Topic 'Looking to adopt a new *nix' in forum 'All Things Unix'

Topic 'Looking to adopt a new *nix' in forum 'All Things Unix' - dslreports.com http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23302570 en Sat, 11 Feb 2012 12:25:10 EDT Sat, 11 Feb 2012 12:25:10 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23319997
I'm not saying the Shuttleworths or the Volkerdings of the world are right but the results speak for themselves.
--
They vilify us, the scoundrels do, when there is only this difference, they rob the poor under the cover of law, forsooth, and we plunder the rich under the protection of our own courage.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23319997 Tue, 10 Nov 2009 11:54:39 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23318215 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23318215 Tue, 10 Nov 2009 00:46:05 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23318043 said by Bink:

There is no politics—it’s Theo’s way or the highway.
Except when dealing with DARPA
--
My pbase gallery]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23318043 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 23:42:58 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23317959 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23317959 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 23:21:41 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23317926 said by Bink:

Linux is also highly political—with various organizations and commercial entities vying to get their code included in the system—the BSDs have far less of thisYou forgeting Theo De Raadt. Now we're talking about actual politics.

said by No_Strings:

Aversion therapy - They make you run Windows for a week.

No, they give you a machine with a blank hard drive, a windows cd, and cd key. Then they force you to install it, install all of the patches, hunt for every driver for every chip in the machine, and then install all the applications needed for basic computing tasks. All the while, the music that keeps you sane had the misfourtune of residing on a disk formatted with ext3. If that doesn't work, you'll have to come back in 6 months, and figure out which software on the machine is outdated.
--
My pbase gallery]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23317926 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 23:11:05 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23317715 said by Selenia:

Sorry I did not include sarcasm tags about commercial software having to be better, because I was just being sarcastic. Unfortunately, that is how too many employers view things. I am fortunate enough to finally land with one a bit more open-minded, as technology goes. FOSS is the best development in the world because you have unlimited potential contributors who work on their area of expertise. They don't burn out because they work on what they want to when they want. The best contribution is then accepted by the maintainer. It's not a small team coming up with and then another small team implementing the ideas. It's a global effort, literally. More people to spot bugs too.
Knock it all you want. There's considerable investment by businesses in non-open technologies. This can include things like training on OSes and applications.

For example: moving from Oracle on Solaris (et. al.) to Linux is expensive/difficult enough. Taking your data and porting it to a new database is orders of magnitude more expensive. It's easier/less expensive to change the OS but leave the application. However, if they decide to NOT go with a RedHat or a SuSE, they're completely on their own: Oracle (et. al.) won't help or support them.

OSS for the sake of OSS is a bogus argument. There has to be a business case for doing *anything*.
--
The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. -- Bertrand Russell]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23317715 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 22:27:48 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23317621 said by nixen:

said by Selenia:

said by nixen:

Tell that to the employer that wants an RHCT or RHCE.

Unfortunately, a lot of commercial software for Linux systems is either only certified/supported on RedHat (and CentOS) and/or SuSE (and the corresponding OpenSuSE release) or only runs on those platforms (without "messaging" them). For most businesses, it's the criticality of the applications that drives the OS choice. Certification is just an adjunct to that (much like a large percentage of Solaris and Microsoft shops want corresponding certifications).

That said, other than considerations for employment, use whichever OS accomplishes your needs in the way you'd like it to. For me, that used to be Slackware; now, it's CentOS and/or Fedora because most of my paid work is RedHat (and switching back and forth is kind of annoying).
Sorry I did not include sarcasm tags about commercial software having to be better, because I was just being sarcastic. Unfortunately, that is how too many employers view things. I am fortunate enough to finally land with one a bit more open-minded, as technology goes. FOSS is the best development in the world because you have unlimited potential contributors who work on their area of expertise. They don't burn out because they work on what they want to when they want. The best contribution is then accepted by the maintainer. It's not a small team coming up with and then another small team implementing the ideas. It's a global effort, literally. More people to spot bugs too.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23317621 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 22:09:03 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23316476 said by Bink:

"Linux is for those who hate Windows; BSD is for those who love UNIX."
I fall into the former camp... but I have to say the bloody releases pretty much keep me happy with a few exceptions, and I don't really know if these can ever be fixed in cutting edge releases.

