Best Linux Distro

I personally have Debian on an old desktop which currently operates as a very large, elaborate external hard drive case for my laptop. There are so many distros that it's hard to pick the best.

For hacking, I would suggest PHLAK or Knoppix-STD installed on your drive. They've got a lot of stuff built in.

I like either gentoo or debian because they both have great package managers, so it is easy to install whatever you need

I'll go with aliensinalaska. Gentoo or Debian seem to be your best options for what you want to do. Both start out with lean systems, and you add only what you want. Plus, they let you do whatever you want without too many problems (I view it analogous to linux vs OS X).

From your discription, it looks like a "power distro" would suit you best. Slackware has kind of died off recently in terms of news, but they've always been a power user's dream. But, definitely try out Gentoo. If nothing else, you'll learn a lot about compiling and patience .

Regards,

zakaluka2.

Debian Sid or Gentoo if you like compiling ALL day

if you decide to install gentoo, install it using Knoppix or another similar livecd, so you can use Mozilla or play a few games while compiling(it makes the process so much more bearable). In the gentoo handbook, it gives you specific directions if you are using knoppix, instead of the minimal gentoo livecd.

fedora is easy to install

I'm biased but Gentoo is nice. You don't have to compile everything. The have lots of precompiled binaries. I think 2005.1 is going to be a full on live cd with a graphical installer. Prety much any distro will work. Just depends on what you want to do as to install and use.

Gentoo

Especially if youre just starting out and want to learn. Gentoo allows you to get nitty gritty with the system, but providing amazingly convenient things like the Portage package management system (find the piece of software you want in an online catalog, and type 'emerge [name of the software package]'.

Mikhail

P.S. Don't scare yourself off: even if you've never used Linux, you'll be fine as long as you take the time to read and are fairly technologically proficient. (Gentoo was my first Linux distro and I'm still sticking to it - having tried lots of others in my spare time with a spare system.)

i have fedora 3, but i'm a newbie with linux, so i really don't know. but it was very easy to install though

My favs.

Hey all,

Just to let you know, I'm new to Linux. I haven'treally layed my hands on many distros, my I currently use Debian, and Mandrake on my servers and desktops. My laptop may stay Linux free, accept for the occasional hacking, for which I will use Knoppix-STD live cd, or PHLAk on a live CD.

I just recently ordered a Dell Inspiron 8600, with the works. It's a Christmas, and Birthday present from my parents. It's main use is for college, and we figured we would get one now, before the colleges look at expenses. That way we don't have to fish out more money right away during college years. If they see a $2000 laptop on a credit card, they will make us pay more in the long run.

So yeah, I can't wait. I have two days to wait, it's Sunday, and it comes Tuesday. Unfortunately, I may have to wait to use it. It's gonna drive me insane. I will post some pics in the Dell section when it comes, and will make sure every last thing is documented.

So Linux will runon the machines, in a live cd form. I will make a small partition on the 80 Gig. HD for saving and crap because I heard that you couldn't write to NTFS partitions in Linux distros. Is this true. I will make a 5Gig. Part if it is, so I can do work in Linux.

BTY, can I install an AD HOC network in Linux? I need to AD HOC at school, because the HS isn't wireless yet... , so I will just have to put my own temporary setup in! So here's to my school!

Happy Holidays....

--hydro

Just a little truth in lending...If you want to learn Linux without being able to use your system until you do, try Gentoo. I have used Linux for years, have read the books, etc. I tried Gentoo last spring and never got it going. It is complicated and the install is non-existant. I agree that if you really want to learn and don't mind being without your computer while you do, go for it. If you want to put in the CD and be up and running in a half hour, try MEPIS. It works like a champ. I think that you can customize Gentoo more and probably get more performance out of it. MEPIS is Debian-based, so once you have cut your teeth on MEPIS, you can try Debian and hack to your hearts content.

It autodetected my Atheros wifi and it works like a champ. I don't get 54M, but I routinely see numbers in the 30's. Although the NTFS write is experimental, I use it frequently to write ogg and ogm files from my laptop (MEPIS) to a file share.

hydrokayak,

Wireless may be a problem - depends on the hardware. Search this forum and other great resources on the net.

As for NTFS, write support in Linux is mostly experimental so I personally wouldn't try it. You do need more than 5GB, however (well, depends on the distro and what you want to do with it).

Mikhail

Slackware is pretty sweet, if you don't mind taking the time to find sources and dependences on your own. Stow goes along way to keeping it neat also.

I'm just trying gentoo myself, pretty cool. Lots of compiling involved which sucks if you are on a slower cpu (600mhz p3), it is also huge. I don't have half the things that come standard with slack installed and it's using about twice the diskspace.

Practically, yes, HD space is an issue. But I don't think it has to do with actual binaries (although they obviously vary depending on your compiling options and USE flags). What you need to do is clear temporary files associated with Portage (http://forums.gentoo.org ; I have to look it up each time myself). That will clear up a lot as Portage not only keeps copies of downloaded sources but also keeps extracted copies of packages that failed to compile sucessfully (point being, to enable the user to debug).

Mikhail

Slackware.

It has everything in terms of power that gentoo has, but without all of the compiling + an easier install.

However, if you want to go more advanced:
Debian.

All linux distro's eventually lead to Debian, why not start there?

Heh, I feel alone here cause I am gonna be the only one that says SUSE
Anyway that is my first choice for a pure distro... In all reality I use Linux from scratch.. and I love it. I know exactly everything that is on my system. They also produce a book for HLFS (Hardened LFS) for people who want an extra secure system.
Only Problem with LFS is you have to Compile it all your self and it requires a linux system already running.
They do have an Automated LFS which uses XML to do all the configuring/compiling for you. I use it now, just tailored it to my needs.

Others are my best advertisement for MEPIS. Put in the CD and be running Linux in a few minutes. If you get to the point where you want more flexibility than MEPIS provides, you can graduate up to Debian. Roblimo wrote a book to accompany MEPIS that you can use if you want something to follow along with. The best price is at Walmart, but it appears they are sold out:

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...uct_id=2642303

The next best appears to be from the publisher:

http://www.phptr.com/title/0131488724

It is also sold by borders. I did not buy the book because I did not need it. Several years ago, I did buy Linux for Complete Idiots which came with Corel Linux which was awesome. I liked having a book for my first installation. I think that one reason people give up in Linux in frustration is because the 'annointed' recommend distributions that are too advanced and then offer 'help' at a rate that would take the average person weeks to get their system working completely and the apps they need. This is particularly frustrating because unless you have a friend who is knowledgeable about Linux, your only support is online. Well, what do you do if you can't get your NIC to work? You format the HD and run windows. Start simple, run linux, be happy. Happy holidays. (Suse, Mandrake and some others are OK for beginners also)