Newbies enquiry after reading archives

[Ken McLennan]

G'day there One & All,

	I'm currently trying to construct a home network (basically just a
gateway with 1 server & 2 desktops) and have now managed to copy Ubuntu
Server 6.06.1 to my hard drive. Still working on the rest of the machine
though (long story about a P1 - 133 that I was given).

	I know that it will be slow, but that's what I've got. It seems to be
reliable with over a fortnight's uptime and no problems. Although, to be
fair, it's not been doing anything other than just sitting on the desk
running.  However, my network will either work or it won't and I'll have
to decide whether to keep the machine or not. However, I digress...

	My server machine has only 3 PCI slots and they will be filled by my
network cards. The video card that is taking up one of them at the
moment will be removed, and I hope to manage the machine remotely from
my desktop client. (Hopefully my explanation makes sense).

	I've never built or setup a server before so I thought a GUI such as
Webmin might be handy. The list's archives had mail from those who
thought it was adequate, and those who hated it. "Ebox" also rated a
mention but no one had any experience with it.

	I guess that my question is whether such an interface is more nuisance
than it's worth? There was no real consensus in previous discussions,
and I don't necessarily expect one now, but I would like to know whether
earlier complaints about such GUI's still hold.

	So, if I'm going to need Webmin, Ebox, or something else for remote
maintenance, I'd like to hear from people who've tried them and formed
opinions. Or even those whose opinions aren't formed from experience.
However I would also then like to know why you hold such views.



Thanks for listening,
Ken McLennan
Qld, Australia.