Hopefully
this “article” will shed some light on the subject of Linux. Linux is a free OS. Which means that it is distributed freely. Yes, you can buy versions at the local P.C. store, but you can download it off the “net” for FREE! Now don’t jump the guns and download it and try to install it just yet. What we are trying to do is get some people familiar with what Linux is and what you can do with it.
Linux can operate with a GUI just as Windows does, or you can operate it from the “console” or command line, just like DOS. Although there are some similarities between Linux command line and DOS, they are different in more ways than one. We will get into that soon enough. As with the command line, the GUI interface of Linux (which there are many to choose from) is similar to Windows. It is very customizable. Linux has many GUI’s.
Some of which are KDE
( www.kde.org), and Gnome ( www.gnome.org) which are the most popular. Deciding which one you want to use is the question. You can have more than one!
Now, I know all of this sounds exciting, and it is. Another item I would like to mention is which “flavor” of Linux do I want? Well that is a personal preference. What I mean by flavors is, well, all Linux share the same source code, but they are “modified” by different companies who produce there own version of Linux. To give you an example: Let’s take word processor programs.
They all pretty much do the same thing. But, you have Microsoft Word, Corel Word Perfect and so on. Each company adds it’s own “touch” to it. Getting back to “flavors”… Each distribution (flavor) of Linux comes with certain add-ons and such.
To get you familiar with distributions I will throw some names in here: RedHat, Caldera, Suse, Mandrake, BSD. These are some names of companies that distribute there own “flavor” of Linux. Now take in mind, they do share the same source code, but they do have some different attributes about them.
Here are links for some companies that produce their own version of
Linux:
www.redhat.com
www.calderasystems.com
www.suse.com
www.linux-mandrake.com
There
are more versions than this, these are the most common and beginner “friendly”.
I would suggest visiting some of the Linux sites and see for yourself what they have to offer.
They all operate pretty much the same way, there are some visual differences. So it is a matter of preference.
Using Linux can be an adventure in itself for the beginner. Although installations have not been easier. Not all hardware will work with Linux. So check the compatibility before you dive in! Getting to know your way around Linux will take some time, even with the GUI’s. So many of us are so used to Windows, we will take that for granted. Now, due to the lack of resources, I can not include screen shots of any GUI’s to get you familiar with them, that’s why I put the links in the second paragraph for you to see for yourself. But I will include some basic commands in Linux and their DOS equivalent. Here they are:
| Linux Commands | DOS Commands |
| . | . |
| .. | .. |
| > | > |
| cat x | type |
| cat x y | copy x,y |
| Cd | cd |
| Chmod | attrib |
| Chown | none |
| Cp | copy |
| Echo | echo |
| find x | none |
| head x | none |
| lpr x | dir>print x |
| Ls | dir |
| man x | none |
| Mkdir | mkdir or md |
| Mv | move and rename |
| grep x y | locates text x in file y find x y |
| Passwd | changes login password |
| Path | display directories in which a search will automatically occur - Path |
| pr x | print file x with page numbers |
| Ps | list all current computer processes |
| rm x | remove x - Del x or erase x |
| Rmdir | rmdir or rd - Remove directory |
| ispell x | spell check document x |
| Su | change to superuser |
| tail x | display last few lines of file x |
| Touch | create new empty file |
| Vi | invoke built in visual editor |
| who am I | id’s login name, terminal device, last login date and time |
Now these are not all of the commands, but a lot to get you familiar with them. Linux does offer additional parameters (switches) to make the most out of the command.
Linux is a very stable OS. It can also be customized just about any way you want it, for those picky people.
Hopefully
I have uncovered the first of many mysteries of Linux to someone. This is just the first article. We will take this to the next level soon enough. From there we can get into the install and maybe get some of you up and running. Stay tuned!
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