So? You're looking to install Linux as a separate operating system? This is not a task I would recommend for a novice user, although, with newer versions of Linux, it is becoming increasingly easier to do.
Let's start with some basics: First of all, Linux is what we call a flavor of Unix. There are a number of flavors available, but most of them are either a BSDI flavor like FreeBSD and BSDI (from Berkley systems) or a System V flavor like Linux and Solaris. There are other flavors, but unless you are using a legacy computer or have alot of money to spend, you probably will not have to deal with them.
Linux as a flavor of Unix is most like System V, which means the base level operation and system features best mimic System V. Linux has its own specialized enhancments, not to mention its more or less free, though you would be best served to use a variant of Linux that is packaged by a company.
The best known packages or variants of Linux are Slackware, Redhat and Debian. Slackware is no longer produced for distribution, though it is widely packaged in Linux Books on CD-ROM. Redhat is the most popular distribution, and Debian is growing in popularity. Redhat is a commercial distribution, though it is often packaged with Linux books available at many bookstores. I do recommend Redhat for learning users, as Slackware can be harder to manage once you get running unless you want to do alot of compiling and installs later.
Redhat 5.2 is the current distribution of Linux. This is not to be confused with the actual version of the Linux operating system that it uses. In fact, the only difference between version 4.2 and 5.2 of Redhat is what is packaged with the Linux core (or kernal). Basically, Redhat 5.2 comes with the latest Netscape for Linux, Perl, GCC, and so forth. If you happen to get Redhat 4.2, you'll not only have to find and install Netscape, you will need to install XFree86 (XWindows), and newer versions of Perl, and modules you will need for its use, not to mention Apache and so forth. 5.2 also automates the tasks of installing software though the use of modules that are prepackaged and available on their web site. This makes it easier to install some item rather than compiling code from the prompt.
If this sounds complicated, well, its meant to be. Linux and all Unix operating systems were never designed to make it easy for a common Joe to install and configure the operating system. However, you will find as you learn how to install and configure your UNIX server that you are not constrained to the severe limitations MS Windows OS's place on an administrator. The Internet was designed so that it ran on Unix primarily, to Windows, networking is an afterthought. To Unix, Networking is what it is designed to do from the ground up.
As for multi-boot, most Linux OS's come with a multi-boot program called LILO that is fairly easy to setup and configure. Some other considerations: Linux runs best on its own type of partitions, crippling Linux by running it on a faked DOS partition is dangerous and a cost to performance. Because you have to run on a separate partition, you will either have to break up your current drive using a third party partition program or possibly FDISK, or place Linux on a separate drive (my suggestion is a separate drive).
Linux also does not come with a graphic "windowed based" interface on its own. Linux is at its core Unix, meaning it likes the shell, and will prefer to use it. XWindows is the way to get a windowed interface, and in fact, X is simply a way for you to interface yourself into a shell through a server graphicly. I won't get into those gory details, but if you want to run a web browser in Linux besides Lynx (text based) you will need X. Comparing the install of X compared to say Windows 95, is like comparing buying a car. In Windows 95, you goto a dealership, pay the man and get a key to the car. With XFree86 (the free version of XWindows) you pay the man, and he give you a box of parts, a mechanic and an instruction manual. Its your job to read the manual, and tell the mechanic (Linux) how to build the car. If you have Linux 5.2 and RPM, its like having a car with no tires, and no seats, and you have to pick those and put them on yourself. In short, its alot of work. I can install Redhat , and an X environment in about 2 hours, but I have done each about 30 or 40 times. It took me about 5 tries of each to get em working the first time around, but now I know how to do both well. Basically, get a a damn good book, and stick to it.
Many might think that the convienence of NT and Windows far outweighs the costs in time and effort to administrate a Unix server. However, you'll never find a major business to my knowledge that relies wholly on NT servers. Any professional admin or developer is well advised to continue to learn and support Unix. I personally feel that Windows is an excellent workstation environment for development in Unix and other systems, however, I do not see that Windows will ever superseed Unix as an operating system. My reasons are simple. Windows requires 10 times the operating resources of a standard Unix server and operates only on par with that Unix server. It is a simple comparision of cost of performance over cost of convienence.
Sorry for my rant, hope this helped.
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Fred Hirsch
Web Consultant & Programmer
