Linux for friend?

[armageddon08]

Hi guys!

Recently, I showed one of my friends my Ubuntu install. He wants to use Linux too. He does not have access to an internet connection. So, I am searching for a Linux distribution which satisfies:

1. Has all multimedia and dvd codecs preinstalled.
2. Has Beryl/Compiz-Fusion pre-installed and configured.(The reason I'm saying Beryl/Compiz-Fusion is that if the distro is a bit old it won't matter as long as it satisfies the conditions)
3. Has most of the required softwares pre-installed like Wine etc.
4. Preferably, based off Debian....others may do as well.
5. Preferably, KDE....although GNOME will do as well.

Thanks....for your help.

[Canis familiaris]

Include VLC for sure.

[RiceMonster]

You might want to check out Linux Mint. It's like Ubuntu, but with a lot more preinstalled.

[Martje_001]

You might like this:
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=688872

[worx101]

Mandriva has all the above...

BUT, doesn't come with Wine... Although you can always download the binary and give to him.

[tuxerman]

Try the openSuSE DVDs. I think they have all the extra s/w like wine, vlc, etc on the disc. Not sure about non-free codecs, though.

[armageddon08]

Mandriva has all the above...

BUT, doesn't come with Wine... Although you can always download the binary and give to him.

Could you gimme a link?

[armageddon08]

You might like this:
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=688872

Well....i had a thought at that and I think it sure isn't gonna be issue-free. And my friend's a linux n00b.

[SunnyRabbiera]

Linux mint will suit your needs, though finding a linux with wine preinstalled... ehhh, no such bird.
http://www.linuxmint.com/download.php

If he likes KDE, its easy enough to install though gnome in mint is very decent.

[armageddon08]

Linux mint will suit your needs, though finding a linux with wine preinstalled... ehhh, no such bird.
http://www.linuxmint.com/download.php

If he likes KDE, its easy enough to install though gnome in mint is very decent.

Does it have Compiz-Fusion pre-installed?

[SunnyRabbiera]

Does it have Compiz-Fusion pre-installed?

Yes it does.
It should suffice for most of your needs here.

[frup]

The newest gOS has wine 1.0 installed but that's probably the only distro I know of.

[armageddon08]

The newest gOS has wine 1.0 installed but that's probably the only distro I know of.

And what about non-free codecs? I know Compiz-fusion is pre-installed in it.

[SunnyRabbiera]

And what about non-free codecs? I know Compiz-fusion is pre-installed in it.

I am not sure on gOS personally, I dont think it has the codecs but I could double check.
If not like I said Mint will serve most of your issues.

[armageddon08]

I am not sure on gOS personally, I dont think it has the codecs but I could double check.
If not like I said Mint will serve most of your issues.

Yeah.....thanks! I also think I should go for linux Mint.

[SunnyRabbiera]

Yeah.....thanks! I also think I should go for linux Mint.

To be honest it will probably serve you better then most of the other options out there, gOS seems okay but I am unsure of its release schedule or how easy would it be to update.
But honestly mint does have all the extra repositories enabled by default so if you need wine on this other computer it should be a non issue by using synaptic.
heck you can use the software portal too:
http://www.linuxmint.com/software/?sec=item&id=542&release=3
the software portal is great for a beginner (though not the best in the long term as its very limited in its packages)
If he/she is used to the windows way of installing things via outside websites you could just direct them here:
http://packages.ubuntu.com/
they can search for what they need from there.

[Hire]

Ubuntu and you can teach how search the software on Synaptic.
Instead of Totem you can use VLC, it's far better.

[armageddon08]

Ubuntu and you can teach how search the software on Synaptic.
Instead of Totem you can use VLC, it's far better.

Actually...he does not have an internet connection, so its no use searching for software in Synaptic.

[Prefix100]

its 2008, why no internet?

[jespdj]

Go to http://distrowatch.com/ to compare Linux distros.


Actually...he does not have an internet connection, so its no use searching for software in Synaptic.
Synaptic can also install software from CDs or DVDs, you don't absolutely need an Internet connection to use Synaptic.

[maybeway36]

Linux Mint is the way to go. You can get Wine from here:
http://wine.budgetdedicated.com/archive/ubuntu/hardy/wine_1.1.3~winehq0~ubuntu~8.04-0ubuntu1_i386.deb
Everything else is included.

