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Mandrake Linux 8.0 Final Released For PPC
rstewart points to this press release, writing: "Mandrake has released version 8.0 final for the PPC architecture. Now Mac users have a choice of distributions between Mandrake and Yellow Dog. Now if only we could easily buy parts and build them cheap in our basements. " And PPC choices already include SuSE, LinuxPPC, Debian, NetBSD and more.
There are just too many flaky things needed on various systems... whereas with RedHat 7.1 it was boot off the cd and you're done.
I know someone will post about how the cds are bootable on Mac, too, and they are, but it just isn't the same. On the old world macs you have to make a fake system folder on a partition... it's a big old mess.
Newbies have enough to worry about without throwing PPC specific issues into the mix - if you have experience, however, PPC is a nice platform.
(Linux is a great way to put older Mac Hardware to use!) Mandrake offer's great online installation instructions, too! Also, check out the Mandrake Linux PPC 8.0 FAQ (it says "beta", but applies to the more recent releases, as well.)
Curious George
***General Consultant to the Human Race*** My opinions are free. You get what you pay for.
Great that it's on PPC.
The next question: how well does it support firewire?
I mean, *REALLY* support it? Can I take my PB G4, get an external firewire drive, and boot straight from it into the Mandrake Linux kernel?
Coz my internal hard drive on this PBG4 is getting mighty tight: it's already got MacOS 9.1, and a Mac OS X 10.1 partition on it...
Firewire...
; -- the corruption of government starts with its secrets. a truly free people keep no secrets. --
Reformat your hard drive. You need an hfs partition (not hfs+) to install the boot loader on. This is a good place to put OS9 if you want to run Mac on Linux.
Install Linux. This includes setting up your swap, root, and other partitions.
Install yaboot (a lilo like program) onto the hfs partition. Configure yaboot. No worse than lilo
Set up the open firmware to boot lilo (not too hard), or set up the open firmware for dual boot. Dual booting is the hardest part, although there are some tools that automate the process. I dual boot so I can play with OS X. Mac on Linux meets all of my OS9 needs.
The distributions keep getting better and better. GCC is a general purpose compiler, so it generates general purpose (real slower) code on almost every platform. I've been using some flavor of PPC Linux for almost 2 years now, and find the platform to be very mature.
The middle mind speaks!
To myself mostly, and rather quietly usually, how Apple has created OS X and made it excite people so much more than Linux?
I look at Apple and the company they are. They are not special. They took existing software anyone in the world could have downloaded and turned it into something that has geeks and Mac enthusiasts alike excited.
What did they do with their operating system that is freely available that the Linux people have been trying so hard to do on the desktop and have yet to really come through like Apple has.
Surely the combined bulk of Linux developers is not less than the employees of Apple is it?
Apple has taken little open source pieces and parts and turned it into a truly interesting operating system that gets a "Cool factor" from most anyone I know that likes Macs.
Why can't Linux excite people so? Does the money make that much of a difference? Apple steps up and gets the word out using its standard marketing channels and creates a bonafide hype that people buy into, contrast to your average Linux story. Whats the give?
I know this will be seen as off-topic but I argue it is completely relevant to any PPC, or Linux distro. If only they could somehow capture what Apple has done with OS X. Anyway.. just my quiet musings.
None of OS X is perfect, it has bugs, but people do have faith in OS X and they keep on using it for the most part.
While OS X does not have the share of servers nor desktops and has not proven itself in either, it definitely has the mindshare of most everyone. WE all know about it and know its supposed to be the perfect blend of desktop ease of use and a # prompt to the underlying OS.
Just my thinking, I still don't have a good answer.
Jeremy