Check out linux before installing it...

Solo2 · Post by **Solo2** » Tue Apr 10, 2001 1:48 am

Hipnotic_Tranz: there are programs similar to MS Office on Linux, its called Star Office and i also think Word Perfect has a Linux version.

Oh, does tribes 2 really have a linux version? I thought the only thing tribes 2 had in linux was a dedicated server.

I think the biggest problem right now for Linux hitting mainstream is that its not as intuitive as Windows and it doesnt have as much user friendly features. Its this hand holding that makes Windows easy to learn.

Syn · Post by **Syn** » Tue Apr 10, 2001 5:48 pm

Yeah Tribes2 is coming to linux,check out lokigames.com.

As for ease of use,Mandrake 7.2's install is simple(w/GUI).It walks you through step by step and gives you descriptions of whats what on the left help screen.If you can install windows you I dont see why you would have any problem installing Drake(unless your hardware isnt supported).

Also SuSE is another easy to use/install distro.I havent used RedHat since 6.2 but I'm sure it's gotten better as well.I know you can use Drake full GUI or go command line whenever you want so you can learn at your own pace,thats what I'm doing.

Linux isnt for everybody I reckon.I like that I can control/tweak so much of the OS the way "I" want it.For anybody interested in checking it out http://www.linuxnewbie.org is a great resource to get a good start.

Hipnotic_Tranz · Post by **Hipnotic_Tranz** » Thu Apr 12, 2001 5:36 pm

Things I found interesting--not pertaining exactly to the CD-Key thing I was talkin' about earlier, but still it's just more and more restrictions Bill is forcing upon us. We are his b!tches as long as we use and support is OS

http://www.canoe.ca/MoneyWSJ/wsj2-dow.html

http://slashdot.org/articles/01/04/12/1159253.shtml

I have no idea how credible the sites are; I was sent them by a friend (the same friend that likes to fool with linux I was talkin' about earlier). Sounds kinda sh*tty to me

Here's a bit from the first article:

<i>"Under Microsoft's new restrictions -- which prevent its built-in software from recording MP3 files at fidelity rates higher than 56 kilobits per second -- MP3 music "sounds like somebody in a phone booth underwater," says P.J. McNealy, an analyst who researches Internet audio issues for Gartner Inc. in Stamford, Conn. (Existing versions of Microsoft's audio software don't allow consumers to record music as MP3 files of any quality.)"</i>

[Edited by Hipnotic_Tranz on 04-12-2001 at 06:39 PM]

kenada · Post by **kenada** » Thu Apr 12, 2001 9:49 pm

Whoever wrote those articles needs beaten with a clue-by-four. Windows has included Fraunhofer's MP3 encoder for a long time, and it has never been capable of doing more than 56kbps.

There is a Professional version available, which is what seems to be distributed with DivX ;-). It can encode at bitrates higher than 56kbps.
<hr/>
Edit: Added a bit about Fraunhofer's Professional encoder.

Syn · Post by **Syn** » Fri Apr 13, 2001 7:44 pm

Billy boy's idea of the future PC.
http://www.zdnet.com/anchordesk/stories ... 49,00.html
Ugh no thanks,sounds like what MAC is doing already.

Windows Product Activation: an early look
http://arstechnica.com/wankerdesk/01q1/wpa-1.html
Hardware ID (HWID),no thanks,I dont want to re-register my OS everytime I upgrade something on my PC.

.NET,again kiss my arse Billy boy.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/4/18002.html
Read that one if you want but keep in mind it is The Reg

Even if 1/2 the stuff in these stories are true the direction MS is wanting to go is scary.

kenada · Post by **kenada** » Fri Apr 13, 2001 7:59 pm

Originally posted by Syn
Windows Product Activation: an early look
http://arstechnica.com/wankerdesk/01q1/wpa-1.html
Hardware ID (HWID),no thanks,I dont want to re-register my OS everytime I upgrade something on my PC.

