Debian 1.2 / Mule input

[Craig Oda <craig@example.com>]

I figured out how to input katakana more effectively
using the meta-k key combination while in the fence mode.
I can also input the JIS code for special characters.
However, I can only input the hex conversion now.  This
is not that pressing of a problem since the main character
I needed was the ten ・瘢雹.  Quotes would be nice though.

I've done the Debian 1.2 installation.  It went much more
smoothly than my last Debian pre-1.0 install.  I installed
it on a laptop from behind a firewall.  I made six install
floppies from another machine.  The install went smoothly
except for the networking section.  I had to ftp the pcmcia
section manually and write my own network configuration
scripts in order to use Debian's dselect utility.  Also,
the dselect utility is not that easy to use.  I do prefer
the text interface to RedHat's control panel.  

Debian downloads all the packages to the local hard disk before
beginning the install process.  This is more reliable than the
redhat approach of downloading the packages one by one.  However,
it does mean that more hard disk space is needed.  I also found
the interface fairly hard to understand.  I've also had problems
with installing more programs than I wanted to on RedHat.  
Debian appeared to offer a bit more control, or at least it
is a bit easier to pick which packages to install.  Though,
I guess this is personal preference.  The uninstall function
of Debian is nice.  Also, installing from a Windows '95 partition
is easier since Debian did not have any problems with the mangled
filenames.  I seem to remember RedHat choking on the DOS filenames.
There is also a Japanese Debian project which I hope to
look into after I get more familiar with Debian.  

Another thing that Debian had that I don't think RedHat had was
a package listing that described each file.  This is a seperate
text file.  I just loaded the file into jed and searched
through it until I found what I needed.  Once I got the
ethernet working on the laptop, I used the dselect interface
to load just the packages that I needed.  

I guess the main difference I see between Debian and RedHat is that
RedHat is easier to install a whole lot of Linux programs.  However,
Debian is more modular and while the install is text based without
the fancy glint stuff, I found it easier to use.  I can understand
how many people would prefer the RedHat installation method though.
Since I'm using a laptop with minimal space and RAM, I'm not sure
that I want to even install X on it.  Debian allowed me to
install a working system from just 6 floppy disks and build up
a custom system piece by piece.  In fact, I'm still building it..

-- Craig



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