Recommend A Linux Distro

This is all because I upgraded my RAM. Now I have to call MS and have my system verified (since I exceeded the max activations apparently). That and the fact that Vista is going to be VERY similar to that from what I've read.

First off, I took the test and it recommends Ubuntu and KUbuntu. Those distros don't meet my needs (at least I don't think they do) so I need recommendations.

I originally planned on doing Gentoo...but after some reading I determined the upkeep involved in Gentoo is not for me.

Here is what I'm thinking:

Functionality out of the box. The less setup I have to do the better.

I'd like x64 but I've read a good deal about some distro's being incompatible with 32 bit drivers and programs (namely Ubuntu and having to create a /chroot or some junk like that).

So...32 bit is fine but SMP support is mandatory (apparently Ubuntu doesn't support SMP). I have dual core and I'd like to use it.

I "loved" the installer for Ubuntu. I installed it on my Laptop and it works great. Something as easy as this would be perfect.

Graphics support: I use ATI obviously (a big yuch in linux) so this is a problem. According to ATI's website and some stuff I read the ATI drivers aren't compatible with X Org versions 7.2 and greater. That means I need a distro that comes with 7.1 standard (this rules out SuSE 10.2 for example).

Gaming is not a huge thing for me. If it is possible to get CS:S and HL2 to run under WINE I'd love to. The other major MMORPG I play is java based and it works great in linux.

I was thinking SuSE 10.1 but I've tried it before. I didn't like the setup at all (KDE desktop) and I had TONS of problems installing the ATI driver. I don't know if it auto-updated to X Org 7.2, so that could be the problem. If it turns out Ubuntu supports SMP I will probably use that.

I have a laptop so I'm willing to try many different distros (I've found that live CDs don't give a great representation of a native install). Feel free to recommend a few. I have about 200 burnable CDs waiting to be used.

The clock is ticking...Windows expires in 2 days.

Ubuntu does support SMP, any Linux distribution will because the kernel does.

Please use the search feature of the forum to find the other 1,000 "Which distro?" threads, they should provide you with a reasonable idea of what people recommend without us having to start another thread.

satandole666 said:

This is all because I upgraded my RAM. Now I have to call MS and have my system verified (since I exceeded the max activations apparently). That and the fact that Vista is going to be VERY similar to that from what I've read.

First off, I took the test and it recommends Ubuntu and KUbuntu. Those distros don't meet my needs (at least I don't think they do) so I need recommendations.

I originally planned on doing Gentoo...but after some reading I determined the upkeep involved in Gentoo is not for me.

Here is what I'm thinking:

Functionality out of the box. The less setup I have to do the better.

I'd like x64 but I've read a good deal about some distro's being incompatible with 32 bit drivers and programs (namely Ubuntu and having to create a /chroot or some junk like that).

So...32 bit is fine but SMP support is mandatory (apparently Ubuntu doesn't support SMP). I have dual core and I'd like to use it.

I "loved" the installer for Ubuntu. I installed it on my Laptop and it works great. Something as easy as this would be perfect.

Graphics support: I use ATI obviously (a big yuch in linux) so this is a problem. According to ATI's website and some stuff I read the ATI drivers aren't compatible with X Org versions 7.2 and greater. That means I need a distro that comes with 7.1 standard (this rules out SuSE 10.2 for example).

Gaming is not a huge thing for me. If it is possible to get CS:S and HL2 to run under WINE I'd love to. The other major MMORPG I play is java based and it works great in linux.

I was thinking SuSE 10.1 but I've tried it before. I didn't like the setup at all (KDE desktop) and I had TONS of problems installing the ATI driver. I don't know if it auto-updated to X Org 7.2, so that could be the problem. If it turns out Ubuntu supports SMP I will probably use that.

I have a laptop so I'm willing to try many different distros (I've found that live CDs don't give a great representation of a native install). Feel free to recommend a few. I have about 200 burnable CDs waiting to be used.

The clock is ticking...Windows expires in 2 days.

Click to expand...

Any Linux distro can be made to support SMP. SMP support is determined at the kernel level and it is possible and relatively simple to outfit Ubuntu with an SMP kernel.

Personally I'd recommend going with Gentoo. If you have another system handy (or even using irssi on the install CD) come into #octeams on irc.zirc.org where a lot of forum members hang out and we can help you if you get stuck.

Gentoo has a graphical installer in development, or there is a well written handbook on how to set up your system. It takes a couple days compiling for a gentoo system to be ready but gentoo gives you access to an incredible amount of software via portage.

Want to install KDE? Sure. Do emerge kde and it installs Xorg, KDE, and everything else they need. It's regularly kept up to date, you can choose between bleeding edge or normal packages and the distribution has a massive community behind it. You learn a lot about how a linux system works.

Take 10-15mins to read through the install manual to see how it's done. The hardest part would probably be kernel configuration but you can avoid that by using genkernel (explained in the guide).

I like Gentoo & Xandros. Gentoo is more difficult to get set up and working well, but when it's done it's fast & stable. Xandros business is really easy to install and comes with lots of included goodies.