But seeing as most of my data is stored on external devices, a broken system means very little to me data wise.

I could see it being a huge pain if I had to use these machines to support clients, but seeing as I'm not employed in an IT field, my needs are not so "stable"
--
They vilify us, the scoundrels do, when there is only this difference, they rob the poor under the cover of law, forsooth, and we plunder the rich under the protection of our own courage.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23316476 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:36:34 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23315847
Someone else probably said it best:

"Linux is for those who hate Windows; BSD is for those who love UNIX."]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23315847 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:36:15 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314961 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314961 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:52:53 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314940 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314940 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:47:28 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314900 said by BBBanditRuR:

FreeBSD and the other BSD's are also awesome in their own right, but they aren't Linux, and have a much slower release cycle. For the fastest release cycles, Ubuntu and Fedora are fast.OpenBSD uses a 6-month release cycle and has hit their dates 25 times in a row, exactly on the date promised, and with no critical bugs. I wouldn't use it as my desktop, but I doubt you'll find a Linux distribution with that record anytime soon.
--
Obamanomics: Trickle-up poverty.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314900 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:41:19 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314833 said by BBBanditRuR:

FreeBSD and the other BSD's are also awesome in their own right, but they aren't Linux, and have a much slower release cycle. For the fastest release cycles, Ubuntu and Fedora are fast. Some people view slower, more-careful and more-developed releases to be a good thing, not a bad thing. ;) Not everyone wants to risk breaking their system with a x.0 release every few months. ;)

I much-prefer the "do it right" philosophy of FreeBSD to the "do it first" philosophy of Linux. I have no problem with the frequency of releases. If there's a "gotta have it now" feature not available in the current release, I might occasionally hop on -STABLE but for the most part -RELEASE is perfectly fine.
--
»www.ninstation.com/]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314833 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:26:44 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314297 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314297 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:50:41 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314293 said by Selenia:

said by nixen:

Tell that to the employer that wants an RHCT or RHCE.

LOL commercial software has gotta be better than some free software, doesn't it? jk LOL. That just seems the train of thought for most these employers. He might not even be aware that the core of his Red Hat is free software. Maybe zing him with that one. hahaha!Unfortunately, a lot of commercial software for Linux systems is either only certified/supported on RedHat (and CentOS) and/or SuSE (and the corresponding OpenSuSE release) or only runs on those platforms (without "messaging" them). For most businesses, it's the criticality of the applications that drives the OS choice. Certification is just an adjunct to that (much like a large percentage of Solaris and Microsoft shops want corresponding certifications).

That said, other than considerations for employment, use whichever OS accomplishes your needs in the way you'd like it to. For me, that used to be Slackware; now, it's CentOS and/or Fedora because most of my paid work is RedHat (and switching back and forth is kind of annoying).
--
The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. -- Bertrand Russell]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314293 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:50:23 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314264 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314264 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:45:13 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314184
Hi there, going to chime in with my two (long) cents:

IMHO, Linux is Linux (if you're technical about it, since the kernel is just the kernel, even if it's customized, the rest is userland and GNU and open source tools and packages, hence the GNU/Linux). That's where most people flex on the specific power of each distro.

