Recommended Posts

Hey guys,

So since the first time I have ever used Linux I have pretty much stayed with Ubuntu. I remember the first time I ever tried Linux I think I ran Red Hat, and over the years I have played with a few of them, such as Mint, but pretty much used Ubuntu.

I only recently moved to Ubuntu permanently, at least that is my goal. I am a long time Windows user starting from 95 up to trying out Windows 8. I am also a big digital/minimal/simplistic type of person. Anything extra or not needed bothers me, and everything has to be simplified (not in a can't figure something out way, as in a clean way). Part of this whole minimal/simple/digital way of life is my transition into legal content.

When I started off using computers, pretty much everything was pirated or hacked. My music, my games, my office suite, my OS and so forth. Over the past 2 years I have started to change that. All my games are now legal and purchased and stored with Steam. All my music is legal and through services like Rdio. My office suite and other software like that are now free to use through Google Docs. Pictures and all my non video media are stored legally in the cloud. The only thing that was really left over was Windows. Up until Windows 7 I pirated it. Windows 7 I actually had some TechNet keys that are technically legal, but the account it came from is closed, so your not really suppose to keep using it. I have also always had some hatred over Microsoft and Windows (not getting into that in this Convo), so put it all together and you get someone really wanting to use Linux.

There are 2 other reasons I enjoy Linux as well, which are the effects that are available (Compiz Fusion) as well as how the OS looks, the fonts and all that. Much nicer then Windows, at least to me. Of course, the ability to change pretty much anything you want is quite nice too.

Anyways, I am getting better at using Linux, with commands and the right way to do things, but it's still early.

The reason I am telling you all of this is that it might help answer my question. My question is since I am about to re-install Ubuntu 12.04 again, I thought I would ask what you guys think of recent versions of Ubuntu as well as if you think that is the right OS for me, the right Distribution for me? Are there more minimal Distros out there? When I install Ubuntu, after the initial updates I tend to remove most of the software that is on it. As well as quite a few customizations. I have heard some people say recently that Ubuntu has become fat with crap, true?

I Dunno, this might be a pointless conversation because everyone is different. My worry is if I go to another Distro such as Arch, or Debian or Mint that I might have issues getting around and getting things completed. I am basically used to Ubuntu now and it is the one that is most supported by companies.

Ideas/Suggestions/Thoughts.....

Link to comment
https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/1132908-which-distribution-for-me/
Share on other sites

Well, Mint is the easiest to use. If you go to Mint, get the Cinnamon edition. Every thing is right there in your face and you shouldn't have any issues navigating it. Only thing I don't really like is the browser addon Mint search. So I always disable it when I do run Mint.

It's been a while for me, but it used to be that if you want "more" from Linux, then Arch was a good choice. I certainly learned loads more about Linux and the way things work by installing Arch. I imagine this still stands true.

However, if you like the convenience of Ubuntu, there are different spin-offs you could try. Mint, Lubuntu and Crunchbang all had a try-out on my machine and I found them all to be good.

If you want something that is fairly easy to use, there really is nothing that comes close to Ubuntu.

Linux Mint is based on Ubuntu and is also fairly easy to use, but it has even more applications installed by default than Ubuntu does. That said, they give you a choice of several other desktop environments and have some nice things (such as codecs) installed by default that Ubuntu does not. The way they setup their system is not kosher, which is why neither Ubuntu nor Debian are configured similarly, but new or less-technical users generally don't care. Since it is directly based on Ubuntu, all software that runs on Ubuntu (such as Steam) will run on Linux Mint without issues.

Arch is a really great distro if you're a power user, masochist, or simply enjoy learning how the system works. Arch users generally learn very quickly how and why the system is setup, and they gain a solid technical understanding of the operating system they run. The package manager does almost nothing automatically and only the minimal number of system management utilities are provided by the project. I definitely wouldn't recommend it for a beginner because of the steep learning curve and expected entry level of expertise.

Fedora is also fairly easy to use, like Ubuntu, but it has just as many applications installed by default, a smaller set of software in their repository, and generally more "rough edges". I would only recommend Fedora if you were a system administrator who regularly deals with Red Hat systems.

openSUSE is still struggling to find their target audience. I only mention it because I think it is still considered a major distribution. It has a very nice KDE desktop that generally looks very polished. Beyond that, they don't have too many strong points. I wouldn't recommend this distribution to anyone.

Therefore, the easiest thing to do is probably install Ubuntu and simply remove the applications you don't want, just like you have been doing. Once you are more comfortable with how the operating system works you could consider moving to Arch, Debian, Gentoo, or some other distribution by judging their technical merits for yourself.

  • Like 3
Therefore, the easiest thing to do is probably install Ubuntu and simply remove the applications you don't want, just like you have been doing. Once you are more comfortable with how the operating system works you could consider moving to Arch, Debian, Gentoo, or some other distribution by judging their technical merits for yourself.

