Ubuntu's Populatiry

[ExSuSEusr]

I think it's safe to say that Ubuntu is one of the most popular distros for personal use, yes?

One of the things I picked up on (and one of the reasons I feel it's so popular) is because of the wealth of information about this distro - especially the "How To's" which are made in such a way that even the most novice of Linux user can follow clearly. Not to mention how simple it is to install anyway.

I browsed around the other distro's sites on their How To's and while they are great sites, great distro's and such - their How To's are horrible. Vague and unclear - seemingly shrouded in the sense that the reader should already know this or that (which they may or may not).

Documentation seems to the be the ill of most Linux disto's.

Take a look at Gentoo's site. Now, put yourself in the shoes of a Windows user who is considering switching to Linux who is considering downloading and installing it. Then that person goes to their handbook... it's very likely, after reading through their How To's - they'll click the back button and not even bother.

Not slamming on Gentoo mind you - it's a great distro. But I think if Linux is really going to make a huge impact in the personal computing (home computers) market there is going to have be a major change in the quality and completeness of guides and how to's.

Ubuntu seems the exception. This board alone offers better support and more knowledge that most vendor telephonic technical support! Anyone who's ever had to call MS or Dell for support knows what I mean ;)

So, what do you think? Am I am wrong in this observation? And, if I'm not - what's the problem? Why is there such a lack of quality and thorough (complete) guides for the other distro's?

[rivalarrival]

There is a lack of (or perception of a lack of) documentation and thorough guides... Because there is a lack of documentation and thorough guides!

Ubuntu bills itself as an operating system for everyone - read the guides and it will work. A large number of people who use Ubuntu also actively participate in the community, which in turn produces better documentation, better guides. Which in turn entices more people to choose Ubuntu over other distros, which adds people to the community, which adds to the supporting documentation and guides...

Ubuntu is the gateway distro. It's kinda like a minivan. It can do just about any task you can throw at it, but the only records it is going to take are in the "most used" category. But, it's a good way to learn how to drive so when you do decide to get that sports car, pickup truck, go-cart (Damn Small Linux), dune-buggy, or clown-car (Embedded distros like DD-WRT, Ipod Linux), you're not completely lost in the driver's seat.

[some_random_noob]

I agree.

If there was an easier distro, we'd be using it right now. The documentation & community is great. A monkey could use Ubuntu.

[ThinkBuntu]

Arch Linux has very good documentation in their Wiki, especially considering how much smaller it is than Ubuntu.

[Pancetilla]

Gentoo was a bad example, they have comprehensive documentation, well written and invaluable (Gentoo is not for windows users looking for a switch, so I don't see how the docs could make it up) and the forums are filled with how-tos and the likes; the community is very helpful overall; Arch Linux's is nice, too. I'm running into more trouble with Slackware, but the community is also smaller (no one seems to run iriverter in their boxes), but you've got the slack-book and some other niceties, too.

Oh, yes, Ubuntu's is great too :guitar:

[Spr0k3t]

Gentoo is a fantastic distro with extremely finite and detailed documentation; however for the faint of heart it is not.

I recommend everyone build one of the advanced systems at least once with their own custom kernel. It's a learning experience that will open your eyes about Linux and give you a much better view of various distros.

The Linux universe is an abyss.