trying out another linux distro,thoughts or opinions ?

[whoopwhoopgod]

hi guys


i'm thinking of using another distribution,ubuntu is nice but i dont feel like i'm learning much i wanted to try linux because of

1)stability
2)free stuff(admit it,its a factor)
3)to learn stuff about computers,its the way of the future
4)to be able to fix up my damn computer if there is a error

i'm currently using ubuntu 11.04(classic mode) and i think i need to decide soon as i heard ubuntu will only offer unity in the future(its not my kind of thing)

i am thinking of using a rolling distro ? it appeals to me as i hate installing from a live cd as i always want to format my whole system again before installing or ugrading to the new version and i cant make the CD installer for some reason(please dont ask)

i'm thinking of either
1)openSUSE
2)Arch
3)Sabayon
4)Debian(is it a rolling distribution ?)

any opinions/suggestions/criticisms are appreciated

i'm having college soon so i'm thinking of installing a new one,maybe an easy one but when my holidays start i wont mind spending the time to get my system up and running the way i want it

[mikewhatever]

If you don't like Unity, but still want to use the latest release of *buntu, try Kubuntu, Xubuntu or Lubuntu, none of them have Unity. If you are not stuck on the latest release, use Ubuntu 10.04.
For a rolling distro, try PClinux or Arch. Debian is not a rolling release distro, unless you use the testing or unstable branch. Arch and Debian are a bit harder to use, especially if you are new to Linux. OpenSuse and Sabayon are nice, kind of similar to Ubuntu, but I don't know for how long they'll keep using Gnome2, in fact, that's true for all distros, since Gnome2 has been discontinued by the Gnome Foundation. Do you know if you like Gnome3 yet?

[in-dust-rial]

hey there,

lets work through your goals

1)stability
well, stability is relative: but i think a rolling release is always less stable than a stable (point) release. so maybe you dont want to use a rolling release?

2)free stuff(admit it,its a factor)
thats available in all distros you mentioned above

3)to learn stuff about computers,its the way of the future
to learn about the system is maybe tightly bound to mess with the system. maybe you want to install linux in a virtual machine (virtualbox) to test selveral distributions and how they work.
I think the most valuable way to learn is to built linux fram scratch (so build your own distribution).

4)to be able to fix up my damn computer if there is a error
i think this ability comes with reading the source code of programs and the possibility to change the code and compile again. so that would be a plus for gentoo.
however, that might be very stressful and painful.
debian is the next step coming from ubuntu i would say.
messing with the slightly more complex package dependencies is already quite a learning experience!

debian is available as testing(rolling release) and stable (point release). so debian has both aspects.

if i were you i would download a virtual machine and test some distributions which combine source and package trees.
(some BSD and i think gentoo as well(?))
in this way you can learn about the traditional make-install way a bit and the more modern binary way.

when you found a distribution which is not too complex but still interesting install it to a partition of your system.
link your home folder to another partition (by 'fstab').
then you can easily install new distribution but keep all the settings (not the /etc/ settings... maybe link them too) and files unchanged.

so a new install is a matter of a view minutes...
and also u can use tools to make install from USB.
linux usb creater for example. linuxliveusb DOT com

good luck

[wolfen69]

I hear Debian Testing is a rolling release. Don't let the name fool you, as it is pretty stable.

[ckop64]

I'm a long time distrohopper so hopefully I can give you my personal opinion on the distros you asked about.

1. openSUSE - Ok, so the rolling release branch os SUSE (Tumbleweed) is still kind of immature, so I wouldn't advise you using that (if you are a linux rookie). Overall if your goal is to learn more about Linux and generally how computers work SUSE is definetely not the way to go since --just like Ubuntu-- it is more geared towards average desktop usage and GUI configuration "for dummies".

