Very Computer

 I want to jump on the Linux Bandwagon and try it out. What are the
issues for a Newbie. I have win98 on my Dell PII. I guess I would Have
to Partition My HD And have a Dual Boot Config?. What are the Best
Links for a Newbie and the Best place to Download the OS?

 Any Info would be appreciated

 Thanks

Go to http://sunsite.unc.edu/LDP

got www.linux.org or/and  buy Linux for dummies, the cd rom include redhat
5 version of linux and a lot of utilities. It 's been very useful to me
(you'll see it's better to have it on a cd instead of d/l it for the
installation). Of course you'll need to partition your hd, partition magic
is very simple to use and you won't lost your data.

[Posted and mailed]

Quote:>  I want to jump on the Linux Bandwagon and try it out. What are the
> issues for a Newbie. I have win98 on my Dell PII. I guess I would Have
> to Partition My HD And have a Dual Boot Config?.

That's the best way to do it, but not the only way.  There are
distributions that support installing Linux on a FAT partition using the
"umsdos" filesystem, or other methods.  The last I heard, these would not
work with FAT-32 filesystems, but that may have changed.  I know that one
of the more popular and easier-to-install Linux distributions, Red Hat,
does *NOT* support these options.

Most Linux distributions come with FIPS, a tool for shrinking FAT
partitions to make room for Linux.  Recent versions work with FAT-32, but
older versions don't.  The commercial Partition Magic
(http://www.powerquest.com) will also re-size FAT partitions, as well as
Linux ext2 partitions (version 4.0 only).  PM also does loads more.  These
utilities should be used with caution, though; what they do is inherently
dangerous, so a bug or other problem (like a power failure) may do serious
damage.

Quote:> What are the Best Links for a Newbie

http://www.linux.org is a good starting point.  So is the site for
whatever distribution you settle on (http://www.redhat.com for Red Hat,
http://www.debian.org for Debian, http://www.suse.com for SuSE, etc.).

Quote:> and the Best place to Download the OS?

I'd recommend that a newbie NOT try to download Linux.  Instead, buy a CD
or a book with a CD.  Books generally lag one or two versions behind
what's current in any given distribution, though, because of publication
and distribution delays.  OTOH, getting a book with a CD can be a good
idea for a newbie because it results in a good pairing of software with
documentation.  CDs alone can be had for US$2 plus shipping (generally
US$5 or less in the US) from a number of sources, like http://www.lsl.com
or http://www.cheapbytes.com.  Big computer stores may also have Linux
CDs for low prices in their cut-rate CD section, or distributions with
manuals in other sections.

If you're really short on cash and have a lot of patience and/or a fast
network link, you can download everything from a number of sites.
Generally the main site for a distribution (see above) lists a number of
"mirror" sites that host the distribution.  ftp://sunsite.unc.edu and
ftp://tsx-11.mit.edu are two of the bigger Linux mirror sites in North
America.

--
Rod Smith

http://www.users.fast.net/~rodsmith
NOTE: Remove the digit and following word from my address to mail me

Just a comment on the FAT32 thing...   It has changed, (I'm not sure when)
but I installed Slackware's ZipSlack on my 1.4G FAT32 drive using umsdos.
So far I'm loving it!  A few problems, but I'll get them sorted out...

[snip]

Quote:>That's the best way to do it, but not the only way.  There are
>distributions that support installing Linux on a FAT partition using the
>"umsdos" filesystem, or other methods.  The last I heard, these would not
>work with FAT-32 filesystems, but that may have changed.  I know that one
>of the more popular and easier-to-install Linux distributions, Red Hat,
>does *NOT* support these options.

Just for the record, I read the other posts before answering here...<g>

Another way to get a start with Linux is to go to:

http://members.tripod.com/~dragonlinux/contact.html

and download this little jewel. It uses the umsdos filesystem, so it
doesn't require you to repartition your harddrive, and since it's only 25
mb, it won't take up that much space.
   It is only a text-based thing, but it will give you a great beginning
setup (since you can add to it later), and has all the functionality of a
full blown Linux system.
   I know it works on Win95 FAT-32, since I installed it on both my office
machines (an IBM Model 350 and an IBM Thinkpad 365E), and it works a treat
on both. In fact, I use the laptop for connecting to my HP server here at
work...<g>...

Good Luck.

Dave Hulsopple

go to:

Quote:

>http://members.tripod.com/~dragonlinux/contact.html

Bad link. Try <http://members.tripod.com/~dragonlinux>