Will Linux (Debian) work on this hardware?

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consolegamer

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May 23, 2014
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I'm planning on building a computer sometime this year or early next year, and the components I'm looking at are...

Intel Celeron G1820
MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA 1150 mobo
Kingston Blu 4GB DDR3 1600 memory
nVidia GeForce GT 740

I'm planning on running Debian, although I've heard it has issues with new hardware. Would this present problems for me if I chose to use these components, and if so, how old should the components I use be? Also, if Debian doesn't work with this hardware, is there a relatively stable distro I could use with these components until Debian supports them?
 
Solution
ksham
Yes; you can run Debian Wheezy on that. And actually, old isn't always better. You're better off getting parts that are a few years old. The biggest issue is usually the graphics card support. Unlike with Squeeze, where it's a pain in the ass, dkms does make easy work installing drivers for most cards. That said, I recommend you stick with nvidia. You can easily Google a list of graphics cards that dkms supports.
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Yes; you can run Debian Wheezy on that. And actually, old isn't always better. You're better off getting parts that are a few years old. The biggest issue is usually the graphics card support. Unlike with Squeeze, where it's a pain in the ass, dkms does make easy work installing drivers for most cards. That said, I recommend you stick with nvidia. You can easily Google a list of graphics cards that dkms supports.
 
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Solution
Unless you are running it as a server, those points may NOT matter one bit and I'll explain why. Both Ubuntu and Arch are NOT stable in my opinion; however, they are more user-friendly. At the end of the day, if you are unable to get your hardware to work properly because you do not know how to install the proper drivers, it does not matter how stable or user-friendly an OS is because you won't use it. For most users, Ubuntu and Arch Linux are stable enough. I agree that their systems are not tested to the extend that Debian's is in terms of stability. But if you are coming from OS X or Windows and have little to no experience with Linux, Ubuntu and Arch Linux may be more suited to ease your way into Linux.

So the final question is: are you willing to do a lot of testing and get your hands dirty in getting drivers installed properly on Debian? It is usually not as easy as in Ubuntu and the Debian user-base is not as user-friendly to newbies as Ubuntu's user-base is (on average). Their near zero-tolerance for incompetent newbie questions where you appear to not know your way around your system can create a very unpleasant experience for you using Debian at the start. So I suggest you start with Ubuntu, gain some experience, and if you want to use Debian, you can always change. If you want, you can install Debian alongside Ubuntu in dual-boot format to test how you like both sides.
 
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Thanks so much for all this help. I'm planning on taking an intro-to-Linux course before I build this, so I'll probably be more comfortable with the OS by then than I am now. I hear there are a certain set of guidelines that Linux distros are all supposed to conform to in order to make learning new distros easier once you've learned one, and that Debian is one of the few that conforms to these guidelines. Is there a more newb-friendly distro that does this?
 
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There is no standard. Each project has a project manager that reviews code and features before they are released. They are of course all coordinated. But there's no rules or guidelines that they much adhere to that allows newcomers to understand them easier.

The only reason Ubuntu is more user-friendly is because MOST of their users are Linux-newbies. So they relate to other's problems and are willing to help. But other operating system where the users are more mature to Linux, they are less likely to care about newbie questions. And the population is also smaller. Most of the time, newbies are left to fend for themselves. They usually give up and go to a more user-friendly base. And most of the other time, they give really good directions and advice, but the newbie user find the post a bit out of their league because they can't understand most of it so the newbie user make a follow-up post saying the same issue with no progress and almost appears to ignore the helpful post that someone posted up. So by doing so, users start ignoring newbie users. No one wants to spend their free time posting all that information just to be ignored.
 
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I read this on a forum once, and this person seems to think there's a standard.

"One thing I find infuriating about Linux is the fact that there are usually pretty standard ways of doing things (say, /etc/init.d/ scripts, for instance), but only a handful of distros really stick to it. On one distro it's expected you'll utilize init scripts, on another you're expected to use a graphical manager (which calls the f$*%ing init script anyways!), and on another you're expected to use some wrapper script BS. (Edit - I suppose this is more a feature of the "frankenOS" nature of Linux moreso than anything else, though)."
 
