Hey ya'll,
Which is better for college student/web dev?
As i understand it:
>Ubuntu is cool but essentioally a meme
>This means that while its all nice and shiny now, eventually ill grow out of it as my technical needs expand(plan to become sysadmin)
>Fedora is the shit for deving but can be annoying on the day to day
>this can be an issue because i need this to reliably work as a notes/documents/research/porn machine
Whats does /g/ use??
twice i had ubuntu installed , after each upgrade it crashes , lost all my shit .
used fedora once , didnt crash.
>>51760234
>fedora 1
>ubuntu 0
I would use Ubuntu if this is your first Linux distro. To be frank, the idea that you "grow out" of Ubuntu is complete bullshit. The thing you might grow out of is the Unity desktop, default in stock Ubuntu. I suggest trying all of the flavors, Ubuntu, Kubuntu, Xubuntu, Ubuntu GNOME, and Ubuntu MATE (fuck LXDE) in virtual machines before installing anything, and decide based on which desktop you like the best.
Simple fact is that the Ubuntu core OS is fantastic, the thing that sort of limits you in your power is your desktop environment. Hell, Eric S. Raymond uses Ubuntu, but he starts with a minimal, command line only installation and builds it up from there with the i3 window manager and the tools he needs.
Now, I said "if this is your first Linux distro", but that isn't because it's inherently easier, it's because of primarily software support, as well as a much smaller initial setup. As you grow you'll learn to configure and tweak your OS to your needs, and hell, throw Fedora in a virtual machine under Ubuntu once you're all set up, see if you actually like the differences personally. A lot of people straight up hate Fedora, they go straight from Ubuntu, and then once they think they want a fully custom-configured OS, they go Arch or Gentoo (top end, experience required distributions).
So yeah, try all of the Ubuntu flavors out and see which one fits you, install it, and go from there. Good luck.
I've never had any issues with Fedora except for a handful of graphical bugs. I also like the packaging practices and manager a lot more than Debian's/Ubuntu's. As someone who wants to deal with as little bullshit as possible, I would say Fedora is my second favorite distro after Slackware and my first pick for laptops; I have it on my Thinkpad and it works great.
>>51760308
>Simple fact is that the Ubuntu core OS is fantastic
AKA Debian is fantastic
Why not just go with Linux mint, the happy middle child
Fedora is bundled with NSA spyware
Ubuntu is bundled with Amazon spyware
Take your pick, I guess.
>>51760202
Doesn't matter, pick one. Fedora will have slightly more recent software though, so I vote for that
>arch with testing repos enabled
>3 years of uni, countless projects and everyday stuff
>no issues
The stability whining is just some circlejerk.
>>51760202
>plan to become a sysadmin
>thinking of using anything but OpenSUSE
Don't reboot it, just patch nigga
I learned on Slackware. 14 years later, I use Slackware. If you are a) not an idiot, b) not a faggot, c) willing to put a bit of effort into learning about your OS, Slackware is your best choice. It is the most Unix-y flavor of Linux, it has been continuously released longer than any other distro, it has blindingly simple and intuitive package management and system configuration, and a default install is 100% foolproof and guaranteed to give you a fully functional system in an hour or so (depends on your install method and network speed). I haven't used Gentoo, but I imagine it's about the same except you don't have to compile the core system packages (a rather large collection). Don't be intimidated by the "complexity", if you don't want to learn Linux use Mint.
>>51760381
neither of them care about my porn and if i REALLY want OS level security ill build my own version of linux from the ground up.
>>51760463
Explain slackware. Ive heard mentions but never bothered to look into it. Is it a distro?
>>51760308
I think I agree. But what about the ticks? What are some odd things that Ubuntu does differently or badly. Leave out DE relating things as I can simply get a different one.
>>51760366
Debian is fantastic, but that's not exactly what I meant. The changes Ubuntu made are really solid, and PPAs are pretty widely accepted and available these days, using Debian as a daily use desktop is sort of selling yourself short.
What about stability and long term longevity? What are related best practices?
I'm a long time windows user but ive always liked linux(fell in love with debian and CLI magic thanks to my OG Raspberry Pi). I'm installing it on my laptop because shock value and windows can be a dick to 4gigs of memory and I dont want to go back to the days of having to sip reaources
>acer aspire netbook
>1x1.6ghz intel atom
>1GB ram
>320 hdd
>1024*768
(I used to play WoW on that fucker)
>>51760381
Ubuntu WITH UNITY is bundled with Amazon spyware, and it's easily disabled anyways.
