Giving Linux a Try

ID:275190
 
Jun 9 2003, 10:20 am (Edited on Jun 9 2003, 10:26 am)
Well, I've had some really bad expieriences with Windows lately, and I decided I'd give linux a try...I have a freshly formatted harddrive, and I want to know what you think is the best distribution that meets these criteria:

1) *MUST* be free

2) *MUST* have a Graphical interface somewhat similar to a Windows desktop or Mac desktop

3) Has to be good for the type of stuff I do with BYOND and my general computer:
- Able to play graphical games on BYOND
- Able to browse web and check email
- Able to do graphics (.dmi, .jpg, .gif)


[Edit]
Also, since my drive is formatted, I have to be able to get the startup disk onto a cd/floppy from my other computer

[Edit]
*MUST* be able to support my Linksys eathernet card, which was newly bought around January or February.
Jun 9 2003, 3:27 pm
Try RedHat, it's pretty good for starters, and the download is for an .iso image to be burned to CD, so it'll work as a startup disk.
Jun 9 2003, 4:01 pm
In response to Nadrew
I thought that RedHat cost money....
Jun 9 2003, 4:11 pm
In response to Dragon of Ice
Only for a "pro" version, i thought the same thing, than found out otherwise.
Jun 9 2003, 4:14 pm
In response to Scoobert
So you got RedHat installed? I can't see how I can get 650mb onto a CD-R! Could someone explain this to me in lamen's terms?
Jun 9 2003, 4:24 pm
In response to Dragon of Ice
You get the CD-R, you write the image onto it :) Fairly simple. You need a special program I believe, to write it, though.
Jun 9 2003, 5:19 pm
In response to Jon88
Get nero if you can, i belive there is a free version out there. I personally havent installed redhat, but i plan on it. But im getting the pro version. I have a friend who ordered a CD already made from redhat.
Jun 10 2003, 6:58 am
In response to Scoobert
and most CD-Rs are 700MB now-a-days...

take the time to looks through the hardware compatibility lists to make sure everythings works for you. RedHat 9 should be ok, but ya never know.

regarding running BYOND games - there is no graphical version of DreamSeeker yet that is native to Linux. About the best you can hope for is to run the Wine emulation software (should come with RH9, if not, you can download it). You should search through this forum for other threads. I recall someone mentioning getting DS to work partially. The other thing is to get a copy of VMware from someone so that you can install a mini Win98 system inside Linux if you really want to run BYOND graphical games, or other games that have not been ported to Linux yet.
Jun 10 2003, 8:01 am
In response to digitalmouse
Dang, so I'll have to get an emulator to run graphical BYOND games (I don't play much out of BYOND...)...maybe I should stick to 98...
Jun 11 2003, 3:37 am
In response to Dragon of Ice
as i said find someone with VMware so that you can install a mini Win98 under Linux... you'll find that it may even run better, and won't crash your comp!

Otherwise, just partition the drive in two pieces so that you can have the best of both worlds!