FreeBSD vs. Linux ? (newb here)

Ok,

Now im considering running a dual boot of either FreeBSD or Linux (which distro should I use... I've heard Gentoo is very good).

Now, i just want to know the BASIC differences between the two...
...which would you recommend...

oh, and can you please answer these questions?

1) Do linux apps work with FreeBSD? (or the majority of them).
2) are there any detonator drivers which are made for FreeBSD, or will the linux ones work?
3) Will many games work under FreeBSD? (i know quite a few work for linux... such as UT2003).
4) sound drivers etc... for FreeBSD/Linux? (creative live!)

Cheers

I'd go with GNU/Linux. Simply because the support is better. By support - I mean the community for Linux is simply larger. Thus, you're more likely to find an answer for the inevitible question(s) that WILL arise.

Cut your teeth on Linux and you'll be ready to take on FreeBSD if you so desire. I've used both, and I just can't see good reason to stay with FreeBSD. From a performance and security standpoint you're really splitting hairs trying to make an argument in either's defense. Both are quite stable and secure. Of course, ultimately both security and stability are up to the user.

Regarding which distribution? I'd say if you're new to *nix, something like RedHat would be a good distribution. Once again, large installed base. Most apps that are written for Linux are tested with RedHat. If at some point you want to try a different distribution I highly recommend both Debian and Gentoo.

Answering you questions:
1) Most Linux applications will work on FreeBSD.
2) NVIDIA does have FreeBSD drivers. (I used them some time ago. At the time they didn't support FreeBSD 5. You may wish to check on that.)
3) If gaming is your interest on the *nix platform I strongly suggest sticking with GNU/Linux.
4) The ALSA drivers work only on Linux. OSS works fine with FreeBSD. Yes the SBLive! is very well supported.

Good Luck.

Thanks very much for the info Richard... much appreciated...

Oh, do you use Debian or Gentoo?

Which is easier to install/configure (i've heard some distro's have problems with certain software and the like)...

I'd rather take the "big" plunge into linux, and rather not use something like RedHat...

I'm a fast learner... got my first computer at 6... 17 atm

Oh, im also interested in using GNOME instead of KDE....

Whats teh MAIN differences?



Which would you recommend... my mates brother has used both, but prefers GNOME (he's been using freeBSD/Linux/Windows/ LOTS of stuff for many many many many years...

Cheers mate,

Christian

I'd say if you're willing to give it a fair shot, Gentoo is a fun distro. It takes some time to install, but once you're up and running it's a piece of cake. It's just that it asks you to do certain things that not many newbies are going to feel comfortable doing. Please, don't install Gentoo on a disk that has some important data without having a strong grasp of partitioning and formatting in Linux. You'll also need to build your own kernel. Not really that difficult, but when you first do it, everything is going to look Greek.

Don't think of RedHat in a negative way. Just because it's easier doesn't make it bad. It's a great way to get up and running in Linux in short order. If nothing else install it and get comfortable with the command line. Try compiling a kernel or two and get the hang of using GRUB. Trust me, you're going to find a lot of things to challenge yourself. Even in Redhat.

Once the basics of this new Operating System and its tools become somewhat easy to use, then you'll be ready for Gentoo. It's not that Gentoo is so much harder, but the time required to get it fully functional is significantly greater than RedHat.

Believe me, I've used many different distributions, and I've learned something from each of them.

Gnome vs KDE? That's largely a personal opinion type of thing. For what its worth, I believe Gnome is the better GUI. Yet another good reason to install RedHat. Install both of them and try them out.

I would say the Debian and Gentoo are of comparable difficulty to install. They aren't really intended for beginners, and while the installer isn't "hard" or complex (it's actually quite straightforward, IMO), they do assume some prior knowledge. If you are willing to learn things as you go through (and don't expect a 100% working system on the first try), then you should be able to manage. You _will_ have problems, but as you solve those problems (which will take some effort on your part), you will further your knowledge.

IMO, if you're into this for learning's sake, I would try both Debian or Gentoo. You'll learn quite a bit about Linux, and by using them both, you'll develop a preference for one or the other. That's what distro choices come down to anyway: personal preference. Debian isn't better than Gentoo, nor is Gentoo better than Debian; it depends completely on what the user happens to prefer.

The same thing goes for window managers / desktop environments. KDE and Gnome both aim towards similar goals, so it's up to you to determine which one suits your needs best. I suggest trying them both. There are many other window managers, developed with very different goals in mind than those of KDE / Gnome, which offer an entirely different experience. To list a few, there is Fluxbox (and the other *boxs), Afterstep, Window Maker, Enlighenment, and others. The nice thing about using a distro with an advanced package management system (like both Debian and Gentoo) is that trying a new window manager is as simple as typing "apt-get install fluxbox" or "emerge fluxbox", and changing your ~/.xinitrc. It allows you to try many different kinds of desktops, and pick the one you like best.

Well, now I'm rambling, so I'll stop now

Good luck on your Linux adventure.

Hmmm thanks for all the advice guys

Got any good sites relating to dual booting with XP, and installing Gentoo (will try this first)? I've got my brother to help me a little on the way (We have a OpenBSD box here... hasnt been run in a few months though.... and he used to use linux, back when the good old X-Windows had just come out... LOL)

Thanks for the info about RedHat Richard, but I really want to get a more advanced version of Linux up and running sooner (as i hate having to reformat and the likes). Titan, I see what you mean about the distros... just different packages that come with them?