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No; that's not what the user is saying at all. But yes, there is a directory structure in Linux for where files should go, just like Windows and every other operating system out there. Ever seen the system32 directory in Windows? Put a binary there and you can run it via command line because it's already in $PATH. That has nothing to do with how the operating system works.

But all distros do NOT install program files into the same places.
 
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Which Mint variant? This is one of the more annoying bits about Linux distros. Not only are there a ton of different distros, but some distros have different variants. Linux Mint has a few -- Ubuntu variant or Debian variant. For beginners, Ubuntu and Mint are a tie. If I had to choose, I think Ubuntu would be better suited because it has a bigger user base so if you have issues, you can find answers on Google easier.
 
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Use UBUNTU, not Debian. Ubuntu just works (95%) and withj 6-mo experience is amazingly flexible. Debian and Debionians will cut-yo-throat and leave you bleeding in the gutter.

Is there a "better" Linux-OS than UBUNTU? Yes. **Scientific Linux**, a RedHat Enterprise knock-off. Should you use it? No.



 
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Anything , but UBUNTU ?? Wrongheaded elitist arglebargle since RedHat_6 . If you remember RH_6 just worked for every-lusr OOTB. Worked for me ..... RedHat killed-off that public-exposure fast , taking it from $60 to $200/seat-per-year ... but cat-out-of-box. Eh ?

And screeching !337 neckbeards fought tooth-&-nail to populate the code ecosystem with other Linux unusable infectious varients -- cyclopian snarling Cthulu-like horrors as LFS, GENTOO & DEBIAN --- but they were progressively slapped-down and slapped-down hard by the production, acceptance and growth of usrland friendly Ubuntu/Cent varients.

Yep, with some clues from WWW gurus like those on THW even I can use it. More powerful & easier used computer appliance than M$.Win most say. Cheaper too ... hehehe. Get over it Ijack.



 
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When did this turn from a conversation between what is good to what "works" and what is popular? Ubuntu "works" but it is not built very well. It's like people having a fascination with crappy power supplies (PSUs). Yes, they "work" for the time being but they are not built well and are crap. I don't care how popular they are, crap is crap. People are just misinformed or lack the knowledge to understand otherwise.

Let's leave it at that.
 
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Granted IJack, the usage figures are (almost) all on your side. But, then in M$Win favor are so many specialized lusrland apps, apps that perform specific tasks ... and specialized M$ firmware in for-the-trade devices ... say nothing of the mafia-style behavior Bill Gates used to position them. Felonious? Of-course.

In technical areas from banking to particle physics the software choice is made for the applications code not the OS ... but Microsoft-friendly apps dominate the software. I see this with my own legacy WINbox that runs A-->D data aquisition hardware. Where this task-specific behavior dominates Linux must step-aside no question.

OTOH I run all my circuit analysis tasks on a WIN-program in WINE ... and run them without issue. My polymer modeling proggies are written in and run on Ubuntu. Wherever the task-specific software is available, Linux more than breaks-even in technical tasks and in the number of users.

I conclude ... computer appliance use-numbers are deceptive. Where Linux apps are available Linux rules. I have no numbers from CERN, but I'd wager it's LINUX everywhere except for the HR babes. Where no Linux task-specific apps are available M$ rules. Fair enough.





 
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In an important sence ... yes, ofcourse ... as we would say of LeCarre or Cornwalls use of prepositional phrases. Yet also, in the less important sence that Ubuntu Linux drives underused, but very friendly and useful computer appliances easily adapted to more robust programming tasks.

Don't growl so, IJack and scare away widows & orphans.



 
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Unbelievable! If Debian and LFS were the only two Linux options then the 1500 installed Linux desktops could be run from a bank of D-cell batteries. No REAL power-supplies good or bad would be stressed in this counter-factual world.



 
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I'm sorry, but you need to work on your English skills. You completely misunderstood my post.

And instead of picking arguments with @Ijack and myself, why don't you help @consolegamer with his or her problem? This is his or her thread. This is not your thread. Open your own thread if you want to talk about your ideals. I don't want to appear as backseat modding. I am just getting a bit annoyed to get notifications to this thread to see a post that has nothing to do with OP's (original poster) issues.
 
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ksham, is there a distro that's as user friendly as Mint and as stable as Debian? Also, I've given this some more thought, and I'm going to buy a ZaReason laptop instead of building a desktop.
 
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