Red Hat and others keep their own fork of the kernel going, so yeah, you are going to get off of the main path and HAVE to learn a specific distro by itself to keep up, if that's the one you choose. I like to not limit myself necessarily to that thinking of being able to use only one version. You can have success with lots of different ones. Try the major ones, Gentoo, Red Hat Based (CentOS, Fedora), Debian based (Debian, Ubuntu (9.10 is really cool) and Slackware (remember, you can download the images and try em out in a virtualized environment on that wired box). Don't discount other OS'es too, OpenSolaris is a really neat project with some amazing tools of it's own (ZFS comes to mind). FreeBSD and the other BSD's are also awesome in their own right, but they aren't Linux, and have a much slower release cycle. For the fastest release cycles, Ubuntu and Fedora are fast. I've heard the Ubuntu team is syncing with Debian now, not sure on which branch, maybe somebody can advise on this?]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314184 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:31:46 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314065 said by Selenia:

Disagree. Slackware is a nice purist distro, but I see no evidence that it teaches Linux any better. You can even learn on Ubuntu. Let's see, I learned on a Debian machine I setup myself. Almost all skills for newer Debian are portable to cli in Ubuntu(Debian based). Yet, when I go over the RHL, Gentoo, or Fedora there is no change in how to compile source code or setup a desktop environment you compiled. Different package managers, yes. Maybe a couple renamed local directories. When you compile source code for all your apps, then you're learning Linux.

If you're really looking for a distro to force you to learn, then get Gentoo. It's no different than any other Linux. However, it makes you set it up from scratch and forces you to use cli alot. Yet, its initial packages are thoroughly modern. Just don't make it your main system for awhile(you might find yourself very sorry).
I think I stated this in not so many words about 5 posts up!! ;)
--
To talk much and arrive nowhere is the same as climbing a tree to catch a fish.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23314065 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:10:02 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23313934 said by nixen:

Tell that to the employer that wants an RHCT or RHCE.
LOL commercial software has gotta be better than some free software, doesn't it? jk LOL. That just seems the train of thought for most these employers. He might not even be aware that the core of his Red Hat is free software. Maybe zing him with that one. hahaha!

said by rawwhide:

My vote is Slackware. If you want to really learn then Slackware is by far the best. Like someone else quoted...

said by disturbed1:

There's an old saying -
If you learn Red Hat, you learn Red Hat. If you learn SuSE, you learn SuSE. But if you learn Slackware, you learn Linux

Disagree. Slackware is a nice purist distro, but I see no evidence that it teaches Linux any better. You can even learn on Ubuntu. Let's see, I learned on a Debian machine I setup myself. Almost all skills for newer Debian are portable to cli in Ubuntu(Debian based). Yet, when I go over the RHL, Gentoo, or Fedora there is no change in how to compile source code or setup a desktop environment you compiled. Different package managers, yes. Maybe a couple renamed local directories. When you compile source code for all your apps, then you're learning Linux.

If you're really looking for a distro to force you to learn, then get Gentoo. It's no different than any other Linux. However, it makes you set it up from scratch and forces you to use cli alot. Yet, its initial packages are thoroughly modern. Just don't make it your main system for awhile(you might find yourself very sorry).]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23313934 Mon, 09 Nov 2009 10:44:55 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23311576 said by rawwhide:

said by nixen:

said by disturbed1:

There's an old saying -
If you learn Red Hat, you learn Red Hat. If you learn SuSE, you learn SuSE.

Depending on what your goals are, you'd likely want to amend that, "if you learn RedHat or SuSE, it might get you a job." ;)

Mostly RedHat in the US and SuSE in Europe.

Once you learn Linux then the actual distribution doesn't matter. All distros are Linux. ;)
Tell that to the employer that wants an RHCT or RHCE.
--
The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. -- Bertrand Russell]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23311576 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 19:26:34 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23311052
I'll agree that Patrick values stability over updates, but as I mentioned earlier, you can tap into the current tree for bleeding edge or compile your own if you need something newer than what's released for your version. I do that all the time for a couple of apps.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23311052 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 17:17:24 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23311018
However he values stability and I value more updates.

So here's my plan, and yous may interject, I'm going to dual boot my netbook with Moblin and Arch, and I'll run most other candidates as virtuals on this machine, as it has the HP to deal with Virtualization. You thoughts?
--
They vilify us, the scoundrels do, when there is only this difference, they rob the poor under the cover of law, forsooth, and we plunder the rich under the protection of our own courage.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23311018 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 17:10:14 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23310246 said by nixen:

said by disturbed1:

There's an old saying -
If you learn Red Hat, you learn Red Hat. If you learn SuSE, you learn SuSE.