Fedora because Red Hat, but i use Ubuntu as i am too lazy do download Fedora
Whats the best distro for a meme pad(t420 i5 4gb)?
>>51760486
It is deprecated.
Its latest release is in 2013
>>51760668
ok but what is it?
CentOS Is preaty good for alot of sys admin things (dns dhcp dc)
>>51760698
The first (or second?) proper linux distribution to ever exist. It is said to be the most 'unix like' of the distros.
>>51760722
another redhat project?
>>51760667
I'm running Debian testing on my t410 i5 6gb, it's fucking amazing
>>51760650
ok which DE should I use with Ubuntu?
>>51760749
CentOS is RHEL without support from Red Hat
>>51760749
Think of it as RedHat, but without the tech support and good documentation.
>>51760486
>>51760698
It's a super old-skool distro where, basically, what you see is what you get. All the software on the DVD (which is about 2.5GB compressed) is the only software officially supported by the devs, and if you need extra software you compile it from source or find unofficial packages. This isn't as much of a chore as it sounds because there are big community repositories of scripts called Slackbuilds that do most of the work for you, and some of the Slack devs maintain some unofficial packages as well.
The best part is that it's an incredibly stable distro, and there aren't any weird auto-config systems that mess your shit up. You can configure a rock-solid desktop in a short time by following the documentation. It's a very nice feeling when everything's working and you don't have to worry about something breaking.
>>51760668
Slackware-current is active and they're ramping up to a beta as we speak, silly
>>51760202
Ubuntu is not a meme, it's just shit.
Use a variant of Ubuntu if you must, or try Fedora.
Fedora imo is a really nice OS to use. It might be a bit buggy and broken at some points, but the user-interface is easy to navigate, and Fedy (a program that installs all sorts of useful stuff for you) is awesome. The package manager isn't total trash, and .rpm packages aren't rare to find on the internet. It's a neato little system.
>>51760486
Slackware is a Linux distro, one of the first and the oldest that is still active. It has a very slow release cycle (the last release 14.1 was in 2013) but the -current tree is updated regularly, mostly with browser and kernel updates. The base installation consists of 7GB+ of software and gives the user a wide selection of things to choose from, notably multiple DE/WMs, (KDE, Xfce, fluxbox) and a vast array of programming tools and servers. Non-core packages have to be compiled but there is a central community repository of build scripts (SlackBuilds.org) and a powerful third-party build tool (sbopkg). Everything is geared towards simple configuration and administration - text files, console dialogs, helper scripts. All packages are vanilla with source pulled directly from upstream. Slackware is very stable and very unobstructive. It does as little as possible to help you manage your system and the software installed on it in the simplest and most elegant way. You can use it with very little knowledge of what it's actually doing, but as you start learning how it works, you'll discover how easy it is to maintain and develop a deep appreciation for its design philosophy.
>>51760841
im live booted into fedora right now and i have to say im not sure I like it....
>>51760202
I just use Arch.
Shit just doesn't break unless you install new graphics drivers/proprietary shit.
>>51760862
this is true for pretty much any bigger distro
the fuck is wrong with you?
>>51760202
Get ubuntu its good for pretty much everything you would do on any other distro and its the most supported one. If you get curious about other distros you can always try them on a vm.
>>51760202
If it's your first install, do Ubuntu. Learn package management and some basics. Ubuntu has -- by far -- the most supportive and comprehensive support system. Google "Ubuntu how to whatever" and you'll land on a helpful result nine times out of ten.
Alternatively, use Linux Mint, which is based on Ubuntu but without the Unity front end.
IMO avoid Fedora and OpenSUSE until you're significantly more experienced. I've used Linux to a moderate degree for years, and I was somewhat confused by the OpenSUSE install.
I've settled on Linux Mint Cinnamon for my primary desktop system, with LUbuntu in a VM for lightweight experimentation and isolation (i.e. bittorrent over VPN) needs.
>>51760919
what is?
>>51760939
>most supported
>highest number of retarded faggots posting shitty questions
>>51760949
Oh, and by the way, there's a world of difference in terms of just getting it working between Ubuntu and other distros I've tried. Things like proprietary graphics drivers and codecs are dirt simple to get going on Ubuntu.
