[Comphelp] Re:Suse Linux/Lindows

[Joseph A. Gabrey III]

> 
> I appreciate any information, Thanks
> 
> Ben Owen  D/17
> 


Ben -

Three words - Hardware Compatibility List.

Whether it's Redhat/Fedora, Mandrake, Suse, or whatever, check the 
vendor's HCL FIRST.  Visit your selection's web site, find the HCL, and 
check it out.  Make sure your current (or proposed) system's parts are 
supported, or, as I did, build a system with supported parts.

I've been using Redhat 8, along with W98, for over a year.  I spend 50% 
of my time using each.  I don't consider myself a MS basher, although I 
have always avoided using IE and Outlook.  I see Linux as an alternative.

As for the desktop, both KDE and GNOME offer similar tools to Windows, 
including desktop clocks, simple editors, help files, email clients, 
command prompts, desktop backgrounds and themes, screensavers, etc.  I 
tend to use KDE - I like the little gear theme.

For email, Evolution is as good as Outlook, if not better because of it's 
security and virus protection, ie, it doesn't have all the MS bugs.

As the browser, Mozilla is a very capable - and standards compliant - 
browser, and includes an email component, as does Netscape Communicator.

I have not tried wine (or crossover), so when I need to use Flash, 
Fusion, or Photoshop, I boot to W98.  Though gimp/sane work just fine, I 
just prefer Photoshop and its filters.  That's the only reason I'm in W98 
now.

My startup scripts mount the FAT partitions, so when I'm in Linux, I have 
access (read/write) to all my files on the W98 side.  Linux reads all my 
ZIP disks (SCSI) and pen drives (USB) also.

Staroffice/Openoffice is comparable to MS Office, though not a 
replacement.  Really complex Word files tend to lose layouts/formats when 
opened in Openoffice.  Saving files in Openoffice as an Word file seems 
ok, most of the time.  I think many problems seem to be related to fonts -
 Windows fonts are not like X fonts.  The cute-and-fancy fonts that you 
use in newsletters generally have no equal in X, at least that I've 
found.

Read Mossberg's latest column:  http://ptech.wsj.com/ptech.html

Hope this helps,
Joe.


___________________________________________________________
P/Lt/C Joseph A. Gabrey, JN
Narragansett Bay Power Squadron
www.GansettBayPS.org
USPS Information Technology Committee
www.USPS.org/national/itcom