Complete Linux Newbie

[GenX]

Hey,

I am seriously considering switching from windows to linux but have no idea where to start. I want to be able manage the system with relative ease and I want the system to have strong internet security. I know there is quite a big learning curve but that is no different to anything else.

I guess what I want to know is:

What is the best distro for an absolute beginner going from windows to linux?
Where can I learn about securing the system properly?

The things that I want to be able to do with the system:

Play and capture video and audio
Develop software (particularly os dev)
Surf the net
I need to be able to install software relatively easy, this can change as I learn more but at first it is a must

Cheers.

[AR]

Ubuntu is meant to be good for beginners. The first thing to know about Linux is that the entire system is incoherent, this makes it extremely flexible but also makes it difficult to manage.

I personally started with Mandrake but didn't use it for very long before switching to Gentoo. The install process for Gentoo does help you understand how Linux is put together although it takes a long time to build but it is also extremely configurable (USE flags).

There is another thread about which distros people prefer here.

[GenX]

Thanks AR, the only thing is, unless there is a step by step guide to installing from a command line, I will not be able to do it as I know absolutely 0 about linux...

I'll check that thread out, too.

Cheers.

[AR]

http://www.gentoo.org/doc/en/handbook/index.xml
This is a step by step guide to setting up Gentoo from gentoo.org. After setting it up a second or third time it becomes relatively easy to manage the Linux box.

I should note that I've had extensive problems with sound though, getting Flash Player to work is a royal pain (the incoherency of Linux makes binary installs extremely unreliable, and flash only comes in binary form). Additionally, getting the system to preserve sound settings over reboot is something I only learned recently.

On the other hand, I find that Linux is a good system to entertain yourself with if you enjoy a bit of problem solving, but I find that I tend to actually get more work done on Windows.

[GenX]

I don't know if that is supposed to encouraging or discouraging... .

Just kidding, thanks for the info, I am expecting some problems but hopefully it wont be too painful, I don't mind a bit of a challenge so that should be good.

I was considering getting a distro that has a livecd version just so that I can get used to linux in general before doing the full switch...

Anyway, thanks for the help.

Cheers.

[GenX]

Hey,

Well after a few days of trying to install Gentoo, I have decided to wait until I have gained some experience in linux before giving it another go.

I finally decided to go with SUSE 10, so far it seems good however before I go any further I want to be able to make a good backup so I can mess with stuff without any fear of having to start over again from scratch.

I have two hard disks, both are Seagate 200GB and I want to use one for the system and the other for backup. I would like to be able to simply make an exact clone of the system drive on the backup drive so that if something does go wrong I can simply swap the disks over and the system will boot back to my last known good setup, then make a new clone on the original system disk and use it as the backup, if you get what mean...

Anyway, what would you guys recommend as the best (and fastest) way of achieving this?

CHeers.

[Candy]

Anyway, what would you guys recommend as the best (and fastest) way of achieving this?

Assuming linux with two IDE harddisks, primary master and secondary master:

Code: Select all

dd if=/dev/hda of=/dev/hdc

That duplicates (disk duplicate, dd) your primary master (hda) to your secondary master (hdc).

[GenX]

Hey Candy,

Is there any special reason why you mention primary and secondary master? Would it make a difference if it was primary master and slave?

How long do you think that operation would take on a 200GB drive, I was hoping for something more along the lines of partimage that only copies used space, but clones rather than create an image...

Thanks for your help...

Cheers .

[Candy]

Hey Candy,

Is there any special reason why you mention primary and secondary master? Would it make a difference if it was primary master and slave?

How long do you think that operation would take on a 200GB drive, I was hoping for something more along the lines of partimage that only copies used space, but clones rather than create an image...

Thanks for your help...

Cheers .

200 GB at a rate of 8MB a second = 200000 / 8 seconds = 25000 seconds = 25000/3600 hours = some 8 hours or so. Let it run for a night.

8MB a second was guessed by the way.

If it were between a master and a slave, it'd be hda -> hdb (or hdc->hdd, or hdc->hdb or hda->hdd). Copying to or from a slave is slower by design, so if you're going to copy 200000000000 bytes, it's advisable to put it on master for once .

egad... harddisks have gotten really big...

[Solar]

For emphasis: Slave gets interrupted by Master on the same bus. That's why the slower device is usually configured to be slave, and why two hard drives should ideally reside as respective masters on two different busses (cables).

[GenX]

Hey thanks guys. The only reason I have both on the primary IDE is because the dvd/cd burner I have said it should be on the secondary master.

Anyway, I will be storing the other drive and not leave it plugged in so I can setup them up on both masters just for the copy...

But 8 hours ...

I wouldn't want to be backing the system up too often...

Cheers

[Solar]

But 8 hours ...

I wouldn't want to be backing the system up too often...

That is why backups are seldomly done as "full drive image". Backup tools allow you to do a filesystem backup (i.e., only those parts of the hard drive that are actually in use are backed up), or an incremental backup (i.e., only those parts of the hard drive that have changed since the last backup).

Reinstalling such buckups means reinstalling the latest full backup, and then applying any incremental backups that have been done since.

Usually, once your system has "stabilized" (i.e. your software equipment doesn't change much), do a full backup of the system every six months or so, with incremental backups whenever you changed something in the system. As for your "user data", apply common sense. You don't have to do a full backup of all your MP3's and videos every so often, but you'll want to backup your source code at least once a week.

I know nothing that annoys me more than losing already-done changes to source code. Throws me completely off...

[GenX]

Yes, backup software is what I am looking for, incremental backups sound good, I might have to look into that...

thanks

[Solar]

http://www.linux.org/apps/all/Administration/Backup.html