If you continue to view Linux as an obstacle, rather than a
tool, then you're better off staying with Windows.
I'm the Scott that Max has been referring to on the op25-dev list. I do not have much experience with Linux myself. I've toyed with various distros over the past 20 years or so. But it's mostly been a "curious observer" type of thing. So I consider myself just as inexperienced as everyone else here, with the exception Max of course. Linux has never been something that I've
needed before. That has recently changed.
I can't recommend any particular Linux flavor because I don't know the differences. I will say this about Ubuntu, the Unity interface blows goats. Seriously, these people need to be tarred for coming up with such a hideous interface. Popup window sliders?? C'mon!
If you know how to navigate a file system(any OS) from a command line, you shouldn't have too much trouble getting around in Linux. It's just a matter of getting used to where things are located. A good understanding of how computers work, and how to trouble shoot things are a huge advantage. For anyone that doesn't have these basic skills are going to run into issues.
Pay attention to the directories you're in when pulling in a repository and compiling packages. Some things will live in those directories after you compile. For example. I created directories under the 'Downloads' folder in my home directory. For each package I installed, I created new directories and sub-folders for dependencies. Needless to say, the directory structure goes deep(not
deap!) and is a PITA to navigate. If you understand what environment variables are and what they're used for, then you can probably move things around after the fact. So far it hasn't been an issue that needs to be corrected yet...
You don't need to have programming experience to
use GNURadio or any of the third party add-ons. But if you do have some knowledge, it might come in handy if you run into issues. I'm not a programmer in the traditional sense, but I can hack away at things pretty good..
If you're going to make a serious run at getting GNURadio and OP25 installed and running, don't halfass it. Stop fooling around with Virtual Machines, and repartitioning hard drives and the like. Do not install any pre-installed versions of GNURadio on a DVD, they're most likely obsolete. Build a dedicated box(or good laptop with USB 2.0 support for RTL dongles) for the sole purpose of playing around with SDR stuff. I'm using a basic AMD Athlon 64 2.4GHz single core processor with 2GB of ram. Hardly the powerhouse setup, but works good enough to gain the experience.
The initial install process I went through turned out to be wrong. I read everything I could find about installing GNURadio and more important to me, OP25. I thought I had all the info I needed, which I did, but it turned out that some things were obsolete. I took the scenic route and installed everything including the required dependencies manually. This process is no longer needed. GNURadio has gone through some major changes with the latest versions. They've created an installation/updater application called PyBOMBS that takes care of everything for you. No more trial and error installs.
I'll post the steps needed to install everything in a new post. I already posted them to the op25-dev group because someone asked. Nobody has spoken up about it's validity however. So don't take it as a definitive guide, they're just the very basic steps it took
me to get there. This post has gone on way too long and I want to get on with my life.. heh
