this post was submitted on 05 Aug 2024
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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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This amuses me, since I literally went from Gentoo to Arch because it felt like the same bleeding edge distro without having to wait for the compile time for half of the packages.
That said, I generally don't recommend Arch (or Gentoo) to newbies. It's great when it works, but the number of times I've had to troubleshoot some random dependency issue because I took more than a week to update my system would scare any newbie away. It's a bit like the parable of the cobbler's kids having the worst shoes, or the mechanic always driving a project car - when you have the skills to fix something, you're willing to put up with a lot of bullshit that a normal person wouldn't.
I think it's not a newbie but a general user issue. I have learned to recognize the linux newbies for whom Arch is a good fit over time... just by watching which people distro hop until landing with Archlinux.
PS: And among the typical distro hoppers is really a big chunk of them... because for a lot of them distro hopping is just a symptom of wanting to make the mandatory big system upgrades every few years at best worth it by trying something new. Those should actually get a rolling distro as a recommendation much earlier.