Device does Linux, best Lincux support under windows?

Edwin Knoppert · Post by **Edwin Knoppert** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 10:37 am

I have a device which does Linux, is there an easy to handle Linux env. so i can develop PureBasic app's for this machine?

I'm not interested in a full blown Linux compatible thingy, only to develop and test the compiled exe.

dmoc · Post by **dmoc** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 6:38 pm

Edwin, can you expand your question, are you talking about environment variables? If so I do not see why these would prevent you from developing cross-platform apps.

PS: I appreciate to have software to sell but do we need the pic on every post? Other PB'ers peddle their goods without it.

Edwin Knoppert · Post by **Edwin Knoppert** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 8:07 pm

I'm looking for a simpliustic to instal linux env. to program in for Linux.
I heard about simply Linux support under windows (or multiboot)

Would prefer linux in a windows window.

Will remove the pic tomorrow, sorry and no worries.

Saboteur · Post by **Saboteur** » Tue Aug 17, 2004 9:45 pm

I think you refer to coLinux.
I don't tried it, but I think you must install it as windows service, and later you can install a Linux Distro.
Sorry, but better look at web...

Linux Lunatyk · Post by **Linux Lunatyk** » Wed Aug 18, 2004 10:24 am

Saboteur wrote:I think you refer to coLinux.
I don't tried it, but I think you must install it as windows service, and later you can install a Linux Distro.
Sorry, but better look at web...

CoLinux is NOT ready for serious usage and not advised for inexperienced users.

As for which Linux distro to install, well for new users I would suggest Mandrake or SuSE (my preferred distro). Try here for more answers.

http://www.distrowatch.com/

Saboteur · Post by **Saboteur** » Wed Aug 18, 2004 10:38 am

And what about install Linux in VirtualPC, Bosch, ...?

dmoc · Post by **dmoc** » Wed Aug 18, 2004 10:55 am

Have you used Linux before and are you serious about wanting to develop for it? I ask this because if you have no experience then it is best to try one of the bootable CD distro's first (eg, Dynebolic), at least to familiarise yourself before creating a development environment. Next up it you could install CYGWIN or MSYS both of which should allow you to learn Linux programming without having a Linux environment.

What are your machine specs? Yes you can run simultaneous OS's on one machine but unless you have a fairly high spec machine I'd recommend against it. There are easier, cheaper, safer and saner ways to go about it. Linux will happily run on a low spec machine. I learnt a on a pretty slow 200MHz notebook. Recompiling the kernel for optimisation helped a bit but it was sufficient for it's purpose as is. At the moment I develop on a triple boot 600MHz PIII machine with Linux\Win98\W2K on seperate HD's. Using GRUB allows you to get the D drive to appear as the C, for example, and this avoids problems with the egocentric MS OS's. Seperate HD's allow me to easily reconfigure things (eg, until last week I had two 600MHz PIII's, one went to my niece, hence the triple boot now).

From knowing nothing it took me a solid two weeks of 18 hr days to get proficient to admin level on Linux. This was mainly because I needed a secure set-up for a commercial website (2 servers + dmz). It was worth every minute, not mentioning the several 1000's I saved by avoiding MS NT. Good luck.

Linux Lunatyk · Post by **Linux Lunatyk** » Wed Aug 18, 2004 11:21 am

Edwin Knoppert wrote:I'm looking for a simpliustic to instal linux env. to program in for Linux.
I heard about simply Linux support under windows (or multiboot)

Would prefer linux in a windows window.

Hi Edwin. A couple of methods come to mind. You could try the CygWin system. It is difficult to explain but reasonably easy to install. It cannot guarantee compatibility with real Linux systems but most code can be easily modified to run on Linux distros.

Alternately, you could run a system like VmWare, a virtual PC which can run inside Windows (or Linux) and requires installing your Linux OS just like real hardware. This method is not cheap for casual usage as VmWare must be purchased. You can get an evaluation license from them. See here, http://www.vmware.com

The MS VirtualPC (also for sale) is not suggested for running Linux in Windows as it supports tools are Windows OS specific.

