Okay.. I got the CD.. actually, coupla days ago, but, we had been outta power for 2 days & I was sore & worn olut from finishing the generator installation. I hung a coupla outlets in a weatherproof enclosure on the back wall & ran wires to the breaker box & installed 2 20 amp breakers. Up & down & up & down on the washer to get to the breaker box, hada peel paneling & put a 2X6 between studs to hang the box to. Still havent put the piece I sliced off back, face plate is still offa the box,, Ive just been too pooped to even get the tools put away..
BUT, I am ready for instructions on what to do with this CD. If theyre here already, just quote it into place. Thank you, thank you,,

So, at this stage we got a half dozen folks who are into Mint Mate of various older versions.

As you version swap in the future you will learn these tricks, so I though I'd mention them now.

Your favorite browser has a way of exporting bookmarks and settings, learn how to use it, create the backup file or export file or whatever the hell else they call it and put it on a thumb drive that you use just for migrating from one machine to the next.

On your desktop put a folder called Kelly's Stuff (or you could use your name if you wanted to).   I like to use Kelly's Stuff 3-9-14 as the folder name as it includes a date stamp which means on my thumb drive i now have a series of date stamped folders that keep all my stuff time coordinated on the backup drive.

Use this rolling folder (with sub folders if you have lots of stuff) to hold all your data.

Periodically copying Kelly's Stuff to your thumb drive is a smart thing (this is called backing up your data files in case you haven't ever done that).

Once a month or so, copy it over again to the thumb drive to keep it current and keep it safe.

Now, when you upgrade your Linux every few years you ALREADY HAVE all the stuff you wish you'd saved before upgrading.  

It's right there on your thumb drive.

Size of thumb drive does not need to be killing big.   Linux is TINY -- files are tiny too.   I used a 2 gig thumb drive for a lot of years until my wife needed it, then I upgraded to 4 gig next time I went to WalMart -- of which 88% of the 4 gig is still unused.

Oldfeller--FSO wrote on 03/08/14 at 06:28:49:


I did not give Libre Office a chance.  I have been using Open Office for the last few years.  I did take a look at Libre yesterday but just a passing glance and I then went online and downloaded Open Office (or Apache Open Office as it is now called) to install on the Mint machine.  Which brings me to one of the things about Linux that has always bothered me... why is it not just a simple matter of clicking on the download and installing?  Seems Windows uses .exe as well as other programs to install where Linux does not?  So after some Googling and finding some step by steps that were close I got it installed.  Had to do something to remove the symbolic link to Libre that did not work so I then discovered the method for removing Libre completely (although I did want to keep Libre Office to check it out more) and installing Open Office... all by using the terminal and a little bit of typing and using the correct syntax and changing directories and so on and so forth.  Got it done but was not really easy.  My fault really if I just leave well enough alone.  But I'm always dinking around it seems.
Now I need to figure out to connect the Mint machine to my printer on the Windows network.  I have done this before but I have forgotten all the terms used in the Linux printer setup and what my network calls them and put the two together to get Linux to see the printer.
Gerry

I did not give Libre Office a chance.  I have been using Open Office for the last few years.  I did take a look at Libre yesterday but just a passing glance and I then went online and downloaded Open Office (or Apache Open Office as it is now called) to install on the Mint machine.  Which brings me to one of the things about Linux that has always bothered me... why is it not just a simple matter of clicking on the download and installing?  Seems Windows uses .exe as well as other programs to install where Linux does not?  So after some Googling and finding some step by steps that were close I got it installed.  Had to do something to remove the symbolic link to Libre that did not work so I then discovered the method for removing Libre completely (although I did want to keep Libre Office to check it out more) and installing Open Office... all by using the terminal and a little "bit of typing and using the correct syntax and changing directories and so on and so forth.  Got it done but was not really easy.  My fault really if I just leave well enough alone.  But I'm always dinking around it seems.
Now I need to figure out to connect the Mint machine to my printer on the Windows network.  I have done this before but I have forgotten all the terms used in the Linux printer setup and what my network calls them and put the two together to get Linux to see the printer."
Gerry


=====================

Gary,  your distro installs Libre Office by default because Open Office was controlled for a while by Oracle and the guy who runs Oracle, Larry, was an arsehole who was then currently suing Google and others over some of the stuff he had just bought (in a patent troll type of action).    

Sun had given FOSS clear permission to use Java and Larry bought it and then immediately sued Google over Android using something like it (and lost, BTW).    

All of FOSS immediately forked all the softwares that Sun used to support (that Larry and Oracle had bought with the ghost of SUN) and all of FOSS disavowed any and all of the original Sun stuff that remained under Larry's control.   Open Office is one of those items.

NO DISTRO HAS USED OPEN OFFICE AT ALL for several years.   Larry then attempted to off-load Open Office but nobody would take it, so he tried to give  it to the Apache Foundation who didn't want it either.    

But "technically" Open Office is running now under the verbiage of an Apache type license now (if you can trust Oracle that is).  

