382Part IIIChoosing and Installing (Web servers) a Linux Distribution32.Install a
382Part IIIChoosing and Installing a Linux Distribution32.Install a Desktop.For most of us, it s not much fun just working from the com- mand line. The following command installs a basic set of desktop packages, including the X Window System (xfree), KDE desktop (kde), Mozilla browser(mozilla), and Openoffice.org office suite (openoffice-bin). This will take a longtime to install over the network! # emerge xfree kde mozilla openoffice-binAs an alternative, if you have these packages available on CD-ROM, you cantype the following commands to identify the location of the packages andinstall them from that location: # export PKGDIR= /mnt/cdrom/packages # emerge -k xfree gnome kde mozilla openoffice-binYou could also consider saving some time by installing only gnomeor kde(notboth). If you don t plan to create documents or spreadsheets, you probablydon t need to install openoffice-bineither. 33.Configure the X server.Now that your desktop software is installed, you needto configure the X Window System to work properly with your video card andmonitor. Type the following to configure your video card and monitor: # /usr/X11R6/bin/xf86configAt this point, you should have a working Gentoo system. For further documentation, check out www.gentoo.org/doc/en/index.xml. SummaryIn just a few years, Gentoo has distinguished itself as a premier distribution forLinux enthusiasts who are interested in complete control of the components andsettings of their Linux systems. The jewel of the Gentoo system is the Portage package management system. Usingthe Portage emergecommand, you can install any of thousands of Gentoo softwarepackages. Those packages can be downloaded and built from scratch, using settingsyou choose to tune them for how you use your Linux system. If you don t want to learn about the inner workings of a Linux system (and spendlots of time getting it to work), Gentoo may not be for you. An experienced Linuxperson usually takes several tries to get Gentoo going, while someone new to Linuxmay not get it installed and running at all without lots of help. However, if you liketo tune and tweak your operating system, Gentoo is a great way to go. …