Depending on what your goals are, you'd likely want to amend that, "if you learn RedHat or SuSE, it might get you a job." ;)

Mostly RedHat in the US and SuSE in Europe.
Once you learn Linux then the actual distribution doesn't matter. All distros are Linux. ;)
--
To talk much and arrive nowhere is the same as climbing a tree to catch a fish.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23310246 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 13:47:17 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23309925 said by disturbed1:

There's an old saying -
If you learn Red Hat, you learn Red Hat. If you learn SuSE, you learn SuSE.
Depending on what your goals are, you'd likely want to amend that, "if you learn RedHat or SuSE, it might get you a job." ;)

Mostly RedHat in the US and SuSE in Europe.
--
The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. -- Bertrand Russell]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23309925 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 12:12:37 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23309694
I'll definitely post here once I get the new one on board.
--
They vilify us, the scoundrels do, when there is only this difference, they rob the poor under the cover of law, forsooth, and we plunder the rich under the protection of our own courage.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23309694 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 11:08:21 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23309607
said by disturbed1:

There's an old saying -
If you learn Red Hat, you learn Red Hat. If you learn SuSE, you learn SuSE. But if you learn Slackware, you learn Linux

--
To talk much and arrive nowhere is the same as climbing a tree to catch a fish.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23309607 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 10:41:25 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23309247
The netbook is probably the one that's gonna be the first hit when I start experimenting for two reasons,

1) doesn't manage the music collection so the audio is secondary.
2) Wifi always seems to be an issue so I can get nail that one right out of the box.
--
They vilify us, the scoundrels do, when there is only this difference, they rob the poor under the cover of law, forsooth, and we plunder the rich under the protection of our own courage.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23309247 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:07:20 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23309010 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23309010 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 03:05:35 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23308824 --
The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. -- Bertrand Russell]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23308824 Sun, 08 Nov 2009 01:22:26 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23308524
I have been an Ubuntu guy for over 2 years. Running it on my server, and 5 other PCs...EXCEPT, the netbook I am posting with...is using OpenSUSE. Why? I got a little tee'd off at Karmic, because it made my netbook almost unusable, where Jaunty worked OK after tweaks.

Thank GOD I didn't try KK on the wife's Acer Aspire One as well.

I was disappointed in KK, as I has HOPEFUL it would run BETTER on the AAO.

OpenSUSE is working fine. All I need to figure out is getting 1366 x 768 screen resolution, and then I am golden.

YMMV]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23308524 Sat, 07 Nov 2009 23:21:31 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23306891 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23306891 Sat, 07 Nov 2009 15:40:01 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23306850 said by nixen:

RedHat/Fedora/CentOS are all really good if you want to fight with system security. Leave SELinux and/or iptables on, It's LOADS of fun. :p
I have SELinux enabled on my Fedora 11 desktop and netbook, and on my CentOS server and have no issues with it at all. It's very easy to administer on Fedora 11. If you do run into an odd violation, the troubleshooting tool pops up and gives you the exact command to type to fix it. It will also tell you the pros and cons of the fix security wise.

CentOS's trobleshooting tool is not as modern as Fedora's, but on Fedora or CentOS if you stick with software from the repos it is all labeled correctly anyway. Most .conf files list the SELinux commands that need to be issued for that application to run correctly in the comments.

