installed red hat 7.1 a few questions

[mostwanted]

First, I am NooB to LINUX

I bought a book at a clearance sale this weekend that included the red hat 7.1 disto. The book is called Linux weekend crash course. Written by Naba Barkakati. Published by Hungry minds, inc copywrite 2001.

I didn't exactly follow it's course to a T. You are supposed to set aside 15 hours on a week end. I don't have that kind of time and got a bit anxious. I followed the instructions from the start for a while untill I got it installed and configured then I have been jumping around a bit. I have been trying to read all of the chapters tho to better understand how it works.

There are a few concerns that the book isn't real clear about which I may ask about later. But first I need to get a few things going so that I can operate.

1. My email service is provided by comcast.net They use macromedia flash player 7. I tried to install the plug in, but it is still not working. I unpackaged than ran the installer, logged out as root then logged back in as a usr. I then tried to view my email but still did't work.

2. I installed all packages when prompted to do so as I was running the installation of Red hat, but I don't think everything has installed. I tried to find GIMP, but it's not there. So i mounted the CDROM and looked for it but couldn't figure out what file it is.

3. cdrom won't eject after mounting

thanks for any help and keep an eye on this thread for more questions.

ATTN: Moderator, If I need to post seperate threads for my questions let me know and I will do so.

[bailey]

I don't understand the connection, you don't need flash player to recive e-mail

[mostwanted]

Originally Posted by bailey I don't understand the connection, you don't need flash player to recive e-mail

maybe it is "I" who doesn't understand the connection. I see you live in the same area as I (KC) so maybe you have comcast? Anyway when I click the link to get my inbox, I get a blank screan.

[kilgoretrout]

Do yourself a favor and download a more modern version of linux. Mandrake is good for beginners and freely downloadable. Also, try knoppix. It's a complete linux distro on a bootable cd that installs nothing to your hard drive and is also freely downloadable and an excellent way to get your feet wet.
Now to answer your questions.
1. You are trying to access your email account from the comcast website. I don't think you need flash to do that but if you do you will have to install the linux version of flash from macromedia's website and install and configure it. I think it's more likely a problem with the old browser that is included with rh 7.1 rather than the absence of flash as I can access my comcast email from their website in a browser w/o flash. Most people would just set up an email client to do this task. I'm not sure what is included in rh7.4 so I can't help you there.

2. I'm not sure whether the gimp was included in rh7.1 but if it is it would be an ancient version. It's included in both knoppix and mandrake.

3. You have to unmount the cd before you can eject it. To do this, close the file manager, right click on the cd icon and select "unmount" from the drop down menu.

Don't be intimidated by all this stuff. There is a steep learning curve with linux but the best way to learn is by diving in and trying. Reading books w/o any actual experience won't get you very far. The bootable knoppix cd is great for this.

[mostwanted]

I apprieciate your replys. I have decided to ditch the Red Hat all together and start with mandrake. A friend of mine has recommended this to me as well. I believe that it was worth the try to get my feet wet and dive right in. So I look forward to asking some questions in later threads related to this. I have all but boycotted windows personally. I just don't like how they treat people and how unstable it becomes. I would try Mac, but cannot afford to purchase a new system. I figured that it would be a better learning expieriance to try out some Linux.

Jeremy