Windows vs Linux, we know which one is better, but help!

General Forums Blender and CG Discussions
1

I have some questions / problems and I need some help. I am trying to install Blender 2.23 on Mandrake 8.2. I Downloaded the linux-glib c2.1.2-i386.tar from upperfold. It extracted o.k., but now I don’t know how to get it working. My windows version is working fine.
I have known linux for several years, but I have been in Microsoft hell and never got to play with it. I have linux friends and I am part of a linux user group, but I don’t want to ask all the dumb questions in one location. Plus++, local linux geeks profess to help newbies, but “haven’t YOU read your RED HAT Bible cover to cover YET!”
It will take years for me to go it alone and my strengths lay with engineering animation. My focus is on building an engineering educational non-profit, which I believe will bring linux / blender more mainstream. What is needed in this open source struggle is content. I don’t want to see Microbucks, with its $40 billion (cash – not assets) warchest bury us with .NET, so help me if you can and if you care about what your doing.

:-? Will my blender work files in windows port to linux?

:-? Where can I get a HOW-TO, on application installs, that is simplistic?

:-? Would Red Hat 7.2 be a better choice for this install?

:-? What do you think of the Matrox G550 video card for linux?

:o I went back three pages in the forum and didn’t see any of these answered, so forgive me if the answer is under my nose. I just need the first question answered soon so I can get to work.

2

When you untar it what you get?
look for the blender file. If you using GUI double click or single click on it. If command line, cd into the directory that was formed when you untar it (extracted it) do a ls (hit return) if you see blender or blender3d or blendecreator, do a ./blender(what ever the rest is). boom you good to go.

3

Installing software somes in many ways. famous RPM style, .deb, tgz, compiling your on stuff, simple ./install, ./setup or what ever. To put it short there no one way. Best way is to get a box throw a bare Linux on it start making it work.
What ever you do in Blender I can take from you and work on it on my SGI box. And a Windows person can do the same.

4

I just set up a test system with the new RedHat 8 and Blender worked fine by default. On some older versions you may have to play with the libraries to get it to work. I think on 7.2, I had to install the Nvidia driver and it worked fine (that’s if you have an Nvidia card :wink: )

5

Blender on standard Mandrake 8.2 is just perfect and easy.
Please, do youself a favor,never touch on big “pieces” like glibc :slight_smile:
Try to return to “original” state
That works fine for me!!! (with a GeForce card)
Bye
António

6

I suspect that the problem is needing the Nvidia drivers. I have a cheap Nvidia card. I will work on that and try loading it on my Red Hat 7.2 system. Since I can used windows to run Blender and the files can be used in linux I guess I have nothing to worry about. Thanks OTO, acasto, and PowerMacG4.

7

I’ve tried Blender2.25 on Mandrake-8.2 (I gave it a test install on my laptop…) and it seemed to be working allright, allthough I prefer SuSE!!!

In order to fire Blender up, just do what PowerMacG said!!!
BTW if you want to invoke it from console really fast, here is a nice trick:

Let’s say that you have untared blender archive into the /home/user/blender-creator-linux-glibc2.1.2-i386-static directory… and that the executable file is blender…

Obviously you’ll be using the Bash SHELL so do the following:

issue from console:

pico -w .bashrc

this will open in pico (a nice text editor…) the file .bashrc, which is the configuration file of your SHELL. Go to the bottom of the file and add:

allias blender=“cd /home/user/blender-creator-linux-glibc2.1.2-i386-static && ./blender”.

When done, press CTRL+X and then y and ENTER, to save and close pico.
Then Logout and relogin (you have to do this in order for the Bash SHELL to start again with the new configuration…).

After that you will only have to type “blender” (without the quotes ofcourse… :wink: ) in order to start blender!!!

That’s it!!! I hope this helps a little bit more…

Spyros.

8

Ohhh!!! Sorry, I haven’t noticed that it was a graphics card issue…

O.k. Since it’s all about Mandrake 8.2, you have to know that it has xfree86 4.2.0! So, most probably it allready has the latest drivers for it…

Have you tried to see if 3d accelaration is enabled or not??? I had similar problems with my SuSE, and everything was solved after I figured out that 3d acceleration wasn’t enabled!!! I used 3Ddiag to fix the problem!!!

I hope this helps…

Spyros.

