I was just playing with Ubuntu on my moms laptop again (yeah, got bored and wanted somewhere new to install something) and it's stupidly easy to set up and install so yeah, if you want an easy Linux Distro I recommend it.
It proved my point about Gnome though, Gnome on that laptop (it's Breezy 5.1 installed like half a year ago or more) and it's Gnome 2.12 and Gnome on there is great, so many features, but if you install Gnome 2.14 now most of the features have gone. It's almost a skeleton of what it used to be (hence labotomised).
That sounds... quite... silly. Did you just install the OS then expect it to work or did you actually install the needed components and configure them?
Not quite sure waht you mean by silly.
My point being, which you appear to have overlooked, is that the Live CD worked, therefore had all the appropriate drivers that I needed, but on installing the OS to my hard drive, said drivers or whatever were no longer there.
I also said that there were many, many people with the same problems, which other forum members were unable to solve. I've lost count of the number of solutions that I have tried, only to trash various components of the OS and having to do a clean install yet again.
My point being, which you appear to have overlooked, is that the Live CD worked, therefore had all the appropriate drivers that I needed, but on installing the OS to my hard drive, said drivers or whatever were no longer there.
Of course they wont be, an installation is nothing like a LiveCD. I could help you if you still had anything left installed. Things can be distro independant which means having issues like you did sounds rather odd and possibly just down to inexperience...
I downloaded and installed Fedora Core 5 to use as a web server...I chose fedora because I've tinkered with Red Hat before and it seems easy enough to use and configure etc.. I've got my Joomla sites up and running, figured out how to get virtual hosts working with Apache and all the rest of it but I just have some quick questions:
1) this was just a test server to see if I could get it working, now it is I'm going to be moving the server to a dual core Athlon box. This is slightly overkill but it's the only spare machine I have. Anyway, How good is Linux at managing Dual cores? Will I see any performance benefit over a single core machine or is it just a case of multitasking will be better?
2) Is there a guide anywhere to setting up Folding@home on a dual core Linux machine?
3) What's the best bittorrent client for Linux and can someone point me to a guide for setting it up correctly?
I think that's it but I'm sure there'll be more questions when I actually get round to building the machine.
1) The Linux threading scheduler is excellent. I mean, it would have to be since a lot of Linux machines are supercomputers with oodles of processors.
2) Not as such, but as Enverex mentioned it's pretty straightforward. The short answer is just make two directories and put a copy of the client in each one. From there, we'll have to write a simple script to get them to start at boot-time. This was discussed in another thread but I can't remember if it was in Alternative OS or FAH.
3) I prefer the vanilla BitTorrent client for Linux. It should be listed in Fedora's package list. So should Azureus for that matter.
Damn, already some real good info in this thread. Keep it coming, guys.
BTW, on the machine I plan to experiment with, I'm thinking of dual booting Ubuntu along with it's present OS, which is Win2K Pro. I have another hard drive to install Ubuntu on, so I can have a hard drive dedicated for each OS.
I can't find any threads started by you for Ubuntu-related problems. We can help, give us a shot.
-drasnor
I meant on the relavent Ubuntu or Xandros community forums.
For those still interested, there is a massive community forum for Ubuntu where many people get help and solutions. They swear that they will never go back to Microsoft!
I guess I'm unlucky with my hardware combination as I've tried many solutions and advice offered there but with no permanent fix.
Thanks for the offer of help again Drasnor, you did a fine job of talking me through setting up FAH. Alas that was on an earlier version of Ubuntu. I'm going to give it a rest for a while, maybe try again later as Vista looms.
The main reason why Linux remains more difficult than Windows is mainly because zealots insist that EVERYTHING is done from the command line. I mean it would be nice to have a choice half the time but they are stuck in their ways and refuse to acknowledge anyone that even requests it, hell, all I hear from them lately is "oh, so go make one yourself" "...".
To set something up, rather than a simple configuration program, you'll give up after god knows how long trying to set something up, only to join IRC or somewhere and have someone say "omg noob, you just need to run blahblah-blah &> --switch -switch 9281 2&> /dev/wtf | grep chickens | ec-exec-1 [greenpie], it's so simple dumbass" I mean how the hell are you supposed to know that? Being told to RTFM or rather "man touch" is all you get in IRC a lot of the time too, and when it's such a complicated thing you end up having to do you have no chance in hell.
