[linux-help] Re: Right Choice of Linux OS

[Thomas Wallis <wallis@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Thu, 18 Jul 2002, Cavgalar, Alexandros (Alex) wrote:

>
> Can anyone give me the difference of the following Linux versions?

        Dear Alex:

        (All of the below is IMHO):

        Each LINUX distribution has advantages and drawbacks.  Some are
easier to install, some are easier to maintain or upgrade, some are more
oriented to casual or first-time users, and others are probably better for
more experienced LINUX hackers (in the good sense of the word).

>
> SuSe

        This is a nice, polished distro that comes from Germany and is
popular in Europe.  I use this myself on my home machine.  It installs
pretty easily and is quite up-to-date.  It saw my USB printer and external
modem no trouble.  You usually see it in boxed sets.  There is some issue
I don't understand with the installer (copyright? non-GPL?  I don't
remember), so it may not be possible to make copies of the CDs and give
them away.  This issue may have long since disappeared, so I am not
confident of this.  You can get SuSe at Best Buy and maybe at CompUSA too.
Amazon.com often has it as well.


> Debian

        Debian is for the more experienced user/admin.  I am very familiar
with Debian.  There are basically three versions of Debian called stable,
testing, and unstable.  stable (Debian 2.2) (code name "Potato" after Mr.
Potato Head (all the Debian distros are named after "Toy Story" movie
characters)) is quite ancient but works well on older hardware.  I run
this on lots of machines.  testing (Debian 3.0, code name "Woody" after
the cowboy toy in the movie) is fairly modern but not fully released yet.
I run this on some machines and it seems to work fine, but updates for it
are still coming in as it has not yet quite stablized yet (it is in the
final stages (hopefully) of a freeze.  "unstable" is what most of the
Debian programmers are working on now, and it isn't something the casual
user should even think about (it can break fairly regularly).  Debian uses
a command-line installer and is tough to get running, unless you know a
lot about your system/hardware and LINUX in general.  It doesn't do much
about autodetecting hardware (like modems, printers, video cards, etc.).
On the plus side, Debian has the best package management and
upgradability.  I have upgraded machines here via the network and only
touched the hardware to reboot the computer.  Debian 3.0 has 8000+
packages available from the project.  The Debian project takes the GPL and
free software very seriously and is probably one of the most free (as in
freedom) distros around.  It is basically a volunteer effort of
programmers around the world.  I really like it myself, but unless you
like hacking on config files and installing drivers, Debian is an uncommon
choice for desktop LINUX machines.

> Red Hat

        RedHat is one of the oldest LINUX distributions, along with
Slackware and Debian.  RedHat is freely downloadable and CDs and books are
easily available.  It is probably the most well-known and widely used of
the LINUX distros.  RedHat is very up-to-date and well maintained.
RedHat uses the RPM package format, which is (IMHO) not up to the
standards of the Debian dpkg/apt/dselect system.  Most LINUX distros use
RPM, though.  RedHat is widely used commercially.  It is pretty easy to
install.  I have used it before and have it on some machines.  I have no
major complaints against it.  However, I have heard many users have
problems with certain sections of RedHat.  Some people like it, some have
bad luck with it.


> Mandrake

        Mandrake is an easy-to-install variant of LINUX.  It seems to be
designed for the desktop user.  It started life as a RedHat offspring, but
has diverged since then.  I have some Mandrake machines as well.  The
installer is very easy to use.  I have a little trouble with both Mandrake
and RedHat as they like to hide some things from the user/installer and I
don't always know where those things are stored (being a mostly Debian
user/admin myself).  Both RH and MD are more GUI driven than Debian or
Slackware.  Mandrake is also good about freely downloadable CD images.

> Slackware

        Slackware is one of the oldest LINUX distros around.  It is also
fairly modern.  For a while, it looked like Slackware was dead, but a new
version just came out very recently with lots of new goodies.  It (like
Debian) is very command-line driven.  It uses a simple packaging system
(but not RedHat's RPM or Debian's DPKG).  The first LINUX I used was
Slackware.  I have heard nothing but good things about it.  However, the
Slackware user must be ready to edit lots of config files and get your
hands dirty.  I haven't used it in a long time, but other people I know
are regular Slackware users.  You can download Slackware CD images for
free.

>
> I would like to set one up to take advantage of Free OS, and Networking
> related issues.

        Take a look at LINUX advocacy and general LINUX sites for
this (www.slashdot.org, www.linux.org, www.linuxtoday.com, www.lwn.net).

> Also, does anyone have experience with VoIP using Linux?

        No clue here.  Maybe google.com ?

>
> In addition to above questions, can anybody suggest me CD Writing, MP3/Wave
> type conversion softwares go with these Operating Systems?

        Sorry, I don't do much of this myself, except for burning CD
images in LINUX, which is easy, once you know the command.

                                Hope this helps,

                                Tom Wallis
>
> Thanks.
>
> Alexandros Cavgalar
> Component Engineer
> Lucent Technologies
> 8200 E. 34th Circle N Bldg. 1400
> Wichita, KS 67226-1349
> 316 636 4836
> cavgalar@xxxxxxxxxx
>
>
>
>
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