What are your thoughts on FTP?

One of the benefits of Linux, among large numbers of others, is that we have choices, a lot of them. Most of us use different tools to get the same job done.

To say there is only one way, YOUR WAY, is arrogant, and unthinking. For example in the ten years I've used Linux, I now most often uninstall Konquerer because of its bloat and that I never use it anyway. I prefer smaller, faster tools to get a job done. If you prefer Konquerer then by all means use it yourself, but don't say others' opinions should be ignored.

Sometimes I use wget for big downloads, but gFTP for small ones, but wouldn't even have Konq available.

Ken
--
In a world without walls and fences nobody needs Windows and Gates!
User #104362 with the Linux Counter, http://counter.li.org

I use gFTP most of the time, Konqueror on occasion. Tried Kasablanca but found it dissapointing and deleted it. Haven't tried KFTPGrabber before... looking at it now it seems to lack basic stuff like a "select all", unless it's hidden somewhere strange.

I don't think it's necessary to have an FTP client pre-loaded. For a casual user konqueror is fine, for someone who uses FTP a lot it's easy to download their prefered client.

I use gFtp because it's the easiest ftp client I found on Mepis.

I think gFtp is good and is enough.... number 2!

bye!

ps: joining effort with ubuntu and ubuntu repositories is simply great.

I prefer gFTP. I can always use apt to get it later, but it's nice, small, and fairly easy to use.

Which FTP apps? This is silly. If your favorite app isn't in Mepis, then apt-get is your freind. If Mepis drops gFTP, then apt-get will restore it to my PC.

If this whole discussion is "What's best for the newbies?", then maybe Konqueror is the best. You and I can still use what we wish.

I use gFTP extensively to download software (from the MEPIS FTP site and others), databases (from the FCC) and even kernel.org. I also use it to upload content to multiple web sites I maintain.

While I can always add the program myself, my vote is to keep it in the distribution. I'll check out the other options you mentioned, but gFTP has worked well for me and for such simple tasks unless I see some good reasons to switch I'll stay with it.

...Doug

Have used Kasablanca in the past and like it very much. Would like to see it included in v6.

gFTP is simple enough and should also be included.

FWIW, my personal preference would be to use Kasablanca over gFTP though.

Sorry my comment offended you - that was not my intention.

What do you use for file management?

I regularly use gFTP, and consider it one of my must have applications. However, if it is not included with the distro, I'll apt-get it and be happy.

and decided that it doesn't matter what is on the distro as long as the client I prefer is in the repository. If, however, the intent is on keeping the LiveCD under 700MB then which ftp client is included is important.

MEPIS is a distro that features KDE and BECAUSE OF THAT is being adopted by a large number of Windows refugees, and they would find Konqueror to be an easy learning experience because of its similarity to Windows Explorer.

Konqueror is an excellent FILE manager, WEB browser, SERVICES browser and SMB, audio and video connector. When I am browsing with Konqueror and I click on a file, Konqueror determines the file type and executes the appropriate application that loads/displays/whatever the file. Konqueror's "Copy To" functionality is without equal in on any GUI desktop. Plug in a memory stick, right click on a target file and select the "Copy To" option then target the memory stick. The copy is completed without leaving the home directory. Right mouse on the memory stick icon and select "safely remove" and the memory stick is umounted.

It would be better to keep Konqueror on the LiveCD and let users download FireFox from the repositories, saving nearly 100MB for other apps. FireFox is being updated more frequently than Konqueror anyway, so leaving it to be downloaded from the repository after an install is probably better for security reasons anyway.

And, I use drag'n drop in Konqueror to download tars, binaries and graphics files which are not in the repositories. While gFtp may be great for downloading bootleg videos and porn I don't do either of those activities, so it is of no value to me.

It is precisely because Konqueror does so many things, and does them well, that it should always be an app available in the LiveCD ISO, especially since MEPIS is a KDE based distro. gFtp is a GNOME client app. If folks want GNOME let them use Ubuntu. IF MEPIS switched to Ubuntu I'll switch to PCLinuxOS.

Question: If Konqueror is not in the LiveCD then what app do you propose to use to do FILE managing? Nautilus? What app do you propose to do web browsing with? Nautilus? What can gFtp do that Konqueror can't do as well or better? Nothing.

Keep Konqueror in MEPIS and keep MEPIS a KDE distro.
--
GreyGeek

I agree with everything you say except for the suggestion to drop Firefox
from the CD.

I believe many people coming to Linux from the other place are doing so
just because they have successfully tried FF on M$win and started thinking
that open source might be a "good thing". It is important to keep such
people interested right from the moment they boot from the Mepis CD, and
they could be discouraged by having to use an unfamiliar web browser.

That's something I forgot to factor-in, but it really doesn't change my perspective much.

Wget is a wonderful tool, if all you're after is to grab those multiple, large .isos or mirror a website quickly. In most cases, however, I script wget to hop-around the filesystem, reading filelists and storing downloads in their own directories while I'm doing something else. Wget supplements ftp.

