Best distro of Linux for a beginning programmer to use and learn?

[maikeru]

Well, for the first part of the summer, I'll be continuing with a few more C++ programming classes covering OOP and other good stuff, to continue broadening my knowledge with computers and programming. I'm not much of a programmer or mathematics person, and my grasp of techie stuff is weak. (I like biology and squishy stuff. Plants, microbes, genetics, etc.)

 

I could use some serious help here deciding what distro of Linux to put on this old computer I have and my new one, I think. This is a P4-1.9 GHz machine. It's currently running an outdated WinME and will probably need to be wiped clean. The new machine already has WinXP on it, dual core, and I'll probably do much of my programming in either Visual Studio or WxDev-C++ for my classes. The programming in Linux would be for eventually more technical things or sci-hobby projects, since I hear Linux is the pet favorite for serious science and technological endeavors as well as for the huge amount of open-source stuff available out there.

 

I'm lost. Unlike a lot of other scientific type of stuff, I really feel like I have no idea where to start here. Also, if you have any books to recommend on learning Linux, its ins and outs, I'd appreciate those too.

[LaurieAG]

I'm lost. Unlike a lot of other scientific type of stuff, I really feel like I have no idea where to start here. Also, if you have any books to recommend on learning Linux, its ins and outs, I'd appreciate those too.

 

Hi Maikeru,

 

Decide on what specific software you will be using and then get a version of linux that supports it (most will). Red Hat (Fedora) has been on the market for quite a while now although there are many many different flavours of linux around. Get something that you will be comfortable with that also has either good documentation or has good books available.

[sanctus]

I think in the meantime I prefer Xubuntu (which I have at work) to Fedora (RedHat), but it is more for some details I can't really say which is better generally...

But from what I heard I would suggest you Ubuntu or Kubuntu because their Desktop managers are more like windows (Ubunutu has Gnome, Kubuntu has KDE and Xubuntu has XFCE4), but that don't have the coolest thing of all desktop: on xfce additionally to all multiple desktops you want (other desktops have that too) you can shade your open windows, this means you put your cursor on the bar on top of a window (usually dark blue in Windows) and then you scroll up and are left only with the bar! Very comfortable when you have open many things but you want to keep them on one desktop...

[alexander]

a version of linux that supports it

Ok, let me correct you in this laurie, there are many different versions of linux, but what you mean is that there are manny different distributions of linux out there. Here's the deal, Linux, is a kernel, your basic gateway between hardware and software, there are versions, from 1.0 to 2.6.25, but they are merely revisions of one another. There is one linux, there are many distributions of it.

 

Any linux software is compattible with linux, the only problem comes when proprietary libraries and speciffic directory structures are introduced in some commercial distros, and then companies use them to write code that is centric to those libraries and structures. It's not that you can't install it on another distro, it's that the minute differences in patch sets, and libraries, and revisions and packaged software may prohibit you from doing so...

 

maikeru, as a starter, i recommend to you Ubuntu (as sanctus said, either kubuntu or xubuntu will work, and you can read what the differences are between them on their respected websites.)

 

I have problems with RedHat, or any other commercial distros, or outdated or unstable distros like mandrake, or even slacks or gentoo.

 

Ubuntu (I prefer Xubuntu for my linking, but then i tweak it a lot :( ) will be simplest to start with, they have LOTS of documentation, forums and always people that can help (as well as support, etc.)

[LaurieAG]

Any linux software is compattible with linux, the only problem comes when proprietary libraries and speciffic directory structures are introduced in some commercial distros, and then companies use them to write code that is centric to those libraries and structures. It's not that you can't install it on another distro, it's that the minute differences in patch sets, and libraries, and revisions and packaged software may prohibit you from doing so...

 

Hi Alexander,

 

Exactly my point with regards to selecting a distribution that will support the development software you select. Obviously if your software is tied to a specific distro you must use this distro regardless or you won't be able to develop anything.

[alexander]

that is generally not so true for developement tools, if they are graphical tools then ofcourse having the libraries for window manager is good, but dev tools, the overwhelming majority of them, by that i mean over 99%, are distro independent. Compilers, and interpreters are even less distro dependent, for most of your needs, any distro will do.

 

vim, emacs, lisp, python, perl, php, gcc, bash, awk, sed, gdb, matlab, gnuplot and so on and so forth, are always available...

[maikeru]

Ubuntu or some flavor of Ubuntu it'll be then. I've heard emacs can make coffee, do laundry, and pay my bills for me, besides allowing me to code. :esmoking: (Just kidding, but I have seen friends using it to code a lot in Linux.)

[alexander]

Yes, emacs can do all of that, and still be an excellent coding tool. though for majority of GUI people, emacs will prove to be too much, weird and different, and they will want a more guilicious tool for writing code, like kdevelop or eclipse.

[sanctus]

Yes, and I heard of many people who don't like the shortcuts on emacs, I mean it quite impressing sometimes the combinations, eg: query-replace-regexp has the shortcut:

C+M+% which for my keyboard means pressing at the same time ctrl,alt,shift and 5...

 

Anyway emacs' coffee tastes nice...