The other emulator of note is Bochs which emulates real PC hardware including the cpu and is somewhat slower than the virtualization method. Try, http://bochs.sourceforge.net/

Another possibility would be a networked based Linux PC which you can remotely access with a Windows X server software.

Yet another possibility would be a dual boot setup where Linux co-exists on the system but requires selection when the PC boots.

I think the CygWin systems is the best option for Windows users who can't or don't want to use Linux much but need the environment. It can be a large download during the setup session. Be aware that some software ports may not be the most current but they should be functional. See here for more info. http://xfree86.cygwin.com/

Hope this helps.

Max.Â² · Post by **Max.Â²** » Wed Aug 18, 2004 12:38 pm

Would be a nice project to make Knoppix PB/Linux ready-to-go, so one can easily try out or even seriously develop for Linux without the need of installing anything.

RJP Computing · Post by **RJP Computing** » Wed Aug 18, 2004 4:32 pm

Max.Â² wrote:Would be a nice project to make Knoppix PB/Linux ready-to-go, so one can easily try out or even seriously develop for Linux without the need of installing anything.

YES

YES

I have wanted to do this for some time now. That LiveCD design is completely great for the casual user. It is just the style of Linux I want to learn on. The more functional things I can do on Linux the faster I can learn it. Just my thoughts.

Could we start a project a to get this going. Please!!!!!! It doesn't have to be Knoppix, it can be another distribution like Morphix. I really like that one and I think there are some tools to help add software to it.

Max.Â² · Post by **Max.Â²** » Wed Aug 18, 2004 5:34 pm

@ RJP

Just downloading the Morphix Light GUI ISO image. Sounds promising. Maybe I can come up with something.

Beach · Post by **Beach** » Wed Aug 18, 2004 7:50 pm

It would really be nice to have a couple of PB specific editors on this new distro. I have been using the windows version of the PB/SciTE editor that was posted by PWS32 here: viewtopic.php?t=6269

I needed to load 'wine' to do this (windows emulator). It works perfectly except there are no graphics on the button bar. It is the closest thing to JaPBe I could find in the Linux environment.

I would really like to just use the Linux SciTE editor with the PB properties "Linux Lunatyk" posted but it does not work as well as the Windows version of SciTE (code folding and autocomplete are much better).

RJP Computing · Post by **RJP Computing** » Wed Aug 18, 2004 8:01 pm

@ Max2

Even good instructions would be great. I think they call it a mini-module in Morphix. They you could give it to Fred and add it to the download site. So he has control over the distribution.
8O Oh man this is going to be sweet. 8O

Max.Â² · Post by **Max.Â²** » Thu Aug 19, 2004 1:03 am

RJP Computing wrote:I think they call it a mini-module in Morphix. They you could give it to Fred and add it to the download site. So he has control over the distribution.

Yep, Fred needs to get the final control over it. ISO is downloaded now, maybe I can have a look tomorrow.

ivory · Post by **ivory** » Thu Aug 19, 2004 4:51 pm

Just to let you know about VMware.

I have used VMWare since its release, and I have used it both in Windows and Linux host machines.

In general, it works great, and gives you a perfect environment to develop in. It also provides the abillity to have TWO linux machines (or two Windows machines) running side by side using TCP or UDP to communicate with each other.

I mostly use SUSE linux, and there have been some version compatibility problems, but most of those are for versions 6.x of Suse and before.

VMWare, in addition to its initial cost, also costs a healthy chunk of disk space. You will want to allocate at least 2 to 4 gigs of disk for your virtual machine (there is nothing worse than underestimating your size, and having the install fail after hours of work, just because you ran out of space).

VmWare also has some nasty side-effects on some other programs. I have had problems with accessing NetWare servers after installing VMWare, and I have had problems syncing my handheld over WIFI with VMWare installed. (The virtual network cards it installs on W2K can cause interference with some network programs).

All in all, I am pleased with the product, and will continue to use it, but I do not think I will continue to pay for upgrades. Best thing to do is get a client to pay for it

When VMWare was introduced, they had a very attractive hobbyist/student price package. They later removed the hobbyist pricing, but I think they have more recently re-introduced a newer hobbyist package that delivers a reduced capability product (I think it does not support as many multiple sessions, or maybe no multiple sessions).