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Which Linux to Download?


AntiWindows

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Good day,

 

I want to download Linux but don't know what to download,

The only reason i want to get Linux is because pathetic Windows cannot format a simple flashdisk. I format it and when i remove the flashdisk and out it back in, all the same files appear again. Please can one tell me what Linux should i get and what command i need to use to delete and format the flashdisk. Windows is a joke!

 

i have finally had it with windows and am seeing the light more clearer than ever now :)

 

 

 

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Ubuntu? I'll try that then thanks, the other another 'nice' feature of windows is that it does not read files that was created by it's own operating system on a harddisk, the files are there and occupying space but it does not show, how big of an idiot do you need to be to create a pathetic OS such as Windows.

 

Thanks Thorpe, i'll give Ubuntu a try!

 

If all you want Linux for is to format a disk you'll probably just want a LiveCD, Ubuntu has one you should try. You'll want to use mkdosfs if you want to format the disk so it readable/writable in windows.

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Sorry, but thats just rambling. Windows (by default) tries to hide system files so the idiots using the system don't run around trying to delete them.

 

Don't get me wrong, Im a Linux user (have been for years) but I believe most of the problems that exist in windows (or any other OS actually) are usually problems between the keyboard and chair.

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AntiWindows what are you talking about?

 

 

I've formatted flash drives multiple times, and it works just fine.  Also, Windows hides system files, but they still show up in the disk total.  If you meant under Windows 7 how the Windows folder takes up a crap load of space, but the disk total is wrong (actually the size of Windows is wrong, not the total), that's because there are a lot of hard links.

 

 

No offense, but I'm fairly certain that your problems are your problems and not Windows'.

 

 

Oh, and pathetic OS?  How do you measure the pathetic-ness of an OS?  If you measure it by sales, or even installs, then Windows obliterates Mac/linux.  ;p

 

 

 

 

 

P.S.  I'm not a Windows fanboi, but I do often defend it when people spew off crap.  I would defend linux or Mac just the same.  Well maybe not Mac.  Kidding.  Maybe.

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For the new-to-linux I suggest Ubuntu 8.04 as well for a quick start. However, keep in mind Ubuntu is a distro meant for fast-to-install packages not necessarily for getting the full understanding of what you are doing.  In a sense, Ubuntu is the Windows / Mac of the linux world. 

 

It is great for a liveCD (as is Backtrack3 [[see: remote-exploit.org]]).  Backtrack is based off of slackware and comes bundled with several different window managers and tons of common security related, as well as generic apps everyone will use at one point or another.  It is great for live and rescue discs.

 

For someone that is new, or just an avid ubuntu or fedora user that wants to get a better understanding of lower-level and manually configuring of linux environments, I highly suggest trying Gentoo.  Of all the distros out there, Gentoo is my personal favorite.  It was the first distro I installed and within a month or two of using Gentoo, I was very familiar linux as a whole.  The community is HUGE (as is Ubuntu community).  The forums for both ubuntu and Gentoo are also great (so are the phpfreaks forums  :) )

 

Most enterprises use RHEL or CentOS ... they are essentially the same thing.  Built for servers, binary distros... CentOS is pretty much the free version of RHEL.  They are both RPM based using either yum or up2date (depends on version...  5+ use yum out of the box).  If you want to familiarize yourself with environments you might see in future jobs, go for CentOS5 as well.  VMware might help add some flexibility to testing and trying diffferent flavors.  This is one of the best parts, as you can try over and over until you find one that clicks. 

 

Like I said, I prefer Gentoo, whereas some people say I am a moron for even using it as it is all done manually.  Its up to you.  Fedora is okay, but it is not really my favorite.  If I am to use RedHat based I will use CentOS5.

 

It is all about trying and practice.  Linux is great, but Windows isn't as bad as everyone makes it sound.  I prefer linux but Windows still has its uses as well.  It is a matter of judging what you are going to be doing and knowing what suits it best.

 

Sorry for the ramble.  Hope my post helps :)

 

 

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I think you'll find most larger enterprises using Linux use Redhat, while smaller enterprises might simply use CentOS because it is a RedHat clone.

 

What I want to know is, what exactly about CentOS makes it enterprise aimed?

 

It basically comes down to the fact that it is a free RedHat clone. RedHat being not free.

 

Redhat offers support for there product and a guarantee that they will upgrade the product for a period of time. Somehow these arrangements make enterprises feel safer.

