DEFINITIVE: Which Linux Distro? (poll for 2006)

[GeneralStorm]

I'm going to lobby hard (with my family) for PCLinuxOS once a format is required in XP. I'm really impressed with the "MiniMe" release.

[SaguratuS]

Still a die hard gentoo/kde fan here ;)

I recommend ubuntu/kubuntu for anyone who's not so familiar with linux, but otherwise, compile or shoo.

I could not be happy with my current XGL desktop and application integration. Can't wait until I have some time to conjure up another video

[betamaxman]

SUSE just plain rocks, and if you have the proper yast sources anything is available that you may want to install (just as with apt) and if you must, apt and yum is easily installed. I have tried just about all there is out there except gentoo and I can tell you SUSE has the best hardware detection out there especialy when it comes to sata drives with simple partitions. Suse is also very easy to upgrade software via yast. i always have the lattest kde.

Gnome as a desktop just doesn't cut it for me even Linus and Klass Knopper will tell you of kde's superior attributes, I have gnome installed but just because I use some of it's apps and they seem to work better with all of gnome. However ubuntu is gaining ground, if they would just get rid of that silly sudo thing before it becomes a serious security risk for the rest of us Linux users. :cool:

Also some might want to give Super SUSE a try.

Edited May 12, 2006 by betamaxman

[Duke D]

I recently tried to do a fresh install of the latest ubunto.. didn't work.. i got a screen after install as if my video card died, billions of color's.... weird... something go wrong? I have Asus A8N-SLi Premium, etc. video card is a GeForce 6800GS......Any ideas?? I'm gonna try again tonight on a partition... see if that helps....

Same thing happened to me when i tried the kubuntu/ubuntu live cd, im also on an nvidia geforce, not sure what causes it but when i tried the suse 10.0 live cd it all worked really smoothly, kinda makes me scared to try to install kubuntu on Thursday when i dual-boot...

[Carnevil]

In the last 8 years I've used almost every linux distro under the sun, and pretty much every D.E. If I had to drop FreeBSD and go back to linux, I'd have to choose Arch or Slackware using KDE.

[speedemonV12]

UBUNTU

GNOME

ubuntu is just a fantastic distrubution, i love it, it works with all my hardware, and is very easy to set up and all.....

gnome is great, so simple, and very customizable, i like how it is not cluttered.

but lately, i have started to use xfce and i like it a lot to, so it might become my default desktop

[Sensayshun]

Normally Ubuntu and Gnome but recently switched to XFCE as it was suggested for machines with less power. Have to say I quite like XFCE, it's now my default and is probably going to stay that way, although have no complaints at all about gnome.

[GeneralStorm]

PCLinuxOS is my distro of choice, but I also like Kubuntu. I once did a netinstall of Debian Etch that I was impressed with, too.

[1759]

I'm using Ubuntu.

I've used Red Hat, Suse, and Mandrake before, as well as a Mepis Live CD, but Ubuntu has been the first time that Linux has felt fairly usable, although some features still have a way to go, like printer support (since Canon is mute on their HW) and multiple monitor support is lacking - I can't see why there couldn't be a GUI applet for Nvidia Twinview/xorg.conf in Linux that works as in Windows; a couple of clicks and you're done).

I like apt-get and Synaptic once you understand how to use them, beats Windows Update by a mile and makes finding and installing applications a snap. Nautilus is faster than Windows Explorer for me, but missing all of Explorer's features, so it's a bit of a wash.

[Alex Shenoy]

I would have voted gentoo like a month ago. But, I like ubuntu now. It's clean and well kept. I like all the things they are doing with the system. I have always prefered the *box environments. I switched from fluxbox to openbox and I am pretty happy with it.

--Alex

[xxdesmus]

Ubuntu with KDE (though I am starting to like Gnome a lot more than I used to)... Simple, clean, easy to update, absolutely fantastic hardware detection (by far the best without even a close second place) ...Suse would be my second.

[WillCodeForFood]

I love Linux, I really do. But I run BSD when I can for a lot of reasons.

As to the poll - if it's Linux and just for me it would be Ubuntu and IceVM or xfce or just CLI. For commercial work it's SuSe headless, so who cares about an interface. Hay, at least it's not those money-grubbing chicken chokers at Red Hate, uh, I mean Red Hat.

-Will (WillCodeForFood)

[jkdub57]

I installed Xandros and Ubuntu. Xandros seems to work the best for me, very stable and easy to use for someone used to Windows. I seem to play with Ubuntu and like it but I boot up Xandros for my primary OS and I really prefer KDE. Any way Linux has made my computer fun again.

