Linux

[Sidewinder]

Which versions are you using, LTS, or current issues?

I have two installs both LTS one is 12.04 and the older one is 10.04.

Should I update one or both?

If so to what?

The latest LTS?

 

[OnOff]

If you use Zorin I'd stick with Zorin 9 LTS rather than Zorin 10. 10 64-bit is a PITA on my Samsung lappy tbh.

 

[Sidewinder]

Sorry, I'm on Ubuntu, forgot to say.

 

[a3]

Depends on what you are doing, LTS is long term support around 3 years.

https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Releases

https://wiki.ubuntu.com/LTS

More links for Lurch  :tongue in cheek

 

[steptoe]

I always run LTS Ubuntu on my machines, usually wait about 3months from release,  currently running 14.04  64bit, 

Oh, and assuming you have a separate /home and / then burn to disc and do an update/fresh install that way, seems to work better and us faster than an on the fly update ime, 

 

[NozSpark]

Apparently I have 14.04 LTS 32bit

Don't know why I have 32bit instead of 64bit but it works

Would there be any benefit to running 64bit?

 

[steptoe]

Memory, 32bit can only see 4G RAM, other than that not any major bonus, in fact, some stuff actually works better in 32 bit,  you can run 32bit stuff in a 64bit OS,  but you can't run the other way round. 

Oh. And native 64bit stuff runs a little faster, but I don't see any difference tbh. 

 

[Essex1]

Ok. Can someone explain to me in lay man's terms what this Linux is all about. I had never heard the name prior to this forum.

 

[steptoe]

It's an open source OS, based on UNIX, the kernel that most OS use, Ubuntu and Zorin are the most user friendly versions of it, think of Ubuntu as the OS rhat Apple are striving to get to the level of, after all, they keep copying it,   :slap  

 

[Sidewinder]

Lunix is a personal computing version of Unix.

It's more often than not free.

I has some very low level tools that you can use to access for example hard disks when Windows says they are goosed.

It's fast.

I find it complicated because I don't know the commands, sudo apt-get indeed!

I have to look them up, where as Steps would know them.

However, I could format a disk in DOS and make it a system disk knowing the commands from memory.

So it's another horses & courses.

 

[steptoe]

No I wouldn't, :slap

I know the basic commands, but for the higher stuff I often have to look them up,

The golden rule is NEVER EVER NEVER do

sudo rm-rf or any variation thereof unless you are completely 200% certain just what you are doing,!!!! 

 

[Essex1]

It's an open source OS, based on UNIX, the kernel that most OS use, Ubuntu and Zorin are the most user friendly versions of it, think of Ubuntu as the OS rhat Apple are striving to get to the level of, after all, they keep copying it,   :slap

What you have done there is just threw another load of words in that I have never heard of.

 

[steptoe]

LINUX has lots of different 'flavours',  or differing variations on a base OS,  

Different flavours are aimed at different users, 

kali for instance, is based towards network security, it can be used to test password security etc. 

Zorin looks and works a lot like windows, CentOs is based (I think) at server type stuff,

Ubuntu is imo the easiest to use with a good GUI and simply does what you ask of it. 

 

[Essex1]

So do 'normal' software programs work on this OS?

 

[Sidewinder]

Depends on what you call "normal".

Does Windows Office run on a MAC or do you have to use MAC office?

Does MAC Pages run on a Windows machine?

IYKWIM.

 

[Essex1]

Depends on what you call "normal".

Does Windows Office run on a MAC or do you have to use MAC office?

Does MAC Pages run on a Windows machine?

IYKWIM.

Ok let's start there. Can you run all the MS Office softwares?

 

[Sidewinder]

No.

Not under Linux.

You can install a Windows VM & run them in that though.

 

[NozSpark]

Memory, 32bit can only see 4G RAM, other than that not any major bonus, in fact, some stuff actually works better in 32 bit,  you can run 32bit stuff in a 64bit OS,  but you can't run the other way round. 

Oh. And native 64bit stuff runs a little faster, but I don't see any difference tbh. 

Well as I only have 4G RAM there isn't going to be much of an issue

But the speed increase might be a bonus...

 

[steptoe]

Ok let's start there. Can you run all the MS Office softwares?

Windows software will not run natively in Linux, the same as you can't run a petrol car on diesel,

But, libreoffice will open msoffice documents, and can save them as ms compatible format. 

 

[NozSpark]

Ok let's start there. Can you run all the MS Office softwares?

No but you can run Open Office or Libre Office which are open source (free)