I have noticed that Konq will "flake-out" on certain servers--leaving me with a stalled upstream transfer--and I have yet to figure out exactly why that happens.
Gftp (or CLI ftp) will do the job nicely on those fussy machines. If they happen to fail as well, it's time to contact the server admin and tell him to get his act together.

If I had to stack-rank my usage of them (for GET, PUT & minor f/s housecleaning tasks), it would be:
(1.) CLI ftp & Gftp neck-and-neck.
(2.) Konq

In the end analysis, it probably doesn't matter much what you put in the final release. As long as I can apt-get what I want (between Dapper & Debian.org), everything is fine by me.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Just saw this:

It's actually pretty good for doing web site maintenance with.

One of the guys I do some work for is in my gftp bookmarks and, it's very convenient (particularly when I'm in the middle of doing 15 things at once) to grab-n-churn his replacement photos and text; then tell gftp to replace a few remote directories as I get back to doing something else that I really need to get done--yesterday.

In cases like that, my direct involvement in the ftp process is something on the order of 10 seconds or so, and I don't have to bother with login credentials, since they're stored in the bookmark. (I don't store login info in Konq--kind-of a bad idea, anyway--since that's my primary browser.)

Home of the Point-N-Click Help Files ~ [url=http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html]How To Ask Questions the Smart Way[/url]

keep gFTP. its grand.

Konqueror

It does what 97% need to do. Including me.

Whoops! Broke it again....I'm enjoying this too much.

I generally use gFTP or either KBear for my ftp client. I would say include gFTP and forget about the other two clients.

Ben

I personnaly prefer KFTPGrabber , better support for kde .
gFTP is horrible for me .

Sir,
I like gFTP - easy and stable.
Vince

Vince LaPorte
Marshall, MN 56258

I can't imagine not having gFTP. I've been using it for years. If it's not in the distro, I would have to apt-get it as soon as I finish the install.

I am satisfied with konqueror's ftp and sftp abilities, but do assume that the cmdline version of ftp and sftp will be retained? I use ftp to transfer files between my pc and my ipaq as a simple way of overcoming the difficulties of getting ms to be aware of linux!

I would much prefer Krusader instead of Konqueror for ftp. It is much more versatil and more useful than the other straight ftp progs.

Richard.

the commandline is safe, as the others are tools to use the commandline from the GUI.
That's one of the principles of Unix and Linux programming - reusing other bits.

Mepis was designed with the idea of replacing Windows being its main goal. With this in mind, we must consider ALL users. Those moving from Windows to Linux may be very familiar with WS-FTP, which is a FTP client for Windows that is used by many Windows users, especially those in academic settings that are exposed to it due to the fact there is a free version of the client.

My opinion is that there should be both a browser FTP client, and a GUI client such as gFTP. gFTP is simple to use and learn, and does the job well. gFTP has a good standing in the Linux community and is widely accepted as the standard FTP client. New users to Mepis need to have the security of knowing their new OS comes with a good FTP client, whether it is a browser based client, or a GUI, stand alone applicaiton.

Joe Pearce

The student is not above the teacher
The servant is not above the master
The student shares the teacher's fate
The servant shares the master's

http://www.joepearce.com

Save the meager available CD-ROM resources for another app. Konqueror is excellent for FTP. I mean, what more does anyone need? Plus Konq does SSH-enabled FTP (sftp/scp).

JDS

I'll add some more to this.

Using Konqueror, do CTRL-SHIFT-L or CTRL-SHIFT-T and presto! you have a two-pane interface like gFTP. (I bet most of you, especially non-konq users, did not realize this). Go into one pane and type ftp://name.of.ftp.server and log in and you will have one pane that is logged in to the FTP server and another that is tied to your local computer. click and drag, either direction.

This also works for sftp://

Konqueror is incredibly flexible and featureful and I'd rather see MEPIS be super clean and streamlined and allow for the *optional* addition of bloat at the discretion of the user, using Apt/Synaptic.

Thanks. Later...

One FTP is adequate even if it is Konqueror. I use FTP around once a month usually for accessing University databases (that are years out of date). If Mepis would like a wider audience in Europe, then include amule, then you have the potential for another 20 million users of Mepis.

Or, just hit F9 to toggle between a one-panel browser and a two-panel file manager. Also, you can plug in your digital camera and enter
camera:/
on the URL to connect to your camera's pics and browse them like they were in a real directory. Then drag&drop'm to your home directory, or where ever.

Kget and Konqueror are an entirely satisfactory combination. People who are not happy with them can find others in the repositories.

-----------------------------
Guard your ignorance well, my boy. You'll never find anything to replace it.
---J. J. Sinn

its like a big hairy version of cute ftp!!!

let the wookie win!!!

It seems that the more experienced and tech-savvy Mepis users are less inclined to keep gFTP. I love my Mepis but simply don't have the time to become expert at all the ins and outs, nor to look up information and how-to's. I understood gFTP as soon as i opened it up, which has been true for much of Mepis for me. If part of the beauty of Mepis is its intuitiveness, then it stands to reason that gFTP or a similar program is worth including. This is what enabled me to make the switch to Linux and will convince others that Linux is a viable option.