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"Linux."

Linux, Has always been something of curiosity, I've always wondered what it’s like, how it works, how better it is then windows. Obviously it's quite a big deal; open-source operating systems are quite a novelty. The fact that Linux is quite a lot cheaper intrigues me, And when I get the rest of the bits for my PC, I'll probably have a Linux/Windows XP partition.

The reason Linux interests me so much is obviously because of the open source. I like programming, I've been doing it for a few years now, and to have the ability to 'modify' the distribution you have is pretty cool. It'd be obviously different from the highly successful, yet frowned upon windows operating system.

But there's a problem, I know feck all about it. Websites don't really explain much, I can't really find anything that tells me what I want to know/opinion, so I thought I’d come n ask you guys for help or information. If you don't mind.

I apologise if these questions sound horrifically retarded: -

• Does Linux support all hardware - like graphics cards etc
• Are the drivers any good for components in Linux?
• I noticed on the ATI site there was no 'catalyst' drivers for Linux - are graphics pretty crap in the OS then?
• Are there many games available for the OS? Like Counter Strike etc?
• If yes are they playable online with windows users?

And finally

• If I was to get Linux - What distribution would you recommend? I was thinking of going for SuSe Personal 8.2.

I thankyou for any help or replies that are received.

I wish there were more keyboard shortcuts in Linux.

Ah cool!

Thanks for the informative reply's people. Playing games probably is better on Windows because of its driver support and basically - most games just work and play better on Windows.

I'd still partition my drive and download mandrake (cheers misrebleman) to see what its like and stuff. The thing that excites me is the fact that Linux is basically free. Everything can be downloaded for free - It's great!

It'd be interesting to see how everything works in Linux and see the comparisons with Windows. I was considering making a little 'media' PC downstairs for the living room (with an ITX board) that just plays DVD's/CD's etc. Linux would be handy for this.

Thanks guys - I appreciate it!

My first Linux installation was Debian.

In fact I lie, it was Mandrake.

Debian was EASIER than Mandrake to get working.

Turbonutter wrote:
> Debian Linux.


Categorically ignore this advice. Mandrake may be more Windows-like in the way it controls your environment, but you may as well ask a Linux newbie to write the kernel themselves than install Debian.

Linux is the great quest. I've spent all weekend headbutting a wall and shouting at things trying to get the Debian distribution to work, then ending up having to crawl back to Mandrake (spending all day downloading a gig of updates and then have it simply fail to boot is...quite frustrating). For a newbie I'd recommend the Mandrake distribution, its installer and hardware support are practically bulletproof. Mandrake 9.2 is due out in the next week or so - keep an eye on www.mandrake.org and download/order it when it's released.

Expect to be reinstalling a lot - I screw something up, don't know how to get it back to how it was and end up having to reinstall to reset the most minor of changes. It helps if you have a large pool of experts to go to (and an internet connection that doesn't rely on said Linux box working would be handy). We can help out a bit, but very few of us have any decent Linux experience.

Don't expect to be reprogramming the kernel any time soon either just because the source code is available. You'll need to spend a few months/years learning how the OS works before you can go any deeper, it really is a different world. If you are serious about learning Linux, it may suit your cause to not install Windows on the same machine, otherwise you'll never boot into Linux. Customising the OS is not really about programming anyway, it's about learning what all the different widgets do and how they are configured. Be warned that compared to Windows the learning curve is absolutely vertical, I can't stress how frustratingly difficult it can be.

• Does Linux support all hardware - like graphics cards etc

Pretty much, although you may get into trouble if you have a very new graphics card. You can check your hardware against the hardware compatibility HOWTO - an authoritative list (I think) of all hardware compatible with Linux:
http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/Hardware-HOWTO/

• Are the drivers any good for components in Linux?

The drivers are often gpl efforts, and they vary in quality, although I've never had a misbehaving driver in Linux (just ones that don't work in the first place!)

• I noticed on the ATI site there was no 'catalyst' drivers for Linux - are graphics pretty crap in the OS then?

KDE and the like are not quite as pretty as Windows but they're not far off - impressive considering it's all free bluddy software. I've never been able to get OpenGL working personally, although admittedly I've never tried. Games support for Linux is not great but it's growing - you don't install Linux if you want to play games on it :O)

• Does Linux support all hardware - like graphics cards etc

As a general rule, Linux supports all mainstream hardware. Always best to check first though.

http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/Hardware-HOWTO/

• Are the drivers any good for components in Linux?

Well yes and no. Some things work better in Linux than in Windows. Some things the drivers undergo more development for, some things the drivers get to the point where they just about work and that's it. If you're expecting better performance from your graphics card though, forget it (although in general 3dfx cards will render OpenGL faster).

• I noticed on the ATI site there was no 'catalyst' drivers for Linux - are graphics pretty crap in the OS then?

Well the graphics cards will do hardware acceleration, but you really want to be playing games on Windows.

• Are there many games available for the OS? Like Counter Strike etc?

Er some games do have Linux ports. You can get CS to work under Linux but it's a mission (although performance is almost the same as Windows - in a few isolated cases, faster).

• If yes are they playable online with windows users?

Yes.

And finally

• If I was to get Linux - What distribution would you recommend? I was thinking of going for SuSe Personal 8.2.

Debian Linux.

Linux, Has always been something of curiosity, I've always wondered what it’s like, how it works, how better it is then windows. Obviously it's quite a big deal; open-source operating systems are quite a novelty. The fact that Linux is quite a lot cheaper intrigues me, And when I get the rest of the bits for my PC, I'll probably have a Linux/Windows XP partition.

The reason Linux interests me so much is obviously because of the open source. I like programming, I've been doing it for a few years now, and to have the ability to 'modify' the distribution you have is pretty cool. It'd be obviously different from the highly successful, yet frowned upon windows operating system.

But there's a problem, I know feck all about it. Websites don't really explain much, I can't really find anything that tells me what I want to know/opinion, so I thought I’d come n ask you guys for help or information. If you don't mind.

I apologise if these questions sound horrifically retarded: -

• Does Linux support all hardware - like graphics cards etc
• Are the drivers any good for components in Linux?
• I noticed on the ATI site there was no 'catalyst' drivers for Linux - are graphics pretty crap in the OS then?
• Are there many games available for the OS? Like Counter Strike etc?
• If yes are they playable online with windows users?

And finally

• If I was to get Linux - What distribution would you recommend? I was thinking of going for SuSe Personal 8.2.

I thankyou for any help or replies that are received.