hey Im actually d/l ubuntu right now I was just curious if you have any tips for some1 new to linux. I hear that finding drivers are a pain in the butt but I'm sure I will survive

Well, have fun with that 8 year old operating system.

Amen.

My uncle tries to use a Resgitry Cleaner that I have on my PC with Vista and all his files/programs vanished. Real nasty. :/

I just installed 7 beta today and it uses about 400-500mb of ram with aero on. On vista I was using around 800mb of ram with aero on. not too shabby for a freakin beta. That's pretty damn close to how much ram xp uses.

I wish I had the time and space to detail all of the issues with Vista. Everything from small matters such as Windows Media Player not working because it keeps starting in the background and so you have to hit ALT CTRL DEL and close it out in the Task Manager before you can start it - BTW - it's a massive issue and MS has no solution. Just Google Windows Media Player not starting and look at the hits. I contacted MS and they are aware of it - and would only admit it after I requested a supervisor. But had no solution.

How about everyone experiencing one single system file (which you can't delete) that keeps growing. In 4 months mine had swelled to over 20GB. MS has no solution.

Constant hangs, issues with copying a single file, etc etc. When the first solution to that came out MS made you jump through hoops to get the secret solution.

I love Ubuntu. My suggestions are learn to use the the Applications menu at the top left of Ubuntu. Click on that and go down and click Add and Remove at the bottom. When the applet pops up make sure All Applications is in the Show section. This is your best friend. From here anything not already installed in Ubuntu you can find here. For example, need XVID? Search here and let Ubuntu give you the codecs. Guess what? Once installed Ubuntu will always let you know when there are updates, get them for you, install them, and manage them.

That's true for anything you can think of. You don't install something in Ubuntu then have to fight it yourself. Ubuntu will manage it.

Linux used to be a command line program. You can still do that if you want. But now there are Guis. slick ones that work neat and fast for just about anything. Want a firewall? Let Ubuntu supply one. All for free. And I mean fast.

The basic installation of Ubuntu took me less than 10 minutes for everything. You get Open Office - I own Office 2007 Professional and I prefer this. And the default browser is Firefox. Once Ubuntu was loaded I had to run 1 update. It downloaded and installed the updates in less than 5 minutes. All other drivers installed automatically except the newest video driver which Ubuntu linked me to. And by linked I mean I didn't have to go to Nvidia's page. Ubuntu popped up the latest 3 versions and let me choose. You could still go to that manufacturer's homepage if you want but it isn't necessary. This isn't Windows. It's Unix.

Learn the other 2 major sections at the top - Places and System. Everything you need is there. No going and digging for a control panel.

Finding drivers for me has not been a pain at all. As I said, Ubuntu selected for me the only driver I had to get outside the basic installation - the one for my GeForce 9800 GX2 1GB card. And there is a Linux driver. Most of using Linux is getting used to new terminology. A lot of times people give you command line entries but I haven't needed that. Not one time. All of it is GUI driven. And free, baby free. If you have any questions about Ubuntu, such as how to do something PM me and I will help. All of the virus issues I had with Windows? Bye bye. I still keep an install of XP for some games but my system by default boots into Ubuntu - which I am using right now. If you need help changing the default boot let me know.

And 8 year old operating system? Have fun with your virus ridden crackaholic Microsoft money pit.

I like using Ubuntu, I duel boot both Ubuntu and Vista64 on both my computers. On both computers Vista starts faster, yes, Vista starts faster. If you invest 20 dollars in ram, you'll have plenty to run Vista. Yes, 20 dollars!

As morgan said, Linux uses the command line for a lot of things. He said he's not aware of anything that can't be done through the GUI, but there are a lot of things. For example, the add/remove programs only lists a small portion of the programs in the Ubuntu repositories. Keeping the command line in full control actually keeps the OS more pure and under USER control rater than developer control.

Also morgan, might I suggest using Ubuntu to delete the unusually large Windows file? Ubuntu can delete fat32 or ntsf files, and it wont deny you access like Windows will.

Command lines are not really needed by the user in Ubuntu. Those that still use them do not have the latest GUIs. Administrators are a different matter and will need these. I agree about user control but Unix GUIs are more streamlined than Windows versions and are simply entry storage devices for command line functions.

You cannot delete the WinSXS folder. It isn't a matter of the system allowing it. Rather it's a matter of your system going bye bye if you do. This crap started in ME with the idea of modularization. I have seen reports of these folders swelling to over 90GB.

You just slammed my head with you wall of text. Like Tetris Slam! But I did read everything and I agree. Although, I wouldn't use Ubuntu....

Mandriva 4 life! Also according to Microsoft, ME doesn't exist.

@1.4

Linux drivers aren't really an issue anymore, unless you have special hardware. The distros nowadays are pretty good at Plug and Play. Just be sure to download/activate the nVidia/ATI driver for your card for all the desktop effects. I've been using Ubuntu extensively for the past several months, and after compiling my own kernel I feel pretty comfortable doing most everything. You just have to get used to the little quirks and ways of doing things and you'll really appreciate and open system. Have fun, don't give up easily and you'll be rewarded.

I stopped using XP since Vista arrived. I had minor problems with Vista Ultimate 64-bit but ALL are resolved till recently when iTunes was finally compatible with x64 systems. Something is not compatible in your Vista OS, just run it xp-compatible mode it's in there.

Windows 7 is touted for being faster and more efficient than both XP and Vista. So far it's been true, everything even games are more responsive I'm yet to run a benchmark on it myself but I will soon. I'm also writing you from the Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit Beta OS. It's very pretty and fast. Just sharing my thoughts on Windows 7.

http://www.teamteabag.com/2...

I'm still on XP and I'll convert to Windows 7 once it comes out. I also will not get lured in with useless features and buy an expensive copy of nothing.

Development wise it's been pretty good. I have a core quad and 8 gigs of ram on ultimate vista64. I've yet to have it crash do you have a hacked copy?

Hell I've been turning every thing silly on like animated backgrounds for the desktop while running CS4 after effects LOL... Still runs great crazy huh? The IIS is great also you can get VWD also so far I'm having fun no problems here.