Re: Beginner help

[Johan Ehnberg <johan@ehnberg.net>]

> I have downloaded Debian and want to set up an old PC as a server
> which will initially serve a PC and an X-box.

Will it be the gateway for these also?


> To connect to the internet I'll be using an Alcatel Speedtouch USB
> modem. My question is this, how do I set up Debian?!?
>
> OK, that's a big question. To start with, do I choose a normal
> install or a 2.4 kernel install (thinking of the USB modem, I
> downloaded a Linux driver for it. TAR file?).

Depends on the driver. If it's not supported by the kernel itself you'll 
have to install the kernel with which you can use your driver. If you 
don't know, I'd go for 2.4.


> Secondly, what system do I set it up as? I got this far
> (mail server, games, SQL server etc) but went down the wrong path, I
> chose Dial-up system and got truly lost.

You're talking about tasksel here? It doesn't matter what you choose, 
you can always change the selections in dselect or whatever you prefer. 
Aptitude is a good one, too. Tell me what the machine will do and I can 
tell you what to install. Basically, in tasksel, you'll want as little 
as possible.

hth,
/johan

--
Johan Ehnberg
johan@ehnberg.net
"Windows? No... I don't think so."