OSDev.org

I wasn't developing no OS in VC++ officer, I swear!

Hiya for anyone trying linux who actually wants to also have a clue about how their os is made up + has a system as near as you can get to windows update on a linux box(Portage) I would suggest gentoo, just goto the gentoo site, goto get gentoo , get the minimum install disk NOT the live cd(live cd is good for other distros though as mentioned ) and follow the gentoo handbook to the letter. Heres the thing the gentoo live cd contains a pre-built system but it is very buggy.

Another thing is I have quite a decent system Im installing gentoo on with pci express and a amd 64 dual core processor and it has been quite time consuming getting things working, but if you have even a semi modern system everything on gentoo should work out the box. If you go the min install route be prepared to spend 2 days getting everything setup as you will have to wait on the kde libs compiling so you can have a base system like windows.

But honestly I would rather spend 2 days settig up a gentoo box then use portage emerge to get all my apps added to my base system and as good as know everythings going to work, portage isnt going to give me dependancy hell and the alike. (Live cd can give dependancy hell on certain configs - just tried live cd initially then went the traditional route)

I wouldnt advise going for redhat or ubuntu or any other distro as even though they install faster just getting your tools installed for os dev emulation could cause heaps of problems in regards to dependancies unless you are confident with the versioning for that distro and know exactly what packages house some of the more obscure libraries. This is why I think gentoos portage is so great because something truely doesnt get on portages stable tree unlesss its dam stable .

The setup can be a pain though but get past that to the point your drivers are in, and your internet and portage is setup and you can get everything you need.

I must admit getting gentoo installed on my system has wasted a bit of time but at least I know how to set it up properly on my new system now. Im going to emerge the kde packages tonight and with a reasonable amount of luck I should be back reading about OS dev tommorow

get gentoo

latest x86 gentoo handbook

Just try not to get bogged down so much in linux its going to eat into your time learning about OS dev

------EDIT IMPORTANT
One guy suggested using vmware , that may be the safest way as Ive found all distros have the risk to nuke ones whole system if instructions arent followed and even with ceratin distros if they are followed! So make sure everythings backed up before trying a dual boot or such things!

maverick777 wrote:If you go the min install route be prepared to spend 2 days getting everything setup as you will have to wait on the kde libs compiling so you can have a base system like windows.

You can also opt to install binary packages. And 2 days is a bit long, my laptop takes about a day to install all the way up to a gnome desktop and basic programs.

maverick777 wrote:portage isnt going to give me dependancy hell and the alike.

generally true, however every once in a while something goes wrong. Nothing revdep-rebuild won't fix though.

maverick777 wrote:I wouldnt advise going for redhat or ubuntu or any other distro as even though they install faster just getting your tools installed for os dev emulation could cause heaps of problems in regards to dependancies unless you are confident with the versioning for that distro and know exactly what packages house some of the more obscure libraries. This is why I think gentoos portage is so great because something truely doesnt get on portages stable tree unlesss its dam stable

Err, I believe that's more a problem with rpm's (or was a problem? haven't used them in a while). Ubuntu's package manager should keep track of versions and dependencies just as portage does.

If you do decide to go with gentoo, though, gentoo-wiki is a great resource.

I personally use gentoo as my main OS, btw.

Hiya yeah fair comment about using binarys and rpms , and also that theres problems from time to time but I have used a good few other distros pkg managers , lets take apt get as an example, I remember that program advising me that I needed to go a certain route in regards to running apt get and it wiped my whole system.(Cant remember the specifics but many people ended up with wiped systems and there was alot on the forums about it) Outwith package manangers not so long ago you had fedora core by default nuking the MBR by default lol and there were article writers at the time commenting how some of the linux communitys attitude was to the effect , ow well what are you installing windows for?. So yes perhaps I am rather bias perhaps but for good reason, the reason I like gentoo so much is because its as stable as it gets imo in regards to linux distros on the whole. Ubuntu gets a good name also but I dont find they have as good docs that explain the OS and bugs/fixes inside out, the gentoo forums+docs are a great resource. In saying that Ive just came from there forums saying there live cd is really bad so they probably arent to happy but I just dont want to see a great distro fall in standard.(So yes it is not perfect I agree but its still up there with the best)

Installing kubuntu on my system takes < 2hours...

Yes James Ubuntu gets a good name . Im also thinking you know OS internals very well so if anythings wrong you know exactly where to look. I will knowing where to look and what to change in some cases am still at the stage where I need to double check documentation to make sure Im doing the correct thing , and stuff like the gentoo handbook has learned me much. Thats why I put up with the long install + having portage , say I need apps to do os dev or something else well 9 times out of 10 I know if theres a problem its with me not doing something right and not with buggy apps(Offcourse theres always exceptions) . I may try ubuntu again one day as its been a while since I used it so Im guessing there must be a wealth of well written docs to tell you how to set stuff up?

Also where gentoo is concerned if you are half way through emerging kde-meta and something goes wrong its alot of time wasted! I try to see all sides of the debate to be honest so I guess gentoo is personal preferance to me & I reccomend it to linux newbies because of the docs & pkg manager but whatever works for the person is best - I can see the pro/cons of windows and linux, basically no os is all good & none is all bad.