I am getting a computer with a Unix OS.

[Gogi]

Instead of struggling with my old one. Msntv(WEBTV) is sadly becoming more and more limited. Anyone using Linux out there?

[Florida_Geek]

1. All the time....

But serious work work.....

But I have a Apple OS X which is UNIX.

[ret5hd]

2. oh yeah, linux since "95 or so...

you'll love it.

[DBoon]

3. I use Linux as an alternate OS

Linux has become vastly more user-friendly over the last few years.

Unless you require some weird "Windows only" software, I think Linux can meet the average home users needs very well.

[Gogi]

5. That's good to know.

What I will be using it for (other than internet access) is record keeping and word processing.

[aePrime]

4. Oh, oh, me!

Linux is my primary box (Mandrake, but it been Suse, and Redhat), and my server is Redhat (needs updating, now that Redhat doesn't really do individual distros anymore, plus I don't like Redhat), but I also have a Powerbook that I use occasionally, but it's mostly my wife's. Not a Windows box to be seen in my house.

[Gogi]

7. I'm not up on this......

my ISP in Earthlink, does that create a problem?

[aePrime]

8. Nope, should't matter

As long as you're confortable setting up your internet for yourself, which is straight-forward if your ISP gives you the information.

The only problem is, a lot of the times, if you call and ISP they'll ask you what OS you're running, and they'll tell you that they don't support Linux, but it doesn't matter.

I remember when I lived on campus. I called our ITS department to get network port activated, and when they asked me what OS I was running, I told them Linux. They said, "I'm sorry, we don't support Linux." To which I responded, "I don't care, I'm not asking for help, I just want you to activate the port!"

[Gogi]

9. I've got the Installation CD Earthlink sent me.

It's for a Mac and Windows environments. Will that help?

[aePrime]

10. Hmmm

That CD probably won't help. It probably installs Earthlink software to do the connection process. I usually run my Linux on high-speed connections, where it's either DHCP or I specify my own IP address. If you're using a modem, it could be a lot more difficult. Last time I tried to set up a WinModem from within Linux, well, I don't think I succeeded. I don't know if Linux has gotten better at supporting WinModems since I tried.

WinModems are cheap (and very common) modems, and most of the functionality is actually emulated in software (Windows), and they usually only have Windows drivers.

Maybe there's somebody else who has more experience getting Linux up and running with a dialup connection. I know it's possible, but I probably can't help in that area much.

On the other hand, if you have a high-speed connection (DSL, cable), it's simple. Most distrobutions go through that setup when you install Linux, and most have a wizard that lets you change the settings later. You'll need to know stuff like your IP address (or if you're using DHCP), the gateway, the net mask, and the nameservers, information your ISP should readily provide you.

[Gogi]

11. The guy who is giving me this computer in exchange

for some work my Dad did for him, knows all about unix. He's supposed to show me the ropes, too. I just want to get some idea if I will be able to get my benighted brain around Unix and I hate having setup problems! I looked at Linspire and it looks good.

[Huckebein the Raven]

13. What would you recommend as a good distro ?

I've used Linux and Solaris before so I'm a little familiar with the environment. I've just never installed it before.

I'm leaning towards Mandrake.

[aePrime]

14. I like Mandrake

It's a good, easy to use distro. I also liked Suse, but if you didn't want to buy CDs, the only way to install it is over the internet, which I didn't like. I'd rather burn the CDs and have them available.

A lot of people also like Debian, but I've never used it. Maybe I'll put that on my server instead of Redhat.

There's also Fedora, which is like the new Redhat for personal computers, but since I never liked Redhat, I haven't even looked at Fedora. The reason I don't like Redhat is because their package selection was minimal. I may be a computer scientist, but I'm also a lazy one, and I rather like having packages readily available to install instead of having to download them and possibly compile them.

[LoZoccolo]

6. Maybe Linspire is what you'd want.

I don't know much about it, but it's supposed to be a Windows-compatible version of Linux. Linux people, am I right?

[TrogL]

12. I've got linux on one box

I work with Solaris

[cheezus]

15. Get a Mac!

Mac OS X is the best consumer level UNIX-like operating system.

[Rooktoven]

16. Mac for Ease, Slackware linux for ability to do what you want

(I use Mac at work, linux at home-- odd, isn't it...)