Search

Learning Gentoo

Submitted by ggarron on Sat, 02/16/2008 - 19:56.

gentoo Linux

This week I have installed Gentoo, I made it using the Live CD once there I have used the text interface to install it, with the expert option, and using Networkless, so it is more or less like installing the Debian base system.

Once that installed (the instructions were easy to follow), I installed xorg

emerge xorg-x11

Follow this: http://www.gentoo.org/doc/en/xorg-config.xml

and fluxbox

emerge fluxbox

Follow this: http://gentoo-wiki.com/HOWTO_Fluxbox

After that I wanted to install firefox, so I had some problems, I had to resync my portage packages using:

emerge --sync

Then follow this to install firefox

Install Firefox on Gentoo

As you can see everything is well documented on Gentoo, I think it is really difficult to add something to such well documented distro, I have to say it is not easy to work with it, but I like it, it optimizes the hardware to limits I had not seen before, using uptime I could have seen that uses less CPU resources than my Light Debian with Fluxbox I think I will really go deeper on this Distro, and hardly recommend it to anyone who would like to learn a lot about Linux, and I do not mean learn how to work with it, I mean learn how Linux work!.

Trackback URL for this post:

http://www.go2linux.org/trackback/446

ggarron's blog

If you like this article, subscribe to our full rss

If this article was somehow useful for you, you can leave something in the tip's jar
Please post your question in our forum and use comments only to leave your comments about the article, thanks.

[..] but I like it, it

Submitted by Avinash (not verified) on Fri, 03/21/2008 - 11:41.

[..] but I like it, it optimizes the hardware to limits I had not seen before, using uptime I could have seen that uses less CPU resources than my Light Debian with Fluxbox [..]

Try compiling Gentoo using the Minimal install CD then you'll realize how faster can a Gentoo system be. Compilation is not so hard as it sounds, particularly when you've the Gentoo manual available. Gentoo does require patience though. If you can be patient enough to watch the compilation process going on and on and on.. for 12+ hrs, go ahead and compile Gentoo on your system. :-)

Thanks, I will try it.

Submitted by ggarron on Fri, 03/21/2008 - 12:21.

Thanks, I will try it.

Guillermo Garron

I am also a very long time

Submitted by Thadeu Penna (not verified) on Sun, 03/30/2008 - 17:21.

I am also a very long time Debian user and very happy with it. But now I have to build a PS3 cluster for Physics and I decide to deploy Gentoo in those machines. I find easy (not the easier tough)I post about it in http://profs.if.uff.br/tjpp/blog/entradas/escolhi-a-distribuicao-do-clus... but it is in Portuguese :( I promise next posts about Gentoo on PS3 will be in English.

I used Gentoo for about a

Submitted by Seth Paxton (not verified) on Thu, 04/03/2008 - 23:46.

I used Gentoo for about a year and while It was very fast and fun to use, I did not like the compilation time it took to install a program. I strongly recommend Arch Linux over Gentoo. Arch is very comparable in speed and it uses binaries for program installation.

Thanks, I have never tried

Submitted by ggarron on Fri, 04/04/2008 - 10:30.

Thanks, I have never tried Arch, I will do it someday

Guillermo Garron

I have used Gentoo for a few

Submitted by Carlos Ribeiro (not verified) on Wed, 04/16/2008 - 14:53.

I have used Gentoo for a few years and I think it has its pros and cons. It's true that the machine becomes faster, but sometimes it's a pain the time it takes to compile everything. For me, I never used Gentoo because the machine was more optimized. What I really loved was two things: the huge repository (only rivaled by ubuntu these days) and the package management software "portage". Portage has a lot of problems, specially performance-wise, but it gives you a freedom I never saw elsewhere. Portage gives you the option to select specific tags when installing a software. Those tags will influence what features will be compiled in that package. And that makes a huge difference in the dependency tree for that software. So, with portage you can "unselect" kde support (for example) in some app, and kde-related dependencies will not be installed. This way you only install packages that you really need. And I like that :)

Hope you enjoy this great

Submitted by tangram (not verified) on Sat, 05/31/2008 - 23:42.

Hope you enjoy this great and unique distro!

I started using it about 1 year ago and never stopped using it. It's so flexible, clear and well documented that I don't have anything but praises for it.

Plus it great to learn Linux.

;)

I am just finishing my

Submitted by Richard (not verified) on Sun, 09/21/2008 - 09:32.

I am just finishing my install of Gentoo. Having tried many distros before I am really happy with Gentoo. I installed from minimal install and am just finishing off the configuration. The performance is outstanding - previously I had XP on the same machine and it was so slow. Not to mention the amount of 'workaround' software i had to install - antivirus, spyware, registry cleaners, defrag the list goes on (workaround because they workaround the problem and not fix it).

On the down side I must say my brand new Gentoo system has taken the best part of a week to set up (on and off) and have left it compiling/emerging overnight for kde and then a whole bunch of apps i wanted. Patience is required.

The other thing i am getting my head around, that i wasn't aware, of is this masking packages business. If you want the bleeding edge (or even in testing) apps there is a different procedure you have to follow. e.g. I'm still trying to find out how to install Firefox 3 and KDE 4.