A few Linux questions before install...

Ok, I just finished reinstalling it with all the preconfigured settings that the installation recommended. It works fine now, it booted up into SuSE right after the install and works nice and fast.

This time, I selected the Games package and Multimedia package, and it used all 5 discs this time.

As you can understand, I am confused on how to use Linux still, and have a few questions. Please bear with me, these can get lengthy.



- How do I play MP3s?
I inserted one of my DVD backups of my files, and tried to play some music. None of the music players could play .mp3 files, only .wav worked. They all said I need a special decoder tool to play .mp3. How do I solve this problem?

- How do I play Movies?
None of my little movies and videos worked. All the video formats I had (avi, wmv, mpg, mov) could not play. How do I get it to work?

- Audio configuration?
With the few .wav files that I could play, I found that the music sounds somewhat empty and hollow. It sounds different than in Windows, and I think the reason is the Windows software for my onboard sound, Realtek HD Audio Manager. Using that, I set the bass higher for better sound in Windows. Is there a Linux version of this software to configure the equalizer?

- Video Configuration?
I didn't touch the video settings at all this time. It suggested 1024x768, while I'm used to 1280x960 in Windows. Can I up the video configurations to my preference without worries? Or should I get a Linux Catalyst Driver for my graphics card first?

- I don't have internet up yet. I might use that ndiswrapper for my USB network adapter (is there another method??). Before I can install anything (like the wrapper, audio driver, or video driver), I need to learn how to install stuff first!
Can someone give me a link to a page, or briefly explain how to install software in Linux?

- I have no idea how to do simple tasks via the terminal. Can someone link me to a page to learn terminal commands?



That's all for now, I apologize for the amount of questions I have.

Please help me to the best of your ability.

Thanks a lot!

I can't help you out on that one, I am still learning and I barely use it, for now

I would answer the other questions, but I'm really tired, but here are a few important terminal commands.

Code:

Ls

- shows the contents of the current directory

Code:

pwd

- present working directory, shows the path of the folder you are in

Code:

sudo

- sudo runs a command as the root user or administrator, such as "sudo apt-get install emacs"

Code:

apt-get install emacs

or

Code:

emerge emacs

- used to install new applications where "emacs is the name of the application you want

Code:

rm ./file.txt

- deletes a file, substitute "./file.txt" for anything

Code:

mkdir ./test

- this command makes a directory with the name and path you specify, (the "./" means in the current directory)

Code:

cd /home/boogityboo

- "cd" is the command to go to a folder, you can subtute the name of and folder or directory instead of /home/boogityboo (if you are in a directory and want to go to one inside of it, you don't need to type the full path)


Another thing is how to open files and programs. To open a program you just type its name, it's quite simple. If you want to open a file, you first type the name of the program to use and then the name of the file.

Code:

nano /home/boogityboo/test.txt

Some useful programs are:

Nano - a basic text editor

Emacs - a good text editor for programming, it uses syntax highlighting

Go ahead, if it works so far, it should work fine.


Now, to play MP3's try XMMS.

Code:

xmms /home/test.mp3

Unfortunately, I don't have time to explain installing drivers via the terminal, but it is harder than installing software.

Thanks for those important terminal commands Boogityboo. They're sure to come in handy.

Thanks for those links Mictlantecuhtli, the Hacking SuSE Linux 10.1 site will really get me started.

I'm sorry that my replies have been a bit slow over the past couple of days. I am usually engulfed with large quantities of work on weekdays.


I went to the display configuration (after it asked for my root password)and tried to change the 16-bit color to 24-bit. It asked if I want to run a test to see if it would work first, so I ran the test for 24bit and it gave me that rainbow-colored screen again, so I did not change it to 24bit and just left it at 16bit.

I also changed the 1024x768 resolution to 1280x960, and it gave me the message:

I click yes, rebooted the system, and went back into SuSE. The resolution is still at 1024x768 and did not change. I repeated this process a few times with no luck. How do I change it?