Do you want to spend your time learning to use a system, or trying to figure out why your system isn't working right?
>>51760773
I like KDE, which is a good choice if you want a familiar environment that you can tweak without that much of risks.
KDE 4 is ugly though, I hope the last Kubuntu does use KDE 5.
Otherwise just browse some desktop threads (open the catalog and ctrl+f "desktop thread"), and choose one you like.
Otherwise you may just choose Linux Mint, which is cool too.
>student
Go for Ubuntu. Best hardware support and has a really large repository which will make it easier for you.
Choose whatever DE you feel comfortable with. (I prefer kde myself but would not recommend it as the they are transitioning to plasma 5 and everything is terrible right now.)
>plan to become sys admin
In that case, stick with Ubuntu for your laptop.
Then either use an old machine or a pi or something and set stuff up.
A pi is good for this kind of stuff as you can distro hop like a madman and it is easy to swap the SD card and go back to another setup.
Digital ocean has some great tutorials for setting up different servers.
If you want more general learning, the arch wiki is very straightforward, even if you do not use arch but this is mostly desktop related as arch is not the best distro for servers.
>>51760913
Which anime is it from ? It's cute
>>51760202
If you're learning to use Linux rather than picking an off the peg distro that closest matches what you want, then it literally doesn't matter. If all you're doing is compiling Apache/nginx binaries and hosting a site you can do it on literally any distro without an appreciable difference.
For what it's worth I standardised on Ubuntu a while ago but the only reason for this were PPA support and the fact that by a narrow margin most of our VMs were Ubuntu.
>>51760202
Use one of the Ubuntu flavours except Unity and your fine. I am using Ubuntu Mate and I like the way it uses the desktop. The programs included are also not too bad and what you don't need is easily uninstalled. Also I managed to rice it just fine being a complete noob, so there's that.
They're both about the same.
It really doesn't matter.
>>51761174
Hardware support is given by the kernel. Which Distribution you use doesnt matter.
Use Fedora.
>>51761215
>he doesn't know bridget
hownew.ru
>>51760202
Neither.
If you want reliability, just get Debian Stable.
>inb4muholdpackages
>>51761172
>KDE 4
>ugly
Fuck off and eat shit.
4 is beautiful and 5 with its muh flat design ruined everything.
>>51761431
I personaly consider KDE 4 as ugly and you can use the Oxygen theme with KDE 5 if you want. Calm down.
>>51761431
I'm glad at least someone else appreciates the humorous charm of Oxygen
>>51760202
Arch
Ubuntu is boring, stable, reasonably up to date-but not bleeding edge, lots of helpful mods and defaults for desktop use. If you are really careful, you can play outside of their sandbox and install your own package from source, change things, etcetera. If you're not careful, doing that will either dock over your system, or your hard work and changes will get blown away by the next apt-get upgrade (done automatically if you're in gui).
Fedora is a dumping ground for whatever shit RedHat is trying to test out, and whatever the gnome project decided to screw us with.
Debian is stable, boring, and way overly political. Not usually as up to date as ubuntu, and doesn't have all the changes Ubuntu implements. This makes is much easier for programmers and sysadmins.
Scientific Linux is RHEL, without their branding. Installing it plus third party RPM sources for up to date desktop stuff gets you a very reasonable dev box, that is hard to fuck up, and can be maintained easily. It also will closely mimic the prod environment at most companies.
Arch is enthusiast teir, not meme. Don't use it until you know your stuff.
Gentoo, that's meme teir.
>>51760698
The oldest maintained Linux distro still living.
It's package format is literally a tarball. Installing your own packages and programs from source won't break it. The community is incredibly knowledgeable, but resistant to change for political or changes sake. Very enthusiast teir nowdays. Do not deploy in production. Also, it will look very little like the production environment in any workplace.
>>51760381
the Amazon spyware takes literally 2 commands to remove
>>51762689
package format technically is not just a tarball, it also has a desc file and optional post-installation scripts. and i don't see why you wouldn't deploy it in production?
>>51762736
Hard to maintain at scale. My last job I had 50+ prod servers. This job I have 300+, growing by the week.
Managing that many Slackware boxes would be painful normally, but a nightmare when there's a new SSL bug to fix.