Apache does not maintain or own Open Office, just think of it as Larry's people using Apache's good name to front continuing playing their crappy little games and you won't be too far off the mark.    

Watch out, Larry may want to charge you for Open Office upgrades somewhere out into the future .... he copies the improved code from Libre Office and then charges businesses for the "support" for Star Office (Sun's old commercial version of Open Office).

So Open Office still exists, and if anyone trusted Oracle or Larry any at all to get themselves gone and STAY GONE the two forks might eventually come back together again some day under the original name.  

But, right now Open Office is mostly dead and Libre Office is very much alive and still being developed.  

And that is how it will stay.


======================


Next, Gerry, you need to learn to use the Mint Software Manager.   (under the little gear Menu left hand bottom corner)

All of this sort of software is specifically tweeked for the Mint distro and is maintained by the Software Manager where you select what you want and it goes and gets it for you (along with all dependencies) and installs it for you.   With just one click.

But you won't find Open Office in the Software Manager -- for reasons listed above.

==========

Justin, you got a pm.

I offer advice on Linux Mint Mate 64 bit version 17 -- what you do with them odd functioning puppy dogs is up to you.

(I could never get Puppy to work right either).

Find the Ubuntu Puppy fork and download that one ISO image.    

You got a skidilion versons of Puppy now, you just need to pick ONE of them and download the ISO and burn it to a CD.

Puppy is ODD -- it is built from scratch by a crew of Australians and New Zealanders that used to be led by Barry Krauler before he retired yet again.

They all had obsolete machines (and I mean DOS level old machines).   They wrote a crop of Puppies that would fit their machines.

I looked at the site yesterday and there is still a whole litter of puppies over there of all sorts and descriptions.   One of these was an Ubuntu Puppy, but it was noted as as being a porky puppy.


=======================  


More organized Ubuntu based (for very old machines) alternatives


http://lubuntu.net/

Lubuntu is one of the skinniest semi-official Ubuntus out there.    It will fit your machine's specs but you have to have PAE on your machine.   It is LXDE based as are all of the very light distros.

This Ubuntu based distro is so far off from normal Ubuntu function-wise it got cut loose by the main group to become an independent spin as NOTHING MUCH IS LEFT UNALTERED in order to get Lubuntu that durn small.    But the documentation is very well done since at one time it was an Official Ubuntu distro, just the very skinniest of them.

Lubuntu is your "good shot" at a semi-official Ubuntu that will fit your machine -- be aware that the supporting group is now very small like the distro is small, but all the stuff on the web site certainly remembers being an officially supported branch of Ubuntu.


====================


Peppermint is another independent LXDE spin of Linux Mint/Ubuntu that can run very light on resources.  One of its main tricks is to get you on the web then use somebody else's server power to do most of your heavy lifting.   Because of this trick Peppermint can do a lot your machine by itself really can't possibly do, but once again it goes far far far away from the standard distro it came from in how it utilizes exterior server power for extra speed and processing power in normal functions.

http://peppermintos.com/about/

System Requirements for Peppermint Four
Here's what you'll need to run this distro:

Absolute Minimum:

   192 MB of RAM
   Processor based on Intel x86 architecture
   At least 2 GB of available disk space

Recommended Minimum:

   512 MB of RAM
   Processor based on Intel x86 architecture
   At least 4 GB of available disk space


However, Peppermint always struck me as being well organized and about as well maintained as a dozen people can possibly do.    They keep all their development stuff out on the pages so you can get involved with what's what as they do it.  

I think a Peppermint question will get answered.

I think Peppermint got started up about the same time Lubuntu got cast out of the Ubuntu family tree as they were all getting pretty far from the Ubuntu tree at that time.   Peppermint will run on your low hardware level, supposedly, and it HAS the documentation level you will need.   Peppermint is noted for being quick and easy enough to learn, but learn you shall as it is a different approach to the web and computing.



Note:   some folks will say that Chrome OS was a reconsideration of some of the ideas behind Peppermint and some folks will say that Peppermint was a reconsideration of some of the ideas behind Chrome OS -- both use the web (and all those super strong server farms) to energize their speediness.   I think Chrome OS does a more seamless job of it since Google actually owns the server farms they use to superpower Chrome OS.


============


So, here are two Ubuntu based distros you can try that seem to have the internal organization level that the whole litter of Puppies seem to lack.

Beyond this, I can't say -- I intend to support folks on Linux Mint Mate 64 bit as after all my looking it is the best XP replacement out there that looks and works most nearly like XP (least surprises, least learning).

But you need 512k of systems memory and a 600 mhz to 1 ghz Athlon processor to run it well enough.   It will run with less, but not well.

Folks tend to forget that XP started out as a 32 bit only Pentium class operating system and the early early machines sometimes only had 256k of systems memory.

I'm following along,... hoping to see a successful, non-geek, acclimate to Linux... but, I'm not optimistic...
Best luck, guys...

I'm riding XP into the ground... then I'll re-install ride it down again...
I hate change... ...