nEWB TO lINUX

[jimmyrules712]

im running XP pro, but i was thinking about installing linux along side it, just to toy around with. Im wandering what advantages there would be to useing linux, besides its cheaper and viruses arent common.

[bailey]

that is what I am doing, xp-pro and red hat ver 9.0.
works great.
if you have partition magic just shrink you xp partition to i/2 of the drive and leave the rest as free sapce.
red hat will self install on the free space and set up the dual boot menue for you, easyst way to do it.full install needs at least 5 gig for the o/s

[Floppyman]

If you ever plan to do some programming, you'll appreciate having some linux knowledge. HTH

[natebo]

I recommend downloading fedora core 1, it's much nicer than 9.0. Welcome to linux, you'll love it!!!

[jimmyrules712]

im sure i could find this info here on the forum. but please mention to me the easiest to use for newbs linux, and where i can get it at. I also noticed like newegg sells redhat and Suse, and it says they come with tons of programs and such, do free linux versions com with the same sutff, if not is the versions that cost money worth it.

[natebo]

sure, it never hurts to support the cause... But download the iso images from a site like distrowatch, and you can read about the different distro's and what they have to offer. They will tell you how to burn the iso's so they are self booting, and your home free, with no money spent. I've downloaded almost all of them and have had a ball installing one after the other and seeing what they have in common and not... But, yah, I actually bought my first distro, good old slackware, but found it to be a tad to advanced so I bought a red hat 9.0, but still wasn't happy so I started downloading. I did just buy SUSE and like it too.

[jimmyrules712]

ok well i DLed mandrake, burned it to cds, and installed it. So now i boot, the thing comes up giving me some options, linux, windows, and a few other things. So i click linux to get into linux, and it goes int oa DOS like screen, black and all and text asks me for the login and password i set, so i give it to it, it logs me in, but it just sits there in a DOS like screen.

[MOSFET]

I am not sure but I was under the impression that you must install Linux to a partition first before installing any version of Windows and then Windows versions must be installed oldest to newest to each partition. I will look into it because I cannot remember where I read that but it is a rule I have stuck to and have had no problems.

[bailey]

windows should be installed first if you are going to dual boot linux, it is best if you have at least 10 gig of free unallocated hard drive space that linux can install to. it likes the free space part.

[MOSFET]

I think that 10 Gigs of free space is preferably the first 10 Gigs on the HDD which may be the reasoning behind the article that I read wich told me to install Linux first.

[bailey]

go for it and let me know how it works out, OK ?

[bosco]

Originally posted by jimmyrules712
So i click linux to get into linux, and it goes int oa DOS like screen, black and all and text asks me for the login and password i set, so i give it to it, it logs me in, but it just sits there in a DOS like screen.

There is a command to get to the GUI. I forgot it. Doh. But once you get in the GUI, you can set it up to boot to the GUI. Did it ask you if you wanted it to boot to the command prompt or the GUI?

[Heon2574]

startx

[MOSFET]

sarcasm......ha ha

i keep seeing partition magic mentioned

everything you need to know is in the help file
installing a second OS

[bailey]

I used partition to resize my primary partition so that there was plenty of unalicated free space for red hat 9.0 to install everything
very simple and automatic way to do it.

[jimmyrules712]

Originally posted by bosco
There is a command to get to the GUI. I forgot it. Doh. But once you get in the GUI, you can set it up to boot to the GUI. Did it ask you if you wanted it to boot to the command prompt or the GUI?

i didnt notice it ever asking that, any way i can go back and fix it? and yesi ts booting me to command prompt, boy thats scary for a first time user

[bosco]

As Heon2574 said, just type startx and you should be on your way. Yes, you should be able to change the way you boot into Linux. Command prompt or GUI.

[jimmyrules712]

ok i tried the startx thing, it started to load and then crashed back to the command prompt, something about a fatal error: no screens found, wtf does that meen?

i didnt expect linux to be a walk in the park but this is almost as bad as windows!

[kilgoretrout]

You need to install the ati radeon linux driver for your graphics card. But before you do that you must first download and install the kernel source. And you'll have to do it all from the command line. If that doesn't totally scare you off, post back and I'll go into more detail.

[jimmyrules712]

i want to get it working, so explain to me in details how to do it.

[kilgoretrout]

Two basic linux commands: "cd"- change directrory; "ls"- list the contents of the current directory.
First download the kernel source in windows here:

ftp://ftp.nl.uu.net/pub/linux/mandrake/9.2/i586/Mandrake/RPMS

The package you need is named:

kernel-source-2.4.22-10mdk.i586.rpm

Save it to a directory in windows that you'll easily be able to find later from the linux command line.

Boot into linux and login as root. From the command line run:

# cd /mnt
# ls

That will print out the contents of the /mnt directory. Linux accesses other partitions through mount points which are just directories setup for that purpose. The directory tree for the windows partition is grafted on to its mount point directory. All mount points in mandrake are in /mnt. The first windows partition mount point is usually called "windows" or "win_c", something like that. See if you find something like that in your printout. Say you find a "windows" directory in /mnt. Just cd to it and do a ls and you will get a printout of the all files and directories in window's root:

# cd windows
# ls

Using the cd and ls command navigate to the directory where you have the kernel source rpm saved. Once there run:

# urpmi kernel-source

That will install your kernel source. If you get this far post back and I'll go over the install of the ati radeon driver.

Note, the command:

# cd ..

will take you up one directory to the parent and is useful for backtracking if you get lost.

[jimmyrules712]

man i need a printer.

does anyone always have to do this when they install linux? or am i havign a unique issue

[apappasmurf]

Hi!
As a newbie to computing and linux in particular, I get confused with the commandline interface. so I have decided to learn about linux and I figure the best way is to build limux from scratch.

Would any of you guys be interested in joining me?
Maybe we could start a new board.

What do you guys think?

[natebo]

Man, that would be neat, but why don't you just start with a source distro first, That's basically the idea behind them... Sorcerer is supposed to be pretty good. Or try Slackware.

[monster]

Originally posted by jimmyrules712
im running XP pro, but i was thinking about installing linux along side it, just to toy around with. Im wandering what advantages there would be to useing linux, besides its cheaper and viruses arent common.

I would recommend Mandrake 9.0 for a linux operating system, I have experienced with redhat 7.0-9.0.. I found that 7.0 is best for servers.. I like mandrakes GUI, I also recommend Linux Complete its 1,000 of linux knowledge.. If your serious about linux than that is the book for you.

[apappasmurf]

Hi!
Apoligies to jimmyrules, I should have started a new thread for this discussion. But I was browsing the thread and it struck me
as an idea.

TonyS

[jimmyrules712]

ya well i havnt exactly been on linux yet, im too lazy to install my stinking video card from the command prompt.

by the way, when the dual boot load window comes up when i turn on my PC, it givesme options, lin, windows, etc. Well it auto selects linux and if i dont change that, in 8 seconds it boots linux.

how do i change that so it will auto selet windows instead, or not give a time limit?

[DUSTIN]

you're using the boot loader that came with linux...so you can change that in the boot options--if you could boot into linux. you can set with one as the default.