ubuntu to gentoo jump

[meeseontheleese]

ive been reading up on gentoo, and Im seriously considering using it. Im wondering what Im getting myself into though. How much of a jump do you think it will be from ubuntu and its apt-get debian basedness, to gentoo and portage. The reason I am considering gentoo, is I like how you can bootstrap the distro to run for your processor. The only thing thats really holding me back is wondering if portage is gonna be a pain, and the really long install process (though i know most of it is just portage doing its thing). Also should I get the X86 universal or X86 minimal install disk (I hope thats the right flavor of gentoo, reason Im staying 32 bit is Im not really happy with current 64 bit support), and what is the difference between them, thanks in advance.

Mike.

[thechitowncubs]

I tried it, it was a pain, i got gnome installed over a stage 1... sound wasn't working and after all that i just came back to ubuntu even though i was that close. Neat, but not as neat as ubuntu :)

[carpetmankent]

no complaints here, don't know about the 64bit version tho, i would proabaly do a network install whilst running from a knoppix cd, you can surf while it installs then :-)

[Crimson Behelit]

I tried it, it was a pain, i got gnome installed over a stage 1... sound wasn't working and after all that i just came back to ubuntu even though i was that close. Neat, but not as neat as ubuntu :)

586045716[/snapback]

I hit a similar snag and came back as well... I figure I'll give Gentoo a try when I have a stronger understanding of the modules/kernel features my computer needs.

Best of luck with Gentoo sonicmonkey

[kyro]

WAAAAAITTTT WAAAITTTTT DONT JUMPPPPP......

listen to me... there is better option....

http://lfs.osuosl.org/lfs/whatislfs.html

[Crimson Behelit]

WAAAAAITTTT WAAAITTTTT DONT JUMPPPPP......

listen to me... there is better option....

http://lfs.osuosl.org/lfs/whatislfs.html

586045743[/snapback]

^^ I understand you're a fan of Linux from scratch, but does this really help the original poster?

[markwolfe Veteran]

^^ I understand you're a fan of Linux from scratch, but does this really help the original poster?

586045859[/snapback]

In this case, LFS is a lot like Gentoo. Both are a sort of "set them up from the ground up, just the way you want it" types of distros. So, I think that LFS would be a valid option to suggest to someone looking to possibly try a Gentoo, but not sure if that is exactly what he wants.

[PureEdit]

I am installing gentoo right now (stage2) on an old PC I just got. I am going to use it as a web/mail server. I am actually doing the installation via SSH from my OS X computer.

[todd]

ive been reading up on gentoo, and Im seriously considering using it. Im wondering what Im getting myself into though. How much of a jump do you think it will be from ubuntu and its apt-get debian basedness, to gentoo and portage. The reason I am considering gentoo, is I like how you can bootstrap the distro to run for your processor. The only thing thats really holding me back is wondering if portage is gonna be a pain, and the really long install process (though i know most of it is just portage doing its thing). Also should I get the X86 universal or X86 minimal install disk (I hope thats the right flavor of gentoo, reason Im staying 32 bit is Im not really happy with current 64 bit support), and what is the difference between them, thanks in advance.

Mike.

586045702[/snapback]

Gentoo is a piece of cake and it's not something you should be worried about. In fact, it's something you should be excited about. Be worried about the overwhelming amount of control Gentoo gives you.

Get the minimal installation disk if you have internet access on that machine. The full installation will have the packages on the CD, and it's a waste if you'll be updating to the newest packages from the web anyway.

Oh, and if you can, do a stage 1 without genkernel. You'll like it a lot better :p

[Prosidius]

Here is a few tips when installing Gentoo:

Have some soda or coffee handy.

A book or a video game to play while compiling(Gnome/KDE takes roughly 12 hours to compile)

Print the install guide or have access to another compy.

[MrA]

In this case, LFS is a lot like Gentoo.  Both are a sort of "set them up from the ground up, just the way you want it" types of distros.  So, I think that LFS would be a valid option to suggest to someone looking to possibly try a Gentoo, but not sure if that is exactly what he wants.

586045873[/snapback]

I'd have to disagree. Granted, they are both source based distros (LFS being a book), but that's pretty much the only similarity. Gentoo is a walk in the park compared to LFS. With gentoo, you type 'emerge <whatever>' and you get your program. With LFS, you do everything yourself and as such, you learn the ins and outs of a distro. You'll learn the purposes of each package and it's interactions with other packages. You can infinitely customize it. For the average user, I'd say stick to Gentoo. In most ways, it's just as easy to use as Fedora. LFS is for the adventurous user that wants to learn things you'll never need to know about linux.

[meeseontheleese]

Gentoo is a piece of cake and it's not something you should be worried about. In fact, it's something you should be excited about. Be worried about the overwhelming amount of control Gentoo gives you.

Get the minimal installation disk if you have internet access on that machine. The full installation will have the packages on the CD, and it's a waste if you'll be updating to the newest packages from the web anyway.

Oh, and if you can, do a stage 1 without genkernel. You'll like it a lot better :p

586045947[/snapback]

aha, If i get universal will I be able to dodge the 12 hour gnome compile? whats with the genkernel, and if i remember correctly, stage one is where you bootstrap it to specific needs?

Here is a few tips when installing Gentoo:

Have some soda or coffee handy.

A book or a video game to play while compiling(Gnome/KDE takes roughly 12 hours to compile)

Print the install guide or have access to another compy.

