Linux Questions

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Q: If I had Hardware X and wanted to Linuxize it, how do I look up the "hardware compatibility list" for the various distros? I'd much rather know a given installer can detect everything than go after those nasty surprises followed by ConfigFileHell?...''

A1: Go to http://www.ibiblio.org/pub/Linux/docs/HARDWARE and http://www.ibiblio.org/pub/Linux/docs/HOWTO/ (This used to be http://metalab.unc.edu/ - guess they moved the site.) There are extensive HOWTO documents that include what hardware is supported, and where to get the drivers. Having recently installed Linux (Redhat 6.2) on several computers, as well as installing Windows95, Windows98, Windows2000, and WindowsNT 4.0 on the same set of computers, I have come to the conclusion that the Windows installations are generally harder, and cause more problems with drivers than does Redhat 6.2. In general, I would say that with Linux, lowest common denominator drivers are standard, so that the OS should run "out of the box".

As an example, I never got my Ensoniq PCI64 audio card to work under Windows95 or Windows98, even after downloading the latest drivers from the Creative web site. That same sound card just worked with Linux and Windows2000. The flip side of this coin is that the Windows drivers are usually better for new hardware. I just got a Matrox Millennium G400 4XAGP video card that has great Windows drivers that use the dual headedness of the card, but the XServer (Ver 3.3.6) in Redhat 6.2 only supports one monitor. I still need to upgrade the XServer to use the full capability of my new video card. YMMV. -- RichardBash

A2: A few tips:

Use KnoppixLinux (http://www.knopper.net/knoppix/index-en.html) or another LiveCdOs distro to test the hardware detection without destroying your existing operating system. Very useful when testing a laptop on a sales floor, for instance.

Each distro worth using maintains a hardware compatibility list on their website.

Some hardware (e.g. BleedingEdge?) might not be on such lists for a while, and probably should be left to those with the skills and temperament to hack drivers or tweak config files.

If you're stubborn and the previous entry isn't satisfying you, perhaps someone has already done the hard work for you. Google on http://groups.google.com for the answers you need, visit $distro's mailing lists and InternetRelayChat channels, bug someone in your LinuxUserGroup, etc. -- JoeyKelly

A3: If the hardware you are wondering about is a laptop, check http://linux-laptop.net/ , http://www.linux.org/hardware/laptop.html , http://tuxmobil.org/ .

Q: Which is the best Linux Distribution?

A: Everyone has their favourites, (right now, mine is Mandrake) but in reality most distros are rather similar. For example, they all use the same kernel, they all come with Apache, etc.. This article by Enterprise Linux IT explains it well: <http://enterprise-linux-it.newsfactor.com/story.xhtml?story_id=23184>.

For the desktop, Mandrake/Mandriva and Lindows (soon to be renamed) are some of the more desktop-oriented ones. Graphical installation, a lot of useful software is included on the CDs, and they immediately boot up into a friendly desktop like KDE or GNOME. And if you want to dual-boot with Windows, they'll automatically set that up for you as well.

Q. What about LiveCdOs mentioned above? Can it read WindowsXp NTFS? And run a few win32 programs like PQboot32 to change boot partition that was previously created with a Win32 "Boot Magic" product? -- dl

A. Linux does have the capability to read NTFS. This is a kernel capability, and not something that should vary too much between distributions. I don't know for sure, but I would think that live CD distributions should have NTFS capabilities compiled in. For running Win32 programs, you should look into the Wine project. However, there are also Linux-native utilities for fiddling with boot partitions and such -- these would likely be more reliable than Win32 programs running under Wine.

"Thx I hope that NTFS is the version that XP uses. It is an "improved" version over the one used in W2K. I need boot partition utilities that work with RAID 0 setup, and PartitionMagic 8 companion appears to do fine (with SIS based RAID at least). Oh BTW you may want to know MicrosoftServicesForUnix is said to be very good in providing "Unix type connectivity", it is an MS acquired product. My interests in the other way is because WindowsXp goes belly up with the venom I throw at the OS. Thanks again for help. "

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