Important questions on Linux

[art]

I have a few questions about Linux suited for my needs, I appreciate if some experts on this forum can take some time to answer my queries. I presently am using Win2K both at work and at home. My home computer has Miktex, Mathematica, Emacs., Telecommuting software, and my banking software. I find it convenient to use them on my present machine. I hope to build a new PC / buy one at a Computer Show for less money. That is reason I want to install Linux on the present Pentium II 400 MHz machine and hopefully Win2K as well. I connect to internet quite often with a dial-up modem. I don’t need cable access. I have an option of burning a CD from a friends home who has cable modem access.

My questions are as follows.

1. Which is the best & easiest to install Linux distribution to work with Win2K programs ?
2. Is there a comparable program to Mathematica, or should I upgrade to a Mathematica Linux one?
3. Are you aware of finance programs on Linux?
4. Why are there so many new releases of Linux?, Is there a need to keep ones Linux OS upgraded for the latest release?
5. Once installed, is it easy to upgrade through a CD (which can be burned from with a PC which has cable access)? & what do I need to do to upgrade?
6. If I am assembling a PC/ buying one from a computer show, What are the things that I should look out for towards Linux & Windows PC.
7. If I have a base Linux on PC, can I use different CDs to run other extra programs that I don’t want installed on a PC?
8. If I use Linux PC, can I download Win programs onto Linux PC and run them using WINE?

Thanks a lot for taking your time to answer these questions.


Art [/b]

[Cuddles]

Art,

A shopping list, to say the least, I will attempt to contribute to answers, to what I know...

Your Questions:
1. Which is the best & easiest to install Linux distribution to work with Win2K programs ?
***** Never worked with Win2k - I used Win98 with mine, previously, and now just run Knoppix straight, only. Can't help on this one...

2. Is there a comparable program to Mathematica, or should I upgrade to a Mathematica Linux one?
***** No clue on this one either...

3. Are you aware of finance programs on Linux?
***** "Finance" being bookkeeping, as in accounts payable/receivable? Not sure, unless it comes inside OpenOffice, which is included on the Knoppix CD, or can be attained through a "package" that can be gotten - see below on "getting packages"

4. Why are there so many new releases of Linux?, Is there a need to keep ones Linux OS upgraded for the latest release?
***** "Flavors" I think is the term, Linux comes in many "flavors". Red Hat, Debian, Linux, Mandrake - mostly the "flavors" are for look and feel, or have some "customized" changes that take into account specific needs/systems - like Laptops, etc... (I think this is the answer)

5. Once installed, is it easy to upgrade through a CD (which can be burned from with a PC which has cable access)? & what do I need to do to upgrade?
***** Upgrading and Updateing is easily done through a commond. "apt-get", which can not only "update" current programs, libs, and other stuff, but, can "upgrade" the same to newer versions, and lastly, the command can also "get" new programs (called packages") from the numerous stockpile in the world, and install them, with any extra needed libs, etc... In one step. The whole process keeps track of "dependencies" of all the programs, and if an attempt is made to "stomp" (as it is known in the Windows World) - apt-get will allert you to this, before it lets something trash something already installed.

6. If I am assembling a PC/ buying one from a computer show, What are the things that I should look out for towards Linux & Windows PC.
***** First, WinModems - bad for Linux, good for WIndows - try and use an external (hardware) modem - the kind you plug into your seriel port in the back of the system - as for anything else - NEWER is not always BETTER - from what I hear, you want to buy hardware - video, sound, etc... what was "last years" latest and greatest - that way Linux developers have had the chance to get drivers, or add the support for them, into the OS. In other words, buying this years Super-Doper-Wiz-Bang-Top-Of-The-Line-Lightning-Speed Video Card, may not be supported in Linux, but may be supported in Windows. Nice on the pocket-book, though.

7. If I have a base Linux on PC, can I use different CDs to run other extra programs that I don’t want installed on a PC?
***** Hmmmm, sounds like a double-edged sword here - If you have, say a game, and want to play it, and it runs on the CD, it would depend on what OS it runs on - if it is Windows, you may need to try and work it through Wine, if it is DOS, no answer, if it is native Linux - yes.

8. If I use Linux PC, can I download Win programs onto Linux PC and run them using WINE?
***** Depends on the program. If it is something that requires a lot of Windows behind it, I would say, use Windows for it, it couldn't hurt to try Wine on it though. Worst case, it won't work, but, I am sure people here have many ways to get you to something other than Wine, that might get it to work.

Thanks a lot for taking your time to answer these questions.
***** No problem Art, hopefully I helped a little, on "some" of the answers. I am QUITE sure, others will additionally be posting responses. So, keep tuned

Cuddles

[fingers99]

1. Which is the best & easiest to install Linux distribution to work with Win2K programs ?

To working with Win2k programs, it really makes little odds. At some point you'll need to use something like Wine or one of the commercial offshoots of it. To work well with Win 2k you really need a fat32 rather than an ntfs filesystem, although this may have changed recently. 2 hard drives makes life easier.

