Date: Fri, 26 Mar 1999 10:50:29 -0500 (EST) From: Marty Poulin <mpoulin@rascal.honk.org> To: "G. Adam Stanislav" <zen@buddhist.com> Cc: unknown@riverstyx.net, freebsd-newbies@FreeBSD.ORG, freebsd-chat@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: Linux vs. FreeBSD: The Storage Wars Message-ID: <Pine.BSF.3.96.990326103456.15140A-100000@rascal.honk.org> In-Reply-To: <3.0.6.32.19990326093033.00919230@mail.bfm.org>
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On Fri, 26 Mar 1999, G. Adam Stanislav wrote: > But when I actually want to accomplish something, I have no choice but to > boot Windows. Not because I like it but because I know how to use it. And > when I don't, I can always figure it out. You'd be surprised what you can get away with without having to resort to Windows. These days the only thing I need to boot down to microsoft for is to surf the web using all those funky multimedia plugins that haven't been ported to BSD (yet). And the odd game. > > Under FreeBSD (and, I suppose Unix in general), the solution is no doubt > available and probably more powerful, but it always requires me to use some > cryptically named command. Man pages are of little help to me: First of > all, I would need to know the name of the command to even get to the man > page. And even when I do, it seems the man page is always written in some > foreign language that only outwardly resembles English. Apropos usually > does not help me much either. > I agree, it can be a challenge to find answers at times, but that's where the archives and mailing lists and FAQ's come in really handy - there is no way I would have accomplished a fraction of what I have done if it wasn't for all of the online help. > Just days ago I have installed XFree86 3.3.3.1. Its interface is > reminiscent of Windows 1.0, and it locks up my system either immediately or > in a few minutes (mouse cursor disappears, ctl-alt-backspace does not > work), and the only way out is by turning the system off, ouch). No doubt > there is a simple fix, if I only knew what it was. :-) (I kinda suspect > that I need more RAM, I only have 8 Meg, although that is supposed to be > enough.) > Sounds like you need to experiment with some window managers. The default one that comes with X (twm) is about the ugliest, most basic one I have ever seen. Totally geared towards "old-school" command-line Unix types. Check out www.afterstep.org, www.windowmaker.org, and when you upgrade your RAM, I recommend taking a look at KDE - a very "windows-ish" Desktop Environment that I have come to really like. (www.kde.org) > Despite all of that, I am sticking with FreeBSD. Some day, I'll learn how > to use it. :-) It is a very steep learning curve, though! Hey, keep it up! It really is worth it. > > Not that this has anything to do with the subject line. I suspect the other > OS mentioned there would be even harder for me to learn. Maybe I'm just > getting old (will turn 49 next month). Computers were so much simpler when > I was 15! <big grin> Heh - back in the days when "GUI" meant that someone spilled their coffee on the punch cards... M. To Unsubscribe: send mail to majordomo@FreeBSD.org with "unsubscribe freebsd-newbies" in the body of the message
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