Agreed.. one of the 'Buntus or Mint would probably be the best option if you want it to work with minimal fuss, and there's an awful lot of documentation/support for when it throws a curveball at you. Which flavor you go depends on your DE of choice personally. I like KDE myself (for me the most complete desktop with the least "WTF were they smoking" bundled with it), Mate or Cinnamon are nice options too. XFCE's a good pick if you want something a bit lightweight, for me a bit lacking on features, but depends on your needs. Unity and Gnome 3.. well, when it comes to those two I'll probably get a warning for expressing my opinion on those.

I personally like Arch myself as it's built from the ground up versus the "everything and three forks of the kitchen sink" approach most distros take. As xorangekiller mentioned though, not for somebody who's wanting the "click click done" install, complete opposite end of the difficulty spectrum. Definitely want to try it in a VM before you do it for real, make sure you want to commit to that much hands-on work, have the wiki open on another display.. it's going to be your best friend for a while.

Beyond that, they don't have too many strong points. I wouldn't recommend this distribution to anyone.

YaST. If you're into headaches I can definitely recommend it. Otherwise, I'd move along. (Maybe I'm being harsh, haven't tried it in a year or so.)

  • Like 2

Even though I primarily use Debian (and generally don't like the way an Arch system runs), I have to agree with Max Norris that Arch has an AMAZING wiki. When it comes to in-depth, practical, technical information on how to configure some piece of software in Linux, the Arch wiki is the best resource ever. I look things up in the Debian wiki when I need to know something Debian-specific, and I look things up in the Arch wiki when I need to know exactly how it works!

Awesome stuff guys.

Looks like I have been doing the way I should be doing it, using Ubuntu and just removing software etc...

I definitely not new to Linux, but nowhere near the level I would need for Arch.

