Interested in trying out Linux. What to go with?

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CLock3

Gawd
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Oct 9, 2007
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Hello. I've been interested in trying out a Linux OS for a while now, but I was just curious what one you all recommend. What do most of you use? Like Ubuntu, or Fedora Core? I did some searching around and such, but figured I would ask you all to see what you use. Thanks in advance for the help.
 
I've been using Ubuntu for a couple years now. Great compatibility, wide selection of packages available in the package manager, regular release schedule, and most importantly (IMO) it's probably got the largest, most active community which is important if you're having trouble with something or need help. A quick search on their forum will probably answer any question, and if not, posting a new thread will usually receive responses really quickly.
 
I'm a linux noob and I use Ubuntu as my main os on my computer at work ..and also have 3 Edubuntu servers set up with multiple thin-clients running off of each one.

..as stated , pretty easy to use and easy to dig into if you want to learn more about its guts and all that. :cool:



[F]old|[H]ard
 
Alright, sweet. I downloaded the iso, I just gotta wait to put in an extra hdd I picked up to install it onto. Thanks for the help.
 
My current Linux box runs Ubuntu. It's the easiest, and probably the best Linux distro I've used, but I haven't used a whole lot, and of course that's just my opinion. Prior to Ubuntu I had Mandrake (now Mandriva), but this was years back.

There's nothing new I can add, on the subject of Ubuntu, that hasn't already been said. It's pretty easy to install, add software, etc. The only real problems I have with Ubuntu Linux have little to do with the actual distro itself, and more to do with Linux in general. Definitely check out the Ubuntu forums though. They're pretty helpful, and there's always great tips, how-tos, etc.
 
i usually would say that the best way to experience linux from a windows user's point of view is to get a good virtualization software package like VMware or Virtualbox (i'm partial to VirtualBox myself), and fire up all the different types of distros you can in VMs.

I'd day, start off with Ubuntu, then work your way to Debian, then move to a bare net install of debian and apt-get your way to a working desktop. Once you get past that, you'll likely have your own opinions on what to do next :)

but yea, use VMs to play with Linux... its just way too damn convenient and easy!
 
I would give Linux Mint a whirl as well if you have the time. It uses Ubuntu as a base but looks and feels a little more "defined"...
 
Setting up a headless server, and installing debian, is a good way to learn linux.

But if you want a simple understanding of Linux on the desktop, just go with ubuntu (or mint)
 
Hm, so I've been sitting here trying to install Ubuntu, and for some reason I can't do it. Every time I boot from the CD it will mess up at a different point. I burned the CD slow, and I even did the CD Check in the Ubuntu Install menu, and there's no errors. Is Ubuntu picky with hardware or something or am I just really unlucky?
 
CLock3 said:
Hm, so I've been sitting here trying to install Ubuntu, and for some reason I can't do it. Every time I boot from the CD it will mess up at a different point. I burned the CD slow, and I even did the CD Check in the Ubuntu Install menu, and there's no errors. Is Ubuntu picky with hardware or something or am I just really unlucky?
Click to expand...

How does it mess up? Does it show any error messages, or does it just lock up? Are you installing it on the computer in your signature? I don't see any glaring compatibility issues (except possibly the sound card). It if happens at different points I still kind of suspect the CD...
 
Yeah, it'll freeze up at different times. There are error messages when it's trying to load something it seems. I'll try and get a picture of them. It doesn't always mess up at that point though.
 
I would recommend you start out with ubuntu to become familiar with Linux in general, and then give Arch a spin. Best and fastest user-centric distro out there imo, but much harder to set up for a linux newbie than Ubuntu.
 
I've gotten very ambitious, or have A.D.D. because I'm trying about 4 different linux distros in VMWare.

In all cases i've had trouble installing the client package that you need running in the 'guest' system. All distros install by default various compilers. You should also know that you're not an admin by default, so there are some things you should know in getting admin rights, after you get familiar with linux.

Ubuntu has given me the greatest grief in the VT env. SUSE Linux has been the absolute best. It's quite bulky and slow to load but has so far been the most stable.

