Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 13

Thread: Debian 5.0.1, goReviews

Hybrid View

  1. #1
    Senior Member gore's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Location
    Michigan
    Posts
    7,177

    Debian 5.0.1, goReviews

    Debian isn't anything new, and I'm pretty sure people here use it because, well, I've seen people say they have. Anyway, I've personally used Debian before, but it wasn't really something I used all the time. Since I've been testing out new stuff I decided to try the new Debian out as well.

    I downloaded the Net Install ISO because well, it lets me start out with a bare bones installation, and then add to ti whatever I want. So, I grabbed the CD after doing my Vector Linux review, and decided to try it out.

    The installation has changed for the first time in a while. It now contains a GUI based installer for those who like that sort of thing (I personally think a well done GUI is nice) and I'm sure it'll make a lot of people possibly try it out since they won't be turned off by a text only installation, even though Windows still does text based. XP installs were harder to comprehend for me than some Linux installers.

    Anyway, this isn't a who's better thread, it's simply going to be my opinion on a distro that doesn't need a sales gimmick to be good. Debian for me has always been nice. I didn't always use it because I wasn't really in need of a new OS because I had SUSE, FreeBSD, Slackware, and the new Mandriva, all of which were great, but I wanted to try some new ones out and see what they had done new.

    I had Debian 3.0R1 on CD (LOTS of CDs) and I also have 4.0, but when I checked to see what the newest one was, I saw that 5.0 was out, and 5.0.1 was ready for download. As I pointed out already, I chose the Net install only. I sometimes grab the full CD collection, but 700 MBs x 7 CDs.... I didn't feel like waiting. And besides, the Net install can do the same thing the others do, I just don't have to change disks.

    The installation went great, and as usual, Debian installation tools are of high quality. The partition editing was simple, straightforward, and easy to comprehend.

    After doing this, I let the install go, and then I decided to finish up and just do bare bones so I had a fresh clean OS to work with, and then I could add what I wanted afterwards.

    I can do this because Debian has one of the best software adding tools ever with not only dpkg, but the front end, apt-get. So I started adding software. As usual, adding software took VERY little. I decided on what I wanted first, and grabbed it, and then I decided to look at what software was available, and started browsing with Ice Weasel (Firefox without something or other) and opened a bunch of tabs with software categories to look at, and started adding more software. This can take time to do, but it's nice to be able to, because then, I have a system set up with EXACTLY what I want, and nothing else.

    It's very nice.

    So, what else? I downloaded and installed a bunch of Window Managers to play with too, so I installed those, and when I logged out, I saw that all the Window Managers I had added were put in the list of Window Managers I could pick at the GDM screen when logging in. I saw KDE was added for me, so I chose it to see if it worked, and well, I'm using it right now to write this.

    I didn't have to edit any configuration files, or anything. I simply logged out after installing them with apt-get, and they were ready for action.

    Final Verdict? I think I'm going to be using this for a while. I REALLY like it. It for sure gets the GORE STAMP OF APPROVAL.

    Also of interest for those coming from other Linux or BSD based OSs; I popped in a music CD in one of the drives in the machine, and instead of being told I couldn't open it do to permissions, it popped up and let me look at it right away without editing any configuration files.

    Basically it does the easy to use no set up required stuff Mandriva and SUSE and Fedora and RedHat do, but with the edge of Slackware, which does still require you to edit /etc/fstab by hand to use CDs and, if you have one, a floppy.

    Not that I think that's a problem, it's not hard to do or anything, but it's a time saver.

    Anyway, I HIGHLY recommend Debian 5.0.1 for anyone. It's great. And if you're one of those Ubuntu sissies, why not try out the REAL version of your OS?

    Love gore.

  2. #2
    Gonzo District BOFH westin's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    SW MO
    Posts
    1,187
    And if you're one of those Ubuntu sissies, why not try out the REAL version of your OS?
    Meh... Ubuntu does most everything I need it to... For everything else, there is virtual-box.
    \"Those of us that had been up all night were in no mood for coffee and donuts, we wanted strong drink.\"

    -HST

  3. #3
    Senior Member gore's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Location
    Michigan
    Posts
    7,177
    For anyone who started using Debian, or uses it already, this article is kind of neat for some simple admin tasks:

    http://www.debian-administration.org/articles/580

    I just finished reading through it and it has some great info for admin stuff on a Debian box including the sysvconfig app which I just started using myself.

    Anyway, I'm still using Debian 5.0.1 on two machines with no real issues, and it works great.

  4. #4
    Only african to own a PC! Cider's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2003
    Location
    Israel
    Posts
    1,683
    Hey Guys,

    Anyone got a link for the download? Ill give it a bash on a VM.
    The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it.
    Albert Einstein

  5. #5
    Senior Member t34b4g5's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2003
    Location
    Australia.
    Posts
    2,391
    Quote Originally Posted by Cider View Post
    Hey Guys,

    Anyone got a link for the download? Ill give it a bash on a VM.
    Maybe i don't know try http://www.debian.org

  6. #6
    Only african to own a PC! Cider's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2003
    Location
    Israel
    Posts
    1,683
    DOH!
    The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it.
    Albert Einstein

  7. #7
    Only african to own a PC! Cider's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2003
    Location
    Israel
    Posts
    1,683
    EDIT: I really must concentrate sometimes
    The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it.
    Albert Einstein

  8. #8
    Only african to own a PC! Cider's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2003
    Location
    Israel
    Posts
    1,683
    Sheesh, Over 10G ...

    That 4 CD pack obviously has all the software you ever need?
    The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don't do anything about it.
    Albert Einstein

  9. #9
    Senior Member t34b4g5's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2003
    Location
    Australia.
    Posts
    2,391
    Quote Originally Posted by Cider View Post
    EDIT: I really must concentrate sometimes
    Tell me about it, i've been having 1 of those weeks were i just cannot concentrate, made waaay to many mistakes.

    Anyhowz...

    Just grab the netInstall, that will give you a barebones install, then simply update, and grab only the packages that you want.

    Or download all .iso's and during the install you can just pick the packages from the .iso's.

  10. #10
    Gonzo District BOFH westin's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    SW MO
    Posts
    1,187
    Usually you just need the first disk for installation. The rest are optional packages.

    It has been a while since I have done much with Debian. Probably since ~2002. I have it installed on a VM at home, but the display gives me trouble, so I don't boot it very often.

    I may have to give this one a shot...
    \"Those of us that had been up all night were in no mood for coffee and donuts, we wanted strong drink.\"

    -HST

Similar Threads

  1. Dual booting Debian and Windows
    By gore in forum Other Tutorials Forum
    Replies: 9
    Last Post: March 22nd, 2009, 12:09 AM
  2. Many connections from 127.0.0.1
    By nancy in forum Newbie Security Questions
    Replies: 19
    Last Post: December 11th, 2008, 08:39 AM
  3. Problems Installing Debian
    By fastnet in forum Operating Systems
    Replies: 8
    Last Post: November 30th, 2006, 07:07 PM
  4. Debian use grows because SUSE isn't German anymore??
    By gore in forum Operating Systems
    Replies: 5
    Last Post: March 16th, 2005, 06:36 PM
  5. Vulnerability: Debian IN.UUCP Remote Buffer Overflow
    By s0nIc in forum *nix Security Discussions
    Replies: 0
    Last Post: June 6th, 2002, 05:12 PM

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •