Anybody here think Linux Gentoo is a good OS for a beginner with Linux and should i build my own computer?

Question

Ive grown up with computers since 1992. Ive used Windows 3.0, 95, 98, NT, XP, and i recently switched to Mac os x 10 and leopard.

Which linux os is good? Can it do everything windows can including playing pc games and dos games. How about video editing, burning dvds, cds, blurays and sound editing?

Answer 1

It is a matter of opinion but I believe Ubuntu is an easier Linux distro to start with. As far as gaming is concerned...Linux is getting better, but still falls a bit short. Video, burning...etc. is as capable or better than Windows in most respects. Any Debian based distro is great as the Debian repositories of softwares are huge...much larger than that of the RPM based repositories.

Answer 2

It can certainly do video editing, dvd/cd/br burning, and sound editing, but games are a little iffy. Some will work thru Windows emulation (WINE) and others won't. DOS games will be probably work if you use some DOS emulation, but you could probably find equivalent games made for Linux.

Linux really isn't a native gaming platform...most games are made for Windows and sometimes Mac.



I wouldn't recommend Gentoo. Gentoo is for advanced users who really know what they want in a distro. You should start out with something like Ubuntu or Linux Mint which will allow you to ease into Linux without the need for advanced knowledge of terminal commands right off the bat.

Answer 3

I installed Ubuntu Linux for the very first time last July after being a Windows user since 1993. I set it to dual-boot, since I was sure that I'd get bored or confused and go back to XP Pro. I like Linux so much more that I've only visited XP twice, both before I knew how to mount the partition & grab files off of it!

Answer 4

Gentoo isn't for beginners. Decent Bluray support is still new http://themediaviking.com/software/bluray-linux/



Ubuntu is for beginners, but it is it's own animal. It isn't legal to play any encrypted media (dvd, bluray, etc.) in Linux because it isn't licensed, except for a few pay Linux distros like Mandriva and Dells with Ubuntu that had special licenses.

http://www.markshuttleworth.com/archives/133



Playing dvds is easy enough to do in Linux, all that said. http://www.videohelp.com/tools/sections/linux-video-tools You have to go through some hoops to get the decss and navigation lib for VLC, but if that's done properly, VLC will play almost anything.



WINE and DosBox aren't going to work like real Windows. That's not the way to do it. If you use Linux, then get a native program for what you want to do and forget about Bill.



Cedega is for gaming, but not perfect. http://www.transgaming.com/

Answer 5

you can build your own computer sure.

i would NOT start with Gentoo. its a very advanced distro of linux, i know you have years of experience with other operating systems. and if you did some under the hood work with macintosh that will help (because of the Unix relation)

i would recommend however, something like Ubuntu or Fedora or openSUSE

Answer 6

Of course not, linux is more limited than Windows in many ways but offer stability and security. to be fair there is little point in giving a try to linux if you are on a beautiful mac except for fun. In that case load a virtual machine and give a try to a few without actually changing anything to your beautiful mac



RICK

Answer 7

Haven't thought too much about that

Answer 8

I think that's correct

Answer 9

op. system install / re-install steps





http://puppylinux.org/main/





print a copy of this file



print a copy of computer notes



export browser Fav's / bookmarks



back-up files, programs ;



power down



disconnect network and external drives



power up



delete tif files ( temp internet files ) and cookies;



un-install programs;



delete folders;



delete accounts



empty recycle bin



restart computer



Go to BIOS and set boot order with CD boot 1st



place O.S. CD in CD drive, 'cept don't close it



power down



close CD drive with O.S. CD in it



restart computer



format primary HDD;



( Fn + F10 ) = disc eject ( DELL )



install op. system;



adjust screen resolution;



load software for external drives and hardware;



test for internet connection;



install additional programs as necessary





If your computer is several years old, consider buying a new hard drive for the fresh install of the op. sys..



When re-installing the o.s., allocate 15gb (15000mb) of space for the op. sys.. Format in NTFS. Partition the rest of the hard drive in 7000mb to 20000mb allocations creating up to 10 partitions. Then, after you boot, you can allocate / format the rest of the hard drive under disk management;



>(r-clik) my computer

> manage

> disk management



Allocate +/- 7 to 20 gb of space for each partition, format in NTFS.



Install additional software (Adobe pdf reader, Java R.E., printer, wireless adaptor, office suite, web browser, widgets,etc.) to a low capacity partition.

AVOID installing to the partition that host's the op.sys.. AVOID storing anything in the user account “My Documents” folder as that will consume space in the host partition.



Download software to a low capacity partition, install software and programs to another low capacity partition. Create and download documents to another partition. Store music and images and other media files on another partition.





leave at least one partition unused, for migration. At least once a year, migrate your stuff to a unused partition, (especially if you do a lot of document creating, editing, deleting), then format the abandoned partition, for the next time.



With only the op. sys. on the hosting partition, and other file types separated by partitions, it will be easier for your computer to run the op., and easier to run everything else. Also, the search feature will work much faster as you will only have to search a partition for the file you want to find.



And, with your files and software on other partitions, your stuff is already in back-up, and the next op. Sys. Re-install will be already half done and much easier to do and you will only have to format the host partition and not the whole hard drive



Also, increase your RAM to at least double of mfg. Configure or even max it.



http://www.gtopala.com/siw-download.html



Check the RAM and CPU load with the task manager to determine if you need to increase the RAM capacity;



1st> (r-clik) taskbar

2> task manager

3> performance







Get widgets to monitor the RAM load and CPU load



http://downloads.yahoo.com/





To be more thorough, “wipe” the hard drive before the op. Sys. Install with DBAN



http://www.answers.com/topic/darik-s-boot-and-nuke





Use Eraser to overwrite the contents of the recycle bin instead of emptying the recycle bin;



1st> Open Eraser

2> clik explorer tab near bottom left

3> clik recycle bin in the the explorer tree to show contents of recycle bin

4> edit > select all

5> drag and hold contents over the eraser tab

The explorer closes and eraser opens

6> drag contents back to the eraser que, drop contents

7> set eraser to make one pass;

Edit > preferences > erasing > pseudorandom data > OK

8> (r-clik) eraser que> run all > close



http://portableapps.com/apps/utilities/eraser_portable





Occasionally use ccleaner for maintenance purposes;



http://www.filehippo.com/download_ccleaner/





Occasionally, create a new user account, copy / paste contents from the current user account, to the new user account, then delete the old user account



pg