KUBuntu is nice but I downloaded one that has "KDE 4.0" - that's a lot of eye candy. v4.0 seems to be very buggy when i try to install apps, at least in a VT environment (not sure if it should matter).

I really like Mandriva. It's my second choice over SUSE.

I will eventually have to choose one distro for dual booting. I want one with the most hardware compatibility.

As for your ubuntu installation problem..i think you're supposed to hit F6 at some point to set something and to complete the install.
 
CLock3 said:
Hm, so I've been sitting here trying to install Ubuntu, and for some reason I can't do it. Every time I boot from the CD it will mess up at a different point. I burned the CD slow, and I even did the CD Check in the Ubuntu Install menu, and there's no errors. Is Ubuntu picky with hardware or something or am I just really unlucky?
Click to expand...

I remember having to burn ubuntu 8 different times to get a good one.
 
CLock3 said:
Hm, so I've been sitting here trying to install Ubuntu, and for some reason I can't do it. Every time I boot from the CD it will mess up at a different point. I burned the CD slow, and I even did the CD Check in the Ubuntu Install menu, and there's no errors. Is Ubuntu picky with hardware or something or am I just really unlucky?
Click to expand...

That's really unlucky. I burned ubuntu onto 5-year-old media that looked like hell and it installed perfectly on the first try..

Check your cables and do a memtest.
 
I had this same problem with the installing Ubuntu 7.x.
For whatever reason, it was really picky about booting and even loading from my NEC DVD-RW, so I had to install and boot from a generic CD-RW drive I had lying around and that worked perfect. Could be a problem with the DVD-RW, but I have since been able to burn DVDs just fine with it.

Funny thing is, I could boot from an older 6.x CD just fine, but the OS wouldn't load.

I would try swapping CD/DVD drives.
 
Okay, so I tried it again and took a picture of the error. It sits on this screen, and I didn't know if it was something I should just let it go through, so I left it on, and when I came back later it was still going. You can see how high the numbers went. So I don't know what's going on. If anyone has any tips, let me know, it'd be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Click the pic to see the full size.


 
odoe said:
I had this same problem with the installing Ubuntu 7.x.
For whatever reason, it was really picky about booting and even loading from my NEC DVD-RW, so I had to install and boot from a generic CD-RW drive I had lying around and that worked perfect. Could be a problem with the DVD-RW, but I have since been able to burn DVDs just fine with it.

Funny thing is, I could boot from an older 6.x CD just fine, but the OS wouldn't load.

I would try swapping CD/DVD drives.
Click to expand...

That's what I'm using actually, a NEC DVD-RW. Perhaps that is the problem.
 
i have no clue what is wrong with it, id say post it on the Ubuntu forums but there down for maintenance
 
Alright, thanks man. Im also downloading Fedora Core right now to see if that gives me any problems. I'll probably try burning the Ubuntu ISO again as well.
 
bcm43xx is the driver for a broadcom wireless chipset. It's complaining that it can't find the firmware to upload into the card. This is either a bug (certainly a bug that it wouldn't just continue anyway), or a bad burn. Did you try CTRL+C?
 
When you boot from the CD instead of selecting the first option to start and install ubuntu, press F6. there, go to the end of the line, and change "splash" into "nosplash".
 
Okay, I'll give that a shot. I just re-burned the disc again, and it still didn't work Gave me the same problem. eloj, you mentioned it's a wireless driver. Would my Linksys wireless card be giving it a problem?
 
From my time spent at the Ubuntu forum, Ubuntu does seem to be hit or miss, when it comes to working with various wireless cards. It could be the problem. However, I've never had an issue installing Ubuntu, but none of the PCs were wireless, so I don't have any personal experience on this subject.

If you still can't get it to work, with some of the suggestions here, I'd definitely do what NoobToast suggested, and post your problem, and even the screenshots, on the Ubuntu Forum (possibly the Absolute Beginners section), once their forum is back up and running. They're usually quite good with helping out new users who are having problems.
 
Alright, thanks for the help man. I just installed Fedora and it's running fine, so who knows what it was with Ubuntu. I'll still post the problem over on the ubuntu forum probably though to see if they know the deal. Thanks again.
 
