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megiddo_99
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Sorry for asking these questions, but I'm completely new to linux

 

1. I can't get my CD player to eject.... either with the button or with the eject thing in KsCD. What's wrong?

 

2. How do I restart or shut down? ( I've had to do it manually! )

 

3. Is there a way to stop the screen from scrolling? I want to be able to see the top of the screen and the bottom at the same time!

 

4. Is there a Windows Media Player port for Linux?

 

:wall:

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hi.

 

1. right click on your desktop and select "unmount" for your cd, before pushing the button.

2. from the menu: log off. from kde login manager: log off, shut down.

3. go to the mandrake control center and select the right display settings for your card and screen.

4. use totem. it is a good equivalent to media player.

 

:)

Edited by arctic
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hi.

 

1. right click on your desktop and select "unmount" for your cd, before pushing the button.

2. from the menu: log off. from kde login manager: log off, shut down.

3. go to the mandrake control center and select the right display settings for your card and screen.

4. use totem. it is a good equivalent to media player.

 

:)

 

It still won't let me shutdown, I followed your steps, but the button 'shutdown' is greyed out....

 

New question... I installed firefox... where did it install to? I didn't see it under usr/bin, and my search program crashes when searching...

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In kde control panel, go to sesion manager and chose confirm log out or shut down. I'm not at my pc now so I can't tell you any more specifics. As for firefox, when you installed it, it would hae asked you where you want to install it. Go to that directory you chose to install it to and run the executable.

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There is also a command that you will find useful.. Open a console terminal window and type

 

locate <somefilenameOrpartofsomefilename>

 

for example:

 

locate firefox

 

This will immediately give you a list of all file and their locations with firefox in the file name..

 

if the list is long and the screen scrolls, you can type

 

locate filefox | more

 

more is a program that accepts text input and then pages it for you. Hit spacebar to get the next page. The | symbol, called a pipe symbol, tells the locate command to send the output to the more program.. kinda cool huh?

B)

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short answer :

Installing from source means you get the actual code for the program and then you compile it yourself.... (i.e. .c and .h files)

this is usually simply achieved with

./configure
make
make install

 

Installing from RPM means installing the pre-compiled binary files (like .exe in windows) but also any libraries (usually .o equivalant to .dll) or documentation etc. too. It is the libraries and associated files that contribute the P to the acronym RPM.. which stands for Redhat Package Manager.

 

An RPM is like a bunch of iles in a self extracting installer. They follow rules and list which other progs and libraries need to be present for them to work. These are called dependant apps or dependancies.

 

you can also install from source RPM... this means you download the source but in a format ready to be made into a RPM and with the dependancies contained.

 

A source file often ends .tgz or tar.gz as they are compressed directory trees, thing of the tar.gz like a zip file. It may contain everything you need ior it may not... you might have to read some docs or work it out from error messages...

(usually it will be clear, but there are no rules)

 

When you compile yourself you can specify HOW to compile such as which optimisations and/or processor set... RPM's are pre-set.

 

RedHat makes 386 compatible rpms, like windows so they will run on any Intel (or compatible) 386+ Mandrake makes 586 (pentium or later)

 

Other things are using the MMX extension and the AMD equivalents ...

These make the biggest difference in multimedia ...

 

the long answer will be better explained once you get a bit more experience in linux...

 

RPM's are one binary distribution media .- Debain and its derivatives use another called .deb .. Broadly speaking they are equivalent but we could argue which is best until the next millenia...

 

Other distro's (Slack, Gentoo) use other methods of distribution where the source code is always used but packaged to take advantage of dependancies...

 

Mandrake uses a special RPM tool called URPMI... this is basically a method whereby special mandrake RPM's are put on repositories (like the download section here) and each known where the others are using a file called hdlist.cz

This means the download prog (urpmi or add/remove progs) knows where everything else is it needs too (deps) ...This REALLY makes life simpler...

 

This is inherent in .deb files and theor mangement packages in the official repositories... but RedHat and Suse do not have this...

However RH is now using a tool that lets them use the debian package management tool (apt) on RPM's....

 

Debian also has a tool called alien to convert RPM's to deb's....

 

Im guessing thats enough for now....

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i will try.

a program has a so called source code, based on what the linux-kernel can do. so, it is a script that tells the kernel with the help or other apps to perform certain task. these sources are compiled on different linux-boxes in a "different" way, depending on used folder, kernel-version and library versions (e.g. qt or gtk). so you "./configure" these sources through a console and then prepare them for final installation in two steps ("make" and "make install").

 

the os then tries to compile the sources you are provided with to suit your system. just imagine you, going into a shop, trying to buy a trouser. normal trousers will do fine, but you will feel much better with a trouser especially made for your size. ;)

 

these sources can be reconfigured (not very easy imho) into so called rpm or deb files (deb is the "equivalent" to rpm on debian and debian-based distros). rpms are usually made to fit a certain processor type (like an i586 machine) thus optimizing the functions of apps.

 

rpms tell the computer where to install, which library-dependencies to use and so on. they are a lot of data packaged, so it can be installed and uninstalled in an easy way.

 

rpm files are the "easy way" to install files. sources (usually available as tar.gz files) take longer to install but can be more useful in some respects. usually, a rpm distro can install from source packages ( i don't know of anyone that is unable to do so), but source based distros (e.g. slackware) are usually unable to install rpms (that is: i dunno how this should work).

 

i hope i could help you a bit. :)

 

edit: ooooh... gowator was faster than me... i should stop drinking coffee while typing :lol:

Edited by arctic
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