This topic is now closed to further replies.
  • Posts

    • And the fact that the majority of people from Poland are white European Christians while the people you are complaining about in post after post are not is just a coincidence... Every sentence in your post I am replying to is racist nonsense. None of it is actually based on any facts whatsoever. All immigrants are seeking a better life too. It's literally the only reason they would risk everything and leave their homes, families, and homeland. They are working and contributing to the economy too, as you even admit. They get the same benefits your partner did AND that YOU are eligible for as well. That is one of the key things of the EU and a mark of a civilization. That is the definition of a society where everyone is given a chance, treated equally and fairly, and is judged by the content of their character, not their different skin color or which version of ignorant superstitious nonsense their parents lied about as children. Racists around the world said the same things about the Irish and Jews and Poles (like your partner) and...every other immigrant movement over the centuries. What's your family's heritage, by the way? Were your ancestors lied about with racist fearmongering crapola by self-entitled locals the same way as you are now? If someone like that said the same things about all people from Poland, like your partner, would they be right? Or would you want them to judge your partner based on who they actually were, not where they just happened to come from?
    • Again, this is an irrelevant attempt to attack the messenger. The truth does not require any justification.
    • Removed the blue and underline as you did not post a link. This would also  be considered spamming.
    • Why it's almost impossible to produce a smartphone in the United States by Hamid Ganji If you look at the back of some Apple products, you can see the famous phrase “Designed by Apple in California, Assembled in China.” This phrase appears on products from one of the largest smartphone brands in the United States. These products are designed in the U.S., but their manufacturing takes place in China, India, Vietnam, or even Brazil. But why can’t Apple, as one of the largest American tech companies, produce its iPhones on U.S. soil? The idea for this topic came to me after the Trump Foundation launched a smartphone called the T1 and claimed that it was designed and built with American values in mind. However, this claim did not last long, as it was revealed that Trump’s phone was actually a rebranded HTC U24 Pro, with only a gold case and minor internal component changes. You see? Even a phone that is supposed to represent American values is manufactured in China. With a gross domestic product (GDP) exceeding $32 trillion, the United States is currently the world’s largest economy, while China ranks second with around $20 trillion. On the other hand, the United States is by a wide margin the global leader in various technological fields, and American companies spend hundreds of billions of dollars annually on research and development. From Apple and Google to Microsoft, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and others, American tech and industrial giants lead their foreign competitors in many sectors. The United States also has no shortage of smartphone brands. Apple, Google, and Motorola are among the major brands in the smartphone market, collectively holding a significant share. However, the vast majority of their products are manufactured outside the United States. So why is it that the world’s largest economy, home to the most advanced technology companies and industrial powers, cannot produce a smartphone on its own soil? Let’s explore this question together. Even threats to impose tariffs won’t work After Trump entered the White House as the 47th President of the United States, his administration adopted strict tariff policies. One of these policies was the imposition of a 25% tariff on smartphones manufactured outside the United States. Trump said he “had a little problem” with Apple CEO Tim Cook over producing smartphones outside the U.S. So he thought that threatening a 25% tax on imported phones might force Apple to bring manufacturing back to the United States. “I have long ago informed Tim Cook of Apple that I expect their iPhones that will be sold in the United States of America will be manufactured and built in the United States, not India, or anyplace else,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. Image via The White House Although Apple currently manufactures some of the iPhone’s chips in the United States with TSMC's help, it still shows no willingness to shift full iPhone production to the country. At the time, renowned Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo wrote on X, “In terms of profitability, it’s way better for Apple to take the hit of a 25% tariff on iPhones sold in the US market than to move iPhone assembly lines back to the US.” However, manufacturing a smartphone in the United States is not as easy as it might seem, and many technical and economic barriers are involved. The lack of necessary manufacturing hubs There is a clear reason why many companies prefer to manufacture their products in China. China has established itself as the main global manufacturing hub for international companies, and over the past few decades, large contract manufacturers have emerged there, allowing companies like Apple to outsource production. One such example is Foxconn, which also manufactures some Apple products in India. Building the infrastructure required to produce smartphones in the United States would require tens of billions of dollars in new investment. Factories would need to be built, essential manufacturing equipment would have to be installed, and, most importantly, a skilled workforce capable of operating these systems would need to be recruited and trained. The United States currently lacks the core infrastructure needed to manufacture smartphones, and for this reason, many companies prefer to outsource production to Chinese contractors rather than spend tens of billions of dollars to build that infrastructure, which is significantly more economically efficient. Additionally, building such infrastructure in the United States could take up to a decade, ultimately leading to a significant increase in the product's final price for consumers. Shortage of trained labor in the U.S. compared to China Decades of serving as a global manufacturing hub have allowed China to build a massive talent pool in the production sector that is almost unmatched worldwide. Today, if a company chooses to manufacture its products in China, it can be confident that the workers involved in production have years of experience in their respective roles and are capable of producing high-quality goods with minimal errors. Even if we assume that tens of billions of dollars were invested in building smartphone manufacturing infrastructure in the United States, finding skilled workers would remain highly challenging. Apple CEO Tim Cook visiting the iPhone 6 assembly line in China in 2014. Image: Tim Cook on X In a 2015 interview on CBS’s 60 Minutes, Tim Cook said the main reason Apple isn’t producing in the US is a lack of skills. "China put an enormous focus on manufacturing, in what you and I would call vocational kind of skills. The US over time began to stop having as many vocational kinds of skills. I mean you could take every tool and die maker in the United States and probably put them in the room that we're currently sitting in. In China you would have to have multiple football fields,” Cook said. Also, in 2017, at the Fortune Global Forum in Guangzhou, Cook once again emphasized the importance of highly skilled Chinese workers. “China has moved into very advanced manufacturing, so you find in China the intersection of craftsman kind of skill, and sophisticated robotics and the computer science world. That intersection, which is very rare to find anywhere, that kind of skill, is very important to our business because of the precision and quality level that we like. The thing that most people focus on if they’re a foreigner coming to China is the size of the market, and obviously, it’s the biggest market in the world in so many areas. But for us, the number one attraction is the quality of the people,” Apple CEO said. Higher labor costs in the United States Producing almost any product in the United States is more expensive than in many other countries, and one of the main reasons is the higher cost of labor in the U.S. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, median weekly earnings of full-time workers in the United States were $1,235 in the first quarter of 2026. Meanwhile, the average annual salary in China's private sector in 2025 was RMB 71,590 (US$9,961). In many parts of the world, the weekly wage of an American worker is equivalent to several months of income. Another important factor to consider is that in the United States, the workforce capable of working on a smartphone assembly line is highly specialized and therefore commands higher-than-average wages. According to an estimate by Bank of America, producing an iPhone in the U.S. is technically possible, but “iPhone cost can increase 25% purely on higher labor cost in the U.S.” However, this 25% increase applies only if final assembly is performed in the United States while components are still sourced from China or elsewhere. In this case, the price of a base iPhone would rise from $799 to around $1,000. But in another scenario, if Apple were to produce the required components for the iPhone within the United States, production costs could increase by more than 90%. Trump’s dream for a “Made in the USA” iPhone might never come true In a free-market capitalist economy, one of the primary responsibilities of any CEO is to maximize profit. Using Apple as an example, Tim Cook’s role is to maximize the company’s profits so that it can fund research and development for new products and invest in areas such as artificial intelligence, while also keeping shareholders satisfied. Therefore, it is entirely understandable that Apple would choose not to bring its manufacturing back to the United States and instead keep production in countries where labor is cheaper, and products can be manufactured at a lower cost, thereby maximizing its profit margins. What is your opinion about manufacturing smartphones in the United States? If you are an American citizen, would you be willing to pay hundreds of dollars more for a smartphone made domestically in the USA? Let us know in the comments.
  • Recent Achievements

    • Conversation Starter
      jessse3334 earned a badge
      Conversation Starter
    • Reacting Well
      JuvenileDelinquent earned a badge
      Reacting Well
    • One Month Later
      Excellence2025 earned a badge
      One Month Later
    • Week One Done
      Excellence2025 earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • Week One Done
      flexorcist earned a badge
      Week One Done
  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      506
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      196
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      153
    4. 4
      Steven P.
      72
    5. 5
      FloatingFatMan
      65
  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!