I personally haven't had any trouble with Ubuntu on the few installs of it I have done in regards to wireless. When I first tried it there were no drivers for my wireless card so the wireless card just didn't work. The latest version worked just fine with my wireless card even though I don't even use it anymore.

I'm personally a fan of openSUSE. I have it running on 4 of my desktops at home and soon to be on my quad core which should be coming in this week. I have Ubuntu on an old Compaq P3 1Ghz and it seems to run fine as it's headless and does nothing but WCG. However, I don't care for Ubuntu overall. openSUSE is my favorite so far even if it is bloated. I started out with Fedora Core 6 and it wasn't bad but after using openSUSE 10.2 I was hooked.

I have a couple other distros I'm trying out or need to try out. I'll probably end up switching the P3 to one of them when I finally decide on which one I want to use. I really need to do it soon as I'll use them as VMs in my quad core machine.

 
Hey, I've got another question. In Fedora, I can't seem to get my internet working. I'm hooked up to my Linksys router through ethernet, and when I try to open Firefox, it won't open any pages. I've tried both the nvidia ethernet port and the marvell yukon port, and neither seem to work. I've also tried messing with a couple settings in the os firewall, but I can't seem to get it. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance for any help.
 
I've tried many distros in a VMWare env. I've only gotten as far as installing vmware tools in SUSE. The other distros have given me problems (they don't all have gcc, make, etc installed by default). I'm very impressed with SUSE. The menuing is very sensibly placed. It's bulkier than the other distros but it is just as fast. SUSE also took the longest to install.

I still see a lot of value with XP over linux, due to the fact there are many windows apps (photoshop for example) and games developed for it. If one runs more win apps than linux ones, best to keep XP. Sure there's WINE but might as well run XP in the first place. So, I wonder what value there is for desktop users going to linux?

Linux is definitely very good for server environments, and for NATs...and for older pc's, or laptops that don't need much memory/space...the list is growing!
 
CLock3 said:
Hey, I've got another question. In Fedora, I can't seem to get my internet working. I'm hooked up to my Linksys router through ethernet, and when I try to open Firefox, it won't open any pages. I've tried both the nvidia ethernet port and the marvell yukon port, and neither seem to work. I've also tried messing with a couple settings in the os firewall, but I can't seem to get it. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance for any help.
Click to expand...

What are your network settings? Are you properly connected?
 
Getting ubuntu to work with 8800gt or 8800gts is an absolute nightmare, so bear that in mind.
 
CLock3 said:
Hey, I've got another question. In Fedora, I can't seem to get my internet working. I'm hooked up to my Linksys router through ethernet, and when I try to open Firefox, it won't open any pages. I've tried both the nvidia ethernet port and the marvell yukon port, and neither seem to work. I've also tried messing with a couple settings in the os firewall, but I can't seem to get it. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance for any help.
Click to expand...

It might have nothing to do with your problem, but the onboard ethernet on my Gigabyte board didn't work because the retarded Windows driver did something that disabled it. There might be some kind of driver option in the device manager in XP that you can set. Oh, and in case you try to install Ubuntu again, I'd try unplugging your wireless first.

chrispycrunch said:
I've tried many distros in a VMWare env. I've only gotten as far as installing vmware tools in SUSE. The other distros have given me problems (they don't all have gcc, make, etc installed by default). I'm very impressed with SUSE. The menuing is very sensibly placed. It's bulkier than the other distros but it is just as fast. SUSE also took the longest to install.

I still see a lot of value with XP over linux, due to the fact there are many windows apps (photoshop for example) and games developed for it. If one runs more win apps than linux ones, best to keep XP. Sure there's WINE but might as well run XP in the first place. So, I wonder what value there is for desktop users going to linux?

Linux is definitely very good for server environments, and for NATs...and for older pc's, or laptops that don't need much memory/space...the list is growing!
Click to expand...

I think there is a lot of value for desktop users going to linux. Linux is completely capable of doing the things I spend 95+% of my time on at the computer (browsing the web, listening to music, watching videos, typing, etc.). I never need to boot up XP unless I want to play a game, or am locked into using some sort of proprietary application for school.
 
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