9

Better is a subjective term. And whether Linux is better than Windows or the other way around is subjective as well. It also depends alot on context. I happen to find Windows better for some uses (for example graphics, because of the better selection of software and better hardware support) and Linux better for others (like turning an old box (or new box) into a firewall/server). But I wouldn’t claim that one is better than the other without qualifying that statement a little. You cannot say one is better than the other in “absolute” terms. Everyone’s needs are different.

So, how about you speak for yourself?

SatoriGFX.

10

Sorry to say that, but I think you are misjudging baggab!!!

He didn’t mention that Linux is better than Windows, or vice versa!!!

I think he was trying to make a statement that he seeks for support, and discourage people from turning this Thread to a debate on which is the best OS!!!

Spyros.

11

TOTALLY off the subject, but if you guys have got working compiled versions of the new blender, would you mind sharing them with the community?

12

I used Red Hat 7.2, worked fine once I finally persuaded the Nvidia drivers to work (I say finally…) . Erm…for some odd reason 2.23 didn’t work straight out. Probably a corrupt file or something, but it kept whinging about some library it couldn’t find. The library was there - I checked - and 2.20 worked fine. 2.25 is just a dream :slight_smile: .

In response to questions:

  1. Your work files will work fine. Blender files are non-platform dependent. Anything created on Windows will work just fine on Linux (believe me, I’ve tried).

  2. Dunno about install guides. Let me know when you find one please - I’d quite like a read meself :wink:

  3. As I said above, 7.2 worked fine. I’m in the throes of upgrading to 8.0 at the moment, so I don’t know about that (but if acasto says it’s fine then I’m sure it is…)

  4. Never used it. NVidia GeForce 3 200 all the way, mate :slight_smile:

Hope this all helped!
LethalSideParting

13

I am now less certain about the use of linux. I have heard, over the years, that linux is more stable. My long term use of windows and my short term use of linux suggest that this is true. Part of my use of the word “better” refers to stability, which I have heard from many sources, and part refers to the accessiblity of linux due to cost; i.e many more people can use linux on older computers, ect.

I can say that windows has been a sorce of great frustration. Plug n Pray is the old joke. I know that XP, with its NT backbone, has greatly reduced that problem, but a new problem has emerged with this OS. Well, its not really new in the sense that M$ has a history of manipulation and exploitation of the computer market, but the .NET initative, mult-year sevice contracts, and the Palladium security chip / software are excluding the iconoclastic, the poor, and those supicious of authority. I know that this issue has another side: order, just compensation, and security; but I would prefer that IT be administered by a non-profit worldwide organization.

I searched out linux market share to determine which distro to go with and I got an eyefull of conflict: SUN is building its own version of linux, Red Hat 7.2 is bloatware, and Gnome vs KDE dominance. Seems linux has its own problems! Not to mention drivers and endless tweeking for the sincere novice. I just want to use Blender under linux to build a non-profit engineering education website. I know there is no easy answer to this: WELCOME TO THE REAL WORLD.

:-? I am sticking with linux: Red Hat 7.2 (50% market share) and Mandrake 8.2 (easier and less bloated.)

:o I got a Matrox G550 video card for its CAD support , but it will take some work to get it working under linux.

:x Installation software of the Matrox G550 caused WinME to not shut down, but a clean install of WinME fixed that.

  1. I am going to make this box a CAD / Blender box with dual boot for Mandrake 8.2, rather then add too much software (KISS.)

:frowning: Matrox desktop manager for widows doesn’t work OpenGL screen savers. Anyone know of other potential problems for this “babe in the woods.”

I hope that my discussion addressed your point SatoriGFX, I don’t really want to debate linux, but get some help “through the woods.”

14

After reading my previous reply I realized that I was being hypocritical by generally promoting linux and saying that I didn’t want to debate it. Sorry about that SatoriGFX. I acknowlege that windows works well for gaming and other video applications. Its just that, I have had a lot of stability issues with Win9x (but not WinNT.) I don’t want to fight my OS any more. The Blender engineering rendering is hard enough!

I don’t pretend to speak for all in this forum and I will leave you with the last word.

15

SUN is building its own version of linux, Red Hat 7.2 is bloatware, and Gnome vs KDE dominance. Seems linux has its own problems!

I wouldn’t call that problems, I would call that Freedom of choice.

16

No problem. Wasn’t sure where you were coming from. Sounds like you know the pros and cons of each OS. I initially got the impression that you were handing the crown to Linux, without exception.

SatoriGFX.