I have aquired a unix shell account from the school im at and I have taken the past two days to learn some things about unix. Now im wondering what distro or whatever is the best to suit my needs I am looking to create the same enviroment as that of the school hear since that is what I will be using form now on. From what I can tell the the schools system is Linux 2.4.22. Where can I get it or is this just the kernel? If this is just the kernel can I still duel boot for the time being on my home pc?

I will be using the system mainly as a workstation and some c programming down the line so I will need the gcc compiler which I know is on the unix server I have access to. However I have several mp3s and movies which I would like to use as well so....I need to be able to still use these files.

Ooh yeah what is the more secure version out of box? If i cant use the Linux 2.4.22 what do U think of openBSD, is it a good choice? Plz help I need some estblished linux/unix users opinions so that I can make the best choice for my needs. I dont want to spend my time being every distros tool.

2.4.22 is just the kernel version. that will vary depending on distro, and of course you can install whichever version you like on any of them.

this site can help you decide on a distro:
http://www.distrowatch.com/dwres.php?resource=major

much of it is personal preference, so your best bet is to try some of the more common ones and see which you like.

note that openBSD is not Linux - they are similar in some ways, but not identical.

thx I am going to check the link now

Quote:

note that openBSD is not Linux - they are similar in some ways, but not identical.

What is the difference? I hear openBSD has incredible security. What limitations might I experience using openBSD? Would I be able to play my dvds, divx files, mp3s and still be able to do my regular computing?

The difference is that BSD and Linux are different OSes. Thay're very similar (most programs work for both systems etc). You must note, however, that there are less drivers for OpenBSD than for Linux (OpenBSD is rather for servers), but if you have them for everything, you can use it the for you daily tasks.

Ok, so where can I get openBSD so that I ensure I get the appriate drivers for my system? Does ne one have a link? Is the install difficult? How can I setup a triple boot I want to run windows, slackware and openBSD so that I can see if linux or bsd fits my needs more.

BSD vs. Linux
http://www.over-yonder.net/~fullermd...bsd4linux1.php

on double/triple booting - there are hundreds of posts on that - try running a search here at LQ and google.

on BSD - check the BSD forum here, or try http://www.bsdforums.org/

Thx I didnt meant to treat U like my personal search engine.

no problem.

some topics come up a lot, for obvious reasons. and be sure to get familiar with the LQ search - it can be a noob's best friend

A "standard view" would say that the friendlier linux distros would be suse/redhat/mandrake. These three use the rpm package system to install/manage/upgrade programs. Rpm is a format which delivers precompiled binaries, instead of source code. There are many packages for all kinds of programs in rpm format, including multimedia stuff.

Slackware and Debian stand as the more technical and skilled distros. Debian also has a system for installing precompiled programs, a format (.deb) for it and a tool (apt, apt-get) to manage packages. Slackware uses source code to compile and install new programs.

Although some distros have systems to install precompiled stuff, everyone of these will let you compile your own stuff or source code downloaded form the net. gcc and other tools are basic stuff in any major distro, nowadays.

Every one of these five distros will give you a nice system for your starting and learning, or even a more advanced system, as long as you learn how to tweak and customize it. A "common" way to enter linux would be to start with an easier one and after sometime, step into a more technical.

The three first are mantained by enterprises and a community of users. The second two are exclusively community-based and non-comercial. One would argue that Debian and Slackware are "more free software", in a sense.

Please notice that these views are not shared by everybody, I'm not trying to be comprehensive. Just posting what I've seen around me. You can start anywhere, really. To a good extent, its a matter of taste and philosophy.

And of course, there are other distros besides these.

I, too, recommend that you try out a more interface-based version while you are making the transition. I started with Mandrake in order to learn - but actually stayed with it, even if I have learned a bit at this point.
Just because there is an interface to get things done, it does not mean that you do not use the command line. Installing programs graphically annoys me - one thing you'll come to appreciate and understand is the importance of the messages coming in the terminal when you compile/install something. That, I think, is not adequately presented with a graphical installer.
if you are totally new to this, I recommend you read through the tutorials at LinuxCommand.