iptables is very easy to administer if you use system-config-security. I've never attempted to edit it by hand but I have heard it can be challenging.
--
Verizon FiOS subscriber since 2005 | Mac owner since 1990 | Fedora user since 2006 | CentOS user since 2007 | "Anyone who is unwilling to learn is entitled to absolutely nothing." - graysonf | EDIT: I seldom post without an edit.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23306850 Sat, 07 Nov 2009 15:28:06 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23306299 said by Bink:

iptables? That thing is madness. Get outside your Linux walls and try OpenBSD’s pf (packet filter).
I like iptables structure that makes almost any forwarding or blocking config possible. Even by headers. As I said, if the config is madness for anybody, they can download a GUI like firestarter. That provides enough functionality for the general masses that need a good firewall. I have used a Windows version of BSD's ipfw and very much liked it too. I can do a bit more with iptables because I've used it for years. But that firewall was the best I've ever used for a Windows box. I actually trusted it to block what it was told to :P(you know how some commercial Windows firewalls are).]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23306299 Sat, 07 Nov 2009 12:51:14 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23305962 said by Bink:

iptables? That thing is madness. Get outside your Linux walls and try OpenBSD’s pf (packet filter).
Been using ipf for over a decade, now. Feels like it makes more sense.
--
The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. -- Bertrand Russell]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23305962 Sat, 07 Nov 2009 11:20:57 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23305728 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23305728 Sat, 07 Nov 2009 10:16:06 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23305645 said by Selenia:

iptables is the best friggin firewall there is-and free. I laugh at that bloatware Windows users install. There are GUIs that can configure it pretty well, but only the command line can tap the full functionality it has.
How about netfilter? Let the stateless and state-full firewall wars begin. So many choices! ]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23305645 Sat, 07 Nov 2009 09:49:48 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23305602 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23305602 Sat, 07 Nov 2009 09:35:49 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23305347 www.blagblagblag.org/ or Zenwalk, »www.zenwalk.org/.

My 2 favorites.
--
The Firefox alternative.
»www.mozilla.org/projects/seamonkey/]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23305347 Sat, 07 Nov 2009 06:27:09 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23305228 said by munky99999:

esxi is a really good idea actually. If you have the hardware to run it anyway.
If you're worried about hardware, Xen can be a much better solution. Plus, most of the enterprise features are available in the free version.
--
The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. -- Bertrand Russell]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23305228 Sat, 07 Nov 2009 03:41:56 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23305227 --
The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. -- Bertrand Russell]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23305227 Sat, 07 Nov 2009 03:40:30 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23305128 quote:
So how long from start to finish with Gentoo? I'm used to going from zero to complete with Ubuntu in under 45 mins, I'm aware this isn't possible with Gentoo but how long does it take?
Really depends on the hardware. I haven't done a full install in a while, but I remember that it took a couple of hours (something around 5 or 6, I forget) on a Athlon 64 3700. I'm sure it's much quicker on the new machines. If you do the install from a live cd, you can still use your computer while installing gentoo. (just expect it to be a bit slower because the compiler will be eating up all of your CPU cycles.) Or just install it from within Ubuntu.

The good thing about gentoo is that docs will walk you through the process of installation. Step by step, so you shouldn't get lost.

In the end, you'll have a much easier time than many of the users here. For example, recent releases of X.org can automatically detect the correct settings on most setups, eliminating the need to even create a config file.
--
My pbase gallery]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23305128 Sat, 07 Nov 2009 02:08:02 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23304995 said by munky99999:

Which you can do with ubuntu. You just need to learn to move away from the package management system. OR go and do use that commandline.

You're missing the point. I'm moving away from Ubuntu. I was/am looking for options outside of Ubuntu specifically.

BSD is an option but I really haven't done any research on it. So its looking like Arch is going to be the next one I test.
--
They vilify us, the scoundrels do, when there is only this difference, they rob the poor under the cover of law, forsooth, and we plunder the rich under the protection of our own courage.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23304995 Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:48:50 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23304874 http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23304874 Fri, 06 Nov 2009 23:59:39 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23304782 said by El Quintron:

said by Bink:

How about stepping outside of the box and using BSD? If you have an open mind, I highly recommend OpenBSD.

To be honest I've never considered it, it would certainly be a challenge I'd be up for in the new year.
Freebsd is more popular then openbsd.