Here is some information on Windows Product Activation from MSDN. Microsoft claims WPA can handle hardware upgrades though an overhaul would require re-activation. Personally, this feature alone is enough to make me stick with Windows 2000 and ignore Windows XP.

CaterpillarAssassin · Fri Apr 13, 2001 10:06 pm

I'm thinking Linux...

Hipnotic_Tranz · Post by **Hipnotic_Tranz** » Fri Apr 13, 2001 10:26 pm

Windows Product Activation - THATS IT! I was thinking it was along lines with the CD-Key thang. This is what I was talkin' about. Thanks Syn.

kenada · Post by **kenada** » Fri Apr 13, 2001 11:43 pm

I'm thinking Linux...

…has no future on the desktop.

FuNPoLiCe001 · Post by **FuNPoLiCe001** » Fri Apr 13, 2001 11:51 pm

wow, that WPA thing sounds very sucky

anyone think that companies are treating piracy too seriously? i mean, we had that HDD copy protection thing a while back, and now this seemingly excessive key check.

on another note, is windows xp new coding, or is it built on current stuff?

Hipnotic_Tranz · Post by **Hipnotic_Tranz** » Sat Apr 14, 2001 12:10 am

kenada is billys b!tch

Just outta curiosity, why are you so "pro Microsoft" or is it just that you don't see linux getting anywhere?

Syn · Post by **Syn** » Sat Apr 14, 2001 2:12 am

Well it has a future on my desktop and the thousands of other people that run(will run)it as theirs.The number of linux useres sure isnt shrinking it's growing everyday.

I know what your thinking.You will just run Win2k and forget XP.But what happens when the day comes Win2k wont run anything new?You think MS is gonna have a change of heart and not continue down the road their going on now?I doubt it man.

Dont get me wrong I'm no zealot.I'm just a guy that likes the freedom to chose what software I run on my box and dont wanna have that taken away.If that means giving up alot of the popular games in the future then so be it.I like the freedom of upgrading hardware in my box when I feel like it and not having to report to Billy boy when I do so.

I dunno if you ever tried linux but you ought to,it's free if you want it to be.

CaterpillarAssassin · Post by **CaterpillarAssassin** » Sat Apr 14, 2001 8:36 am

Yeah before this whole winXP thing I was kinda liking the microsoft OS's. But you bring up a good point. Eventually the current os's will become obselete...remember win 3.1? I'm thinking a Mandrake DL is in order...

kenada · Post by **kenada** » Sat Apr 14, 2001 8:58 am

another note, is windows xp new coding, or is it built on current stuff?

Mix Windows 2000 with Aqua and add an assinine copy protection system, and you'll have Windows XP.

kenada · Post by **kenada** » Sat Apr 14, 2001 9:10 am

I know what your thinking.You will just run Win2k and forget XP.But what happens when the day comes Win2k wont run anything new?You think MS is gonna have a change of heart and not continue down the road their going on now?I doubt it man.

Microsoft still supports Windows 95. I doubt they'll just drop Windows 2000, which is much closer to Windows XP than Windows 95 is, any time soon.

Well it has a future on my desktop and the thousands of other people that run(will run)it as theirs.The number of linux useres sure isnt shrinking it's growing everyday.

I still do not believe that GNU/Linux will ever approach the ease of use as current desktop-oriented operating systems like BeOS, MacOS or Windows. I myself would rather run BeOS than Windows 2000, but Be's future just doesn't seem very bright at all: 27 employees let go, BeEurope closes, stock hovering around $1, Sony delays the release of eVilla, Qubit drops BeIA in favor of WindowsCE, etc.

I dunno if you ever tried linux but you ought to,it's free if you want it to be.

Er, I've used GNU/Linux quite a bit; from Slackware to Linux From Scratch to RedHat to Debian. I've used most worthwhile distributions. One day, I just got tired of waiting for KDE 2.1.1 to compile, nuked the drive and installed Windows 2000 (or maybe BeOS but that never lasts long on my HDD). I'd much rather be playing Diablo II than sitting at the console, waiting several hours and hoping something didn't fail during the build.