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Re: [LUG] Debian



On Thu, Mar 27, 2003 at 02:13:46PM +0000, LUG wrote:

> Hi All
> > 
> > I have picked up a few threads re Debian and particularly Knoppix.
> > Being a relative newbie - six months and going strong! - I have used
> > Mandrake 9 and Red Hat 8. I prefer Mandrake, couldn't tell you why
> > though!?!
> > 
> > However, it seems to me that Debian seems to be a much purer Linux
> > without the rubbish that many distros get attached.

I'm using Debian Woody, after previously trying Mandrake 9. Debian seems
to me to be less bloated, faster (at least on my old machine) and
beautifully easy to maintain and upgrade once you get used to it.

> > However, I freeze
> > at trying to load Debian because of the complexities!!!

I doubt if you'll have a problem getting a basic working installation,
as long as you have the details of your hardware. Setting up sound cards
and CD writers and USB peripherals might or might not be a problem. I
recommend doing plenty of research into hardware compatibility before
you start. 

> > A while back I
> > read with interest an article about Libranet - a distro that uses Debian
> > and puts a GUI loader to it. Any thoughts?!

I don't know about Libranet, but I think there's probably always a
trade-off between ease of installation on the one hand and getting
exactly the configuration you want on the other.

> > And finally has anybody got a copy of Debian that I could copy and
> > maybe attempt on another box?

No, but if you get just the first CD (which shouldn't cost you more than
about £3 - see www.debian.org for suppliers) you'll have all you need to
get started and you can download extras from the Net.

Starting by experimenting on a second box is a good idea, and after that
you might want to try installing to some free space alongside your
existing OS. About 2Gb of disk space ought to be plenty.

Good luck: I hope you like Debian as much as I do.

-- 
PJR :-)
http://www.pjr-online.co.uk/

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