friendly linux

[webmaster]

Well i finally decided to install linux. After cleaning some junk off my HD and download of Mandrake 8.2 installation was quite easy. The main pitfall for new user would be formatting disk partition for your installation, but if you are uncomfortable with that you can install it in your /windows/ folder.
Anyway after a second try i got it up and running (first time i made partition too small).
I'm really impressed it was very easy to set up - almost everything was detected and configured automatically and only couple warnings during software installation. I'm not sure about dialup configuration, but cable configuration was a breeze.
I'm missing google bar though
_________________
cheap dial-up isp's in USA
cheap dial up isp's in Canada

[plodr]

How big a partition do you recommend? I installed peanut linux under windows but I think the partition is too small and before I do much, I want to uninstall it and give it more room. (I'm running 98SE with a 20G hd).

[fff]

the boys at microsoft will have to work a little harder before my jaws will let go of windows
linux users today will not find anything in linux that is more easily done in windows

[MM]

I made an attempt at Redhat LINUS on a free partition and failed. Basically I did not do a RTFM and tried to reverse out; but Redhat installation did not have a 'Cancel' option. (You are expected to continue with the installation.) In the event I just 'ECS'.

The result is that I lost everything on my HD (Win98SE partition and W2K partition). I will not try it again till I get a brand new system. I will put Redhat LINUS on first before other OS. :|

[curious john]

I have been using Mandrake 8.0 Linux for my main operating system for close to a year now. Whole thing setup easily, even automatic partitioning and formating which I recommend to newbies. No harder than setting up windows98, in some ways even easier. If you had never used either windows or linux, learning to use Mandrake Linux would be no harder than learning windows. Windows isnt friendly to other operating systems on your hardrive, Linux is very friendly. A friend's daughter was having trouble with her computer crashing frequently with win98. (Faultering processor and/or motherboard I think) I got tired of repairing windows for her so reinstalled windows, then installed Mandrake. If you choose right option, it will set up its own partition (it tells you minimum needed, then lets you choose larger if you want) then sets up its boot manager "LILO" that lets you decide whether to boot Linux or Windows when you turn on your computer. Even with her unstable processor/motherboard, Linux doesnt faulter and she can use it to get onto internet if windows cant. Dialup setup is easy by the way. You just choose such as option during the setup or add it later using RPM software manager or Hardrake if you are adding a modem. Matter of fact so much was included with the installation I am still discovering things. The best thing about Linux is its rock steady stability. Also no need to defrag hardrive as Linux isnt sloppy where it writes like windows is. Much software is available but for average consumer, the downside is lack of linux versions of popular names in software. Should change as Linux continues to make big inroads into buisiness computing. (Buisiness folk dont like paying ransom to Big Bill for windows) People will get use to it and as more people put it on their home computers, more third party software will be ported to it. Why would I pay $150 for XP with all its restrictions when Linux is super stable and free, and no need for pirate copies or defeating Big Bill's builtin nazi registration procedures. Each to their own though. I still have an old computer with w98 and an even older laptop with w95. Some things are only available for windows. I just use windows as little as possible.

[RRTBG]

MM wrote:

I made an attempt at Redhat LINUS on a free partition and failed. The result is that I lost everything on my HD (Win98SE partition and W2K partition). I will not try it again till I get a brand new system. I will put Redhat LINUS on first before other OS. :|

Creating and deleting partitions is extremely tricky. Don't mess around with partitions unless:

1. You are an extremely advanced computer user.
2. You have the right programs to create, format, and resize partitions.
3. You have all useful information on the hard drive backed up.

You may still be able to recover the information on the hard drive (unless you accidentally formatted the entire drive) by going to this web site:

 http://www.runtime.org/ 

Download the program called GetDataBack for FAT to recover your Windows 98 SE files.

Download the program called GetDataBack for NTFS to recover your Windows 2000 files.
_________________
This is what happens after we die.
Check out these Cool Programs.

[MM]

RRTBG wrote:

... Creating and deleting partitions is extremely tricky....

