[huskerlug] Re: linux for newbies

>If you were to install linux for this kid, what flavor?  I'm partial to
> RH and not very familiar with other distros.

Are you going to be the "designated tech support"?  If so, you should go
with what YOU are comfortable with.  RH is a fine choice.

I prefer Mandrake, but that's me.  Mandrake is a pretty good RedHat
work-alike, so you'd be comfortable and it has a slick look to it.  Easy
set up and nice features.  Six one way, 1/2 a dozen the other.

Lots of people will push KNOPPIX (Debian) on you.  If you haven't done
Debian, you might not know how to handle some of the minor annoyances
that come up.  Trivial to set up with supported hardware though.

> 
> This kid has a chronic problem with destroying a windows install, so It
> needs to be as simple as possible.   Also, she tells me they are on
> dialup so package management should be minimal.  last but not least, 
> his primary use for the computer would be gaming. 

Gaming...gaming...gaming..that does not compute.  Linux is NOT the
platform for gaming.  There are only a few titles that are ported to
linux and most of those are out of print.  Of recent games I can only
think of:

Majesty (pricey for the linux version, haven't played it)

Neverwinter Nights (Requires large download, mine crashes after
character generation.  Setup not trivial.)

UT2K3 (Linux support on in box CD, tough to get working though, also
requires working NVIDIA drivers--medium dialup download.)

Savage (Don't know anything about this game other than its a Real time
strategy game, but linux is supposed to be supported out of the box)

Sims (AFAIK you can only purchase it with "Mandrake gaming edition",
$69)

Dominions (Complicated strategy game.  VERY deep.  Not childs play.
Supported out of the download, cheap but ugly. http://www.illwinter.com)

Other options:

WineX gaming (subscription service to run windows games on Linux. 
Pricey, not the easiest thing in the world, NOT CHEAP.  It may be dead
by now for all I know.)

Doom3 will *probably* have Linux support, but when is that ever going to
show up.
===

All in all, for gaming, it'll be cheaper (in the long run) to buy a copy
of WinXP home and a stack of $10 PC games than to install Linux and buy
a couple of Linux games.

For all other uses of a computer (email, surfing, programming, homework)
Linux is the (by far) less expensive choice.

(BTW, The open source games that come with Linux just aren't that fun,
let's face it.  My favorite game is "Find the RPM to make this other RPM
install".  That game rocks.)


-- 
Carl Lundstedt <clundst@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
University of Nebraska


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