LINUX : Should I or Should'nt I...

[sahil_blues]

For the past 3-4 months Digit has been giving the latest Linux distributions in its issues...Everytime I see them I get really tempted to try them out...but then my mind says that 'Your computer is in perfect working condition...dont try anything silly!' What should I do...should I take the risk, if there's any??

 

[babumuchhala]

To move up Got to take RISK
If you dont do it you wont come to bout it.

Installing Linux is no RISK, and after u install it you will, i bet, be in the LINUX lovers club

LINUX wont screw up anything in ur PC

 

[drgrudge]

I really dont want to try linux , when my windows is working fine!

I safely give out the DVD's for my linux freaking friend, who after copying the content to his HDD returns it back...

Just my personal opinion. Go with the thing which is siutable with you.

 

[klinux]

Try alternative way to install . Dont touch ur MBR , dont install Grub , Dont install LILO .

just use loadlin or the other trick of loadling linux from NTLDR and none of ur data is gonna be harmed at all .

Else try the live cd's .

just clear up the last partition from ur hdd and go ahead with the install .

 

[pradeep_chauhan]

Linux is as inevitable as "death" sooner or later you will get it (or it will get to you......watever).

 

[khin007]

Try It Out MAn ! It wolud be a nice experience to you

-------------------------------------
www.ilug-ktm.tk Kottayam Linux Users Group

 

[svk]

I really dont want to try linux , when my windows is working fine!
Just my personal opinion. Go with the thing which is siutable with you.

i totally agree with you.
but if u r easy goin with reinstalling stuff, u can give it a try . always expect the worst, then there'll b no problems.

 

[klinux]

didnt we discuss this very same topic a while back when someone was in a dilemma whether to try out linux or no ???

 

[tuxfan]

Forget about what Digit gives. Get hold of a Knoppix or Gnoppix CD. These are great live distros. You don't have to install anything. So no tension, no problems. Just boot from the CDs and admire the great innovation called Live Distro Try it out that way.

Just imagine how a full OS loads and works with full GUI in just 128MB RAM without any hard disk space!! More RAM will make it run smoother.

On top of it, it is safer than Windows which requires lots more resources :roll: It even loads drivers for most of the hardware.

With Knoppix, I have surfed the net, seen a DVD movie, listened to music, used word processor, spreadsheet, etc. Its marvellous. Check it out

 

[GNUrag]

but then my mind says that 'Your computer is in perfect working condition...

Who says your computer is in a perfect working condition? The Operating System of your choice might be full of viruses, trojans, pirated software et. al. ... Do you call this kind of computer a Perfectly Working Computer?

dont try anything silly!' What should I do...should I take the risk, if there's any??

There is no risk. Format your complete hard disk, remove Windows and install SuSE professional on it. Use it for a month and you'll find working with Windows difficult.

Try alternative way to install . Dont touch ur MBR , dont install Grub , Dont install LILO .

And dont GNU/Linux only.
@klinux , what is this? What are you telling him to do? Dont install anything and still use an operating system.

 

[klinux]

@gnu : lol . Yup . I had a lot of trouble initially getting 01 all over the screen cause of bad Lilo install ages ago . So the way i use my linuxes

- Keep Win98 / Xp
- Install any flavor of Linux is end partitions or free ones
- Do not install Grub or Any boot loader .
- Once install is complete , u can restart and still have windows working
- Use explore2fs or any other tool to look into and extract files from ext2 / ext3 ( not sure it works for rieser fs )
- extract vmlinuz* and initrd* files from /boot directory
- download latest version of loadlin . Loadlinb or Loadlinc
- Restart in msdos in win98
- use loadlin to go boot into ur linux .
- Finished . U got a working linux dist without touching mbr or windows partitions

Alternative is ,
- Just use the method of loading linux from the NTLDR . lots of tuts out there on this .
- Even use Config.sys / autoexec.bat in win98 to get linux in boot menu

Since this guy is a new to linux , i dont think going all out into linux and scrapping windows is the way . People might advocate that . but if u look at most articles written by linux fellows , they always give their second systems to their wives , grandmas or nephews to try out linux on their own .