I actually used Partition Magic 7 to create the free partition. (I have done it before; currently, I have DOS 6.22, Win98SE, W2K & WinMe all loaded on PC with BootMagic 6 controlling the OS I want.)

I dont think the mistake was made when I partition my HD. I did not understand the terminology used by Redhat; got scared & tried to abandon the effort. Just that Redhat does not have a 'get-out'.

I tried recovering my HD using Ontrack's EasyRecovery; but the earlier version could not recover the folders names -- just Folder1, folder2, etc. There were hundreds of files.. would take me to eternity to careful recover it one by one.

[msp]

i've been leaning towards a *nix install on the next 'puter i get. i've been looking at Lycoris Desktop/LX (  http://www.lycoris.com/  ). they've even got their own forum for help if needed. anyone use this or any thoughts on Lycoris?
_________________
sharing the LOVE LOVE...

[curious john]

Guess info got lost in my above verbose post. Install win98 or whatever, THEN install Mandrake. Use the options to let Mandrake automatically create and format its own native linux partition. It will let you chose above what it figures is minimum. I'd suggest between 3 gig and 6gig depending on what you want to install and how you want to use it. I have it setup on an older computer with a 3gig hardrive all by itself. Plenty of room for me, but I dont download video or music.

Then chose option to let Mandrake install LILO boot software. When you turn on computer, LILO screen will come up giving you choice of Mandrake or Windows. Works great and is free and very easy to install. Just install Mandrake last after all other operating systems and LILO will find others and give you option of which to boot.on startup.

[MM]

webmaster wrote:

Well i finally decided to install linux. After cleaning some junk off my HD and download of Mandrake 8.2...

How long did it take you to d/load Mandrake?

With only a dialup modem & a connection speed then of 48K, my FTP said it will takes 4days & 10 hours to d/load the lot! (I only chose all the subdirectories from Mandrake onwards.)

[curious john]

I have slow download also. I paid $5 total (includes shipping)or something like that for 2 cd set of Mandrake8.0 from 3rd party rather than hassle with the download. This was when 8.0 was latest. Now 8.1 and 8.2 are out and are 3 cd sets. They go for around $7.50 including shipping. Can also still get 7.1 for $2.50 including shipping which is on one cd. (My comments in above posts only apply to Mandrake8.0 as I havent tried the other versions.) When I decided to try Mandrake, it just wasnt worth wasting lot time to save $5.

These are cd copies of the free download. Available here:  http://www.edmunds-enterprises.com/linux/c...category=2 
And other places, even off ebay. The offical cd sets with support, handholding, more software, etc from Mandrake are much higher, but lot cheaper than any windows product.

[curious john]

By way if you see Mandrake labelled "PPC" this is version for Macintosh computers, not for standard PCs. Linux comes in many flavors and many different sizes for many different systems. Somebody even came up with a mini version they named "jailbait" to use to reflash some "internet appliances" replacing whatever came on them originally.

[plodr]

For anyone with a really fast connection, this site has links to download ISOs of almost any linux distro. There are also links to buy the CDs.
Mandrake is under $10 for 3 CDs.
 http://www.linuxiso.org/ 

[MM]

Finally I managed to buy Mandrake LINUX 8.2 on eBay for £5.94 (US$9.56) including postage.

Will be loading it once I redistribute the disk space on my system.

[dannyboy]

plodr wrote:

How big a partition do you recommend? I installed peanut linux under windows but I think the partition is too small and before I do much, I want to uninstall it and give it more room. (I'm running 98SE with a 20G hd).

I am trying to find a small Linux to download (as opposed to CD).
I am over half done downloading Peanut linux. I should get the rest tonight.
Plodr, Did you make this thing work?
Dan

[plodr]

Let's just say, dannyboy, that I haven't given it much attention. I got hung up on monitor display then I thought before I waste hours trying to tweak it, I should uninstall it and set the partition size larger. Somewhere I have notes because it took me awhile and a week or two looking in the peanut forum to get it installed. If I find my notes, I will put what I discovered worked for me so you have an easier time.

[MM]

My last encounter with LINUX (RedHat) caused me to lose my whole multi-boot PC system (WinME, Win98SE, W2K). Basically, I lost my nerves but was unable to 'reverse' out of the installation...had to hit ESC to come out. Anyway, thats history...

