[Luna] Linux and Community Action

[Karim Nassar]

If you want to learn GNU/Linux, grab yourself an unused computer and
install/tweak Gentoo (www.gentoo.org). The Slackware (www.slackware.com)
users in this group may argue the same for it as well.

For more permanent usage, I highly recommend Ubuntu (www.ubuntu.com). I
have been using it for over a year now, and that is the longest I have
stuck with a distribution for my daily computer. If you are not going to
be deploying these computers for 4-8 weeks, even better: the new version
coming out April/May addresses several issues with networking,
performance, sound/video and administration lock-down capabilities
(despite these issues, I still recommend it in its current form).

Advantages: 
* Easy as pie to install
* Easy as pie to upgrade
* Totally focused on usability for GNU/Linux newbies
* Totally committed to freedom (liberty and price: you can get free CD's
  shipped by filling out a form on their website)
* Well supported and easy to use software update mechanism
* Updates guaranteed to be coming for 2 years (5 for the upcoming server
  version)
* One can create their own custom LiveCD, and as of the next update, use
  that to install onto multiple computers (however, depending on the
  number of installs you are doing there are other/better ways to do
  that)
* Has a special version for schools (edubuntu)
* Rapidly becoming one of "The" GNU/Linux distros

Software:
* Comes with OpenOffice.org, but that might be too much for a pII.
  Instead, you can uninstall that, and install AbiWord for a word
  processor and Gnumeric for a spreadsheet program (which is probably 
  still too much for a pII, but hey, it's a pII)
* Comes with 1.x Firefox (1.5 with upcoming update)
* Comes with about 15 games appropriate for chidren, and still fun for
  adults.
* Comes with full compliment of sound, graphics, video, and internet
  tools.

HTH,
\<.

-- 
Karim Nassar <karim.nassar at acm.org>


On Tue, 2006-03-07 at 20:54 -0700, Brandon Doss wrote:
> Hello
> My name is Brandon Doss, I am a resident of Flagstaff and an employee at NAU.  
> I am in the beginning 
> stages of enacting a plan where a significant number of used PC's will be 
> distributed among the 
> community, hopefully reaching those with the most need.  The PC's will come 
> from discount sources, 
> they will be heavily used in most cases and quite out-dated.  Pent, Pent II, 
> is all I expect with as little as 
> 64MB  RAM, 3-10GB HD.  This week, I will be cataloging a number of machines 
> available to me for 
> purchase to get a more specific idea of what is there.  I want to outfit the 
> PC's with a Linux OS that also 
> provides an Office equivalent (word processor, spreadsheet), a web browser and 
> maybe a couple of 
> games for the kids.  I have been getting lots of experience lately with IT 
> work, so am competent with 
> computer skills but am entering a world of the unkown.  I am the IT liaison 
> for the Dept of Chemistry at 
> NAU and ~50% of my job (for the last 3 months at least) has been working with 
> computers, and many of 
> them are in the age range described above.  Anyhow, I have no idea what's 
> going on with Linux and 
> have zero experience with Linux.  I have looked around on the web for 
> downloads, but the shear 
> number of them available and the variety of flavors are totally overwhelming.  
> I am looking for some 
> advice, some input from people with experience, some help in this community 
> service endeavor.  Is 
> there someone in the LUNA community who can advise me on a Linux distribution 
> that is easy to use, 
> provides basic software applications and has a small footprint on memory space 
> and processing speed?  
> Does anyone know of a similar project happening in Flag?  Anything would help.
>  Thanks so much for 
> your consideration.  I will gladly accept emails from anyone interested in 
> responding.
> 
> Brandon Doss
> Instrumentation Specialist
> brandon.doss at nau.edu
> 928.523.7058
> 
> Northern Arizona University
> Dept of Chemistry and Biochemistry
> PO Box 5698
> Flagstaff, AZ 86011
> 
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