my WAMP server wont start, their support sucks

[OrganizedFellow]

<rant>

UGH!!!!!!!

I am so frustrated right now.

Been using UniformServer for over a year now. 

This is the third time the server dies on me. Won't start. It's installed as a service. 

Their community forum and wiki are useless. Topics seeking help are not answered in a timely manner.

I know there are various topics around here concerning WAMP installations. I'm not asking for help or recommendations to switch to. I've used many over the years and this one has worked flawlessly for over a year.

</rant>

[OrganizedFellow]

I've successfully gotten it to run as a program, but it fails to continue running as a service.

I just finished backing up my databases and backed THOSE up to my dropbox for safe-keeping.

Can not afford to lose my data.

Seriously considering leaving Windows entirely and sticking to my beloved Linux.

[diogo]

I really liked Uniform when I had to use Windows, but I guess not fair to expect a smaller project to have a great support and community (PW is an exception). I know you're not asking for alternatives, but AMMPS seems to have a great development and responsive support. Edit: AND it's cross platform.

[OrganizedFellow]

I really liked Uniform when I had to use Windows, but I guess not fair to expect a smaller project to have a great support and community (PW is an exception). I know you're not asking for alternatives, but AMMPS seems to have a great development and responsive support. Edit: AND it's cross platform.

Looks nice, especially with all the features.

But at over 100MB, I'll stay away  

[teppo]

Even if alternatives are not needed (sorry!) and though you've probably already evaluated it, when I used to develop on Windows, XAMPP was all the rage. Cross-platform, well maintained, free, etc. Just saying.

Then again, it's way over 100MB package, so if that makes a difference (?), it's probably out of the equation too

[Ivan Gretsky]

XAMPP is the way to go. They got portable version too. If you do not need to install something not included like Python or Ruby you can live with no worries. There are answers for almost anything you can ask on the web.

[OrganizedFellow]

So I've decided to stop development on Windows7 (for a while) and made the switch to Xubuntu 14 (on a spare HHD).

I can't stand Unity, and KDE is too "candy-ish".

I've got my server running and almost 100% operational.

Installed everything needed to get my first PW2.4 site up  

I's great  

Now I just gotta figure out how to have multiple virtual hosts up and running as I did on Win. Currently I have to sudo a2ensite website1.dev and sudo a2dissite website2.dev

Can I have multiples running?

Everything I've uncovered only shows the above two commands.

I don't mind it. But I switch between different projects.

SO FAR SO GOOD.

[bwakad]

I know on Windows it will be these two directories:

in c / windows / system32 / drivers / etc / host file
in c / xampp / apache / conf / extra / http-vhosts.conf

in c / xampp / htdocs / your-folder-named-after-virtual-directory-name

[pwired]

So I've decided to stop development on Windows7 (for a while) and made the switch to Xubuntu 14

I've worked and repaired with 98 until 7 and 7 is most stable and solid. There must have something

slipped in or changed that caused you problems. I have never had a problem with 7 for whatever

I am using it neither with 7 + wamp 2.0i for sitedev.

I can't stand Unity, and KDE is too "candy-ish".

You already are familiar with windows 7 desktop so go for linux cinnamon desktop cause it comes

most close to the look and feel of a windows 7 desktop. Start menu, Control Panel, drives, folder

and file handling and task bar all look very the same.

Linux mint cinnamon has it already installed and is based on ubuntu so that distro saves you time

and you don't have to worry you are missing something.

http://desktoplinuxreviews.com/linux-mint-reviews/linux-mint-16-cinnamon/

cinnamon start menu

[OrganizedFellow]

I know on Windows it will be these two directories:

in c / windows / system32 / drivers / etc / host file

in c / xampp / apache / conf / extra / http-vhosts.conf

in c / xampp / htdocs / your-folder-named-after-virtual-directory-name

YUP.

I have the hosts and http-vhosts.conf backed up.

I have around 14-16 virtual host development sites that I play with. One being the latest ProcessWire dev branch.

I've worked and repaired with 98 until 7 and 7 is most stable and solid. There must have something

slipped in or changed that caused you problems. I have never had a problem with 7 for whatever

I am using it neither with 7 + wamp 2.0i for sitedev.

You already are familiar with windows 7 desktop so go for linux cinnamon desktop cause it comes

most close to the look and feel of a windows 7 desktop. Start menu, Control Panel, drives, folder

and file handling and task bar all look very the same.

Linux mint cinnamon has it already installed and is based on ubuntu so that distro saves you time

and you don't have to worry you are missing something.

I absolutely agree amigo.

Windows7 is the MOST stable and fluid working version of Windows that Microsoft has ever released. I was rocking Win XP Pro for a super lonnnnng timmmme bro before I finally made the switch.

I had custom registry edits, multiple desktops, and RainMeter displaying all kinds of cool info.

I started over when I demoed Win7 in a VM and fell head over heels in LOVE with it.

I'm indeed saddened to leave Win7, but my income and hobby both rely on reliability and stability. Right now, Linux is where it's at.

Across various posts, I've mentioned my interest in many distros.

I settled on Arch as a headless system (I liked the command line) and eventually tweaked i3 and tons of other configs just as I wanted. It took a long time, and near endless searches. But thankfully I found lots of inspiration and information to get my set up just right.

I totally LOVED PACMAN, more than apt-get.

But with the rolling distribution and bleeding edge methodlogy ... well, it broke some things, and I wasn't too keen on fixing them. So. Ubuntu it was

I actually don't like Cinnamon for the same reasons I don't like KDE.

It's too candy-ish. And I actually quite like the minimalasm of XFCE. I don't mind straying away from "the look and feel of a windows 7 desktop".

This reminds me:

Of of the earliest gifts that my wife got for me when we were dating (over ten years ago). She got my a multi-pack-CD-set of Suce Linux and Mandrake  

OVER A DOZEN DISCS, hahaha, I thought that was awesome!

I've played with Linux for most of the previous ten years, but only really stuck with it as my sole OS for the last few years.

I have various hard drives that I boot too.

No complicated GRUB issues or dual/triple/quad/boot dilemmas. I have a hard drive switch that I select prior to powering up.

I'll always keep my Win7 as the #1selector, as my wife also relies on that for her work.

#2 is now (as of this morning) my new Xubuntu install.

#3 is Arch. #4 is a dualboot between Elementary OS and Bodhi Linux.

I love to tinker, as you can tell!

OOOHH, and I also have a pink pogoplug working as my own dropbox type server connected to my router running DD-WRT and Arch on the server-side.

Yes yes, I love to tinker.