Since you took the test and it told you Ubuntu, why not try Debian? Ubuntu is based on Debian, and from what I've read about it, Ubuntu only improves the install process. If you download the Debian Etch install CD, you will see a much better install process than past Debian releases. Etch was supposed to go stable this month, and I have no idea what the actual date is supposed to be, but you can rest assured that Etch is pretty much stable right now.

while I use Gentoo and I love it and I'd recommend using it, compiling software is not for everyone. If you want a binary based distro, choose Debian.

Sabayon is supposedly an incerdible release as well. I am having an issue with it on a laptop as it doesnt seem to like the buttons for adjusting sound but I will be installing it and checking it out as well.

Archlinux-

The speed of Gentoo,
The simplicity of Slack,
The dependency management of Debian,
with bleeding edge package repos,
All combined in a rolling-release i686 optmized, binary distro that can be upgraded to the newest version with one command.


If you want to hit the ground running with very little setup time, PCLinuxOS might be for you.

Flamed_Chip said:

Ubuntu does support SMP, any Linux distribution will because the kernel does.

Click to expand...

I read into this. While you are correct...its not something that I really want to do. I would have to compile a new kernel, install it however, and then choose it from a listing at boot...I believe.

This doesn't quite fit my requirements of working out of the box, but it is an option.

Archlinux sounds tempting...I'll have to read up on that one.

I look into Debian and Debian Etch...another good suggestion. Thanks.

And as far as Gentoo is concerned...it is very tempting. I have read the install manual numerous times. It is very technical, but that's not always a bad thing. I think I will install that on my laptop while I am researching Debian and Archlinux. How painful can it really be?

One thing to note, when I said I "loved" the Ubuntu installer...I wasn't talking about the CD installer...I was talking about Synaptic (I think that's it). It is the way you add new software and update your stuff once linux is installed. It was very easy to use (much easier than YaST in SuSE) and I was able to get quite a few things running in a short period of time.

Thanks for the suggestions everyone.

You don't need to compile your own kernel. The apt repositories include SMP kernel binaries you can install. Try an apt-cache search for kernel.

Ok...so I made the switch cold turkey. No dual boot, no Windows to fall back on. I figured this would force me to figure out how to get everything to work.

Here's a list of my progress so far:

Ubuntu install was easy. And what do you know...it recognized both cores automatically.

Got my x1800 drivers installed without a hitch. I was completely amazed by this. SuSE HATED me. So did Mandrake. I think this is probably because I went with 386 instead of x64.

Sound had a small problem. I knew the X-Fi wasn't supported so I removed it and enabled onboard sound. I installed the Karajan Audio Module that came with my board so I could use 5.1 sound still. It didn't work at all. All of the kernel probing and driver probing said that my sound was working. After about an hour of research and fiddling I got no where. Instead of using direct output I switched over to my SPDIF cable. It worked. How about another

Needless to say...if anyone has any advice on how to get my 6 channel to working I'd really appreciate it. 2 channel audio sucks after using 5.1 for so long.

WINE is running perfectly...CS:S is currently at 82% download. If there is an easier way to have WINE load CS than having to type cd .wine/drive_c/Program\ Files/Steam/Steam.exe everytime I want to play that'd be nice though. Something like a script or desktop shortcut. Yes I'm lazy and a linux noob at the same time.

I installed a couple codec packs and all audio/video seems to be working perfectly.

After a lot of hassle it seems that I've got lm-sensors working. When steam is done downloading I'll restart and try to add a GUI to it.

Other than that...thanks for the info and sorry for spamming with another "make my decision for me" thread.

satandole666 said:

Ok...so I made the switch cold turkey. No dual boot, no Windows to fall back on. I figured this would force me to figure out how to get everything to work.

Here's a list of my progress so far:

Ubuntu install was easy. And what do you know...it recognized both cores automatically.

Got my x1800 drivers installed without a hitch. I was completely amazed by this. SuSE HATED me. So did Mandrake. I think this is probably because I went with 386 instead of x64.

Sound had a small problem. I knew the X-Fi wasn't supported so I removed it and enabled onboard sound. I installed the Karajan Audio Module that came with my board so I could use 5.1 sound still. It didn't work at all. All of the kernel probing and driver probing said that my sound was working. After about an hour of research and fiddling I got no where. Instead of using direct output I switched over to my SPDIF cable. It worked. How about another

Needless to say...if anyone has any advice on how to get my 6 channel to working I'd really appreciate it. 2 channel audio sucks after using 5.1 for so long.

WINE is running perfectly...CS:S is currently at 82% download. If there is an easier way to have WINE load CS than having to type cd .wine/drive_c/Program\ Files/Steam/Steam.exe everytime I want to play that'd be nice though. Something like a script or desktop shortcut. Yes I'm lazy and a linux noob at the same time.

I installed a couple codec packs and all audio/video seems to be working perfectly.

After a lot of hassle it seems that I've got lm-sensors working. When steam is done downloading I'll restart and try to add a GUI to it.