Yeah, like Linux, hate the users and mentality.
Hell, I mean look at VIM, the editor you'll surely be recommended by the zealot elite, it's the hight of insanity, just to quit the program you have to do some insane ****ing shift-alt-colon-home-break combination JUST to bring up the command box to then do something like control colon exclamation quit semicolon crazy **** then to actually get OUT of the program. It's just absoloutely insane.
BTW, on the machine I plan to experiment with, I'm thinking of dual booting Ubuntu along with it's present OS, which is Win2K Pro. I have another hard drive to install Ubuntu on, so I can have a hard drive dedicated for each OS.
Wise move muddoctor, it's easy to set up dual booting with the Ubuntu installer. Even I could do that! I was also able to rearrange the boot loader so that XP loaded if no response was made to the boot options after 10 seconds. That suits Mrs.Crypto.
Hell, I mean look at VIM, the editor you'll surely be recommended by the zealot elite, it's the hight of insanity
We try to set ourselves above that crap here. I'm sure all of us have horror stories from mainstream Linux support channels that we're trying to escape from.
VIM? That's a change, they used to preach straight vi. Meh, I just use nano or pico most of the time.
I use which ever editor seems most appropriate at the time... for quick changes I use vi, but for long edits and scripting I use kate... hey but to each his own... as for installing the folding@home client do a google for finstall. Its a script that will ask a couple of questions and then downloads and installs the client for you... it handles dual core and multi processor systems exceptionally well.
I'm probably going to pull the trigger on kubuntu tonight - I'm just wondering: are there driver compatibility issues with the 64-bit version as there is in XP64, or am I going to have just as much hardware support if I go that route? Or should I stick with the vanilla x86 build?
Hardware support seems the same on both which is something that supprised me. Only issues are with programs that use x86 assembly code and such (not many). I'm actually going to install Ubuntu on my laptop tonight.
I'm going for a laptop install as well. My only concern is the broadcom chipset in the wifi card, but I'm hoping it will have the drivers to cope. I'll give the 64-bit install a shake and see how it goes.
lol, installed Ubuntu on my Laptop (detected and setup my Atheros A/B/G WiFi PCMCIA card automatically) which took all of like, 3 minutes, just gone through the list of software now and telling it to install everything I want. I have to admit Ubuntu is nicer to use than Gentoo simply because it's EASY and I don't have to wait for everything to compile (which is good on something that's mobile and isn't really a powerhouse. The main thing that I like about Ubuntu is that it's all GUI based rather than all console based (which pisses me off on Gentoo, heh, I want GUIs damnit, not necessarily for setting up the OS, I mean for programs and and the distros settings etc). Where as the Gentoo community is pretty much "do it on the command line!" all the time. Only issue (and critical downside) for me is the lack of complete control that Gentoo gives (you basically do everything especially, pick and choose from scratch, etc).
But at least I can happily recommend it to people now. Simple and easy to use, installed faster, better and easier than Windows. Indeed impressed.
My experience with kubuntu is very similar. The LiveCD booted into a working session, and I installed it onto a spare notebook HDD. It was much cleaner, faster, and easier than a Windows install, and it installed a variety of useful apps alongside the OS - such as OpenOffice.org
kubuntu seems very notebook friendly; absolutely everything works right off the bat except for the scroll section of the touchpad, and my Wifi. As I suspected, I'm having issues with the Broadcom chipset in the wifi card that's built into the notebook. However, little perks such as the battery indicator and such work without any tweaking necessary.
Now I just need to figure out how to get the wireless to work, and I have no doubt that kubuntu/KDE could completely replace Windows for me as a daily use OS. In fact, I'm typing this post from Konqueror right now... I just happen to be plugged into the router, which is on the opposite side of the house from my office.
Broadcom 43xx (I'm not sure which 4300-series variant my chipset is, but it's definitely not the 4318). It's built into the laptop, an eMachines M6811.
