Hopefully
this “article” will shed some light on the subject of Linux. Linux is a free OS. Which means that it is distributed
freely. Yes, you can buy versions at the local P.C. store, but you
can download it off the “net” for FREE! Now don’t jump the
guns and download it and try to install it just yet. What we are trying to do is get some people familiar with
what Linux is and what you can do with it.
Linux
can operate with a GUI just as Windows does, or you can operate it
from the “console” or command line, just like DOS. Although
there are some similarities between Linux command line and DOS, they
are different in more ways than one. We will get into that soon
enough. As with the command line, the GUI interface of Linux (which
there are many to choose from) is similar to Windows. It is very
customizable. Linux has many GUI’s. Some of which are KDE ( www.kde.org
) , and Gnome ( www.gnome.org
) which are the most popular. Deciding which one you want to use is
the question. You can have more than one!
Now, I know all of this sounds exciting, and it is. Another item I would like to mention is which “flavor” of
Linux do I want? Well
that is a personal preference. What I mean by flavors is, well, all Linux share the same
source code, but they are “modified” by different companies who
produce there own version of Linux. To give you an example: Let’s take word processor programs.
They all pretty much do the same thing. But, you have Microsoft
Word, Corel Word Perfect and so on. Each company adds it’s own
“touch” to it. Getting back to “flavors”…
Each
distribution (flavor) of Linux comes with certain add-ons and such.
To get you familiar with distributions I will throw some names in
here: RedHat, Caldera, Suse, Mandrake, BSD. These are some names of
companies that distribute there own “flavor” of Linux. Now take
in mind, they do share the same source code, but they do have some
different attributes about them.
Here
are links for some companies that produce their own version of
Linux:
www.redhat.com
www.calderasystems.com
www.suse.com
www.linux-mandrake.com
There
are more versions than this, these
are the most common and beginner “friendly”.
I
would suggest visiting some of the Linux sites and see for yourself
what they have to offer.
They
all operate pretty much the same way, there are some visual
differences. So it is a matter of preference.
Using
Linux can be an adventure in itself for the beginner. Although
installations have not been easier. Not all hardware will work with
Linux. So check the compatibility before you dive in! Getting to know your way around Linux will take some time,
even with the GUI’s. So many of us are so used to Windows, we will
take that for granted. Now, due to the lack of resources, I can not
include screen shots of any GUI’s to get you familiar with them, that’s why I put the links in the second paragraph for you
to see for yourself. But I will include some basic commands in Linux
and their DOS equivalent. Here they are:
