Linux on Mac

A

azripper

n00b
Joined
Jan 26, 2005
Messages
9
Hello, I am new to Hardforum and this is my first post. Anyways, I am thinking about getting my first Mac laptop. Since I am a total Windows phreak, until now, I wanted to install two OS's in my ibook. The first would the new mac one, and the other would be Linux (red hat, fedora, free BSD, debian, or knoppix, havent decidd yet). But can I even run linux in the first place, second, whut mac laptop should I get. All I ask for is no lag (just running photoshop and dreamweaver), and that is looks sleek, not bulky but small and SWEET looking. THNX!

-vas
 
Linux will run on it just fine.... wouldnt go with redhat though becuase its not really supported anymore enless you want to pay for it.... fedora is the free beta-ish version from red hat.... any of the new ibooks will be able to do what you want without a problem.... it sounds like you are wanting a smaller one so that will limit you to what you can drop in....
 
Buy a 15" PowerBook if you can afford it. 12" iBook if you're on a tight budget. 12" PowerBook if you *really* need that portability, and still have brushed metal instead of plastic (it weighs 1 hg less, too).

Here is a guide to installing Debian on a PowerBook: http://www.mathematik.uni-marburg.de/~schmidtm/apple/powerbook.en.php

Be warned, however, that many of the really nifty *Book features might not work under Linux (like sleep-on-close, two-finger trackpad scrolling, etc).
 
I would definately try out OS X for a while before you decide to wipe it and install Linux. I really think that you would have a much better time migrating from Win to OS X than from Win to Linux on a Mac.
 
also keep in mind that a lot of the PPC implementations of programs for linux can be very sketchy. If you wanto to get the OSS experience, you might try sticking with OSX and using Fink commander. I switched from windows to linux, then got sick of linux, and moved on to a good desktop unix, aka my powerbook on OSX.
 
I agree with the others. Alot of software is available under OSX. Having both and OSX and Linux seems redundant especially with Fink. More trouble than it's worth.
 
well I am going to make two partations, Linux and Mac OSX, then choose which to load at boot. Thnx for the help. The reason I am running linux on this primarily instead of OS x is because I have been wanting to have a linux machine. No windows labtops stand out nearly as nice as the mac ones, so I decided to get a mac and put linux on that.
 
To power eMac’s brilliant CRT, we’ve included an ATI Radeon 9600 graphics processor with 64MB of dedicated video memory — twice as much as previous eMac models.
Click to expand...
- Mac.com

Nvidia 7800 GTX's just came out (256MB), in sli would mean 512mb... That is 8 times more memory! go figure!
 
azripper said:
- Mac.com

Nvidia 7800 GTX's just came out (256MB), in sli would mean 512mb... That is 8 times more memory! go figure!
Click to expand...
Even a *single* 7800 GTX costs as much as an eMac...
 
azripper said:
- Mac.com

Nvidia 7800 GTX's just came out (256MB), in sli would mean 512mb... That is 8 times more memory! go figure!
Click to expand...

If you spend that much money on a gaming rig, that would mean....you have no life! Go figure!
 
i think that ubuntu is available for powerpc (correct me if i'm wrong..)


i use it on my notebook and my desktop and I love it-- it's based on debian

although, i really like OSX, so i'd be disinclined to install a secondary OS on a mac. but that's me :)
 
that's a good idea. the livecd stuff is neat.

ubuntu is just a really nice distro, imo. i've used a whole bunch of them before-- but the only ones i use all the time are ubuntu, RH/fedora and slackware.

i used debian on my old k6 and tried gentoo, but it compiled too slow on that old hog :)
 
Linux is pointless on a mac IMHO. OSX is what Linux should be in usability and fuctionality. Linux is so archaic compared to OSX. Plus, OSX can run most linux apps by installing Apple's X11 and Fink. I don't even mess with linux anymore except on my servers. "New distro!? Meh..... OSX is still better.." Take a useless windows box and replace it with a distro if you seriously need to curb your fix.. :D
 
sieb said:
Linux is pointless on a mac IMHO. OSX is what Linux should be in usability and fuctionality. Linux is so archaic compared to OSX. Plus, OSX can run most linux apps by installing Apple's X11 and Fink. I don't even mess with linux anymore except on my servers. "New distro!? Meh..... OSX is still better.." Take a useless windows box and replace it with a distro if you seriously need to curb your fix.. :D
Click to expand...
Not true. PPC is superior to x86, and Linux is far better at scheduling and threads than OSX. I have an XServe with a Gentoo install on one internal HDD, 10.4 on the other. Wether using binaries or compiling from source Gentoo destroys OSX in every server app I've tried. That list includes MySQL, openLDAP, Apache, Samba.