I've located this fix on the ubuntu forums, but it's written for ubuntu instead of kubuntu. I'm running into a few problems, and I'm not sure of the cause.
I'm pretty sure that I've got the universe enabled in the repository (kubuntu uses Adept and not Synaptic as its GUI package manager) but I might be wrong. When I try to apt-get install bcm43xx-fwcutter, it says that it's not found.
Basically, I'm not sure where I went wrong, but I'm guessing it's one (or more?) of these three things:
1. I didn't properly set up access to the universe?
2. kubuntu has a different universe than ubuntu, and kubuntu's doesn't include bcm43xx-fwcutter?
3. 64-bit builds have a different universe than 32-bit builds, and the 64-bit doesn't include bcm43xx-fwcutter?
If it's #2 or #3 I can always install a different version of the OS. I really like KDE after using it for only a day, though, so I'd much prefer to find a solution that doesn't include switching, but it seems like all the support and information is dedicated to ubuntu, rather than kubuntu.
WPA might be considered "non-free" enough that it's not included with the default installation? That's just a guess, mind you.
//edit: I think I figured out what I was doing wrong with the universe repository - I enabled them in Adept, but I did not add "multiverse" to the string. I will do this tonight and see if I can get a running WiFi connection.
Apparently not. Broadcom seems to hold their cards close to their chest. I finally found out what the issue is - Broadcom won't release any specs on their cards. The driver has been reverse-engineered and is included in the latest Linux kernel, but the firmware is proprietary. The fix that I posted, and that I am going to try, imports the firmware from the Broadcom Windows driver, and completes the Linux driver to allow it to work. If Broadcom were a little more Linux friendly, I'm sure the entire PC would have worked with an out-of-the-box Kubuntu install, but I've got to jump through a few extra hoops because of the hardware vendor.
That's a reason lots of things don't work. I'd be supprised if Microsoft didn't have a hand in this. Why would people want to switch to an OS where their devices don't work?
Anyway, look into something called ndiswrapper. It lets you use Windows network drivers (so you can use the Windows ones off the driver CD or whatever).
Hi all. I'm pretty new here (found Short-Media while searching for reviews on the HP dv8000t laptop which I'm looking at buying). I'm a relative linux newbie, but I absolutely love it. I switched from OS X about nine months ago. I liked it so much that I built a nice AMD rig to run Linux. My Mac is covered in a thick layer of dust recently. Don't get me wrong, I still love OS X, but I like the customization capabilities of Linux. Also, I'm a computer science student, and Linux is a great platform for learning in programming fields.
Anyway, I haven't tried too many distributions in my short time. Just these: Red Hat, Yellow Dog, Knoppix, Open SuSE, Mepis, Fedora Core 5, (K)ubuntu, and Gentoo. I still want to try Many others - I like to see what's out there. I started out in Kubuntu, and have run it the entire time, running all the others on seperate partitions. Kubuntu is definitely my favorite with a close second going to Mepis. Both are KDE distributions, and both are based on Debian. Mepis is really brilliant, and I'd say that the only thing holding it back is a lack of support/developers. It is growing, and it is getting more popular, but nothing on the level that *buntu is growing. Mepis installs EXTREMELY easily, it even detects and preconfigures network printers (mine were connected to Macs). That's something no other distro did when I installed it. Mepis also just switched over to using Kubuntu's software repositories instead of Debian's.
The difference between the two is mostly their core philosophies, but they have other differences.
*buntu's philosphy is the following: "The Ubuntu community is built on the ideas enshrined in the Ubuntu Philosophy: that software should be available free of charge, that software tools should be usable by people in their local language and despite any disabilities, and that people should have the freedom to customise and alter their software in whatever way they see fit."
This means that if you want to use files in a proprietary format (Mp3, WMA, mov, M4a, etc...) you will have to install the codecs yourself. Also, you'll have to install proprietary ATI drivers if you have an ATI card, and other things like that. This is amazingly easy, just a "sudo aptitude install [software required]" away, in fact. Even though the distro doesn't ship with these things included, they do maintain Non-Free repositories.
