Subj : Re: *nix iso's query
To   : comp.os.linux
From : Minderbinder
Date : Thu Jul 01 2004 08:34 am

On Wed, 30 Jun 2004 11:02:16 -0700, ritchie wrote:

> I have experimented with RedHat Linux various distributions/versions,
> Mandrake Linux various distributions/versions, and also with Sun's Solaris
> 8 & 9 (sparc).
> 
> I now want to try other linux's.
> I have heard good things about Debian, and OpenBSD, FreeBSD.

I think you need to be more careful with your terminology. Linux is just a
kernel - not a whole operating system in itself. Mandrake/Redhat/Debian
are GNU/Linux distributions (often abbreviated to just "Linux
distributions"). Solaris and the BSD flavours each run different kernels
and should not be called "Linux" in any context (what they all have in
common is that they are UNIX-like operating systems).

So you need to decide if you require Linux, or if any other UNIX-like
system is sufficient. All of the systems that you mentioned above will run
on IBM-PC compatible hardware (ie. Intel i386 and above). That includes
Solaris, which has an i386 version as well as sparc.

On any given FTP server, there may be several options for each
distribution. Let's use an imaginary Debian mirror as an example:

ftp.mirror.debian.wonderland.wo/pub/Debian:

../source		(the source code for the software - needs compiling)
../i386		(binary version that works on Intel 386 and up)
../i586		(binary version that requires Pentium class or better)
../sparc		(binary version for sparc architecture - mostly SUN)
../ppc		(binary version for PowerPC arch - mostly Apple)


So, if you're using a standard PC and don't have the expertise to compile
your OS from scratch, you should choose i386 or i586.

Cheers,
Minderbinder.

.