How to choose your first distro - A guide for beginners (flowchart + text post)
Are Mint or Pop_OS better than Ubuntu or Debian? In what way?
I think yes, but not extremely much, mainly because they've added some stuff, like welcome wizards, additional easy access and pre-configured software, and more.
I think Debian is a very very solid and good distro, but I think the first impression could be better for newcomers.
Honestly, if one more person says I should also include Ubuntu or or recommend Debian more, I will. Ubuntu not that much, but Debian, why not? If you all think it should be there, it definitely has its place.
I meant with that that installing many DEs side by side, e.g. Gnome + KDE on top of Cinnamon on Mint, would result in many clashes.
They all use different design components and often share the same configuration, resulting in a very messy and broken looking desktop.
I personally always knew I can just install another DE and delete the old one, but still just reinstalled, because it's cleaner.
I just wanted to write "use a second SSD", but then I saw you're using a laptop. Shit.
How often/ for what do you need to use Windows? You can always run it in a VM if needed.
Either that, or use another distro.
I don't know the context here anymore, sorry! 😅
That's why there's the "hard to set up, but once it works, it works" description in the chart.
Arch is, especially due to the Archinstall, relatively easy to set up, but might break randomly, either due to user error, or a bad update.
NixOS on the other hand requires Nix (the language) and the Nix-config. Once that's set up, you can always roll back or it won't even work, that's right.
But explaining that in detail would be too much - I wanted to keep it simple, and by putting the two in the same category, I got the point.
It's a glitch, and also outdated.
It was just a sketch, and the "real" post is out now :)
As much as I can. I can't code at all and don't work in IT, but at least I try to help newcomers as much as I can, publish my work as OS license, try to heat up as much traffic as I can on Lemmy (especially for non-tech stuff) and report bugs whenever I find them.
I can't do much more :(
Hard to say. Minimalism is just part of their philosophy, and also one of the reasons why it is so reliable.
Adding a toggle for a "traditional workflow" would just diminish the unique workflow they've built up over the last years, and which so many people love so dearly.
But adding a few extensions (GSConnect, quick close in overview, app tray, etc.) for basic functionality would be a big win.
I just think having to rely on workflow altering extensions and forcing Gnome to be a certain way will make the user unhappy over time, and they're better off just using KDE or Cinnamon imo.
Yes, this is basically true.
Some desktops offer an opt-in telemetry, but as it implies, it is almost always disabled by default and up to you if you want to support the devs in giving them anonymized (and usually reviewed by you!) data about crashes and some patterns.
But, in contrast to Microsoft and others, this is no "spying", and you can always check for yourself what they maybe want to collect. Open source devs are usually extremely transparent about what they might consider from you.
The reason for that is that most devs just expect you reporting bugs yourself if any arise, so they didn't even make the effort to implement telemetry :D
Copied from another answer I made:
While Snaps became better in the last years, they still bring a lot of trouble. Just, for example, think of Valve when they officially recommended everyone to use the fricking Snap package because it’s broken all the time? Good luck doing that with Ubuntu, when they shove Snaps down everyones’ throat, without even notifying the user. While we more experienced users just change the package format, newcomers aren’t aware of that and blame a malfunctioning app to Linux, not the Snap.
I just don’t see any reasons to recommend Ubuntu over something like Mint or even Debian. Both are pretty much the same (same command compatibility with apt, documentation also applies to them, etc.), but just better in any aspect.
As explained in another comment somewhere else here, Ubuntu is highly controversial, especially due to Snaps. I will paste my reasons here when I found them.
I wanted to have a Debian-based distro here too, and TuxedoOS removes all the Ubuntu-shit and replaces it with some great OOTB additions (e.g. a good welcome wizard).
Edit: Found it
Yes. While Snaps became better in the last years, they still bring a lot of trouble. Just, for example, think of Valve when they officially recommended everyone to not use the fricking Snap package because it’s broken all the time? Good luck doing that with Ubuntu, when they shove Snaps down everyones’ throat, without even notifying the user. While we more experienced users just change the package format, newcomers aren’t aware of that and blame a malfunctioning app to Linux, not the Snap.
I just don’t see any reasons to recommend Ubuntu over something like Mint or even Debian. Both are pretty much the same (same command compatibility with apt, documentation also applies to them, etc.), but just better in any aspect.
@TCB13@lemmy.world @pmk@lemmy.sdf.org Maybe the installer isn't bad, and I'm probably just dumb. You aren't the only ones saying this, so maybe not Debian, but me is the problem.
I'm no Nvidia-user myself, but I've heard only good things over the past year, especially months.
It seems to cause way less problems than it did 1-2 years ago, and Nvidia on WL-Gnome especially is said to work very smooth now.
Maybe, choosing the -main-nvidia-image from uBlue makes it even better, because if the drivers break after an update, you can just roll back to yesterdays image and have a working OS again.
I made the post specifically because distrochooser recommends the weirdest niche- or non-fitting distros.
If you say "security and privacy is important for me", it just says "use Tails", and then the new user comes here to ask "Why is my performance in CS:GO so bad? I already had to troubleshoot my drivers for 5 hours, Linux sucks!".