Mepis sees things a bit differently. When installing Mepis, it will set up your video acceleration automatically. It includes codecs for things such as Mp3, and I've heard that playing WMVs works without tweaking a single thing (This is insane!).
To get down to it, though, you have to look at the communities around these distributions. the *buntu community at ubuntuforums.org is simply wonderous. It's the best Linux support community I've ever come across. Seriously. I mean these people are superhuman helpful. Just amazing.
The community on the Mepis site is just about the opposite. But, I've heard it's MUCH better at mepislovers.org. Haven't been there, though.
Anyway, I hope you guys have as good an experience with Linux as I have had. Good luck!
Comments
It proved my point about Gnome though, Gnome on that laptop (it's Breezy 5.1 installed like half a year ago or more) and it's Gnome 2.12 and Gnome on there is great, so many features, but if you install Gnome 2.14 now most of the features have gone. It's almost a skeleton of what it used to be (hence labotomised).
My point being, which you appear to have overlooked, is that the Live CD worked, therefore had all the appropriate drivers that I needed, but on installing the OS to my hard drive, said drivers or whatever were no longer there.
I also said that there were many, many people with the same problems, which other forum members were unable to solve. I've lost count of the number of solutions that I have tried, only to trash various components of the OS and having to do a clean install yet again.
Of course they wont be, an installation is nothing like a LiveCD. I could help you if you still had anything left installed. Things can be distro independant which means having issues like you did sounds rather odd and possibly just down to inexperience...
1) The Linux threading scheduler is excellent. I mean, it would have to be since a lot of Linux machines are supercomputers with oodles of processors.
2) Not as such, but as Enverex mentioned it's pretty straightforward. The short answer is just make two directories and put a copy of the client in each one. From there, we'll have to write a simple script to get them to start at boot-time. This was discussed in another thread but I can't remember if it was in Alternative OS or FAH.
3) I prefer the vanilla BitTorrent client for Linux. It should be listed in Fedora's package list. So should Azureus for that matter.
-drasnor
-drasnor
BTW, on the machine I plan to experiment with, I'm thinking of dual booting Ubuntu along with it's present OS, which is Win2K Pro. I have another hard drive to install Ubuntu on, so I can have a hard drive dedicated for each OS.
I meant on the relavent Ubuntu or Xandros community forums.
For those still interested, there is a massive community forum for Ubuntu where many people get help and solutions. They swear that they will never go back to Microsoft!
I guess I'm unlucky with my hardware combination as I've tried many solutions and advice offered there but with no permanent fix.
Thanks for the offer of help again Drasnor, you did a fine job of talking me through setting up FAH. Alas that was on an earlier version of Ubuntu. I'm going to give it a rest for a while, maybe try again later as Vista looms.
To set something up, rather than a simple configuration program, you'll give up after god knows how long trying to set something up, only to join IRC or somewhere and have someone say "omg noob, you just need to run blahblah-blah &> --switch -switch 9281 2&> /dev/wtf | grep chickens | ec-exec-1 [greenpie], it's so simple dumbass" I mean how the hell are you supposed to know that? Being told to RTFM or rather "man touch" is all you get in IRC a lot of the time too, and when it's such a complicated thing you end up having to do you have no chance in hell.
Yeah, like Linux, hate the users and mentality.
Hell, I mean look at VIM, the editor you'll surely be recommended by the zealot elite, it's the hight of insanity, just to quit the program you have to do some insane ****ing shift-alt-colon-home-break combination JUST to bring up the command box to then do something like control colon exclamation quit semicolon crazy **** then to actually get OUT of the program. It's just absoloutely insane.
Wise move muddoctor, it's easy to set up dual booting with the Ubuntu installer. Even I could do that! I was also able to rearrange the boot loader so that XP loaded if no response was made to the boot options after 10 seconds. That suits Mrs.Crypto.
VIM? That's a change, they used to preach straight vi. Meh, I just use nano or pico most of the time.
-drasnor
Skryking
But at least I can happily recommend it to people now. Simple and easy to use, installed faster, better and easier than Windows. Indeed impressed.
kubuntu seems very notebook friendly; absolutely everything works right off the bat except for the scroll section of the touchpad, and my Wifi. As I suspected, I'm having issues with the Broadcom chipset in the wifi card that's built into the notebook. However, little perks such as the battery indicator and such work without any tweaking necessary.
