difference between linux distributions

[ramy]

hey,I am a new member and new to Linux .I want to know how to download Linux, and what the difference between (Ubuntu,Suse ,Redhat ,mandrake,...etc).Are all Linux distributions free to download.thanks,bye.

[kellemes]

hey,I am a new member and new to Linux .I want to know how to download Linux, and what the difference between (Ubuntu,Suse ,Redhat ,mandrake,...etc).Are all Linux distributions free to download.thanks,bye.

Not very easy to answer..
Just browse Distrowatch (http://distrowatch.com/) for a while and read the reviews and such..

[LowSky]

Distrowatch.com can give you info on all the versions of linux availible.

here's the link to download ubuntu
http://www.ubuntu.com/getubuntu/download

[LowSky]

if you want a great easy to use version of linux try Linux Mint
It has all the extra stuff like DVD, MP3, Flash, and Java already installed and working
http://www.linuxmint.com/

[bobnutfield]

All linux distributions use the linux kernel, but from there it does get a little complicated. Because they all use the linux kernel, there are many inherent similarities, but some commands will be different from distribution to distribution and the package management will be different.

Almost all linux distributiuons are free to download with some exceptions (Red Hat Enterprise, a commercial version of SuSE, etc.).

[phidia]

Welcome to linux & Ubuntu. This post will probably get moved to an opinion area-well maybe.
Anyway most distros are free to download you can google linuxtracker & distrowatch.
Differences are wide and in fact linux distros are often not compatible with one another-although there are methods to try and make them more so.
It's best to go to distrowatch and do some exploring I think.

[cmay]

hi.
not all linux are the same by example package manager system and there can be a price . open suse comes as free download but you can buy a box-set also. i had mandriva as my first commercial linux and that had some programs that was non - free whit it. you should try to use as many linux versions you need to make up your mind what is the best one.

and one other thing is that if you learn as example redhat linux then its not all things that works the exact same way as in ubuntu. i dont know how to use the commandline to install programs from redhat based systems but i do know from all debian based systems like ubuntu.

hope that it helped.

[go_lanche]

It depends on what you want to do with Linux, figuring that out is the first step. In addition to distrowatch.com, a good place to view distros side-by-side is here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_Linux_distributions

With that being said, after you do all that and look at distrowatch.com as well, just go with Ubuntu! It is awesome and I spend at least a few minutes every day at work cursing the fact that I have to have Fedora and not Ubuntu, so unless you have a very compelling reason to go with something else, its Ubuntu FTW!

Also, obviously, the forums for Ubuntu are amazingly helpful.

[sub2007]

Chances are your Ubuntu is tweaked as you like it, same as Fedora would be if you used Fedora. A full-time Fedora user who was forced to use Ubuntu would probably say the same as you. ;)

Popular doesn't necessarily mean better. I find Arch is better than Ubuntu in nearly every way I can imagine but I know it's not for everyone and I wouldn't go as far as saying that it's the best distro. I personally wanted a stable rolling release distro (which Ubuntu isn't) and I liked the idea of building from the ground up. There are a lot of great distros out there and they are all different, the only way to find out what you like is to read about the distros and try them out.

For a beginner I would say that Ubuntu is the way to go, it always "just worked" for me better than the other distros. If you then find that you have different needs to what you feel that Ubuntu can provide then you can look for a distro that meets those needs (chances are that there will be one). Or you can play with more distros and see what you like, or you can stay with Ubuntu if you want to. There is a load of choice, it's just a matter of starting somewhere and Ubuntu really is as good a place as anywhere.

[ramy]

thank you for your advice.I want to learn linux for using on my pc now and as a job for the future. I want to know what is the popular and most used distribution?,is ubuntu this this one?

[ooobuntooo]

I want to know how to download Linux
Go to the website of your favorite Linux distibution. Download the ISO and burn it to a CD/DVD and boot from the disk.

what the difference between (Ubuntu,Suse ,Redhat ,mandrake,...etc)
Created and maintained by different communities/companies/individuals. Different desktop meta packages and themes etc...

Are all Linux distributions free to download.thanks,bye.
Most of them are, apart from Linspire which is fairly **** anyway!

[sub2007]

For home desktop use Ubuntu is definitely the most popular at the moment.

The distros with commercial backing (Red Hat, Mandriva, Xandros, Linspire) are not free. Nearly all of them though still have functional free versions without their proprietary components (as they're open source projects they have to release the source code, therefore they may as well release a free version as someone else will!) Plus it's good advertising for their paid for versions.

[ibutho]

thank you for your advice.I want to learn linux for using on my pc now and as a job for the future. I want to know what is the popular and most used distribution?,is ubuntu this this one?

If you want to learn Linux for employment purposes, then you probably have to be familiar with Red Hat Linux because its the most popular distribution in the enterprise sector. You shouldn't also limit yourself to one distribution, take a look at Ubuntu, openSUSE, Debian and others once you are familiar with the basics of the Linux OS.

[cardinals_fan]

Ubuntu is the most popular for home desktops and is very easy. Red Hat (or CentOS, its free clone) is very popular in the enterprise. Slackware will teach you a ton about how Linux works.

Personally, I use Arch. It's a lot like Slackware, but is easier because of its automated package management.

[darrelljon]

Getting a book about it is a good place to start.

[Rotaj]

If you want to learn Linux for employment purposes, then you probably have to be familiar with Red Hat Linux because its the most popular distribution in the enterprise sector. You shouldn't also limit yourself to one distribution, take a look at Ubuntu, openSUSE, Debian and others once you are familiar with the basics of the Linux OS.

CentOS (http://www.centos.org/) is essentially an open source version of Red Hat.

[snowpine]

thank you for your advice.I want to learn linux for using on my pc now and as a job for the future. I want to know what is the popular and most used distribution?,is ubuntu this this one?

Ubuntu is riding a wave of popularity right now. I would like to think this is partly due to the awesome user community--like right here on ubuntuforums! Welcome to the forums, and please ask lots of questions. :)

[cardinals_fan]

CentOS (http://www.centos.org/) is essentially an open source version of Red Hat.
No, CentOS is a free as in beer version of Red Hat. Both are open source - how else would CentOS exist? :)