There are several efforts under way to build and create installable freely-redistributable ISOs from the RHEL 3 SRPMs.
Note also that RH does make SRPMs of updates
to RHEL freely available for download. So such
a distribution can benefit from RH's updates/patches/security fixes.
There is discussion and experimentation with ways to add Java to the mix for those who need it. See the current thread about related AOLserver modules
ns_java / ns_javablend and their current status, on the
OpenACS.Org site.
It's not especially relevant to the Java question, but I'm the person who tries to create Red Hat RPMs for OpenACS.
In the end, as a newcomer to Linux, what you need more than anything else is someone to turn to when you get stuck.
Most of the common general-purpose Linux distributions should run fine on your PII-266, so just use the same one that your local Linux-using friend(s) use. That way, when you ask for help, they will be able to provide it more quickly, and they will do so without adding confusing rants against your particular chosen distribution:-)
If you truly have no Linux-using friends locally at all (!), and plan to ask for help purely online, then using the distro with the largest market share is probably wise... which means Red Hat.
> You CAN build an IDE RAID system which is much cheaper per megabyte than SCSI but getting an > IDE RAID controller that works nice under linux/FreeBSD will take some searching.
The Duplidisk from ARCO http://www.arcoide.com works fine in Linux. Given the cost constraints of this project, I'd suggest using one or even going with software RAID instead. SCSI RAID is likely to add a lot to the total project cost, without providing much real benefit, IMO. Use any 'spare' money for more RAM, or even towards a second server!
> With any luck, the collaboration with LHS will > result in them selling boxes that a home user > would actually think of buying. And I hope those > VA guys don't forget where they came from, and > don't forget about the starving college kids who > can't afford...
Since when did starving college kids buy from 'big name' vendors?
Point 'starving college kids' to http://www.pricewatch.com and they can find useful cheap boxes sold with Linux for under US$350. That's simply not the target market of VA Research.
VA might sell $350 Linux boxes when HP and SGI sell $350 systems too...
Slashdot Mirror
Note also that RH does make SRPMs of updates to RHEL freely available for download. So such a distribution can benefit from RH's updates/patches/security fixes.
One of these I have here is "White Box Linux". Its web page specifically asks that it not be linked to from /., and I'll comply with that request. Use Google to find it, if you really do want to get a copy (via BitTorrent) of its RC1 ISOs.
There is also a mini-HOWTO on rebuilding RHEL at
http://www.uibk.ac.at/zid/software/unix/linux/rhel -rebuild.htm
and an associated mailing list at
http://www.uibk.ac.at/zid/software/unix/linux/rhel -rebuild-l.html.
For some ex-RH users, this kind of "unsupported forked varient from RHEL3" may be a better choice than Fedora, without paying $$$ for official RHEL.
Jonathan
There is discussion and experimentation with ways to add Java to the mix for those who need it. See the current thread about related AOLserver modules ns_java / ns_javablend and their current status, on the OpenACS.Org site.
It's not especially relevant to the Java question, but I'm the person who tries to create Red Hat RPMs for OpenACS.
In the end, as a newcomer to Linux, what you need more than anything else is someone to turn to when you get stuck.
:-)
Most of the common general-purpose Linux distributions should run fine on your PII-266, so just use the same one that your local Linux-using friend(s) use. That way, when you ask for help, they will be able to provide it more quickly, and they will do so without adding confusing rants against your particular chosen distribution
If you truly have no Linux-using friends locally at all (!), and plan to ask for help purely online, then using the distro with the largest market share is probably wise... which means Red Hat.
> IDE RAID controller that works nice under linux/FreeBSD will take some searching.
The Duplidisk from ARCO http://www.arcoide.com works fine in Linux. Given the cost constraints of this project, I'd suggest using one or even going with software RAID instead. SCSI RAID is likely to add a lot to the total project cost, without providing much real benefit, IMO. Use any 'spare' money for more RAM, or even towards a second server!
Jonathan
> With any luck, the collaboration with LHS will ...
> result in them selling boxes that a home user
> would actually think of buying. And I hope those
> VA guys don't forget where they came from, and
> don't forget about the starving college kids who
> can't afford
Since when did starving college kids buy from
'big name' vendors?
Point 'starving college kids' to
http://www.pricewatch.com and they can find
useful cheap boxes sold with Linux for under
US$350. That's simply not the target market of
VA Research.
VA might sell $350 Linux boxes when HP and SGI
sell $350 systems too...
Jonathan
Jonathan
> gcc -D__KERNEL__ -I/usr/src/2.2.0pre4/include -Wall
> -Wstrict-prototypes -O2 -fomit-frame-pointer
> -pipe -fno-strength-reduce -m486 -malign-loops=2
> -malign-jumps=2 -malign-functions=2 -DCPU=686
> -DNTFS_IN_LINUX_KERNEL -DNTFS_VERSION=\"990102\"
> -c -o inode.o inode.c
> inode.c: In function `ntfs_decompress_run':
> inode.c:421: `ntfs_s16' undeclared (first use this function)
> inode.c:421: (Each undeclared identifier is reported only once
> inode.c:421: for each function it appears in.)
> inode.c:423: `ntfs_s32' undeclared (first use this function)
> make[3]: *** [inode.o] Error 1
> make[3]: Leaving directory `/usr/src/2.2.0pre4/fs/ntfs'
> make[2]: *** [first_rule] Error 2
> make[2]: Leaving directory `/usr/src/2.2.0pre4/fs/ntfs'
> make[1]: *** [_subdir_ntfs] Error 2
> make[1]: Leaving directory `/usr/src/2.2.0pre4/fs'
> make: *** [_dir_fs] Error 2
Jonathan
The README changes still leave things like
gzip -cd linux-2.1.XX.tar.gz | tar xfv -
in there though.
Jonathan