Oh, and don't windows partitions hold effect under dos? won't Linux recognise this? I've got an 80gb Seagate Barracuda.... I'll just partition off like 10-15gb for Linux.... is this enough? (i only use less than half of the drive (currently 2x partitions, both NTFS). I don't need to switch my partition on my drive do I (ie. from NTFS from FAT 32), or do I only need to do this for the Linux partition (ie. my windows partition can stay as NTFS?).

Thanks very much Richard and Titan,

Christian

*EDIT* - Which version of Gentoo should I install? 1.4_RC4? (i use and Athlon XP1800+@2100+ setup )

And will i need to download GNOME seperately? (or is it part of the 3stages ISO?)

If you want to install Gentoo, it's highly recommended that you get a copy of the Gentoo Install How to, which can be found on www.gentoo.org . I personally print it out and keep a copy of it on my desk while installing.

Linux can read and write FAT32 filesystems, but only read from NTFS partitions. 10 - 15 gigs should be plenty, and as long as you have free unpartitioned space on your drive, the existing partitions will be unaffected. If you don't, you'll have to resize or delete them to make room.

Go with 1.4_rc4. You will be able to install Gnome after the installation is complete, by typing "emerge gnome", which will download the source code for Gnome and its dependencies, and compile it.

BTW, are you on dialup? If so, your Gentoo experience might not be very pleasant, as Gentoo downloads all the packages it installs. Installing larger packages will take a long time.

Good luck with your start in Linux

And I applaud your decision to try and jump in with both feet
Best way to REALLY learn it.....I have had slow progress most of my years because I have other reasons/needs to remain fairly up to date with Windows as well....


But a point on Linux distro's: the main difference between most distro's is the amount of preconfiguration done by the install.
"Beginner's" distro's tend to have the most bloat and hence easiest installs because almost everything is set up FOR you and already running...
You can get RedHat or Mandrake down to as slim as any "pro" distro when you know what you are doing- and that can make them good for learning on as well....

That said, one of these days I AM going to complete a Gentoo install myself..... Never made it all the way through in either of my two tries yet, but eventually I will

Good luck and report in on your progress

hmmm

I'm on 512kbps ADSL

should be ok for downloading...

I downloaded the ~240mb 3stages Live disc...

isnt this all packages?

I know their is the basic iso of like 40mb....

I've read through some of the install stuff.... looks quite simple really

Hopefully all will goto plan... oh, and can I use partition magic to resize one of my partitions (and make it FAT32 instead of NTFS).... is this suitable for linux use? How many partitions i need for linux... 1? (i'll give it 10gb only... that should be HEAPS).

Thanks mate,

Christian

As long as you RTFM you should be ok. Since you have someone there with prior *nix experience you'll have a definite advantage over most people.

The best advice I can give is: get used to the command line. Learn how chown and chmod work. Learn how the $PATH affects your user's environments. Become one with bash, and you will have nothing but fun.

You'll want blank/unpartitioned space on the HDD for gentoo. 10GB would be plenty. Partition Magic will help you resize your existing partitions, and it may be a good idea to make a samll one that's FAT32 since both OS's could use the files in there easily.

There is a CD that contains the sources for gentoo's packages, but the cool thing about gentoo is that you can just grab the latest versions fo software or update the software already installed by using the portage system. It may be good to have the source CD in the beginning, but really all it takes is configuring the internet during the install, and you'll be able to download/install anything with the emerge command.

There are some gentoo irc channels, if you have another box and an irc client. And gentoo's forums are also VERY helpful. We can also assist you if you have questions. Quite a few OC'ers decided that gentoo's system of compiling software from source with optimizations specific to their hardware was a pretty cool thing, and have fought their way through gentoo installs to get that extra bit of tweakage.

WobbZ said:

Thanks very much for the info Richard... much appreciated...

Oh, do you use Debian or Gentoo?

Which is easier to install/configure (i've heard some distro's have problems with certain software and the like)...

I'd rather take the "big" plunge into linux, and rather not use something like RedHat...

I'm a fast learner... got my first computer at 6... 17 atm

Oh, im also interested in using GNOME instead of KDE....

Whats teh MAIN differences?



Which would you recommend... my mates brother has used both, but prefers GNOME (he's been using freeBSD/Linux/Windows/ LOTS of stuff for many many many many years...

Cheers mate,

Christian

Click to expand...

if you wanna take the "big" plunge install gentoo www.gentoo.org


the difference between gnome/kde, is that besides teh visual difference (they both look good, kde imo looks better)

some apps only work with gnome/vice versa

some apps only work with gnome/vice versa

Click to expand...

What apps are those? Shouldn't happen.

Ok

I've partitioned off my hard drive as follows:
80gb Seagate Barracuda IV ATA-100 etc.

1) 30gb NTSF - Windows XP partition, program files etc.
2) 35gb NTFS - Spare D (all divx's etc)
3) 8gb FAT32 - this ok for Linux??? or should i format it for a linux format? size ok? its only gonna have linux on it... Gentoo
4) 5gb FAT32 - Linux games/other stuff folder... common to both OS's...

I'm going to install linux on partition #3.... is that ok? (FAT32)... i can format it as a linux only sorta thing in partition magic (ie. Linux EXT2, Linux EXT3, Linux Swap... what the heck are the differences?)

Ok, cheers

No. The partition you want to install Linux on should not be FAT32. It should be just an empty partition, and then during the install process, Linux will format its own file system on there. Also you need another partition (200 mb should be fine) for the swap. This should also be empty with no file system and during the installation Linux will create the fs.

You can only have 4 primary partitions on a hard drive.

If you want more than that, then you can only have 3 primaries, then an extended partition with more logical partitions inside of it. You need *at least* 2 partitions just for Linux.