2. Arch - My absolute favorite distro, has a very well established community and a clear vision of simplicity (from the technical standpoint: see "The Arch way" -- Arch accomplishes on this behalf extremely well), although don't forget that Arch will probably never be as stable and polished like the mainstream distros out there, and the philosophy of including untested or barely tested software in the main repositories often result in an unusable, and/or unstable system, with lots of bleeding-edges. I also wanted to mention AUR as one of the most awesome things ever happened to arch. They have a decent package manager as well. The distro itself can teach you a lot about configuring and building your stuff manually.

3. Sabayon - I've tried it only once, and meh... I didn't like it. I mean it is definitely not bad, It's just not my style. One of the weakest points (again, in my opinion) is the package manager entropy, which is a quite crucial piece of software for a rolling release distribution. They are based on Gentoo, which means an additional level of speed, and they have every package precompiled in their repositories for convenience, so you don't have to spend hours (days?) with compiling KDE for example. If you truly want to learn something about how Linux/UN*X works please just go with Gentoo. It WILL be a pain int the b*tt, but the end result is definitely worth it.

4. Debian (Testing) - Debian is a rock solid, old and well supported distribution. Don't let the word 'testing' fool you, it is a lot more stable than most of the top distros out there thanks to the Debian team, who do a really good job at testing, packaging, integrating and fixing upstream software. There is really nothing too much to say, since it probably just works. If you want to learn about Linux, it is not the best choice though, since almost everything is preconfigured, and the install process itself is graphical, so once you get it running its kinda like a stripped down version of Ubuntu. When I tried the last couple times the testing images provided by Debian just didn't work, were broken or buggy, so probably the best experience is installing Linux Mint Debian edition, since it is basically the same exact distro, plus some added mint stuff (like the mintMenu, or the graphical package manager, which nobody cares about... .

So that would be it, I hope that I could help you a bit deciding which one is the best for you. write me a pm or reply here if you have further questions.

Cheers, ckop64

[whoopwhoopgod]

@mike , i did try unity actually but it felt weird,it felt slower than just using the classic mode for me.i did try to use and like it honestly,i'm not just being a sheep and following what other people say

i've never actually tried gnome 3 but it looks abit like unity to me,i've watched quite a number of reviews on youtube and i have to say i'm not a big fan of the style of it so i'm thinking of swapping to something like arch where i can customise everything(or so they say)

@in-dust-rial

thanks,i think i will do what you said and try usinga virtual box.anyways i'm off to try and do the installations on virtual box

[handy]

My experience of Arch is that it IS stable. I've experienced very few problems in the life (well over 3 years old now) of my oldest installation & I've been using the git kernel & AMD/ATi driver stack for most of the last 21 months too.

Arch doesn't suit everyone, it is the opposite of Ubuntu, many people really don't like the way Arch does things.

The Arch wiki sets the standard, it is where you look first.

If you do install Arch follow the Beginners' Guide to the letter, don't be put off by the size of that guide, as is jumps you through to where you need to go next.

https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Beginners%27_Guide

[lisati]

Threads merged. Please do not start multiple threads on the same question, it dilutes the community experience.

[krapp]

When I tried the last couple times the testing images provided by Debian just didn't work, were broken or buggy, so probably the best experience is installing Linux Mint Debian edition

I think it's generally recommended that you install Debian Stable, change your /etc/apt/sources.list to Testing and do a full-upgrade to Testing.

[snowpine]

I recommend Ubuntu Long Term Support 10.04. It is 1) very stable; 2) free; 3) a good learning distro; 4) easy to fix due to the excellent documentation on the Ubuntu wiki/help pages and also the wonderful support you'll find on these forums.

10.04 will support the "classic" Gnome 2.x desktop through April 2013. You will be able to easily "roll" to 12.04 (if you choose) when it is released next year.

"Rolling release" distros by definition are not stable and will not support "classic" Gnome 2.x. Rolling release is for users who always want the latest software (i.e. Gnome 3) and new software is generally buggier than older, well-tested, extensively patched software. Also I disagree with the notion that Ubuntu is not a good learning distro. While it's true Ubuntu is very easy for a beginner, it also offers all the standard tools for intermediate/advanced projects. You can learn compiling from source, system administration, networking, virtualization, etc. in Ubuntu without switching distros.