Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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86 of 88 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
How to test for SuSE 9.2, November 20, 2004
First, for those of you who wonder if your PC can run SuSE, go to ftp://ftp.gtlib.cc.gatech.edu/pub/suse/suse/i386/live-cd-9.2 and download either SUSE-Linux-9.2-LiveCD-KDE.iso or SUSE-Linux-9.2-LiveCD-KDE.iso. You can burn these to a CD and then boot into a live SuSE system. Nothing will be installed, and it is a great litmus test to see if SuSE 9.2 will work as you expect on your target system. If it works as expected, then purchase 9.2 Pro and install it on your system.
Second, keep in mind that Linux is not Windows. It never has been and it never will be. If you want the features of Windows with the security of Linux, but you want it in a turn-key system, then buy a Mac. With a Mac you get ease of use as well as key Microsoft applications such as Word. The only problem with this is you are buying both hardware and software.
Third, today's distributions want contemporary hardware. If your system is running Windows 9x, then there's a good chance you'll have problems installing SuSE 9.2. The same thing can be said, however, for WinXP, especially with service pack 2.
Finally, with Linux, you need to know what you're doing and you need to have a real reason to change. If you are happy with your Windows system, don't buy any Linux. If you're having problems with your Windows installation make sure it isn't something that can be easily fixed. If you're a casual user, then by all means be very careful with Linux. It will bite you. But if you have a real need for a feature or features found in Linux, and you're comfortable with the idea of fixing a problem that may show up, go ahead and install SuSE 9.2. I run it and I'm quite happy with it. I would be more than happy to help others install and run it as well. But I always make sure that folks know exactly what they're getting into. I'm a OS pragmatist, not an Linux evangelist.
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22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent Product, November 30, 2004
Those who complain, need to pay attention to what they are doing in YAST installer. It is NOT difficult, but, can be a bit confusing, expecially if you are used to a different distribution's installer, such as Mandrake Linux. For those with nVidia cards (including Quadros), you need to be online, as getting the drivers is part of the online update section of the installation. YAST won't delete partitions, unless you let it do so. I have 4 Operating Systems on my computer, and I installed it without deleting any partitions.
There is alot of software it does not install by default. Same with Mandrake Linux Powerpack. Simply select detailed selection and click to your heart's content.
The only negative I can find so far (I have to test k3b) is that SuSE still does not include Mozilla Messenger (I'm partial to Messenger).
SuSE 9.2 Professional is slick, fast, and very responsive. Better than Mandrake 10.0 Community Edition Powerpack. I bought a CD set of 9.2 Pro for evaluation, and I think it is worth buying the boxed set.
Charles Bradshaw
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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
9.2 Pro offers ease of install and configuration for newbies, November 13, 2004
Personal knows, I really like SUSE. It was my first Linux distro , it was my learning tool, etc. With that in mind, I'm proud to be able to review SUSE 9.2 PROFESSIONAL prior to its release to the general public.
SUSE Linux Professional 9.2, as the Novell-Suse Distribution is known, has updated much of the distributions core technology. This includes the new Linux kernel now 2.6.8 from version 9.1's version 2.6.4. In addition, 9.2 has shifted the distribution from Xfree86 to the X.Org Foundation's X Window System.
If you are a KDE user, you will be happy to know that SUSE has upgraded to version 3.3. GNOME users are not quite as fortunate as version 2.8 was released in September and the timing did not work for this release. 9.2 PRO has GNOME version 2.6. While not the newest, this is still a very feature filled release.
SUSE Linux Pro 9.2 also has new redesigned interfaces to make the setup of network services like Samba, DNS, and DHCP easier than before.
Other advancements in this distro include; GIMP 2, a comprehensive image processing and graphics creation tool, INKSCAPE, a new vector graphics application that is advertised to outperforms all other Linux alternatives, Nvu, a Web authoring system that combines Web file management and easy -to-use WYSIWYG Web-page editing, Open Office 1.1.3 and a host of other cutting edge programs.
An area that Linux, in general, has needed to improve upon has been WIRELESS. Version 9.2 Pro now offers "Bluetooth" wireless support including automatic recognition of Bluetooth-devices via the YaST configuration and admin tool. Bluetooth configuration is simple using YaST making it easy to connect to and move between wireless LANs (WLAN) and other network connections. There is even a suspend-the-disk feature that makes it easy for laptop users who require increased mobility.
WHAT ABOUT INSTALL AND USE?
Those that have installed SUSE before are familiar with the Green Screen. The new SUSE 9.2 Pro has a very pleasant blue and grey screen, but beyond that, the installation is as smooth as always. Couple of questions, auto partitioning (I always turn the entire hard drive over to the distro) and the installer goes to work. Not unlike every SUSE install, after Disc 1 has been installed, the installer reboots. A couple of disc changes and you are ready to boot into your new system.
Hardware detection is excellent. SUSE 9.2 PRO correctly detected all my hardware including my old HP printer and did the full set-up without problems.
I booted into KDE and was quite pleased with the speed, quality of fonts and graphics. Using the Suse icon, I went to the Control Center and selected a screen saver and then checked Internet to see what was available for browsing. KONQUEROR was my only choice, so I went to YaST and selected INSTALL SOFTWARE. With YaST, if you have never used it, you can search for software in a number of ways. I chose to enter Mozilla into the search block and it came up with Mozilla and a host of plugins. Also offered in this distro is Mozilla's Firefox.
After install, I checked to see what plugins had been installed, as I have a couple of sites on the Web where I go to play games! No JAVA! Not a problem, I made a directory and downloaded. Installing java in SUSE is a little different from other distributions. If you are using a Red Hat, Mandrake or a Debian distro, you can go to /usr/lib. Find Mozilla and install into the plugin directory. SUSE uses /opt/mozilla. If you are creating a simlink, your path to Mozilla becomes:
/opt/mozilla/lib/plugins
Once the symlink had been created, it was off to the Web to give it a spin. The system worked flawlessly and I noted how quickly the system responded to commands.
Sound would be the next check. I went to one of the Web music services and selected a genre. Immediately, I had music playing using Real Time Player 10.0.
So far, so good. The next test would be logging into my home network. The network consists of multiple LINUX machines in the Lab and a couple of WINDOWS XP machines in the household. The Windows machines are both wired and wireless (although it doesn't matter). Log in went flawlessly.
First look appeared as expected...EXCELLENT! For those that had fears when SUSE was purchased by Novell, this distribution should eliminate any doubts that SUSE is going to continue bringing an excellent product, featuring many cutting edge programs. Their release schedule is aggressive with a new distro planned for every 6 months.
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