Re: [Nolug] Distro suggestions

On Mon, 2003-11-10 at 22:57, Jeff Lee wrote:
> My main concern is keeping my server operational and secure. I am not the
> smartest linux user in the bunch and it takes me longer to do things than
> most.. I just want an OS that I can configure to do things "automagicaly" I
> have many scripts that I wrote for redhat to update my software and backup
> users files and I would like an alternative that would work with these with
> little or no editing. I use CommuniGate Pro for mail and Apache for WWW, I
> like these and want to keep them when I switch. RPM has been broken for me
> since the second day I had the server running and I cant fix it. I like that
> debian has its own install package. I have been told that Debian has a bad
> installer... I want to beable to pick a package and have the OS solve
> dependencies... like redcarpet does. A gui is not required because 99.99999%
> of any work I would do is with ssh. Any suggestions on something that would
> work for me? I dont want an OS that has broken packages or out-dated ones
> either (Debian?) I want to use a "stable" release or if not a release that
> wont bring downtime.

You might want to take a look at Debian. It's current official
release (v3.0, Woody) is kinda old (glibc 2.2.5, for example),
but Sarge (the testing version, which, one magical day, will
become "stable" at the flick of a few symlinks) is very stable,
since all packages have to go through the "experimental", then
"unstable" phase, and must be clean enough to compile on the
12+ platforms that Debian supports.

If your server is headless (or, at least, X-less), then Debian
is right up your alley. Extremely powerful command-line tools,
and the GUI tools are copies of the full-screen text tools.

"Systems" in Debian are broken down into many packages. For
example, when I ran Mandrake, I had to install X just to be able
to install Python, because the One Big Python RPM had the Gtk
bindings in it. Not Debian. You pick and choose how much you
want, and that's all you'll get.

Red Carpet got it's ideas about resolving package dependencies
from Debian's apt toolset.

For example, from a minimal system running 2.4.18 and glibc
2.2.5 (no X installed, I can upgrade to the latest versions of
Evolution and Mozilla by typing:

# apt-get -u -t testing install mozilla evolution

That command will list all of the (probably hundreds of) packages
to be installed, plus "recommended" and "suggested" packages, then
ask you if you want to continue.

I usually say N, then retry, after adding all of the "recommended"
and "suggested" packages. Of course, those will have their depen-
dencies and "recommended" and "suggested" packages.

When I'm satisfied that I'm grabbing everything I want, I say Y,
and go read a book. After the downloads, the configuration step
begins, where each package that needs user response gets it from
you, and then proceeds.

> Thanks,
> Jeff
>
>
> >From: Alex McKenzie <alex@boxchain.com>
> >Reply-To: nolug@joeykelly.net
> >To: nolug@joeykelly.net
> >Subject: Re: [Nolug] Distro suggestions
> >Date: Mon, 10 Nov 2003 22:43:07 -0600
> >
> >jdtiede@bellsouth.net wrote:
> >
> > >if it's free and works the same, who cares?
> >
> >That's exactly the concern...will it work the same? Or, even better, work
> >well. This is not to say they haven't been a benefit to the Linux
> >community, but I lost interest in them after their gcc-2.96 debacle, which
> >all of it's sibling (spawn?) distros (Mandrake, etc.) had to suffer from.
> >But I still kick myself for not investing.
> >
> >And I'm sure that Fedora will not have the base that RHAT had, they caused
> >a lot of egress of their flock with their last maneuver.
> >
> >And with so many other well established distros out there to chose from, a
> >lot of people are thinking that now is a good time to make a switch,
> >especially if they've been curious to, or frustrated with RHAT.

-- 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Ron Johnson, Jr. ron.l.johnson@cox.net
Jefferson, LA USA
Some former UNSCOM officials are alarmed, however. Terry Taylor,
a British senior UNSCOM inspector from 1993 to 1997, says the
figure of 95 percent disarmament is "complete nonsense because
inspectors never learned what 100 percent was. UNSCOM found a
great deal and destroyed a great deal, but we knew [Iraq's] work
was continuing while we were there, and I'm sure it continues,"
says Mr. Taylor, now head of the Washington
http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/0829/p01s03-wosc.html
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