Linux is a very modern, and one of the most forward-thinking operating system there is. Just because everything isn't dumbed down to point-and-click for the masses doesn't make it archaic.

My Powerbook runs linux. I enjoy using the operating system I like on a hardware that's powerful, but still is quiet and has good battery life. It also handles running 10.3 in MOL without any issues incase the need might arise for using OSX. I do have to note that I spent more time setting MOL up than I have actually using it.
 
What about Yellow Dog linux? I believe it is specifically for PPC.
 
As an everyday desktop OS, OSX is what linux should be if it wants to win market share. But compared to OSX in usability, its archaic. Don't confuse being proficient at using linux with usability to a normal pc user. I wasn't commenting on it as a server platform since I use it for my hosting servers. And when you build everything from source for a system, of course its going to be fast regardless if its linux or not, not a real fair comparison to OSX.
 
NewBlackDak said:
Linux is a very modern, and one of the most forward-thinking operating system there is. Just because everything isn't dumbed down to point-and-click for the masses doesn't make it archaic.
Click to expand...

That reminds me of an argument I recently heard from a windows nut, he stated something along the lines of,"OS X is too damn easy, it gets too many stupid people that shouldn't be anywhere near a computer using them (computers)." He then went on to state that the reason apples come with a one button mouse is because the users are too stupid/scared to right click. Great argument IMO.

Who cares if something is "dumbed down" if it's just as capable, if not more capable, than systems that require A LOT of computer knowledge to use and maintain? And please don't tell me linux is polished enough for primetime...

As for buying a new powerbook to run linux/unix of some sort...why not just go on ebay and pick up a tibook for cheap? The difference isn't gonna be that big for what it sounds like you're gonna be doing...
 
I knew this thread would turn against him.

Why cant a person just put Linux on his computer for the challenge? The fun if it?
 
because buying a new ibook is slight overkill for the purpose. He could go out and spend about half as much on a tibook or older i/powerbook and see almost the exact same results. If you have the money to blow, then by all means, you should, ya know?
 
bahula03 said:
…And please don't tell me linux is polished enough for primetime…
Click to expand...
For the desktop, not in any way shape, fashion, or form for the general public.
I do use it as a desktop though on x86, PPC, sparc, and soon to be x86_64.
 
bahula03 said:
because buying a new ibook is slight overkill for the purpose. He could go out and spend about half as much on a tibook or older i/powerbook and see almost the exact same results. If you have the money to blow, then by all means, you should, ya know?
Click to expand...

Yeah, buying a good wintel notebook would be a much better idea, ppc support for linux is much sketchier than x86, not to mention the notebooks will outperform an ibook or powerbook
 
Rune75 said:
I knew this thread would turn against him.

Why cant a person just put Linux on his computer for the challenge? The fun if it?
Click to expand...

Because buying a mac just to play with linux is pretty expensive way to do it. I second getting a cheap pc laptop and playing with it on there. Only a few distros are ported to PPC whereas just about all of them support x86 natively.
 
azripper said:
- Mac.com

Nvidia 7800 GTX's just came out (256MB), in sli would mean 512mb... That is 8 times more memory! go figure!
Click to expand...
Thanks for adding something no one gives a damn about and is completely irrelevant.
 
Help!

Does anyone have an idea why my B&W G3 Mac won't boot the Ubuntu Live CD? The CD drive boots fine, that's how I installed OS9 and OSX 10.3 on it. I've done all the usual PRAM zapping, holding down C on power on, etc. The disc (i've burned more than one) is fine and the original image i downloaded matches the MD5SUM perfectly. The system starts to boot from the CD (LED flickers on briefly and off for 2 minutes or so), then hangs for several minutes, then boots into OSX.

What kind of weird voodoo is required to make a disc that boots from a bootable ISO source like the Ubuntu Live CD on a Mac? The ISO "boots" on PearPC, so that isn't the problem.

I'm not being lazy, i've searched several times and there's always 2 solutions: 1) "too bad" no solution and 2) "oh it works now" (on much newer models) and no one explains why it started working all of a sudden. But it's a very common problem. :confused:
 
When me and my bro were installing Unbuntu on his iBook we found some posts saying toast was the problem and to try another burning application. I think it was the C key that finaly did the trick for us though, as we had been trying the option key or trying to set the CD as the boot volume from within OSX.
 
I've learned the hard way that Toast can't burn bootable disks (or at least has serious issues with it). Try Disk Utility.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top