Maybe time for a new distro?

[Steven Knight]

On Thu, 2004-01-22 at 09:58, brian wrote:
> Been using Redhat for years (still have my 5.0 installation CD's and
> diskette from Redhat (am on 9.0 currently)).
> 
> Some would consider this a character flaw, I know, and don't really
> care.
> 
> However, I've been thinking recently of switching to a different distro,
> mostly for "because" reasons and partially to just try other things. 
> I've also got a fair amount of Debian experience, FWIW.

I would suggest that you give gentoo a try.  I have been using it for 9+
months now, and loving it.

> 
> My major wants/needs are:
> 	Support for my dual-head ATI card

After checking the forums (  http://forums.gentoo.org/ ), dual-head ATI
support is possible ( it is dependent on the version of XFree86 you're
running ).  Searching for dual-head ATI provides a number of discussions
about this.

> 	Gnome out-of-the-box (preferred)

gnome is supported out of the box, since you install only the software
you want.


> 	Some degree of mutli-media support ("stereophonic beeps" are usually
> sufficient for me)

Multi-media support is wicked good.  Installing and configure
audio/video plugins is done for you.  Installing of xine, mplayer or
gstream is simple.

> 	Ability to function well as a server for Mysql/perl/cgi type stuff 

You can install whatever servers you want.

> Any suggestions/ideas/comments/thoughts/flames welcome...

Pros: 
1) gentoo is a source distribution.  This means that all the software
you want to install, will be compiled.[1]  You can also customize the
CFLAGS used during compiling. 

2) Documentation -- the documentation for gentoo is wicked good.  See 
http://www.gentoo.org/doc/en/index.xml for all of the user docs.

3) Forums -- the user forums provide a central place to ask questions,
talk with other users, etc ...

Cons:  All the software you want to install will need to be compiled
during installation.  You can get avoid having to compile during the
installation.[2]

[1] openoffice.org is available as a binary because it takes lots of
disk space and many hours to build.  Of course, there is other software
which is in binary form only.
[2] See the installation guide for more information about this.


-- 
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Steven Knight  steven.knight at unh.edu   IM : skkataim

and tho' We are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are,--
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.

-- Ulysses by Alfred Lord Tennyson
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