

The quest for the perfect Linux distribution: an ongoing journey - pietrofmaggi
http://rainbowtux.blogspot.it/2012/08/Quest-for-perfect-Linux-distribution.html

======
neverm0re
I read articles like these hoping they'd contain more interesting
distributions that would challenge the status quo. Projects like GoboLinux,
NixOS and such are far more alien from the average Linux distribution, which
tend to be more alike than they are different. There's strong viewpoints
behind them that are offering new looks at how we all could be doing things,
even if they are merely one or two radical changes here and there.

On some level I think that people who try new things with Linux tend to get
shouted down, usually with intense appeals to tradition -- and unless you're
working on Fedora, chances are it won't see light of day. I actually view this
as pretty unhealthy. It doesn't matter if these new hypothetical alien Linux
distros are actually good or bad, what's important is that people are
constantly trying new things for all of us to learn from.

If someone asks me about the 'perfect Linux distribution' and they only want
to talk about the mainstream distributions, it means we're not dreaming big
enough.

~~~
zokier
I feel like even mainstream distros are beginning to branch out. Ubuntu got
Unity and upstart, Debian is switching to LXDE, Fedora spearheading systemd
and selinux (while keeping gnome), opensuse experimenting with new release
models, and Mint doing its Mate/Cinnamon thingy.

Contrast that to the situation couple of years back, when Ubuntu was mostly a
rebadge of Debian, and almost everyone was shipping with Gnome2 as default.
Even the init systems were more unified then.

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qznc
This SuSE Tumbleweed looks nice. In my opinion this is what most users
actually want: A stable core system (kernel, cron, Gnome, bash, ...) and
bleeding edge apps (Firefox, Thunderbird, ...).

For Debian and Derivatives this seems to be missing. At least Debian backports
are not in widespread use.

~~~
lunarscape
Ubuntu + PPAs is another solution.

~~~
qznc
PPAs become quite messy in my experience. For example, they get disabled on
major upgrades and I forgot why I included them.

------
scribblemacher
I really want a distro that is minimal but also "just works." I like tweaking
things as much as the next guy, but when I'm heading off to work and want to
print a shipping label from my laptop quick, I really don't want to have to
sit and read a manual to figure out why my printer isn't working. On the other
hand, 90% of the time I'm at my computer, I'm just using Vim or a web browser,
so running a full desktop stack seems like a waste.

The closest thing I've found to what I want is Debian Testing. I've heard good
things about Gentoo, and while I think I'm more than capable of RTFM and doing
it myself, and sometimes I enjoy doing it myself--other time, I really do want
it to just work so I can get work done too.

~~~
keithpeter
"Sometimes I liked to learn things, but on other days it just had to work,
without fiddling too much."

Desktop: CentOS 6, laptop: Ubuntu whatever. I've used Debian Stable on the
desktop previously. Good people are finding things that work for them.

------
icebraining
Debian Unstable:

\- apt-get / aptitude

\- lots of packages

\- rolling release

\- big community

\- committed to support Free Software

~~~
cgh
Over the years, I've had too many issues with Unstable breaking when I needed
it most (generally something work-related). As a home/hobbyist system, it's
probably fine though.

The article's mention of this Tumbleweed distribution is interesting - a
stable, non-breaking core, with up-to-date applications. In fact, achieving
that sweet spot is why I migrated to OS X some years ago. I'm going to check
it out.

~~~
qznc
In reaction to this article I googled around and found SolusOS. Building on
Debian stable, adding convenient non-free stuff (drivers, flash, etc.) and
fresh apps (e.g. current Firefox). I'm currently preparing the install disk,
so no real experience so far, but the reviews are good.

<http://solusos.com/>

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lnteveryday
A note about Arch: most WMs and DEs have support for packages that allow
configuration through a GUI, although the installation is all text.
Configuration through editing text can sometimes be faster when you really
know your system. As the author points out, running arch can really help you
to get to know your system.

Also, it's been awhile since I was "new" to linux, but arch installation can
be very easy if you follow the beginners guide on the arch wiki. Everything is
spelled out plain and simple.

There is a graphical installer for a branch off of arch, known as Archbang.
It's basically a live system you can boot into (with openbox) and install from
there (still text based really, but a little more friendly). (Some arch users
also fear the road of a GUI installer because it would make it easier for
people with little understanding of linux to run arch, but that is a flawed
philosophy. Arch can be for learning too)

~~~
tikhonj
Installing Arch is easy as long as you don't want to do anything clever. As
soon as you want to do something like setting software RAID up, it becomes
much less easy :P. At least that's been my experience.

Maybe with my next laptop I'll try Arch properly, but it was too much of a
pain last time I tried to install it with my current setup.

~~~
lnteveryday
I generally don't set up RAID on any of my machines because there really is no
need. A quick google search though returns tons of stuff on the archwiki,
which goes through preparation and installation/execution. This isn't only the
case with RAID. As awayand said, the documentation is golden.

------
zwdr
Obviously there is no "perfect" Linux-Distro for everyone. I grew to like
Fedora, but the perfect Distro to me would've been one I put together myself.
And thats why we use Linux after all, isn't it? Because we can choose from so
many flavors. That's also the conclusion the writer comes to- the article is
more of a look at some popular distros, even if the title suggests something
else.

------
autophil
I've been using Mint the past few weeks and it's been solid. I'll stick with
it for the time being (but the new SusE sounds awesome and I've always
preferred RPM over DEB).

------
urlwolf
Sabayon is a rolling release distro that is far easier for newbies than arch.
Worth looking at.

