Linux

[eesy]

I will soon buy a new hard drive (mostly for enough space to store movies/mp3s) and have been thinking about partitioning it to make space for a linux OS along-side windoze.

Is linux really good, or is it just a fad like i've heard, what are some of its pros and cons

I program in both C++ and perl so i will probably load it for that, and i'm interested about how the kernel works.

What is the best flavor of Linux, and what is most secure. Im thinking of either getting Red Hat or Slackware.

[grigri9]

I'm not sure how secure all the different flavors are comparing to each other but they are all secure enough for what you plan to do on your computer. I recommend you get Mandrake because it is easy to install and is on par with Red Hat. If you have never installed Linux before I suggest you take a look on the internet and get some pointers or contact a Linux User Group.

By the way if you are using windows 95/98 it might be in FAT32 format (check in my computer:c: properties) and to be able to run Linux you need FAT16 format Go for an overview of what FAT32 is. herefor an overview of what FAT32 is.

[tripstone]

nuff said

[petemcevoy]

By the way if you are using windows 95/98 it might be in FAT32 format (check in my computer:c: properties) and to be able to run Linux you need FAT16 format

Linux got fat32 support from kernel 2.0.34, any distro you install now should have at least a 2.2.x kernel so it would be fully fat32 aware.

Eesy - if your confident enough with C and perl, then linux should prove no problem, there's a list of available distros here
I use debian myself but its different strokes for different folks.

[Gobinjf]

Originally posted by eesy

What is the best flavor of Linux, and what is most secure. Im thinking of either getting Red Hat or Slackware.

Security is not in linux itself (except for a few "basic" mechanisms provided by all distributions, but in what the sysadmin makes with it, what he wants to do, what services are installed and so on.

There is a script (BastilleLinux, if i remember correctly) which is used to harden a Redhat installation.

Jean-Francois

[petemcevoy]

Security is not in linux itself (except for a few "basic" mechanisms provided by all distributions

Not sure i agree with you on that one Jean-Francois, there's nothing "basic" about the netfilter part of the 2.4 kernel - it comprises a fully fledged stateful firewall and a whole host of other things (bandwidth throttling, nat etc)

[Therealmaster]

If your looking for the easiest to use (no insult intended if you aren't) Then i'd suggest SUSE linux either pro or home. They come with masses of software and a couple of C++ compilors if im not mistaken so you can start with a system with about as much software as windows. As far as security goes though i'm not particularly sure so u'd have to check that one out.