He can gradually move from windows to linux . plus its fun accessing files and stuff between the two . For my latest Mandrake install . i just installed directly from the iso images from my win_c (fat32) partition itself , no extraction business and all . later i even loaded packages from fat32 .

Read somewhere that people shouldnt look at open source as a career . didnt read the whole thing , but i think the author meant , people should have diverse knowledge . Win+Lin on ur resume is always good .

Even i have switched over to linux for a lot of things right now . but still have couple of issues with sound / video and modem . Will fix it in time .
once i get that done i get go full fledged into linux , and it would be the right time too . Soon MS would come hunting for pirated copies of OS in homes like in china and other places recently .

once he gets komfy with linux , he can venture into lilo grub or any other tool . Like learning to ride a cycle . start with four wheels and slowly go to two wheels and then ride a bike ( or a unicycle if ur good enuf )

So taking it slowly at the moment is the best way to switch IMO

 

[lywyre]

For the past 3-4 months Digit has been giving the latest Linux distributions in its issues...

mmm. is it so?

It is more than two months since Mandrake 10.1 was released and Digit is giving it now! (Feb 2005)

 

[ujjwal]

If you are unsure about installing a new OS, better try a live linux distro like SLAX or Knoppix.

Now, whether you will like linux depends on -

1. Whether you like tuning/tweaking an operating system, and customising many aspects of it.
2. Is stability (over a long period of usage) important to you?
3. Do you mind having to look through the man pages once in a while? (performing certain tasks will not be identical to windows)
4. Do you like playing about with new things?

... and you would probably like windows better if -

1. You want to get a job done without too much hassle, and are not bothered about how it is done.
2. You want to use popular commercial applications (like Photoshop, MS Office) and substitutes aren't good enough for you.

 

[sohummisra]

Well I must say my first experience with linux wasn't too good because I ended up damaging the boot file and had to reinstall everything from scratch. Luckily I was able to back up all my files (that too through SuSE). Anyhow, I'm holding on to all the Digit DVD's and when I finish school I'm just gonna reformat my laptop and go crazy with linux. Haha.

Linux is pretty cool but not with an old desktop, like I have, with 192 MB RAM, a 3-year-old winmodem and multiple hard disk problems. Not a good idea...hehe

 

[klinux]

with linux hardware , the mantra is the older the better lol . ur winmodem would probably have latest drivers and stuff , while some odd ball recent ones might be left out . . case only for a few hardware things though

 

[sohummisra]

Nope I simply could not find a driver for my modem because the vendor website said, "driver support for this modem has been discontinued". Besides, I simply couldn't find linux drivers for that company. Anyhow. I guess if I get too desperate I'll just get cable or soemthing.

 

[klinux]

Ok update on previous issue of not installing Grub . incidently i had installed grub for debian , not in the MBR , but first the starting of partition i installed DEBIAN . i normally skip this option .

After creating a 512 byte extraction of boot sector of debian partition and loading with ntldr , was surprised to see the other partitions and linuxes and windows also being displayed . So this can be an alternative too , without touching precious MBR .

 

[ujjwal]

Linux is pretty cool but not with an old desktop, like I have, with 192 MB RAM, a 3-year-old winmodem and multiple hard disk problems. Not a good idea...hehe

Not at all ... I use linux (slackware 10) on a celeron 266 with 128MB RAM. The fact is, popular distro's like Fedora, Mandrake, SUSE are bloated and are not meant to run on old hardware. Frankly, I think they are not worth trying out ;P

The problem comes with winmodems ... but you can still try www.linmodems.org and www.linuxant.com ... which modem is it btw?

 

[Guest]

If u dont want, dont try it, and stay with your windows shut!

 

[sahil_blues]

The thing is that I hav only 2 partitions(one made by HP ppl for recovery, other for normal use)...can't I install linux on the same partition as wondows and hav both of them working together??