Why? Customization is very popular in freebsd. Building your own custom kernel for example is something that's common in freebsd and not so much in openbsd. Furthermore it's easier to get a hold of pretty much any software for freebsd. Which wont work so well in openbsd.

The idea being between the 2... freebsd wants you to try whatever you feel like. Assuming you arent doing it on some main internet exposed webserver or something. While openbsd is kind of under the impression your box is going to be the next google.com webserver with millions of hits and day and many security pen tests randomly. With that... the openbsd fellas think there's absolutely no reason you should be touching anything but their special prestine applications/kernels. Doing so can only lead to being less secure and more buggy. Which is bad.

Im sure someone will come correct me about my thoughts of bsd. As frankly they might be highly outdated and/or wrong.

That said... BSD is nice for very unusual computer setups. Like ancient hardware cpu architectures or beowulf clustering.

Dragonfly BSD which is out of freebsd is an extremely popular one to use for those ultra cheap.. "I bought 500$ worth of 50cent pentium 3 1ghz cpus. Lets cluster them together" kind of deals heh.

So here's a good list of OS you might as well try at some point.

Ubuntu you should run!
Fedora/Suse/RedHat
Debian
Gentoo/Slackware/Arch
Backtrack for fun!
Openbsd/Freebsd
Plan 9

That pretty much rounds out the different schools of thought i think. Plan 9 I toss in there for the lulz.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23304782 Fri, 06 Nov 2009 23:22:28 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23304662 quote:
What I need to learn though is advanced compiling, CLI, and how to dig around a computer with a command line.

Which you can do with ubuntu. You just need to learn to move away from the package management system. OR go and do use that commandline.

The issue is that the easy method is staring you in the face for ubuntu. With CLI and such still there to use.

Gentoo-slack on the otherhand kinda forces you to use those and thusly no option of the easy method. Though admittedly gentoo does have emerge.

When you get into an RPM hell like I have several times. You really really warm up to ubuntu's development cycles.

Though I went and looked today @ gentoo. Seems they've recovered from their schism as of late. I think im mistaken about this though.

debian has a bad track record with security tbh. LOTS of DOS issues and bad random # generating.

esxi is a really good idea actually. If you have the hardware to run it anyway.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23304662 Fri, 06 Nov 2009 22:48:57 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23304308 said by Bink:

How about stepping outside of the box and using BSD? If you have an open mind, I highly recommend OpenBSD.
To be honest I've never considered it, it would certainly be a challenge I'd be up for in the new year.
--
They vilify us, the scoundrels do, when there is only this difference, they rob the poor under the cover of law, forsooth, and we plunder the rich under the protection of our own courage.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23304308 Fri, 06 Nov 2009 21:00:49 EDT Re: Why limit yourself to One *nix? http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Why-limit-yourself-to-One-nix-23304271 said by mike_f:

If you want to learn AND have a usable, reliable and maintainable system at all times, use Debian/XFCE4 as a host and try out all of these other *nixes under Virtualbox. Or run ESXi or Xen and save yourself some overhead.
--
The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. -- Bertrand Russell]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Why-limit-yourself-to-One-nix-23304271 Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:50:36 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23304245 said by No_Strings:

It's not easy to start with Slack if you have never seen a *nix system. That's the same thing you said to me back in 2005. It didn't mean much then but I certainly understand it today. Thank you and +1 for Slackware as a path to Linux enlightenment.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23304245 Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:45:19 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23304211
I think that'll make me more command line oriented.
--
They vilify us, the scoundrels do, when there is only this difference, they rob the poor under the cover of law, forsooth, and we plunder the rich under the protection of our own courage.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23304211 Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:38:34 EDT Re: Looking to adopt a new *nix http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23304150
I used to use Debian, but once I started using OpenBSD, I never looked back.]]> http://www.dslreports.com/forum/Re-Looking-to-adopt-a-new-nix-23304150 Fri, 06 Nov 2009 20:20:12 EDT