Ubuntu 8.10 VS OpenSUSE 11.0

[Rubicon421]

I know, I know, this question has been asked before. I read the treads but it seemed like most of them were talking about a previous version of one or both. I'm currently using Ubuntu 8.10 and have tried a Live CD of OpenSUSE. I'm thinking about installing it and would like to here your input on why it is better/worse than Ubuntu. If you have not used Ubuntu 8.10 AND OpenSUSE 11.0 please do not post as it is off topic.

I would also appreciate any advice/tips on installing OpenSUSE on a dual boot machine with Vista 64 bit on one partition and Ubuntu live CD install on the other.

[Rubicon421]

Couple of more points to touch on:

Which is better if you prefer KDE?
Which is better if you prefer GNOME?
Are there any major differences with Amarok in OpenSUSE and can it still be used in KDE and GNOME?

[kernelhaxor]

I have tried OpenSuse 11 and was really tempted too. But I came back to Kubuntu for the awesome community support you get here. opensuse has very good KDE4 integration (probably the best out there as of today) ..

This thread belongs to OpenSuse forum under Other OS Talk forums here: http://ubuntuforums.org/forumdisplay.php?f=164

There are a lot of threads on this topic .. I had started a similar thread too .. You can find it in those forums

[hurstja]

I have an acer aspire laptop with ubuntu installed, a custom desktop with opensuse 11.0, and a HP Pavillion laptop with Kubuntu installed. Amarok can be used on all three although it is a standard KDE application. I prefer ubuntu over all three OSes. It works best out of the box for me. Opensuse is good, but doesn't seem as user friendly- plus I prefer synaptics package manager over Adept. I have always liked the KDE environment better than gnome, but KDE4 needs a little maturing. And gnome support is bar none. With that said I will probably reinstall the pavillion with Ubuntu 8.1 or Xubuntu which really flies on older machines.

[Rubicon421]

So far, I'm thinking I'm just going to stick with Ubuntu/GNOME. There are a few things that I don't like but I'm sure there are workarounds or just some settings I can change. I kinda like the Mac style toolbar of some distros but I think the look of an OS isn't really the best basis for choice.

[mitchroberts]

opensuse or ubuntu i would pick ubuntu the support here is great.
kde or gnome i picked gnome but that is just me there is no wrong
choice it's just up to the user.

[z.s.tar.gz]

OpenSUSE is great. I have never been much of a kde fan, but it really pulls off kde4 with a certain level of usability usally not found.

Don't get me wrong, ubuntu is great, (I still have it installed in case of emergencies) but I just can't give up opensuse.

[Ben Page]

I was in the same dillema.
I have tried both OSes on live CD - its so easy. I have never "realy" instaled SUSE, but I got a pretty good picture what Im using. SUSE showed lower RAM usage at startup (inspite all the claims that it is more bulky than Ubuntu), it felt a litle lighter, too. But just a litle. Menu is good looking and sharp, but it totaly complicates a real day usage of the system. Yast is the same thing - literaly as the control center in Ubuntu, there are some diferent apps, but they do the same thing in the same way, using same resources. Only "better" app was that novell firewall. But you have to sacrifice Synaptic pcger. If there werent for that stupid menu, maybe I would be using SUSE.
And another thing, pretty big, I almost broke my neck installing the nVidia drivers, and the x server did not work!
In ubuntu there are no hardware problems at all for my hardware combo.

If you like SUSEs "minty" look you can allways use Linux Mint 6 "Felicia" - the flavour of ubuntu that is suposed to imitate SUSE, but still stay Ubuntu (8.10) and keep the synaptic and get "Mint installer" and slick "Mint menu" suse style.

I have used mint, and its great, better than SUSE, really "minty" looking, but I came back to superUbuntu 8.10.

[mfox]

I have openSUSE 11.0 installed on my PowerBook and I quite like it. I also have openSUSE 11.0 installed as a virtual machine on my Intel Mac mini, as well as Ubuntu/Kubuntu 8.10. I also have Ubuntu 8.10 on my MSI Wind. So although I'm "qualified" to comment on your questions, my primary experience with the two alternatives you're interested in is on different computers. First of all, I like both. Secondly, if you're interested in Amarok as your music player, it functions well on both and mp3/mp4 codecs are readily available for both. Here are what I perceive to be the advantages of each. Note that I'm commenting only on Gnome, which is what I mainly use.

openSUSE 11.0
Very nice looking out of the box; more professional looking than Ubuntu. Even the fonts seem to look nicer than on Ubuntu.Main menu panel is more customizable than in Ubuntu - for example you can move preference items around on Favourites.

Ubuntu 8.10

Everything just works, with the exception of the startup screen which has shown shape and colour distortion on two computers I've tried it on. When you need a codec or wireless firmware extraction, Ubuntu offers to get these for you.
It feels a bit faster than openSUSE
I prefer Synaptic/apt to YAST, but this may be because I'm more experienced with it.

Both are excellent in my opinion and it's really a matter of preference.

[phoenix.chen]

dude. SUSE already has new version 11.1
but i would recommand ubuntu instead of suse
cuz ubuntu is easier for installation and suse requires higher hardware support
ubuntu is the best choice so far.