586045996[/snapback]

Holy fudge!, it takes that long to compile GNOME?! geez. why that long for a wm?

Edited June 10, 2005 by s0n1cm0nk3y

[Prosidius]

You don't wanna even know how long xorg takes to compile.

EDIT:

No you can't avoid the long compile times even if on cd because the cd contains the programs source.

Edited June 11, 2005 by Adamb10

[j79zlr]

Uh, compile times are dependent on the speed of the PC, on my P4, it only takes roughly eight hours to do a complete stage 1 with Gnome. Granted I've done it quite a few times, so I kinda breeze through the install, but the compile times are not that bad. KDE on the other hand takes weeks [j/k] to compile. One of the main reasons I like Gnome is because I use source based distros, namely FreeBSD and Gentoo, and Gnome takes abuot 3 hours [if xorg and mozilla are already built] to compile whereas KDE can literally take a day.

Yes bootstrapping takes a long time, but if you really want complete control over your install, then use a stage 1, I personally don't see the point of doing a stage2/3 with gentoo. If you don't want the functionallity offered by a completely source based install, then use a distro that has precompiled binaries, the install is much shorter, and the upgrading/installation of programs is much shorter.

[meeseontheleese]

my specs are as follows:

Asus Mobo

amd64 3200+

1024 mb ddr ram

40gb hdd (20 win/20 lin)

200gb hdd (ntfs formatted for files)

asus ATI Radeon 9600XT

onboard audio and lan

I know it shouldnt be a problem but can anyone think of any part that might cause problems (i know about ati).

As for gentoo, the reason I wanted it was the complete control. Dont get me wrong, ubuntu is great and really flexible, but Im tired of having to reinstall firefox and such just so i can get extensions and themes. Also I heard about Gentoo compiling for your proccesor (and in that case will it compile 32 bit If i use X86?). I dont want 64 bit because the lack of support (i.e. flash and etc.). Also how long do you guys think compiling stuff like gnome will take with this?

[madd_matt]

Quick Question:

I have a server without a cd drive. It does have a floppy drive and network access (duh, its a server). Is there an ftp install option, like what you can do with debian/floppies/ftp.

[LaNcom]

Hey Mike!

gentoo is not that hard to install - in fact, it's quite easy, just takes a while to read the (very well written) instructions. One thing to keep in mind, though: gentoo has BY FAR the best amd64 support I've seen. Pretty much everything just works on a 64bit install, and what not works out of the box works with some tinkering - just check the amd64 forum on forums.gentoo.org. Great and helpful community, BTW. And on a 64bit system, Xorg compiles in not even 6 hours, gcc is much faster on a 64bit system!

[meeseontheleese]

yeah i know about that, im just worried about 32 bit progs, like say flash and such. Also maybe gaim, gimp and others, im not sure if they have a 64 bit version. Is x86 the 32 bit version im looking for, i think x86 is the version that runs on pretty much all 32 bit processors.

[MrA]

Quick Question:

I have a server without a cd drive.  It does have a floppy drive and network access (duh, its a server).  Is there an ftp install option, like what you can do with debian/floppies/ftp.

586047558[/snapback]

I don't think gentoo provides an official way to do it, but it can be done. In fact, my first (and only) dive into gentoo was a CD-less install. I basically used the stage 1 tarball and built the system from a chroot jail. It's more complicated than simply using the CD, but it can be done.

[rezza Veteran]

I'm not sure what you guys are talking about when it comes to compile times... 12 hours to compile gnome is far too long. I have a lowly athlonXP 2500+ (at 3000+ speeds) and xorg only took me around 45-60 minutes to compile. Gnome and mozilla each took a few hours, KDE takes longer than gnome because it's mainly C++ instead of plain C.

[LaNcom]

Yes, x86 is the 32bit release. Still, I'd really suggest to install gentoo/ amd64. It's faster and really just works - Gaim works, GIMP works (and is faster on amd64), Flash works, games work (including Doom?/ RoE, UT2k4...), Wine and Cedega works, all drivers work just fine - and with gentoo being a source-based distro, you won't even notice a difference installing software: just "emerge gimp" and you'll get a nice 64bit GIMP... This is not Windows x64, gentoo has 64bit support for several years now!

[thagame]

gentoo is the way to go. i tried ubuntu but laughed it off and went back to gentoo.

[meeseontheleese]

Yes, x86 is the 32bit release. Still, I'd really suggest to install gentoo/ amd64. It's faster and really just works - Gaim works, GIMP works (and is faster on amd64), Flash works, games work (including Doom?/ RoE, UT2k4...), Wine and Cedega works, all drivers work just fine - and with gentoo being a source-based distro, you won't even notice a difference installing software: just "emerge gimp" and you'll get a nice 64bit GIMP... This is not Windows x64, gentoo has 64bit support for several years now!

586049344[/snapback]

yeah, not even going to consider win 64. Though the reason I worry was ubuntu 64 bit didnt have a 32 bit vers. of flash. Also Im wondering if theres 32 bit drivers for my onboard audio, lan, and my asus ATI Radeon 9600XT. Lol, that and Im trying to get past my lost of apt-get, i just got used to it, and started liking it.

[meeseontheleese]

whoops make that working version of flash, couldnt edit my last post.

[jack_canada]

Try VidaLinux, it's based on Gentoo, but the installation is binary.