This diagram basically only recommends the 3 same distros, with just mild variances of DE choice. I wanted to make it easier for newcomers, so they get oriented better and choose a well supported and easy one :)
Great advice! That's why I will also install Fedora Silverblue or VanillaOS on my mums' laptop in the future. Currently, I put Mint on hers, because she is older and I thought she might prefer having something that reminds her of "the good ol' days". But I find myself needing to google stuff she could have searched for herself, because I also don't know how to fix it.
Sure, I could resort to the terminal, but I want her to see how I do things to let her fix them herself in the future if the need arises.
Each to their own :)
I've also read other comments telling me to drop KDE and Mint because Gnome is the "standard" DE for Linux, and that nobody else should use something different.
This is why I included other DEs.
While I personally love Gnome more than anything else and find myself working extremely efficient with it, others despite it and prefer other things like Plasma.
Giving them a choice between 2 (3) great options felt right for me.
Sure! The "What distro to choose" post is only a part of my series.
I want to make a post on "How to install" too, including testing different distro with Ventoy from a live USB.
For cinnamon, I think Mint is the flagship for it. I tried it "vanilla" on Fedora too, and it felt a bit lacking. I noticed instantly how much polish went into Cinnamon from the Mint team.
Mainly because of the installation process. It is already done for you and you can't do as much wrong.
I never used Endeavour, but many many people love it, and praise it as a way more reliable Arch.
Both valid points. Thanks!
What would you say Chimera does better than Bazzite? In my eyes, Bazzite is superior, because of how the immutability is handled. Chimera is more edge case in my eyes (1:1 clone of SteamOS, IIRC), while Bazzite is just gaming focused, but can still do everything else too.
For Vanilla, I'm not sure. Maybe I will keep it included, but put the disclaimer in there about the incompatibility of many instructions. For simple tasks, it should work perfectly.
Why is Debian “for grandpa’s” now?
You misunderstood that point. It's not that Debian is for grandpas, it's that Debian is the cool grandpa! ;)
It's one of the oldest distros available out there (in terms of how long it has already existed), and everybody likes it. Just read my post, and you'll notice that I've never spoken badly about it.
Do you not know that you can install KDE and other DEs on Pop (and most other distros)?
I do, but the DE is one of the main selling points of a lot of distros. For example, in what main aspect would you say TuxedoOS differs from Mint? Right, in terms of the DE.
Of course you can change it, but when you do that for example in Mint, you loose most of the great things that distro does. It also feels "dirty". You can do that, sure, but if there are a dozen "different" distros, that only differ mainly from their DE-optimization, then choose it based on that. Nothing wrong with that.
If you already decided for a distro (e.g. Fedora) and want to change the DE further down the road, you can do that, but it might be messy.
Why is the terminal treated like some dark and arcane device only to be used by “the old ones”?
Because it appears frightening and "hacky" for new users. Using the terminal from time to time to change very deep settings under the hood is fine for most people, but if you need to open the terminal for any trivial task it ruins the user experience.
Ubuntu left off just because you don’t like snaps regardless of the fact that it has a huge user base and tons of documentation and user support forums?
Yes.
While Snaps became better in the last years, they still bring a lot of trouble. Just, for example, think of Valve when they officially recommended everyone to not use the fricking Snap package because it's broken all the time? Good luck doing that with Ubuntu, when they shove Snaps down everyones' throat, without even notifying the user.
While we more experienced users just change the package format, newcomers aren't aware of that and blame a malfunctioning app to Linux, not the Snap.
I just don't see any reasons to recommend Ubuntu over something like Mint or even Debian. Both are pretty much the same (same command compatibility with apt, documentation also applies to them, etc.), but just better in any aspect.
Leave out the immutables, rolling distros like Arch and other small community distros
Immutables have their place, especially VanillaOS. They maintain themselfes automatically, make the system way less complicated (because you never come into touch with anything outside of /var/ anyway) and are perfectly fine for most people by just installing Flatpaks.
Arch is only there because people wanted it to be in my previous post where I asked, and they argued that not everyone wants a easy "Windows-replacement and just works"-experience. Some are here because they want to learn and tinker. And for that, NixOS and Arch are ideal, with the big disclaimer.
I would explain desktop environments separately - they are typically the most confusing thing to Linux newbies. e.g. that you can often choose between them on the same distro. And that they can even be installed at the same time and chosen on login so people can experiment. A true “newb” will often not even recognize that the DE isn’t the os itself.
I did briefly, but that would be too confusing. I don't recommend installing many DEs side by side, as this will cause many problems and inconsistencies.
I would avoid the phrase “beginner friendly” as 1) it makes it seem like it may be limited compared to others and 2) is too vague. “Easy to install and use” and “have a good community for support” are better metrics to judge by and are what beginners want.
That's what I did in the beginning?
Every distro of the following recommended ones meets all of these criteria:
- Easy to understand and intuitive to use
- You don’t have to use the command line
- Works reliable
- Supports Nvidia-GPUs
I still thank you for your critique and upvoted it because it might add value to this discussion :)
That's why I've put NixOS and Arch on the "I'm ready for an adventure and pain"-path, not the "You'll have a comfy time with it"-one.
I asked a few days prior what I should include, and a few mentioned said distros, because not everyone wants to start using Linux expecting an easy time.
A few people said they're in because they enjoy tinkering, learning, frustration and challenging themselfes, not because they are looking for a Windows alternative.
Also, as side effect, newcomers easily see why they shouldn't use Arch directly, in case some edgelord recommends that :D