Whats the best type of Install for RH9 ?


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Hi all, I have just gotten a 120gig HD and have partitioned 10Gig of it for a Linux Install. Since I am new to Linux, I decided to go for the easy option and install RH9. One thing is troubling me though, What type of install should I go for ? I do eventualy want to learn the ins and outs of Linux, but for now I just want to play about with it and get a feel for it.

Should I do a FULL install, or customize it?

I did have a look at the customized section of the install process, and to be honest, I felt over whelmed, there where just so many options.

I would also like to be able to share between Linux and my XP Partition (NTFS), but do not want to run any servers (exept maybe for an FTP).

Any help would be great

Thanks in advance

Matthew

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First, as a new user, you can choose to the the full install and accept that there are so many options. It's probably best. Once you get familiar, you will find you pick one or two main text editors, (please learn vi!) and one CD-burner, etc. Then, you can remove those packages you do not want.

One caveat to this: if your computer has a problem booting, you will want to do a MINIMAL install to troubleshoot. This has no GUI, jsut command prompt. If needed, this will verify that the kernel is OK with your computer, and you can add stuff in (like X Window, KDE/Gnome, etc.) -- This is only needed if you run into problems

Now, for the not-so-good news... How much do you want to run RedHat? I ask because, by default, they do not have NTFS support, or MP3 or (I have heard) DVD. These can be added-in, but require an extra step. I run Fedora (what RedHat for home use has become), and I like it. Just a word of caution to let you know what you will be in for. If you prefer a better "out of the box" experience, Mandrake is a good recomendation.

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It's probably best. Once you get familiar, you will find you pick one or two main text editors, (please learn vi!)

vim/vi is a very nice text editor indeed - I used it for many a year - and continue to use it today on my Windows machine via gVim.

On my Gentoo box though, I've been spoiled - Gentoo's decision was to make nano the default editor, and for the quick edits of config files and such, nano makes things so much quicker. It's also a sweet little editor, if RH offers it.

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NTFS is read-only for a reason. The only partition on my computer that even uses NTFS is the Windows XP installation. Everything else is FAT32 and ext3.

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...  How much do you want to run RedHat?  I ask because, by default, they do not have NTFS support, or MP3 or (I have heard) DVD.

At the moment, Linux is just going to be an OS I use maybe a few hours a day (as apose to 8+ for XP) untill I get comfortable with using it and confident enough for it to be my primary OS.

As for NTFS support, its no biggie, I have a 20 gig "spare" fat32 partition I am going to use as a kind of go between and storage drive.

I Think I may try a FULL install, that way I can pick and choose which app is right for me.

Thanks for the feedback, and any other words of wisdom/advice is more than welcome.

Matthew

Oh, and will a 10 Gig EX3 and a 1gig SWAP do, or should I also create a /boot partition & if so is 100MB OK?

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Oh, and will a 10 Gig EX3 and a 1gig SWAP do, or should I also create a /boot partition & if so is 100MB OK?

10 GB is MORE than enough space for Linux. For swap, stick to about 2*(your amount of RAM) - limit of about 512MB. Larger doesn't give any real benefits. Let the installer recommend space, and it shoulc be ok.

As for useage, the more you use it, the BETTER. If you only use it for short periods of time, you won't really learn it. Most people who do this end up complaining that Linux never worked for them and was difficult to use. Try to treat it as if you were using it as your PRIMARY OS. (you will be surprised how much you like it after running it a week solid with no crashes!) ;)

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