Author Topic: Re: Linux Megathread - PurpleMetro distro switch count: we lost track  (Read 35526 times)










What is Linux?

Linux is, in simplest terms, an operating system. It is the software on a computer that enables applications and the computer operator to access the devices on the computer to perform desired functions. As an open operating system, Linux is developed collaboratively, meaning no one company is solely responsible for its development or ongoing support. Companies participating in the Linux economy share research and development costs with their partners and competitors. This spreading of development burden amongst individuals and companies has resulted in a large and efficient ecosystem and unheralded software innovation.

What Distributions are there for Linux?

There are a lot of different distros to choose from. Here I'll list some of the popular ones, along with what I think of them.


Ubuntu - Ubuntu is currently the most popular distro out there right now. If you want to get into Linux, I recommend starting here. Ubuntu comes by default with the Unity desktop environment. It's pretty slow and crappy, but you can install lots of other desktop environments or window managers that are a lot more customizable and faster. Ubuntu has a lot of hand-holding to it, so the community has pretty much every problem you could think of handled already.

        Variants of Ubuntu:

         Xubuntu - Xubuntu is a lightweight version of Ubuntu. Xubuntu comes with Xfce, which is a stable, light and configurable desktop environment. I'd recommend this for users who want to use the Ubuntu Software Center, but without a bloated OS.



Linux Mint - Linux Mint is a pretty good distro, in my opinion. It works well for both experienced users and beginning users, and happens to have a lot of DE variants. There's also LMDE if you want the Mint experience with official Debian repos. I haven't seen very much of the community for Mint, but from what I've heard they're very friendly and can help with just about any issue.



openSUSE - (this whole paragraph is copy/paste info because I have no experience with openSUSE) openSUSE is a global community promoting and developing a Linux distribution and related tools. The distribution focuses on stability and flexibility. openSUSE devs also have the Open Build Service (packaging for 27 Linux distro's via a web interface), Studio (build your own OS in a browser), Tumbleweed (rolling release for openSUSE), and WebYaST (control your OS remotely)

(pls dont hate me for this its really bad i know i just copypasted and edited from the openSUSE about page)



Debian - Debian is basically the vanilla Linux OS. Ubuntu, and all of Ubuntu's variants, stem from Debian. Debian has a lot of packages and I haven't had a problem running any program on it. Debian comes with GNOME, and also comes with XFCE, both are good. But, you can always change the DE and WM if you want.
The Debian Wiki has a lot of info at your disposal on it.



Fedora - Fedora is developed by the community-supported Fedora Project and owned by Red Hat. The Fedora Project's mission is to lead the advancement of free and open source software and content as a collaborative community. I think I've used Fedora once or twice, and the only thing I can really say about it is that the package manager loving SUCKS. I couldn't really get any programs to work with it but I'm sure that's a problem on my end.



Elementary OS - Elementary OS has been in development for a very long time and its long awaited release has finally come in August. It runs a custom desktop environment (Pantheon) with lots of it's own programs made for it, it branches off of the Ubuntu 12.04 kernel.



Arch Linux - Arch Linux is probably the most difficult to use distro. I do not encourage new users to use this distro. If you still want to try it but don't have very much experience, I recommend ArchBang. ArchBang is basically the same as Arch Linux, but it comes with the OpenBox WM and has a guided installer in terminal to walk you through the steps for installation. Also, you probably shouldn't ask the Arch community for help, they're probably the biggest group of starfishs who think they're above everyone I've ever seen.

        Derivative of Arch:

         ArchBang - As I mentioned above, ArchBang is a simple GNU/Linux distribution which provides you with a lightweight Arch Linux system combined with the Openbox Window Manager. Installation with ArchBang is relatively easy, as it comes with a more graphical install, and Openbox is ready to use from the moment you boot.




Package Managers

Package managers are what you use to manage software packages from your Linux installation, some have a GUI and are very user friendly while others are used with terminal. Here I'll put some of my favorites (and some of the stuffty ones) and what distro they are used on. First I'll list ones used in terminal, and below that will be GUI Package Managers.