[CloudEngineer]

been using linux for a month now currently using ubuntu but downloading archlinux atm to check out my other options :cool:

maybe will try gentoo in the near future aswell :D

Edited July 23, 2006 by nismohasan

[betamaxman]

I'm using Ubuntu.

I've used Red Hat, Suse, and Mandrake before, as well as a Mepis Live CD, but Ubuntu has been the first time that Linux has felt fairly usable, although some features still have a way to go, like printer support (since Canon is mute on their HW) and multiple monitor support is lacking - I can't see why there couldn't be a GUI applet for Nvidia Twinview/xorg.conf in Linux that works as in Windows; a couple of clicks and you're done).

I like apt-get and Synaptic once you understand how to use them, beats Windows Update by a mile and makes finding and installing applications a snap. Nautilus is faster than Windows Explorer for me, but missing all of Explorer's features, so it's a bit of a wash.

I think you are confusing linux with vendor support problems.

Can you just imagine how useless windows or osx would be if cannon and all other vendors stopped writing drivers for them?

same thing for nvidia, the nvidia driver is has it is, because of nvidia, not linux. If vendors and software providers who port to linux wanted to they could create installers that would work no differently than windows, I recall the quake 3 installer, almost identical in function and appearance to installing on windows.

The ability is certainly for linux to provide the same functionality has windows, but has i said it is all about support. The good news is things are getting better.

I suggest you take Klaus Knopper's advice, and if your hardware doesn't jive with your distro, return it to where you bought it. Or you could also purchase turbo print.

[gohankid77]

Mine is definitely Ubuntu with GNOME for now. I don't mind KDE apps, but for some reason synaptic forced me to install games, etc. that I didn't want when I decided to install the KDE WM. Oh well. I also like Xfce and fluxbox when I need to wear down my PC with terminals for installation purposes.

[tkjp]

My favourite is Kubuntu (i prefer KDE, but sometimes i use GNOME too :)), because it is simple to use, upgrade and i didn't have any problems with my hardware :D

Before Kubuntu i was using Suse and Debian. Suse was okay, but i didn't like RPM packages. Debian was really great (mostly because of APT packaging system), i just missed more support websites and forums. Then i heard about Ubuntu and i have tried it. Now i'm satisfied Kubuntu user :)

[betamaxman]

Curious, what is it that you do not like about rpm packages that makes you prefer .deb? They are both binary packages nothing more nothing less. :punk:

[Yukon]

i use novel 10 because of it easy to use gui

[tkjp]

betamaxman, i didn't like Yast in Suse and Yum (or how is this called) in Fedora, because I had to download many additional packages from different websites.

In Kubuntu i simply add extra repositories and then: apt-get update and apt-get install program. This is more simple for me.

I hope you understand :)

[Agnes Leroy]

Eventhough I am not a Linux user...I will reccomend Linspire from the three I have tried(Fedora,Ubuntu,Linspire)..I liked Linspire a lot..

Edited July 30, 2006 by knight17

[legendz411]

I vote for Ubuntu + GNOME as it is the only distro I've used and I like it so :)

BTW, why is Xubuntu not on the poll?

It is Ubuntu using Xfce http://www.xubuntu.org/

[betamaxman]

betamaxman, i didn't like Yast in Suse and Yum (or how is this called) in Fedora, because I had to download many additional packages from different websites.

In Kubuntu i simply add extra repositories and then: apt-get update and apt-get install program. This is more simple for me.

I hope you understand :)

What you are saying then is you like apt. Yes I understand, but this has nothing at all to do with .deb or rpm. Apt and synaptic are available for both packaging methodes. So you can "apt-get update & apt-get dist-upgrade" or use synaptic in SUSE, Fedora, or just about any other distro that is rpm based. It has nothing to do with .deb over .rpm or .rpm over .deb, neither is any better or worse than the other. I hope you understand :)

Anyway, agreed apt and synaptic do indeed rock.

Basicaly I simply wish people could get over this distro thing and accept the fact that linux is linux. Beyond a slightly differnt look and feel and added or excluded apps and linux kernel modules and installation methods there isn't really much difference from one to the other. :cool:

Edited August 7, 2006 by betamaxman

[brentaal]

Ubuntu + Gnome :)

[Ambroos]

Ubuntu + Gnome + XGL Desktop Enhancements

(

for XGL example) (to install XGL use Synaptic, enable Universe Repository and just install :p)