Is Fedora right for me (or you... *newbie help*)

[NmUxFpAxN]

Hello all,

As the topic name implies, I am a newb. Yes, I can admit it. I shall take this burden upon my back and walk with it. That being said, I'm sorry for anything that I shall say :)

Here is my position. I've been working on Windows all of my life (I'm 18, btw) and I've grown fairly comfortable with it. Now here comes the problem. I'm tired of it. I'm tired of point and click and just letting things work themselves out. I want to start using the command line, getting my hands dirty, understanding the system and such. That's why I have chosen Linux. I was thinking that Unix would be a good place to start...no dice. Even though I want to learn, I think it's best to ween myself from the GUI slowly :-D So my hunt for the right distribution began, taking me from Gentoo to Red Hat to Mandrake and now back to a red hat type state. Is Fedora right for me? I want to just get used to Linux and get online (which seems to be a huge feat in it's own right with my Nvidia card...i simply never could install the drivers).

I don't know much about linux and I've only messed around on the very surface. Sure, i've typed some pretty useless things into the command prompt, but I've never installed a package, gotten a driver installed, or even surfed the web on it. This being said, I'd like to ask my second question. How do you learn how to do this?! The driver installation instructions assumed I knew how to build and use RPM, and yet I can't find anything about it. I read the Fedora FAQ with the "Yum" stuff, but it seems that I'd need an internet connection to get Yum. Maybe I'm way off here...i just don't know.

So any information you could give me (and the countless other newbs out there) about Fedora and any link or advice that would point me in the right direction in order to learn Linux (be it book, article, website...) would be greatly appreciated. Thank you so much for taking the time to read this and I hope that you guys can help.

Thanks again,
NmUxFpAxN

[Wrayman]

You are facing many issues. They all stem from a basic lack of familiarity with Linux. Once you wrap your head around a few conventions, you will be able to answer your own questions. Linux is meant to be understood, unlike winblows which is meant to be automagic and painless. I suggest you find a friend that can work with you. Alternatively you can start attending a local Linux Users Group. They are a great place to find help. I would also be glad to do what I can to help. At the moment, I don't get the impression that you are even at the point where you can ask a useful question. As far a the NVIDIA drivers go, if you use a current driver download from nvidia.com and follow there extensive directions, you should be good to go.

[Evert]

Yes,
I can recommend Fedora. I have no idea about your hardware, but when you have a ethernetcard, you are able to setup a ethernetconnection very easy.

I am using Fedora now for 2 months , after removing XP :D :D
Fedora is very friendly in use.

If you really want to learn more with the CLI-line, you must consider Slackware.

[Wrayman]

I would differ with that assertion. If you are looking for a more basic Linux distribution without a lot of the install/admin tools that make distros like fedora so easy to use, or if you need better compatability with old hardware then try slackware. Other then that, the command line interface is going to be the same on any distro you use.

[masteq]

Fedora is a great distrobution to learn Linux. Which ever distro you choose, I would recommend you do not install a windows manager (KDE or GNOME) and just use the command line. I learned much quicker when I couldn't rely on pointing and clicking. A seperate machine is handy if you need to use a web browser or just make sure to install Lynx (a text based browser).

The Fedora for Dummies is actually not a bad reference to get (the 6 in one set). It also comes with a DVD of Fedora Core 1.

[scorpion]

hi.
well i can agree for a newbie and wanting to learn command line i do reccomend using something like Slackware.
but if your really interested in linux like you say you are
do get a book and read it.
i have a book here on my site if your willing to read it,
it will take alot of time to read but worth it.
you will find it at http://home.comcast.net/~gto286/rute/index.html
or you can download the book here and read at your leasure:
http://gto286.8bit.co.uk/rute.html.tar.bz2
it's a very good book i highly reccomend it.

[sailor]

The Fedora for Dummies is actually not a bad reference to get (the 6 in one set). It also comes with a DVD of Fedora Core 1.

I bought Linux for Dummies and it had the enclosed DVD. The DVD is great, Fedora install was not hard. I would recommend it for the newbie (as a newbie myself) I have not updated the nvidia drivers yet ( it is using the generic drivers that came with Fedora) but I only notice the video problem when running the games (which I dont do often).

I borrowed Xandros for a short time it is very easy to setup, but limited in what you can customize. It might be a good starting point until you get comfortable with the command line...

I have tried Suse, Debian, Knoppix, Phlak, Xandros, Redhat 6 (a nightmare) and Fedora. Of these I would recommend Fedora(no problems), Suse(sound problems) and Xandros(costs $$)

[Ug]

Been around the block then?

[sailor]

Lets just say that I stumbled around a bit....I am no computer genius but I am pretty logical....I got very good at formating and starting over as I regularly screwed up my system...hehehe