Linux

[Tempestas]

Recently, I've been researching and asking about Linux. Now I've come to you guys.

Some questions:

How is it different from Windows? Other than an open source, I mean. For example, what is the interface like? Not necessarily how easy/difficult is it to use, but simply how it works.

What are the differences between parts like Ubuntu and Gnu? What are they? Do they require any kind of special skill?

Could I have a explanation/link of how to edit the source code, should I ever seek to do so in the future?

Basically, I know nothing about it. And information you think is important that isn't inquired here, feel free to share.

Bit of information: I have a little (very little, but some) experience with programming and HTML. (That's about it, though.) I've used Windows all of my life and am not a big fan of Macs. I currently use Vista.

 

[walfin]

Are there no other Linux threads? (Can some mod merge this?)

Anyway, it is structurally very different from Windows, if you actually care about the bones of the OS. It is a monolithic kernel with modules that can be loaded at runtime (that is, device drivers are kind of part of the OS, not entirely like the windows VXD system). Most things follow the UNIX model (Everything is a file conceptually, pipes, client-server everything etc.).

The interface. Depends on what interface you want. KDE, GNOME, XFCE, and LXDE are among the most common (the first 2 are the most popular). KDE/GNOME are certainly nicer than Windows and there are more special effects which can be used like translucency (well, aero has it too, I know), wobbly windows, and desktop cube, just to name a few.

Ubuntu is a Linux distribution.
GNU/Linux is the operating system - Linux is the kernel and GNU forms much of the other stuff (e.g. command line tools) on top.

Programming: what language? Much of Linux code is in C, with C++ in some places (most notably the whole of KDE). You would be well advised not to tinker with much until you are more familiar. The source code is often separately downloaded (Ubuntu has a system for downloading source packages), and compiled/interpreted in the usual way depending on the language that the piece of software is written in.
Writing scripts is a different matter, though (some people consider the use of scripting languages to be programming, I don't). But shell scripts can be quite dangerous sometimes.

 

[asmit127]

Linux is different from Windows in every way except normal usage, you don't have to be able to program at all to use it for daily tasks. There is still a menu to launch all your programs from, and (by default) a list of open windows and a clock so for a newcomer it's pretty Windows like.

Having used Linux almost exclusively for 7 years the biggest difference in the interface is the flexibility. Windows looks like Windows, you can change the colour but that's about it. In Linux (using gnome or enlightenment-17 desktops) you can move each part of the bar across the bottom independently, or have multiple bars top/bottom/left and/or right. You can theme the window borders, the style of the bars and buttons, icons...

Best suggestion is that you download a friendly distribution (ubuntu, mint or suse maybe? www.distrowatch.com has a huge list if you're feeling adventurous) and try it. Assuming you have a router and a non obscure network card you should have no problem getting online and from there I'll be happy to help with any specific problems you encounter (though the time difference may be a problem...)

Are you familiar with partitioning? http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-vista/resize-a-partition-for-free-in-windows-vista/ looks far easier than when I last tried this, needed cracked partitioning tools back then! You'll need about 10gb for an installation (assuming your files are kept elsewhere) plus a swap partition if you are a heavy multi-tasker and have less than 2gb of RAM. Or you could just try it straight from the bootable CD, it just starts slower and apps take a while to load and lots of noise as it spins the disk.

Does my enthusiasm to make you a Linux user show? As long as you don't insist on using photoshop or the latest games there is no reason not to

 

[ProxyAmenRa]

If someone could tell em how to get a 3g modem to work with ubuntu mobile I would be more than grateful.

 

[asmit127]

3g modem? The one in my mini 9 works (not managed to get it working in windows later than XP), but you do have to download the package once the installation is complete... Which modem do you have?

 

[ProxyAmenRa]

Huawei E160G

I have managed to download a universal connection manager which recognizes the modem. All I need to do now is find out the network details.

 

[asmit127]

Great to hear even unusual hardware works!

I'm quite good at finding obscure things online if you'd like some help finding the settings?