Fedora 7 Rivals Ubuntu's Ease of Use
Posted 06/12/07 at 02:54:26 PM | by Robert Strohmeyer
Here at Maximum PC, we've long touted Ubuntu Linux's easy installation and configuration options, which -- for the first time, really -- made Linux a viable OS for ordinary folk. Now the release of Fedora 7 heats up the Linux desktop world with a truckload of cool features that make it easy to get up and running fast, and keep running securely.
If you love the sweet simplicity if Ubuntu's automated updates, Fedora 7 offers the same level of automation, which makes it easy to take advantage of new features, new kernels, and new drivers as they become available. This is a boon to system security, too, because it cuts down the lag time between the time a bug fix is released and the time it's installed on your machine.
Also boosting security is the SELinux security package, which lets you control your permissions and settings through a simple graphical interface. This utility has a lot of growing to do before most users will get much out of it, but it's worth taking some time to get familiar with.
One of our favorite advances with Fedora 7 is the Display Settings menu, which makes it easy to select your system's hardware from a series of drop-down menus. This beats the pants off having to add your widescreen display resolutions to your xorg.conf file manually. Unfortunately, because our Samsung SyncMaster 225BW wasn't listed in the database, we ended up having to do that anyway.
Fedora 7 also offers a graphical wireless configuration tool, which includes settings for a variety of cards. Sadly, most Broadcom cards aren't included, so we still had to hack the firmware with the firmware cutter just as we've always done in Ubuntu.
If you love Red Hat, it goes without saying that you're bound to go nuts over Fedora 7. But this distro is also worth a look for just about anyone who wants to try Linux for the first time. With a noob-friendly installation routine and simple customization menus that make daily use a breeze, we're glad Fedora 7 has thrown its hat into the ring.
[6/13/2007 - typo/formatting edit]
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Fedora 7 Multimedia Repos
Submitted by byroniac on Wed, 2007-06-20 20:59
Sadly, for the time being, cj100570 is probably right. This is not the case with Fedora Core 6, however. The website Fedora FAQ ( http://www.fedorafaq.org/ ) has detailed instructions for Fedora Core 6, on how to safely add third-party multimedia support and codecs. No, I'm not affiliated with the site, and I receive no reward for posting this (I'm just a satisfied user of their website; that's it). Another good place is Fedora Solved at http://www.fedorasolved.org/
If you're wanting a bleeding-edge Linux distro, get Fedora 7 (notice there's no "Core" in the name, now). If you need the third-party multimedia support and codecs, you're probably better off with Fedora 6 for the time being. However, if you're like me and love Red Hat and want the latest and greatest, you'll run Fedora 7 at home and not look back.
Oh...also, check out the Mozilla PluginDoc for extra help on getting Web Browsers configured for stuff like flash (though Fedora FAQ is better, IMO, for Fedora Core 6, or you can visit http://macromedia.mplug.org ):
PluginDoc Linux x86
http://plugindoc.mozdev.org/linux.htmlPluginDoc Linux x86_64 (64-bit)
http://plugindoc.mozdev.org/linux-amd64.html
Submitted by Beatnik on Sun, 2007-06-17 07:33
Hey Robert,
Interesting and good little article for newbies. Congratulations for writing about other distro than Ubuntu.
For Out of the box experience I recommend you to please try some of this distros if you feel frustrated with Ubuntu:
1- PCLinux
2- Sabayon Linux
3- Sam Linux
4- Mint LinuxAnd yes, Fedora 7 is praised by many.
Easier Than Or Just As Easy As Ubuntu? Hardly!
Submitted by cj100570 on Wed, 2007-06-13 14:40
I run Ubuntu 7.04 and Fedora 7 and there's no comparison where ease of use is concerned. Adding proprietary codecs to Fedora is a nightmare. With Ubuntu its a simple point and click process. Newbies should approach Fedora 7 with extreme caution!
Submitted by Robert Strohmeyer on Thu, 2007-06-14 08:31
The trouble many people have with adding codecs is that the default repositories in Fedora and openSUSE don't include proprietary software. But if you add in third-party repos, (Google "distro_name repositories"), you can get the same level of point-and-click simplicity from Fedora 7 or openSUSE 10.2 as you get from Ubuntu Feisty. (This is an oversimplification to some degree. Ubuntu's actual update utility is a little more intuitive than the ones included in Fedora and openSUSE.) I should probably do a post about this soon.
Submitted by maddee on Tue, 2007-06-12 14:33
Easier than Ubuntu!!?? Heck, I'll have to give it a try!
Submitted by gam3r4eva on Tue, 2007-06-12 20:05
Wait, Linux != Ubuntu!? Shocking! It's good to see a non-Ubuntu article once in a while.
I'm not anti-Ubuntu or anything (I use it on a few rigs), I just think if Linux is about choice, people should know about the other choices. Ubuntu seems to get all the attention these days.
Submitted by Robert Strohmeyer on Wed, 2007-06-13 06:50
I agree, gam3r4eva. I generally run at least two distros at any given time. (At the moment, I'm typing this on my openSUSE-powered laptop.) I'll make it a point not to let this blog devolve into a string of Ubuntu-centric posts.
Radeon X1K...
Submitted by ponchato on Tue, 2007-06-12 13:39
How did they get it to work with a Radeon X1K series videocard? I'd really like to try Fedora 7 out, but because I have an X1600, it doesn't work...
Submitted by pilgrim50 on Wed, 2007-06-20 10:51
I have a Radeon x1600 mobility and it works fine in fedora with the ati drivers.
Try downloading the ati driver from their website:
http://ati.amd.com/support/drivers/linux/linux-radeon.htmlIf that does not work check out my site about fedora 7
I wrote a little how-to for installing the ati drivers.
http://pilgrim50.googlepages.com/fedora73There are also some links to good install guides that are easy to follow and show you how to install codecs and software in fedora.
If you have an x1600 it should work fine just like mine did. Just use the ati installer to generate the rpm packages for your Linux distro then use
"rpm -ivv filename" to install each package it generates.
Let me know if you have trouble.
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