Also, I tried XMMS music player, and it was very similar to the WinAMP player I use. I tried to create a playlist by importing my music files, but it just would not work with mp3 files. I can import .wav files easily and they can play, but not mp3. Do I need to install additional software so that my music players can play mp3?


Also, I still need to get internet set up for Linux. D-Link does not provide Linux drivers for my DWL-G132 Wireless USB Network Adapter. What methods can be used to make wireless internet work? Is "wrapping" the Windows driver with ndiswrapper the only way to make it work? How else can it be done?


I need to learn how to install new software and programs into Linux. Can someone explain or link me to a website on how to install software?


I promise to learn as much as I can.

Thanks a bunch!

In newer SuSE, your best option would probably be Smart. But you have to install that first

SuSE default package manager is YaST2. Go to System->Yast->Software->Software Management. This should give you the packages available on SuSE CDs.

If you have an internet connection, then you probably want to add some extra installation sources: http://en.opensuse.orgAdditional_YaST_Package_Repositories

Packman and Guru are a must. The other sources should be included only if you specifically need something from these.

For the ATI driver, I downloaded the first one on the list in that link you gave me, the 55.3 MB one, is that correct?

Also, on that same page, I clicked installer instructions and got a page with a procedure on how to install it.

Will those instructions work for me? Will I successfully install the ATI drivers by following that page step-by-step?

Thanks

I got the ATI Radeon Linux driver, ati-driver-installer-8.30.3.run

I followed their installation instructions. Everything went smoothly until I got to step #7. It was right after the installation finished.

That command didn't work and I couldn't configure my newly installed driver.

After a reboot, the screen settings were much clearer and was set at a higher resolution without me setting it. I tried to open the ATI driver configuration again, but no luck. The only graphics related application I could get to is the Screen/Graphics Configuration in YaST.

I rebooted again, and this time, I couldn't get to the login screen!

Selected Yes. It came up with a bunch of info, but I think the most interesting/problematic part was this:

After selecting OK,

It then took me to what I believe is terminal mode, where it asked for my username + password without the graphical login screen.

And now, I have no clue what to do? Wow, do I need to reinstall again?


Also, I went into YaST Software Management, and searched for "Guru" and "Packman", it came up with no result. Do I need to insert a disc for so it can find it?


Again, I apologize for my lag in updating my progress with SuSE. This week and maybe the next will present to me a less busy schedule, where I can dedicate more time to this.


Any thoughts with my problems are appreciated.
Thanks in advance

"Didn't work" is not a very helpful expression. Please. How did it fail? What did it say?

Look in the /etc/X11 directory and see if there are many filenames beginning with "xorg.conf". There could be a backup version that works. You should be able to generate a working version by deleting the current /etc/X11/xorg.conf and running "yast" from the command line. You should get a text mode version of the app that lets you configure X again. After you get the picture back, you can try installing the ATI drivers again.

Did you actually read the pages I linked to? You have to add these repositories to the YaST configuration. They are not there by default.

Hello

I don't remember what exactly it said when I typed in the command, I didn't write it down (silly me!). I do remember that after issuing the command, a few short lines of text appeared. The first few lines confirmed parts of the command that were successful. It said something like "...found..detected..initiated..", you know, the usual stuff that indicates something works. However, the final line that popped up says something "...failed", which indicated that something didn't work. (all the "..." are parts where I don't know exactly what it said)

I booted up into SuSE again, and after the X interface error notification, it brought me to the terminal mode again. How do I navigate to the /etc/X11 directory through text? Is it by any chance "cd /etc/X11"? Are the commands similar to that of cmd prompt in Windows?

What if there's no backup version of xorg.conf? And How do I reconfigure X with the text mode version of Yast?

That link you gave me before doesn't work, but I navigated through opensuse.org to what I presumed to be the correct pages you intended to link me to (YaST Repositories), and read through them. I will install a few of them once I get internet working.