Linux distro

ok this isnt really a programming question... Im trying to decide on a linux distrobution to work on so that i can learn to program on linux.

so if you could make a list of every distro u used and then put one * by the one your using and two * by the one you like best

and then make a list of every WM you have used and put one * bye the one you are using and two * bye the one you like best

eg

DISTRO

-------*
------
--------**
---
---------


WM

---------
---------------
----
----***
--------

and if you want you can leave a reason why you like a specific one or why you use one.

ty much appreciated

Redhat
Gentoo * ** /*I like gentoo's portage tree for dependencies when compiling .plus it is optimized and eazy to find hard stuff*/

WM
Fluxbox * ** /*Fastest and most cutomizeable not a desktop enviroment though. Easy to get keyboard shortcuts working only matched by .......................KDE's ability*/
Gnome
KDE

Sorry about the * then ** right next to it but what I like the best I use:)

DISTRO
==========
Mandrake
Gentoo * ** // I like the ability to re-compile it with optimizations for my PC

WM
==========
Gnome
KDE * ** // No reason, I just like it :)

slackware * **

fluxbox * **

Distro:
Fedora Core 1

WM:
WindowMaker

Redhat
Slackware * **//It's only linux using BSD runlevel and it claims to be the most unix-like distro. (but actually all are *NIX) :)

GNOME
KDE * **//it's popular and more stable than GNOME (on my machine).

Distros:

SuSE * ** Has its strengths, has its weaknesses. Does it's job for a desktop user such as myself.
Mandrake - Sucked. Got the latest version off a friend and the install program died.... twice. Every time I tried to do anything using its config program it would crash half the time.

WM:

KDE * ** Has come a LONG way from 1.0, which was when I first experienced it. It does what I want it to do, while looking and feeling natural.
Enlightenment - Pretty, but crap. The UI design was just hell, felt very unintuitive.
GNOME - I have yet to get this damn thing to work properly. Every now and then I'll upgrade to the latest stable version and spend the next few days trying to get it to stop f'ng up. Then I give up on it again.
A bunch of other WMs - None feel intuitive like KDE. It's just the little things. Like on a lot of them when you right click on your desktop you have to hold the button down or the menu disappears. And it's the little things that drive me nuts.

ok thanx it looks like ill be trying out Gentoo, has anyone heard of BLAG? and as for WM has anyone hear of BlackBOXWM if you have tell me about it please. (i know fluxBOX is based on blackbox(from what ive read))

and how do i know were to download the files from... because there are different folders to download from... ppc, sparc, x86, historical, 1.4rc1 (and that is in the release folder)

fluxbox was based on blackbox, but I believe they have surpased them. You don't need to worry about were to get the files if you are using gentoo. Make the iso disc. And once you follow the tutorial and have you computer up at the end of it. boot and type(as root)
emerge -u blackbox
it will get all the dependencies and all(that is what I like about it)

so it doesnt matter if i download the x86 or the i686 or the P3.... versions

Quote:

---

Originally posted by c++.prog.newbie
so it doesnt matter if i download the x86 or the i686 or the P3.... versions

---

It does. If you have a P3 and you don't want to wait a few extra hours to bootstrap your system, get the P3 ISOs. One of the first thing the Gentoo documentation asks you to do is to download the Stage Tarball for what you want to do - if you got the P3 ISOs, go to the P3 directory and grab the Stage2 tarball. Also, be sure to glance over the documentation before you go to install, and somehow have it out and accessible at all times during the installation.

try topologilinux. This is a good one that I am using. You can install it on your windows partition and see it when you are loged in windows and you can see windows when you are on linux( on all linux distrubutions that have the latest kernal can see windows)

i read the documentation about downloading the different stages but i still dont really understand the difference between them other than that 1 & 2 you have to compile

Stage 1 is going to be the fastest if you get it. Because you can edit your make.conf file to have optimizations on the CFLAGS= line. If you start from stage two it won't be as fast because the bootstrap will already be compiled. If you start from stage 3 then everything is already compiled. If it is already compiled it isn't optimized for your system. A good thing to do is print the documentation and follow it line by line when installing:)

so if i get stage one how do i know what to put to optimize it for my machine?

There are links to all the flags from the Gentoo docs, along with descriptions of the common ones.

Quote:

---

Originally posted by linuxdude
Stage 1 is going to be the fastest if you get it. Because you can edit your make.conf file to have optimizations on the CFLAGS= line. If you start from stage two it won't be as fast because the bootstrap will already be compiled. If you start from stage 3 then everything is already compiled. If it is already compiled it isn't optimized for your system. A good thing to do is print the documentation and follow it line by line when installing:)

---

Not really. If he downloads the P3 stage2 files they're already pre-bootstrapped for a P3. Hence he won't really get ANYthing out of bootstrapping.

If he uses the x86 tarballs, however, he WILL get some optimizations.

i wont be dowloading the p3 files cuse the comp im putting it on is like a p1 at the most thats why i wanted to know what files to download earlier... and how do i know wether its a i386/i486/i586/i686

PS. sorry for all the non programming questions... the will turn into programming questions as soon as i get linux up and running :)

is AMD a sub category of x86 or is it in a catagory of its own?