Other than that...thanks for the info and sorry for spamming with another "make my decision for me" thread.

Click to expand...

Pfft, it's not spamming

As for lm-sensors look into gkrellm2 which can read lm-sensors and display them in a gui.

getting a desktop icon is fairly easy. been a while since i had ubuntu installed so the details may be wrong.

right click on desktop and select create launcher I believe,select tab to create path,dont remember what ubuntu calls that and put (wine "c:\Program Files\dir of app\app.exe") without parenthaceses.quotes are required or u could do .wine/drive_c/Program\ Files/... but i find the "c:\..." easier to do.

I currently have OpenSuse 10.2 loaded and I like it alot. I've tried .FC4,FC5,FC6,ubuntu 5.10,6.06,6.10 and suse 10.1 and 10.2,both x86 and 64bit versions on most of those except 10.2 and FC6,only the 64bit versions of those.

i'm still dual booting because my daughter like to play City of Villains and i can not get it to work under Wine.


now if i can get my system to print to a printer on a windows box without having to boot into windows i'd be happy

for all the common codecs and other common required tweaks look at easy ubuntu or automatrix scripts in the Ubuntu forums

satandole666 said:

First off, I took the test and it recommends Ubuntu and KUbuntu. Those distros don't meet my needs (at least I don't think they do) so I need recommendations.

Click to expand...

I know you're already there, but thought I'd respond anyway.
My first thought was: Why do you think that?

I found Ubuntu to be a very good distro. It's install program p***ed me off by overwriting the MBR on my primary hd without asking. But after that it appeared to be pretty good.

Not what I really wanted long-term, but at the time I wanted something quick to setup and functional without much tweaking. It filled the bill and supplied the progs I needed at the time.

satandole666 said:

I originally planned on doing Gentoo...but after some reading I determined the upkeep involved in Gentoo is not for me.

Click to expand...

Gentoo isn't that bad, IMO. If using the right tools to help out with maintenance. Particularly cfg-update or a similar tool to streamline config file updates.

So yes, there are increased requirements for upkeep. But there are ways to make it better. Even so, it's not for everyone.

Compiling increases the lag in getting a new program or an update up and running. But it generally allows updating faster than with a binary distro.

satandole666 said:

Functionality out of the box. The less setup I have to do the better.

Click to expand...

The big distros are generally good at that. Mandriva?(formerly Mandrake) has/had a very good, quick install.

Suse was highly recommended to me when asking a simillar question. Though I haven't tried it yet.

Ubuntu installs quick and easy, though I consider their MBR overright without asking on the wrong drive to be a major bug. Won't affect most people, because it goes where most people want it.

satandole666 said:

I'd like x64 but I've read a good deal about some distro's being incompatible with 32 bit drivers and programs (namely Ubuntu and having to create a /chroot or some junk like that).

So...32 bit is fine but SMP support is mandatory (apparently Ubuntu doesn't support SMP). I have dual core and I'd like to use it.

Click to expand...

On the chroot situation:
I heard the same thing about Gentoo before I installed it.
Every thing necessary is installed automatically unless you specify otherwise.

I think it only becomes a hassle when there is a program that works both ways, but for which some functionality is only available on the 32 bit version.

But I don't really know because I haven't had to do anything special yet, or noticed anything missing that I wanted to enable.

Can't comment on any other distros as 64 bit because I haven't tried any yet.

satandole666 said:

Archlinux sounds tempting...I'll have to read up on that one.

Click to expand...

I don't think it meets your "works out of the box" requirement. Setup is more involved than most distros. Less involved than Gentoo.

Reviews I've seen have been positive, so I'm currently "testing" it...

satandole666 said:

One thing to note, when I said I "loved" the Ubuntu installer...I wasn't talking about the CD installer...I was talking about Synaptic.

Click to expand...

It performed well for me, during my brief venture with Ubuntu.

Debian, Gentoo, and Arch all have well liked package managers. Only downside is that they are command line. (Graphical versions may be available... Synaptic is a graphical front end to apt-get, iirc.)

If you like the distro, learning the syntax for the package managers isn't that difficult. It's just a pain learning if you decide you don't like the distro...


For the launcher icon:
As previously said, right click on desktop and follow the instructions.
If you'd prefer the launcher on one of the desktop panels, you can right click on the panel, select "add to panel" and proceed from there. Or just create on the desktop and drag to the panel.

On sound:
Are you using Alsa? (may apply to others, but alsa installs muted by default, at least with Gentoo, don't know about Ubuntu)
If so, it may need to be unmuted. Run "alsamixer" in a console, and make sure "pcm" and "main" ?? (I don't have that one) are unmuted.

Alternatively, search your desktop and menus for sound mixers and check them to see if they are muted. (gnome should have a volume control in the corner -- right click on it and unmute)

My intel hd audio is very finicky. Some kernels it works built into the kernel. Other times it has to be installed as an external module.

Never heard of that kind of problem with other soundcards/chips. But you might check for alternative or updated modules.