Pacman - pacman is a package manager originally made for Arch Linux, but eventually adapted for Manjaro and ArchBang. It's name derives literally from the term "Package Manager."

Apt-get - This is probably the most widely used package manager I've seen. Debian, Ubuntu, Ubuntu derivatives, Debian derivatives, and lots of others use it.

Yum - Absolute stuff. Fedora Linux uses it and its half of the reason why I hate Fedora. Red Hat Linux uses it as well.

Emerge - Gentoo and Funtoo's own package manager. I've used it only once before so I can't offer much of an opinion, but it worked well when I used it.

GUI Package Managers

Synaptic - Synaptic is very popular with Debian and Debian derived distros. I don't use it but it's user friendly for newbies.

Ubuntu Software Center - Is a description for this even necessary? I think you all know what this is for...

Aptitude - This is a mix between terminal and GUI managers, it's run by typing aptitude into a terminal and runs from that terminal, with an interface for you to work with here's an image of it for you to understand what I'm saying.




What should I use Linux for?

Primarily, Linux is used for networking. So I recommend it's usage for people looking to host dedicated servers. Alternatively, Linux works really well on lower end computers. If you have a laptop that struggles to run Windows, then by all means try out Linux.

How do I install Linux?

Personally, I recommend trying out a distro on a virtual machine before even thinking about installing it. You can try them out with a program called VirtualBox, here.

You can install Linux to a CD or USB. Use unetbootin for installing a distro to a flash drive. You can use FreeISOBurner to install to a disc.

Where else can I get help?

ArchWiki, Debian Wiki. Both of these are great resources that you can look through yourself to read up on a lot of linux programs.



I'll be adding more here later on.
If you want a distro or something else added please PM me.
« Last Edit: September 28, 2013, 11:35:06 PM by Pacha- »


It's better for people to make new threads for their problems. Requests for help always get ignored in mega threads.

I don't think using native operating systems is a smart idea at all. I've seen many bad reviews.

Hopefully this topic lives.

Also while I'm here, when I try to create a bootable USB for the Crunchbang installer, I follow the instructions on this page, using dd to copy the contents of the .iso to my USB. I also tried using the USB Image Writer tool that comes with cinnamon, and unetbootin. In every case, the live desktop works fine, but the installer only works up to the point where it scans my partitions for use with the partition manager built-in. It freezes halfway in loading, and I have to shutdown by force.

When I attempt to view the contents of my USB directly, I get a "recursive partitions found on /dev/sdblah" error in GParted. I've searched pretty hard thus far and I haven't found an answer. Any of you guys know what this might mean, and if I'm doing something wrong here?

OpenSuSE and Fedora aren't considered popular distros to you?

@Kingdaro
I had the exact same problem installing Fedora 19, I just booted into basic graphics mode and the installation succeeded without flaw.
« Last Edit: July 07, 2013, 02:59:53 AM by KoopaScooper »

OpenSuSE and Fedora aren't considered popular distros to you?

I'll be adding more tomorrow

Yeah, for some reason the installer just miraculously started working. Figures, haha.


I don't think using native operating systems is a smart idea at all. I've seen many bad reviews.
what

@op:  i suggest adding a few variants of Ubuntu to the list, as Xubuntu is rather popular at the moment.

what

@op:  i suggest adding a few variants of Ubuntu to the list, as Xubuntu is rather popular at the moment.
added xubuntu in, i'll probably add in lubuntu and kubuntu tomorrow

i might also add crunchbang too

Crunchbang isn't really popular though, but I do like it for it's simplicity, speed, size, and how easy it is to edit pretty much anything. Even without documentation.

Pachas helping me install Arch
Also pacha get on steam

Thank you for this thread, I knew I wasn't the only one annoyed by all the linux threads

crunchbang

kubuntu

puppy

opensuse