2. Is there a comparable program to Mathematica, or should I upgrade to a Mathematica Linux one?

You may be able to run Mathematica through Wine. Otherwise, you'll need the Linux version.

3. Are you aware of finance programs on Linux?

Sage, and lots of others: I've no idea what you really want -- I'd be inclined to Google for this.

4. Why are there so many new releases of Linux?, Is there a need to keep ones Linux OS upgraded for the latest release?

Only if you need new features or security patches. Generally, Linux develops very rapidly and since there's not a lot of marketing involved new releases come out 2 or 3 times a year from major distros.

5. Once installed, is it easy to upgrade through a CD (which can be burned from with a PC which has cable access)? & what do I need to do to upgrade?

Depending on distro, it's easy enough to upgrade through diallup.

6. If I am assembling a PC/ buying one from a computer show, What are the things that I should look out for towards Linux & Windows PC.

External modem, lots of RAM, seperate video card (preferably AGP and nvidia).

7. If I have a base Linux on PC, can I use different CDs to run other extra programs that I don’t want installed on a PC?

It depends on the programs. As CD is read only, it's pretty difficult to do as most programs want to write to the media they are on. Generally, unless you want to master your own Knoppix (or Squeak) it's a bad idea. Anyway, hard drives are cheap!

8. If I use Linux PC, can I download Win programs onto Linux PC and run them using WINE?

Yes, but your mileage will vary. Codeweavers do a game version of Wine and an Office version of Wine. You really need to check them out. Of course, you can run Windows from within VM Ware inside Linux, but you'll need a reasonably modern machine with a lot of RAM to do this comfortably.

[art]

Thanks Cuddles & finger 99
I have a fair idea on what to do next. So it is easy to update the OS with only a diapup modem? That sounds good.

[windos_no_thanks]

2. Is there a comparable program to Mathematica, or should I upgrade to a Mathematica Linux one?

Maxima should do something similar, it is available for wimpdoze too so you can try it out even in your current setup.

http://maxima.sourceforge.net/

Haven't used Mathematica myself and only played with Maxima a little so I can't really say how they compare.

[windos_no_thanks]

External modem, lots of RAM, seperate video card (preferably AGP and nvidia).

I agree on the rest but why nvidia ? If I've undestood things correctly there are no open source drivers for their recent cards so you have to settle with some pre-compiled stuff that probably won't work when you upgrade the kernel & Xfree sometime in the future.

[art]

Thank Windos_no_thanks:
I took a look at the Maxima quite cool!. There are seven CD images of debain for installation. Why so many and do one install all of these CDs.?

Thanks,
Art

[fingers99]

I agree on the rest but why nvidia ?

Because the Open Source nv drivers are fine for 2D and the Closed Source ones are great for 3D.

While I'd prefer it if nvidia Open Sourced their drivers, the latest install routines make it pretty easy to remove, update and install them. For 3D in Linux, they're probably your best bet.

[fingers99]

There are seven CD images of debain for installation. Why so many and do one install all of these CDs.?

You'd probably not want to install everything.

But, remember, a hard drive install of Knoppix is Debian (and a later version than you'll get by just using the Debian CDs). It really is a wonderful attempt to make a Debian install use-friendly.

[Cuddles]

Art,

7 CD's is if you want "Debian's" tested, tried, and true - certified by Debian to be (close to perfect) - What you get with Knoppix IS debian, but at least a few revisions ahead of the Debian CD's.

Debian releases in three versions: Stable, Testing, and Unstable.

Knoppix is based on the Debian "Unstable" version, but has far more advancements, and additions since then.

Debian considers Stable to be tested, and (most, if not all) bug ridden, Testing is just that, the code has gone through Unstable and is being tested to becoming Stable. Now, Unstable, thats the one everyone gets so "wierded" out about. Unstable is not the literary word, but rather, the most "cutting edge" additions and code, awaiting Debian's "testing".

From what I heard, Knoppix too Debian's Unstable (way back when), and began working with it, adding more features, etc... and then released Knoppix. In either case, Knoppix is a working, valid, and far more advanced, than its Debian counterpart, which is not yet released by Debian.

I hope I got some of this right, some of it is from memory, and some of it, I have pieced together from bits and pieces of other information. By the way, "7" CD's would only be used if you wanted "everything", which, even in a Windows Install, you don't want "everything" that is on the CD's. Some of the data on CD's is (in the case of Windows) some videos, some audio, and some tips/tricks - I am sure in the Debian "7" CD set, some of the data is documentation, etc...

Cuddles