[pb_lee]

hi,

im interested in finding out information on running unix apps under osx.
im new to the unix side of osx, and would appriciate some information about how to get applications like openoffice etc up and going.
i understand i need to install x11 or something like this...?
are there any sites that would be recommended for a complete beginner like me?

thanks
lee

[alien]

You'll need X11, so you'll have to decide whether to install the X11 beta from Apple, or the XFree86 stuff.

You can use fink to install many unix apps very simply: http://fink.sourceforge.net/

I'd advise you to buy an os x unix book, go to amazon and read the reviews.

[suthercd]

Mmmm..... there is a lot of Unix that comes with OS X before you start to explore X11.

There are several that are very helpful... you could start with Osxfaq.com.

Ask a lot of questions here, there are some very knowledgable people.

Craig

[Jim_MDP]

Do Apple's X11 and xFree86/XDarwin conflict in any way?

Are they redundant?

[kampl]

I would recommend checking out CLI tools prior to moving to X11 stuff. Like previously mentioned there is a lot to *nix systems that can be put to good use. It comes down to how much you really want to know I guess and how close you want to get to the underlying system. I've used BSD style systems for several years (since 96) and I use a CLI first. But that's me...........

[suthercd]

Agreed. Take some ytime to become familiar with the syntax, how to read man pages, navigate, understand how arguments and parameters are used with commands.

The man 'command' is a key way to get help. You enter man, space and then the name of a command you want to explore. For instance, to copy a file, the command is cp. To learn how to use it, enter man cp and then return. The explanations given are criptic at first, but as you learn about one command and then see how that has been explained in the man page (that was the displayed help is called), you begin to see how the info is presented.

A google search for Unix Turorial will give you a bunch of sites to explore. The OSXFAQ site has a step by step tutorial.

HTH
Craig

[justinkim]

Originally posted by Jim_MDP:
Do Apple's X11 and xFree86/XDarwin conflict in any way?

Are they redundant?

Last I messed with Apple's X11, you needed to change your .xinitrc when you switched between the two. Apple's X11 has its own window manager and didn't work properly if your rc file was turning on gnome or kde.

This was a while ago, so YMMV.

[pb_lee]

thanks everyone for you replies!
i will definitely check out some of the references mentioned...

i suppose i should have mentioned that i grew up on dos, and am quite familiar with the unix basics (man, ls, rm, sudo, cd - as i said the BASICS!) so i have gone ahead and attempted to install openoffice.

to do this i have done the following
- installed fink
- installed xfree86
- downloaded open office (all 170MB!) but can not yet install it. apparently i had to install "dlcompat" and "espgs?"
- i successfully installed dlcompat, but am now having trouple installing espgs... i have downloaded the binary, but when i attempt to compile it i get errors and "illegal expressions" at the end? of the complie.

what have i done wrong? (and i will understand if i havnt given nearly enough information to determine this! - im probably thinking that i have files in the wrong places, or im trying to compile with gcc3 when i should be using 2...??

thanks ppl

lee