simple question

[zoomzilla]

Is it possible to be a casual Linux user( utilizing all major media forms, downloading from P2P, streaming, installing software, unpacking software) without ever using the command line?

[oz]

Is it possible to be a casual Linux user( utilizing all major media forms, downloading from P2P, streaming, installing software, unpacking software) without ever using the command line?

Welcome to the forums... yes, it is possible!

[zoomzilla]

Congratulations! You are the first person to greet this kind of question without derision or claims of blasphemy.

Not to incite a deeply philosophical debate here, but what one finds "easy" is a very relative, subjective term. For a windows user like myself "easy" means being able to see all of my directories and folders in front of me and be able to find what I want, even if it might take some time. If I don't know a letter of code its impossible for me to navigate the command line, whereas if I know what I'm looking for(a certain file or directory it may be in) I can always search, even if that means searching every directory in every file to find it.
"Easy" for a Linux user means being able to type a command into the command line, a learned skill. I really want to learn Linux and be able to use my computer without using Windows, the overwhelming selection of GNU software makes that possible, but only the most dedicated, patient people want to learn Spanish so they can order at a Mexican restaurant.

A simple exercise that should be easily accomplished in the GUI that I've been working on for three days now: I've downloaded an MP3 decoder(mpg123), its in my download directory. I can read the installation instructions but its like being thirsty in the ocean, I cant do anything with it. Using only the GUI, how do I install it?

[oz]

It's generally best for users to utilize the default package tool for your Linux distribution when installing applications under Linux. I'm pretty sure that Fedora and Red Hat have a few different GUI frontends that can be used with YUM, the default package tool for those distros. Maybe some YUM users will chime in with some frontend recommendations for you. I think YUM Extender is one option, but I've never used it. Other distros have their own package tools and GUI options.

[Issac]

To install graphically I select System->Administration->"Add/Remove Software", but to remove packages I use KYum in Applications->"System Tools".

[meton_magis]

Congratulations! You are the first person to greet this kind of question without derision or claims of blasphemy.

Not to incite a deeply philosophical debate here, but what one finds "easy" is a very relative, subjective term. For a windows user like myself "easy" means being able to see all of my directories and folders in front of me and be able to find what I want, even if it might take some time. If I don't know a letter of code its impossible for me to navigate the command line, whereas if I know what I'm looking for(a certain file or directory it may be in) I can always search, even if that means searching every directory in every file to find it.
"Easy" for a Linux user means being able to type a command into the command line, a learned skill. I really want to learn Linux and be able to use my computer without using Windows, the overwhelming selection of GNU software makes that possible, but only the most dedicated, patient people want to learn Spanish so they can order at a Mexican restaurant.

A simple exercise that should be easily accomplished in the GUI that I've been working on for three days now: I've downloaded an MP3 decoder(mpg123), its in my download directory. I can read the installation instructions but its like being thirsty in the ocean, I cant do anything with it. Using only the GUI, how do I install it?

For legal reasons, Fedora can not be bundled with patent encumbered codecs (like MP3.) Fedora 12 has made everything really easy to fix this, except for one step. You have to enable a third party source for those patents. Most people (myself included) will recomend rpmfusion.
Configuration - RPM Fusion
install the free repository at minimum, though for a new user, it may be a good idea to install the nonfree until you get a handle on things. The free / nonfree debate is mostly a matter of personal choice, but some people refuse to use nonfree (as in free speech, not free beer,) software.

once you have setup those repositories, just run an mp3 file, the fedora goodness will kick in, and you should have a box open asking you to install the required stuff. Once that is done, you will need to restart that application, and it should then work.


As far as understanding the files, the biggest point to understand, is that there is no C: or D: drive, or any letters. Everything is thrown together into 1 giant tree. Instead of C:\, we have /, instead of C:\documents and settings\, we have /home/. Same principals though, all of your pictures, documents, music, all of your files that you care about will be in /home/userID. As far as you'll need to know to be a casual user, your whole world is /home/userID/, or, your home directory.


The command line can also be easy to learn if you give it some time. A lot of commands seem cryptic, but it is not as bad as most people first think. you have the exact same files and folders (if you open the command line, you start out in your home directory.) As a casual user though, no, you'll never NEED to use the command line, but do give it a chance, it can be quite satisfying knowing you just saved yourself an hours worth of work because you knew a command to run that took 20 seconds.

ONE MORE THING, donde esta me chimmichanga