 

There really isn't anything special about either Redhat, Fedora, Suse (which also provide a enteprise vewrsion with support) or CentOS.

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Last I checked, Canonical provides professional paid support for Ubuntu as well.

 

They may, I never thought to check that and am not an Ubuntu user. They may not however provide the same service level agreements that most enterprises tend to rely on (again, this is not something I have checked, just throwing my opionion in here).

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I think you'll find most larger enterprises using Linux use Redhat, while smaller enterprises might simply use CentOS because it is a RedHat clone.

 

What I want to know is, what exactly about CentOS makes it enterprise aimed?

 

It basically comes down to the fact that it is a free RedHat clone. RedHat being not free.

 

Redhat offers support for there product and a guarantee that they will upgrade the product for a period of time. Somehow these arrangements make enterprises feel safer.

 

There really isn't anything special about either Redhat, Fedora, Suse (which also provide a enteprise vewrsion with support) or CentOS.

 

 

 

Hrmmmm.....  Weird.

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Last I checked, Canonical provides professional paid support for Ubuntu as well.

I used to work for BlueHost/HostMonster and they were switching to Ubuntu because of this. Though they spent the first 6 months of their paid support getting a working LDAP(I think...?) system going, but I quit just as they were getting it rolled out. I prefer Fedora simply because it was the first one I was introduced to, no other reason. Ubuntu or Gentoo are just as good, and I've head great thinks about OpenSUSE.

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It comes down to personal preference.  For example, I use Ubuntu just because our computer labs had the Ubuntu distribution installed.

 

As you can see, no one has any valid reasons, especially if your computer is for personal use.  If you talk about servers, strong opinions may pop up.

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Yeah, I think allot of it is personal opinion as well. I used Gentoo for a good 3+ years until I moved to an area where broadband wasn't available. This made keeping my Gentoo systems up to date a nightmare because source code downloads are so much bigger than binaries.

 

I ended up switching most of my systems to Debian (all accept my laptop which I took to work to update) and have since become very accustomed to it.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well,  I guess some of it is preference.

 

Enterprises tend to stick to RHEL because of the Enterprise Support that comes along with it.  RHEL also does not usually release with Edge packages.  Most everything is stable and tested.  Red Hat as a whole has a finicky standardizing system but it really works out when you need to be stable and can not risk installing an update that is going to destroy everything. 

 

With Debian especially, their packages are always behind.  Also, Debian-based distros use .deb packages with aptitude / apt for a package manager (or dpkg to install straight debs).  Ubuntu is Debian-based.

 

RedHat stuff uses RPM.  RPM Files are similar to .debs.  They also use a different package manager called either up2date or yum.  Yum replaced up2date and is a bit easier to use / more robust (so to speak).  CentOS is almost an exact duplicate of RHEL but it is free. 

 

Gentoo uses the portage system.  Personally, I think Gentoo is amazing.  Albeit, I have wanted to kill myself in the past when I messed up a keyword or use flag... Or decided to emerge -eav world not realising how long it would take... But it is AMAZING for learning.  It is also really good for all-around functionality.  Where it lacks, some may say, is the compiling.  Unlike RedHat / Debian stuff, when you choose to install a package with Gentoo, it downloads the source code for each package and compiles it according to your configuration settings.  This can take a LONG time if you don't have a very fast box / don't have DistCC mirrors in your network :P

 

I learned most everything I know about Linux from using Gentoo.  Given, I also use Fedora, RHEL, CentOS and Ubuntu everyday, so I have gotten somewhat well-rounded over time :)

 

I use Ubuntu on my laptop because it is simple and packages install almost instantly.  However, it lacks the performance / tweakability (without manually installing everything) that gentoo has.  For that reason, my personal servers all run Gentoo.  I also have some virtual development servers that I use just for coding and messing around with different projects.  Because these are just essentially scratch boxes and performance doesn't really matter to me, I run CentOS 5 on them.

 

If you are reading this thread and are becoming interested, Go download them all! heh :) Download Ubuntu (8.04, not 8.10) , CentOS5, Gentoo, Backtrack 3 (Great Live CD / USB), Knoppix, Slackware, Debian, Mint and Suse and give them all a try.  Sure, you can pick 1 and just run with it... but you will be limited in ability and likely be missing out in the long run.

 

Note: If you decide to try a linux flavor mentioned in here... or even one not mentioned... if you absolutely HATE the one you try... try another.  Linux is like beer: The more you try the more fun you have

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