Linux

I want to play with it. Where do I start? Whats a good distrobution? Help a brotha out...

How familiar are you with UNIX based operating systems? If you're not familiar with UNIX at all.. I'd recommend Fedora Core 4 (by Red Hat)

Not familar with UNIX at all...

[quote128ede7b6e="Wolfeman"]Not familar with UNIX at all...[/quote128ede7b6e]

Then stick to Fedora Core 4. (it may be 5 now, just go to their website http//fedora.redhat.com/[]http//fedora.redhat.com/)

You may also want to google up on some basic UNIX commands to help you move your way around the OS a bit... I also recommend you read UNIX In A Nutshell and LINUX In A Nutshell published by O'Reilly Books.

http//www.oreilly.com[]http//www.oreilly.com

Good luck and have fun in the world of Linux )

I'm taking a class on Linux in the summer so I want to get familiar with it...

[quotec366731997="Wolfeman"]I'm taking a class on Linux in the summer so I want to get familiar with it...[/quotec366731997]

Again, FC4 would be the best way to get familiar with Linux and still follow along with the rest of the class seamlessly...

It's perfect for those long-time Windows users who still need the point-and-click aspect of things but still have the power to use Linux to it's potential.

If Red Hat based distros aren't your game.. There's Ubuntu (which is a Debian based distro).. It's motto is "Linux for Human Beings".. That should give you some confidence to use it ;)

http//www.ubuntu.com[]http//www.ubuntu.com (It's available in x86 [32bit], x64 [64bit], and even PPC [PowerPC Macs].

Yeah I just burned an image of FC5...

[quote2cf55d02ee="Wolfeman"]Yeah I just burned an image of FC5...[/quote2cf55d02ee]

If you run into any roadblocks, let me know... Good luck

I will. Thanks for the shove in the right direction...

if u go with ubuntu later, be careful about any custom login screens u install! i put a pretty one with a penguin and then it couldnt boot up properly (

oh and forget about viewing any of your NTFS drives in linux lishakes fistli

I've been running RedHat/Fedora for almost 10 years now, so I'm partial to their distro -- I know it like the back of my hand. I currently have 3 boxes running FC5 and 1 running FC2.

However I also like Ubuntu (Gnome-based) and Kubuntu (KDE based). My preference is KDE for a desktop workstation window manager, but neither for something like a mythTV box when you want a smaller WM footprint.

I'd suggest grabbing one of the distro's with a LiveCD version -- something you can boot from and tinker with on your Windows machine or whatever. It doesn't install anything, everything runs from the CD, so it's easy to try out. Ubuntu, Knoppix, and I believe Mepis are a few popular distros that have LiveCD versions.

Then grab a copy of O'Reilly's Linux in a Nutshell. It's a handy reference. You might also try one of the "Linux for Dummies" or "Teach Yourself Linux..." books, but I never tried them.

I want to build an HD MythTV box, is that possible? I'm going to try FC5. I got the DVD install via BT last night...

Slackware 10.2 ....cause I'm hardcore, bitches )

who wants to explain to me what an HD MythTV box is? D

http//www.mythtv.org

An HD myth box is myth with an HD OTA tuner card(s) installed.

Is there a good guide on how to build a MythTV box?

Ubuntu. easy install for most I think (just not with me...lol.) and the interface is good and it's fast

I burnt the Live CD of Ubuntu a while back and it didn't recognize my wireless card. I wasn't sure if it was because it was a live cd or because of a driver issue. I really didn't want to mess with Linux driver wrappers and just said fuck it... shrug

[quote0a71652f22="Wolfeman"]Is there a good guide on how to build a MythTV box?[/quote0a71652f22]
The best is by Jarrod Wilson and found here

http//wilsonet.com/mythtv/fcmyth.php

It's Fedora-specific and hasn't been updated yet for FC5, but is still full of useful info -- people with other distros still use it as a guide. I haven't upgraded my Myth box yet to FC5 so I'm not sure how much different it would be. I'm guessing very little, but for someone with no Linux experience it could be daunting.

Another useful source of information is the MythTV user's mailing list. If you don't want the e-mails filling up your inbox, you can just browse the archived version at http//www.gossamer-threads.com/lists/mythtv/users

There are some dedicated MythTV distros out there that are good for people just starting out. KnoppMyth and MythDora and Knoppix and Fedora based, respectively, and are CD distros that are customized for Myth boxes. You might give one of them a try if building your own from scratch seems too daunting.