightweight. I have the most up-to-date version and the OS + X Windows only uses about 350MB of RAM once booted up (opposed to almost 1GB for Vista). The system also doesn't tend to use swap space until you reach about 75% of your available RAM. I tried Ubuntu once. I guess it's OK to try. But I ended up with a broken install. I've also heard of users having problems with Ubuntu updates breaking their system. And I don't think they have as many packages as Debian. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members t3ch Posted November 9, 2008 Members Share Posted November 9, 2008 Just get a mac. Ubuntu seems to be the popular distro nowadays, though Fedora is pretty easy to use as well. I personally like SuSE the best. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Derek5272 Posted November 10, 2008 Author Members Share Posted November 10, 2008 My dad ended up building his computer yesterday, so I got to work on the other one. So far, Ubuntu 8.10 is getting a big thumbs down. Being a Linux noob, I've been running into several issues, and the Ubuntu website doesn't seem to have any help documentation for the new version. Maybe I'd have better luck with 8.04. But, I gave Mint a try, and it's pretty nice. Might just stick with that until I know what I'm doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lokidecat Posted November 10, 2008 Members Share Posted November 10, 2008 My laptop still has 8.04 on it. Haven't UG'd to 8.10. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, ya know? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members misterhinkydink Posted November 10, 2008 Members Share Posted November 10, 2008 My dad ended up building his computer yesterday, so I got to work on the other one. So far, Ubuntu 8.10 is getting a big thumbs down. Being a Linux noob, I've been running into several issues, and the Ubuntu website doesn't seem to have any help documentation for the new version. Maybe I'd have better luck with 8.04. But, I gave Mint a try, and it's pretty nice. Might just stick with that until I know what I'm doing. I had SATA problems with a Debian Etch installation on my Gigabyte/Intel work computer but it's more the exception than the rule. It's impressive that people with no technical background can install an operating system themselves at all. We've come a long way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Annoying Twit Posted November 10, 2008 Members Share Posted November 10, 2008 I had SATA problems with a Debian Etch installation on my Gigabyte/Intel work computer but it's more the exception than the rule. It's impressive that people with no technical background can install an operating system themselves at all. We've come a long way. I have actually loaded a modified operating system onto a DEC PDP-11. Which had core memory. I had to set a binary address to start from using flip switches on the front, and hit the start button. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members misterhinkydink Posted November 10, 2008 Members Share Posted November 10, 2008 I have actually loaded a modified operating system onto a DEC PDP-11. Which had core memory. I had to set a binary address to start from using flip switches on the front, and hit the start button. As have I. I also use to build/install operating systems from punched cards and/or paper tape. There would be stacks of boxes of punched cards and you'd pick a deck that included the component you wanted to install. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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