[muckshifter]

I just been having a look at OpenSolaris, it may look at first glance like another Linux distro, but it ain't ... downloaded the "live CD" ISO and run it up on the 'spare' PC ... Nice!

http://www.gnome.org/~gman/opensolaris-whats-new/

I'll install it on Monday and give it a wee testing.

[Abarbarian]

Sun has announced that future versions of its commercial Solaris operating system will be based on technology from the OpenSolaris project

The first part of the Solaris codebase to be open sourced was the Solaris Dynamic Tracing facility (commonly known as DTrace), a tracing tool for administrators and developers that aids in tuning a system for optimum performance and utilisation. DTrace was released on January 25, 2005. At that time, Sun also launched the opensolaris.org web site, and announced that the OpenSolaris code base would be released under the CDDL (Common Development and Distribution License). The bulk of the Solaris system code was released on June 14, 2005. There remains some system code that is not open sourced, and is available only as pre-compiled binary files.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenSolaris

Looks to have some neat tools an is an interesting case. Not all of the source code is freely available so it ain't a true "Linux". You do get a free OS with quite a lot of support from fellow users and I'm guessing in the background help from Sun. The findings of the free os are then incorporated after final tuning and polishing into the commercial product. Seems a better way than Microsofts where you pay at every stage.

Are you going to do some walkthroughs and how to's and post then in the linux section of the site ?

[Urmas]

GERONIMOOOOOO!

Mucks is exploring! What next? BSD?

[Nobody in particular]

Look good, cheers for sharing Mucks

Just downloading it now, ready to install on VPC.

[muckshifter]

Originally Posted by Urmas

GERONIMOOOOOO!

Mucks is exploring! What next? BSD?

Naw ... after solely using Linux for over 9 months I went back to using Windows on all my machines. It was easier.

[Urmas]

Originally Posted by muckshifter

Naw ... after solely using Linux for over 9 months I went back to using Windows on all my machines. It was easier.

Been solely using Linux for almost 3½ years now. It is easier.

[floppybootstomp]

Originally Posted by Urmas

Been solely using Linux for almost 3½ years now. It is easier.

Now then, now then...

As much as I am, to a degree, pro-Linux and anti-Microsoft, by no stretch of the imagination can Linux Distros be considered easier to use than the near monopoly that is Windows.

Linux may appear easy to certain individuals who seem to have an aptitude for it but your average Joe just wants the machine to work for him, not vice cersa.

Every single distro I've tried has been beset by problems, crashes, incompatibility and frustration.

I've been messing with Linux on and off now for ten years and I still can't find a distro I feel comfortable with.

It's fine for internet and office, no probs at all and if all I wanted was an office machine with maybe Gimp thrown in, I'd be grateful for free software.

But try anything else, especially games, and it's likely to be problematic. I never did manage to install my UT2004 patch, couldn't figure it and the advice I was given here and elsewhere was wrong and it introduced problems with the installation when I carried out that advice.

It was at that point several months ago I decided to leave Linux alone for a while, just makes me angry, all that frustration, I haven't the patience for it.

Soon, maybe, somebody will release a distro I take to instantly, I haven't given up for good.

[Urmas]

Yup... I don't do games. If I did, I'd be dual booting.

But... "problems, crashes, incompatibility and frustration"? Nope. Not my experience at all. Maybe I'm using hardware that's all too boring.

[floppybootstomp]

Originally Posted by Urmas

Yup... I don't do games. If I did, I'd be dual booting.

But... "problems, crashes, incompatibility and frustration"? Nope. Not my experience at all. Maybe I'm using hardware that's all too boring.

Ok, let me rephrase that. I've been having a think.

I've never actually had a crash or a freeze with Linux, so my error there.

I have had refusing to boot, quite a lot, after I used a wrong command here and there.

Incompatibility - yes, particularly with printers and scanners, but that's getting better I notice.

Frustration - Yes, in shedloads

I'l say this - without an internet connection and therefore without online help, I don't think anybody could master Linux in a reasonable time - like, say, two years full time

And me - I hate to rely on people and I hate to wait.

I sometimes wonder, if people had to pay for Linux - would they even bother?

Or, conversely, would it actually make more people get involved? Human beanz are a strange lot, many adhere to this strange thought that for something to be any good, it has to cost money. I mean, Nortons have exploited that angle to the full

Maybe I'll have another go shortly - expect a zillion stoopid questions in the near future

[floppybootstomp]

btw, talking of boring hardware, these are the specs for the machine I use Linux on:

Asus M2N sli Deluxe motherboard
AMD Athlon AM2 XP6400+ 3.2Ghz dual core CPU
Noctua NH-U12F CPU Cooler with 2 x 120mm fans
2Gb Corsair XMS DDR2 6400C5 memory
BFG Nvidia 8800GTS 640Mb Video card
Creative Audigy 2 Sound Card
Linksys Wireless WMP54G V4.1 Network card
Sata II Caddies For Primary drive x 3 housing:
250Gb Samsung SATA II Hard Disk (Win XP)
160Gb Maxtor SATA II Hard Disk (For Linux Distros)
160Gb Maxtor SATA II Hard Disk (For Linux Distros)
Storage Hard Disks:
320Gb Samsung SATA II Hard Disk
750Gb Samsung SATA II Hard Disk
Western Digital 120Gb Hard Disks x 2
Dazzle Platinum USB Video/Audio interface breakout box
Antec Sonata Case
Corsair 650W Non Modular PSU
Plextor 800A 18 x DVDRW PATA
Asus DVD-ROM PATA
A Floppy Drive
Logitech corded G5 Laser Mouse
Logitech flat compact keyboard, corded
Samsung 22” 2232BW Glossy Black Pebble Monitor
Pioneer A300 80wpc amplifier
A pair of Bush SPK2025 Loudspeakers
HP Photosmart 7960 Inkjet Printer