Hello! I have a few questions! New to linux...

[mike6789]

Hello people!

I've just installed ubuntu Linux onto my computer on a 10gb partition with Windows XP.

So far so good with everything, I still got a few quirks to work out, and things to find but ubuntu seems friendly enough to the new user.

I've got a question though about it, I'm not sure how silly this sounds but I would love to switch to Linux full time. And I know of things like Wine to run windows programs, but how effective is it for something like programming? I'm going to be taking some Java Classes soon and I want to get into the computer programming field, how userfriendly is Linux for programming?

I would have no idea, as I said I'm going to begin taking some classes in Java and other languages.

Oh and also, how much space do you think would be good to have a Linux Partition at? Right now its 10 GB but if I become more serious I may want to format the partitions differently, I have an 80GB HDD. Any advice?

Thank you.

[Simulator]

Hi there,

I dont particularly program in linux. I believe you should be able to program with Java fairly easily since there are linux packages around.

As for the partitions, I use a 15gb partition as I only use linux occasionally. I have a second hard drive for linux, so an option would be to purchase a new hard drive (if you have the space for it).

Hard drives are fairly cheap (here in Australia) so that would be a good option. its totally up to you. I think a Windows partition is a good idea in case some things dont work. (Just my opinion here)

Regards,
Simulator

[techieMoe]

I've got a question though about it, I'm not sure how silly this sounds but I would love to switch to Linux full time. And I know of things like Wine to run windows programs, but how effective is it for something like programming?

Considering Linux started out as primarily an OS for programmers, I'd say very effective. Most of Linux is written in C, but there is a built-in compiler for C++ as well.

I'm going to be taking some Java Classes soon and I want to get into the computer programming field, how userfriendly is Linux for programming?

Java is a multi-platform language. I program in Java on Mac OS X, MS Windows XP, and every Linux distribution I can get my hands on. It's not a matter of being able to use it; it's simply a matter of choosing which of the available tools works best for you. I personally enjoy working with the Eclipse IDE from IBM. It's free, open-source and it works with any of the major operating systems out there.

Sun Microsystems also has their own IDE called Netbeans which does essentially the same thing, just in a different style. Either one of these is an industry standard program that you should have no trouble using.

Oh and also, how much space do you think would be good to have a Linux Partition at? Right now its 10 GB but if I become more serious I may want to format the partitions differently, I have an 80GB HDD. Any advice?

Thank you.

10GB is okay, but I'd give Linux 20GB just to be safe.