Due to alot of linux commentary, I'm starting this thread to pool everything in one place... (This is from the mach3.8 "supercomputer" thread) CalTrader, Are you guys running 32 or 64bit Linux? It's my understanding that the peoblem with 32bit machines is that you're limited to a 2GB file size. I'm also curious about the AMD opteron 64bit CPUs that came out recently that can run windows. I wonder if they can run both 32 and 64bit versions of linux. The cheapest one is around $200 on the net, which is pretty damn good if it can run 64bit Linux... TIA, -dung
I installed Linux on a junk machin ( pentium pro) , with 128MB ram, works great fro me for internet browsing and chating when my other system is used for trading. Helps me keep an ey on the latest news. Old stil runs.
I think a good start for most people who migrate from Windows could be the SUN Java Desktop system. Also I haven't used it by myself it looks promising. http://wwws.sun.com/software/javadesktopsystem/index.html
(just found out the new 64bit AMDs will run 32 & 64 bit versions of both windows and linux) http://www.amd.com/us-en/Processors/TechnicalResources/0,,30_182_861_8806~72978,00.html (scroll down)
Use the correct file system and this is (now) a non-issue: you may have old software which may need to be recompiled however if it was built in an older version of Linux. "Large File Support" (LFS) solves this (old) issue in most cases. NFS version 3 or greater is required to support LFS if you choose to use it ... I dont know about the AMD processor compatibility - all of ours are intel.
Why would this be a good start for Linux? I would say that this is something you want to stay away from. Why push beginners genuinly interested in Linux into a proprietary solution by people who have done all they could to escape Linux? Especially if you are "migrating from Windows" it's the last thing you want to get sucked into. Get any decent PC and any decent distribution. The solution to try it out first on an old 128Mb PC is an excellent one. The Knoppix CD (download free) is great for a quick start. This experience is very convincing on an old little PC! nononsense
Most people are afraid to leave the Windows world, because they think Linux is too complicated and that they will miss important apps. SUN put together a complete solution, especially for companies. Most apps you need are nicely integrated and they charge a fair yearly fee ($50 per employee or $100 per desktop, including support, patches, and updates). Of course if you are an advanced user who has fun (and time) learning Linux the hard way (or have your own admins) you can take any distribution out there.
performance wise Linux is better than windows, But newbie should give it a try on a used machine before reling invetsing in it. Some JAVA suff doesnt work on it (Power etrade pro, Comand center from ameritrade are some examples). Otherwise it is good for internet usage, no popups, faster downloads, ( Think that is due to the features in mozilla the browser for linux.
Of course Ninja, if you want to go Windows -> Linux at once it would be nice to get what you call "a complete solution". I would not want to recommend any one in particular but several very good ones exist: IBM, Hp/Compaq, Dell, ... I certainly would not push SUN ahead of these! In fact I believe the Staroffice is installed in all of these.
I just came to a well balanced article on Sun & Linux: http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,4149,1407872,00.asp nononsense