After reading the posts on this thread (since my last attempt), I gave it another go.. DONE it! ..now got Mandrake LINUX 8.2 (ML) installed.

I actually created some free space (10GB) after my primary partitions but before my extended partition (EP) using PartitionMagic7 (PM). ML moved my EP right up, gobbling up the free space and installed it in EP instead!

This caused PM to report some cylinders/heads/sectors errors but managed to update itself. It was a bit of a hair-raising experience!
_________________
(beep ... beep ) I am outta here! ------>

[dannyboy]

I got the layout.bin file I needed for WinLinux 2001. I think I might try again at making it work. Part of my objective is to use secondary 1 gig hard drive for Linux. I don't think Mandrake would fit. Anyway, I am just playin' & so far, I am not sure if I am havin' fun.
Dan

[not ready for pt]

Here is my experience with Redhat. First of all, I had to repartition my hard drive. With the included partitioning progam called fips?, I was unable to perform the operation. Instead, I used Partition Magic. Of course, I still had to figure out how much space to allocate since Linux likes to break up your hard disk into sections. During the installation, you are asked to create a password. However, on 1st boot, that username and password did not work because Linux uses provides different levels of access for security purposes, even on a single-user machine. You must boot to the root level or something like that and create a new user. How was I suppose to know that the username is "root"? Then there is the problem with drive access. With Windows, drives are automatically detected. Not Linux. You must enter the administrative level to give access for each user. That would not have been such a problem if the settings would stick. Unfortunately, everytime I rebooted, the cd-rom and floppy drive would not be seen. Another problem is my sound card never worked, not matter what I tried. Probably the biggest problem I have with Linux is that simple adjustments are made using a command line. To enable a cd-rom, you must type remember the path and command. Same with a mouse scroll button. If this is a GUI, I don't want to enter commands for features that should in dialog box.

Last week, I received a copy of KNOPPIX 3.1 which is basically a bootable operating system and applications on one CD. There is no installing necessary and no Linux files are left on your hard drive. Of course, my floppy, 2 hd partitions, and 2 cd drives were not detected. Likewise, the scroll button did not work. For this distribution, I believe there were no settings that could be saved between sessions.

Of course, I am just a beginner on Linux. There probably is a way to automatically detect my drives. I suppose I could have purchased a new sound card. Even though I read a Linux book beforehand, I still found Linux to be more frustrating than it is worth. Naturally, if Linux had 97% of the marketplace, I would force myself to learn this operating system. However, since the linux market share is probably about 1%, there is no reason to abandon Windows.

[curious john]

I have updated to Mandrake8.2. Its a little slicker and gives option of a minimal install of something like 80MB although this is without a gui. Minimal install is probably not useful to average pc user.

A neat version of linux to play with is Mu Linux. It can be installed with as little as one floppy disk upto six floppy disks. Can be run in RAM memory only or "cloned" to a linux partition on hardrive. Its about smallest linux distribution with a gui desktop. Works even on a 386 PC but better on 486 or newer. Older kernel so cant run latest browsers, but can surf. Think newest browser it can handle is Netscape 3.0 last I checked few months ago (included as option on one of the six optional disks). Still lot fun to play with without using up lot of hardrive space.

Linux may only have minimal personal pc market share, but look out, its headed to make big inroads into buisiness market as companies dont have to pay Big Bill Gates his blood money to use it. Also corporations such as IBM are behind it. Unless somebody is big gamer or requires windows for employment, I think anybody even slightly interested should give it a try. I use linux nearly all the time and rarely use win98 computer anymore, and only keep it for when I need to use my old scanner that doesnt have a Linux driver or a shareware stock accounting program that I havent found Linux equivalent for. Last time I did boot win98 got blue screen of death right off bat. Had to reboot twice to get to desktop. Mandrake 8.0 and now 8.3 have been ultra stable giving me no hassle, no lost files, no need to reinstall, etc. I just cant imagine somebody wasting money on XP when Mandrake is available for free and lot less hassle than playing installation games with Microsoft.