linux=safer pc?

[keybowvio]

Just recently I was reading a post somewhere that said:
1. get a copy of the linux os
2. install to a small portion of your HD
3.whenever you want to surf the internet, just boot to Linux. This willl protect you pc from viruses as most don't target the linux os.


I was wondering if this would be a free way (no subscription payments to give to Norton) to protect your pc from viruses.

any advice is appreciated

-thx

[RWD3]

Athough it is safer, because when people make malicious content, like viruses and so forth, along with spyware and pop-ups and what not, they aim to target the masses, and ,lets face it, Windows is by far the majority when it comes to usage.

But in my opinion it is not worth it to go through the partitioning of the HDD and the installation of a distribution of Linux just to surf the internet. Its just to much of a hassle to switch from one to the just for internet use, plus most distributions of Linux's media players arn't compatible and the browsers usually don't have shockwave, flash, or java plug-ins, and at my point right now, I'm to big of a Linux noob to figure out how to install the plug-ins.

So in my eyes stay with windows to avoid unneed hassle, and either suck it up and pay for a good anti-virus program, or just be safer with your internet content

[liljim]

If you have an interest in learning linux then i say go for it but i suggest you install it on a seperate hdd all together. You can put it on a different partition but if your new to it and decide you dont want it anymore its alot easier to have it on a seperate hdd. This way you dont have to format and reclaim the space that linux was on. You can remove the drive it was on and a simple dos command (fixmbr) will have you booting straight to windows again.

As far as antivirus, you can use avg free or antivir for windows protection, both work better than norton and both are free but you are safer with linux.

The Mandrake distributions are probably the easiest to setup and with the KDE enviroment you will still have a easy "point & click" interface thats familliar to windows. Drivers can sometime be a problem and Mandrake supports alot of hardware but i suggest searching for compatable drivers in advance.

Media player and browser:
For the most, linux uses XMMS which works fine but theres a ton to choose from and all free. Mozilla's browser is commonly packaged with linux and Mozilla Firefox is also an option. They do support all the media types, java, flash, etc. and its just the same as using firefox in windows but you have less of a threat of infections.

Theres alot of benefits but linux takes patience just as anything else. One of the biggest benefits would have to be the free software avaliable. Everything from burning programs to office applications are avaliable at no cost. On top of that you have the benefit that you already new about, security.

[keybowvio]

thanks for the response and sorry i took so long to get back to you, just wanted to do my research.

yes, liljim, I am thinking of trying out linux. I think I will start with knoppix (live bootable cd)

now for my questions:
how/where do i go to download it? when I go to the download page on this site:

http://www.knoppix.org/

I click on the link to a download site and it takes me to a strange looking page that I'm not familiar with. What are you supposed to do when you get there?

[keybowvio]

I think I di enough investigating to answer my own questions:

I figured out that one of the links is a 700mb file that downloads

I used roxy easy cd creater to make a bootable cd with the iso file that I downloaded.

I set the burn speed on 6x

I'm crossing my fingers and hoping it works.

I'll report back shortly.

let me know if I did something wrong...

[liljim]

I think I di enough investigating to answer my own questions:

I figured out that one of the links is a 700mb file that downloads

I used roxy easy cd creater to make a bootable cd with the iso file that I downloaded.

I set the burn speed on 6x

I'm crossing my fingers and hoping it works.

I'll report back shortly.

let me know if I did something wrong...

Your on the right track and i should have actually mentioned trying a live CD first. Knoppix is a live version built from the Debian kernel, which is fine, but i have an alternative you can take a look at also. Its called PCLinuxOS and its also live but built from a Mandrake kernel. Heres a link to the web site. Theres alot of information about it and download links. I dont have this version myself but its newer than knoppix and has better hardware support. You'll notice when you click download, theres 4 versions that include specific video drivers. Use the version that supports your video card and everything should be fine.

[keybowvio]

I have succecfully booted into linux

lilijim, I would be more than happy to download a newer version of linux, only, I don't know what video card I have *blushes*.

It said on the site that the 7676 ditribution is for newer nvidia products, I know my card is an nvidia card, but would it be considered new?
I just bought my computer a little under a year ago.


-thanks

[liljim]

I guess theres a couple ways to find out but heres one of several

in XP, click the start button and go to run. Type in dxdiag then press enter. Click yes on the dialog box then a window will appear. Click on the Display tab at the top of the window and all the information for your video card will be listed in the device section.