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Re: [PLUG] Yet Another Distribution Question
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On Saturday 21 April 2001 22:36, you wrote:
> My wife wants to learn how to get around in Unix, since it's used
> extensively in the science and research communities. I'm wondering if I
> should set her up with one of those do-everything GUI-fied distributions
> (like Mandrake or Progeny), or if I should go for something more
> old-school (like Slackware), or if I should go for something more
> middle-of-the-road (like Debian). The way I see it, something like
I'd agree with Mental in that Suse 7.1 probably has a lot of what she'd want.
Its install is nearly effortless so she won't have trouble there, and once
intalled it's got an automatic update feature which is, so far, free for
anyone (even non-registered users), and the interface is smooth enough for
her to use it as a regular productivity desktop (with Koffice and StarOffice
both pre-loaded.
However, you might want to consisder Debian or even RedHat if what she's
using at work doesn't use X. Both these distros are great for text-only
machines because they allow non-graphical installs by default (i.e. they give
you the option of installing X or not). Generally speaking, it's a lot
easier to strip what you don't want out of these two distros. Don't know
about Slackware-- it would probably be okay as well. However, the guy who
turned me on to Linux was a hardcore Slackware fan and said to me, "If this
is your first time out with Linux, don't try Slackware." It is the most
obtuse distro, although I haven't tried it for 2 years so your mileage may
vary.
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