[armageddon08]

Linux Mint is the way to go. You can get Wine from here:
http://wine.budgetdedicated.com/archive/ubuntu/hardy/wine_1.1.3~winehq0~ubuntu~8.04-0ubuntu1_i386.deb
Everything else is included.

Thanks.....I am right now in the process of downloading Linux Mint.

Known issues

Upstream issues:

* GDM: It takes a while to open the "Login Window" configuration tool. Just be patient, it will come up eventually.
* GDM: In "Login Window", if you select another theme.. even though it will tell you everything is fine, it will actually select to show other themes randomly. Open "Login Window" again and set the theme again.
* GDM: On shutdown, usplash doesn't show properly and is interrupted by network manager error messages. This is a known bug in GDM. You might be able to fix it by changing the GDM theme "twice" (in "Login Window").
* GDM/Gnome: The shutdown/logout sound isn't played. This happens because Pulse Audio is shut down by Gnome before it gets the chance to play it. You could install "esound" to fix that problem but then that would break PulseAudio altogether. Another workaround would be to use aplay to play the sound before the event, as described here.
* Gnome: Turning on/off the Gnome Compositing Effects (in gconf or in mintDesktop) can freeze your computer. Make sure to save all your data before activating/deactivating this feature.
* Gnome: The first time you launch the "Users and Groups" configuration tool, it might not find any users and consequently it won't work properly. Close it and launch it again.
* Gnome: The color of the window borders doesn't always refresh when you select or customize a Gnome theme. This is because some GTK themes refer to the same metacity theme but with different colors, and unless the metacity theme itself is changed Gnome doesn't refresh it.
* Gnome: You might see an error message saying the "Gnome Settings Daemon" could not start. It usually only happens once and either doesn't affect anything or affects the look and feel (the default Gnome theme is applied instead of the Mint one).

Mint specific issues:

* Widescreen support: If usplash doesn't fill your screen an alternative is to install usplash-theme-mint-black (which comes with a black background). All wallpapers come in widescreen format and GDM also has a widescreen version of the Elyssa theme.
* Localization: Not all translations (for the Mint tools) were included in the release. We had to code-freeze at some stage. The missing and future translations will come in as level 1 updates.
* MintMenu: mintMenu doesn't always refresh (or doesn't always refresh fast enough). To force it in doing so, right click on the "Elyssa" button and select "Reload Plugins".

Warning about upgrades:

* Be cautious with level 3 upgrades. As these notes are written, applying the Gnome related upgrades break the ability to change your wallpaper!
* Prefer level 1 and 2 upgrades to be safe and only apply level 3, 4 and 5 upgrades selectively and after you made sure they fixed a bug you needed fixed.
* Always use mintUpdate to perform package upgrades, avoid to do so with APT or Synaptic; these tools are not aware of the stability level related to package upgrades.

Are these gonna cause any major problems?

[mick222]

yes i'm pretty sure compiz is included. Gnome version is better and has a sort of kde style menu

[zmjjmz]

If you use the KDE version, the issues mentioned won't affect you.

[armageddon08]

If you use the KDE version, the issues mentioned won't affect you.

okay..I see. But, unfortunately I'm in the midway of downloading the GNOME version. I think I'll download the KDE version later.

[mips]

Actually...he does not have an internet connection, so its no use searching for software in Synaptic.

You can get the ubuntu repos on cd/dvd if you like and you can create your own cd with the non-free stuff but that might even be available as well.

[armageddon08]

You can get the ubuntu repos on cd/dvd if you like and you can create your own cd with the non-free stuff but that might even be available as well.

Well....I had that in mind, but the big 40-50 gigs of downloading has scared me off. Is there any way that I could download my required software to a location (as in folder) using Synaptic(just download, not install), get those softwares on a CD/DVD and then use Synaptic on the other computer to detect the CD/DVD as a software repository, so that I can install from them? That would be just great.

[Martje_001]

AptOnCD :)

[armageddon08]

AptOnCD :)

Well.....I would like to use that if not for my habit of issuing the command:

sudo apt-get clean which cleans out my /var/cache/apt directory which AptOnCD uses. So, problems here too. However, I've got a really cool solution right here: Backup all installed programs/packages (http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=819396).

I'll be trying it out now. Hope it works.:)

[mips]

Well....I had that in mind, but the big 40-50 gigs of downloading has scared me off.

I would not bother downloading them as you can get them cheaply online & mailed to you.