Now I just need to figure out how to get the wireless to work, and I have no doubt that kubuntu/KDE could completely replace Windows for me as a daily use OS. In fact, I'm typing this post from Konqueror right now... I just happen to be plugged into the router, which is on the opposite side of the house from my office.
I've located this fix on the ubuntu forums, but it's written for ubuntu instead of kubuntu. I'm running into a few problems, and I'm not sure of the cause.
I'm pretty sure that I've got the universe enabled in the repository (kubuntu uses Adept and not Synaptic as its GUI package manager) but I might be wrong. When I try to apt-get install bcm43xx-fwcutter, it says that it's not found.
Basically, I'm not sure where I went wrong, but I'm guessing it's one (or more?) of these three things:
1. I didn't properly set up access to the universe?
2. kubuntu has a different universe than ubuntu, and kubuntu's doesn't include bcm43xx-fwcutter?
3. 64-bit builds have a different universe than 32-bit builds, and the 64-bit doesn't include bcm43xx-fwcutter?
If it's #2 or #3 I can always install a different version of the OS. I really like KDE after using it for only a day, though, so I'd much prefer to find a solution that doesn't include switching, but it seems like all the support and information is dedicated to ubuntu, rather than kubuntu.
Everything but wireless works perfectly...
Atheros AR5001+
I'm kinda surprised it doesn't support WPA though
//edit: I think I figured out what I was doing wrong with the universe repository - I enabled them in Adept, but I did not add "multiverse" to the string. I will do this tonight and see if I can get a running WiFi connection.
Have you tried the "mad-wifi" package? That's supposed to support all Atheros chipsets afaik.
GH: Is support for yours not in the kernel?
Anyway, look into something called ndiswrapper. It lets you use Windows network drivers (so you can use the Windows ones off the driver CD or whatever).
Anyway, I haven't tried too many distributions in my short time. Just these: Red Hat, Yellow Dog, Knoppix, Open SuSE, Mepis, Fedora Core 5, (K)ubuntu, and Gentoo. I still want to try Many others - I like to see what's out there. I started out in Kubuntu, and have run it the entire time, running all the others on seperate partitions. Kubuntu is definitely my favorite with a close second going to Mepis. Both are KDE distributions, and both are based on Debian. Mepis is really brilliant, and I'd say that the only thing holding it back is a lack of support/developers. It is growing, and it is getting more popular, but nothing on the level that *buntu is growing. Mepis installs EXTREMELY easily, it even detects and preconfigures network printers (mine were connected to Macs). That's something no other distro did when I installed it. Mepis also just switched over to using Kubuntu's software repositories instead of Debian's.
The difference between the two is mostly their core philosophies, but they have other differences.
*buntu's philosphy is the following: "The Ubuntu community is built on the ideas enshrined in the Ubuntu Philosophy: that software should be available free of charge, that software tools should be usable by people in their local language and despite any disabilities, and that people should have the freedom to customise and alter their software in whatever way they see fit."
This means that if you want to use files in a proprietary format (Mp3, WMA, mov, M4a, etc...) you will have to install the codecs yourself. Also, you'll have to install proprietary ATI drivers if you have an ATI card, and other things like that. This is amazingly easy, just a "sudo aptitude install [software required]" away, in fact. Even though the distro doesn't ship with these things included, they do maintain Non-Free repositories.
Mepis sees things a bit differently. When installing Mepis, it will set up your video acceleration automatically. It includes codecs for things such as Mp3, and I've heard that playing WMVs works without tweaking a single thing (This is insane!).
To get down to it, though, you have to look at the communities around these distributions. the *buntu community at ubuntuforums.org is simply wonderous. It's the best Linux support community I've ever come across. Seriously. I mean these people are superhuman helpful. Just amazing.
The community on the Mepis site is just about the opposite. But, I've heard it's MUCH better at mepislovers.org. Haven't been there, though.
Anyway, I hope you guys have as good an experience with Linux as I have had. Good luck!
-drasnor