running linux on new system

[joedan3]

I am buying a new system and plan to run Linux (Red Hat..I guess); What components do I have to watch out for:
1) motherboard Asus P4PE + 333DDR (I assume this is OS-neutral)
2) NVIDIA GeForce4 TI4200 << do I need Linux drivers for this?
3) 40GB UDMA133 7200RPM Hard Drive <<??
4) 16X DVD << should I ask for particular brands that have Linux support
5) 40X12X40 CDRW Internal << --ditto--

[hiredgoonz]

Any of the major Linux distros will have drivers for all that stuff...for basic functionality anyway. Modems will be your biggest issue unless it's a hardware modem/non-winmodem

If you're looking to do gaming in Linux, you may need to do some work to find the absolute best drivers and settings for your vid card, but aside from that you'll be fine.

The biggest thing is the learning curve of figuring out all new software for burning cds, playing dvds etc...

If you're looking to download, go to www.linuxiso.org where you can get the most popular versions for free. The ftps sites in Belgium and Germany are usually pretty fast and reliable, but unless you have dsl/cable, it's probably better to just buy a boxed version...

[sleddog]

May also want to look at: http://hardware.redhat.com/hcl/

Regarding which distro to get... many firsttime Linux users find Mandrake easy to install and configure. RedHat is my personal choice. If you've got the bandwidth, CD sets of various distributions are available for free download.

[rond36]

Another thing to watch out for is onboard NICs and motherboard chipsets on the newer boards. I ran into this problem running Mandrake 8.1 but it was solved in Mandrake 9.0.

In Mandrake 8.1 I had to install a Linksys NIC disable the SIS 900 onboard NIC and reconfigure ME and XP to use the installed NIC so that I could connect to the internet and my LAN from all three OSes

[randyrhoads1981]

You will have generic 2d driver support when you install Linux for the NVidia card ,but being they are not open source the 3D Nvidia drivers are not included in Linux. You have to download and install them from Nvidia's site. Be sure to get the "Readme" from there and READ IT. Its not a point and click like in Windows but once you get the feel of Linux its not that bad. Just be sure you get the correct RPM for the kernel you are running. If you use a Redhat 7.3 and update the kernel be sure to wait till the update and get the latest drivers installed afterwards. Also during the install take it slow and make sure you dont chose the generic 3 button mouse..usually Microsoft Itelli mouse works on most and be sure you pick the correct monitor if its a comman one and have the vertical and horizontal specs handy incase you need to do a custom monitor setup. Unless ya want to run at 640 X 480 . :D

[CuratoR]

all the components u've mentioned is ok. The only thing is: If u've got a sofware modem lacking DSP it won't run on Linux. But if your modem is an external modem or other hardware modem, no problem. Old ISA internal modems will work but not internal PCI software modems like Motorola SM56.

[fishybawb]

If you've got a software based Winmodem, you could try here (http://www.linmodems.org) for drivers.