Re: Choosing a distribution (was: Just a simple query)
On Wed, 26 Oct 2011 21:41:16 -0400, Burhan Hanoglu wrote:
> On Wed, Oct 26, 2011 at 4:58 PM, Camaleón <noelamac@gmail.com> wrote:
(...)
>>> Debian is (at least) one of the best GNU/Linux distributions to use if
>>> you want to experience the excitement of discovering the real Linux
>>> /Unix stuff behind the GUI. Otherwise; Debian again is one of the best
>>> distros considering stability and freedom.
>>
>> I'm not sure that "stability" and "freedom" were inside the "novice"
>> part
> I'm not sure what you mean here...
Okay, I'll explain.
I wanted to say that when you are a linux newbie (we all have been there)
your main concern is not focused in "freedom" or "stability" but
understanding how all that stuff works and how can do what you need with
the less problems, if possible. As times goes by, you start putting
attention in other things, like the package manager, upgrading procedures
and/or what the community of your chosen distribution provides :-)
And to be sincere, having used openSUSE during 6 years (in both, servers
and desktop/workstation computers) I find openSUSE to be the perfect
distribution for linux beginners and newcomers.
>> but anyway, openSUSE is also stable (rock solid) and cares about your
>> freedom ;-)
> I have no objection to any other distribution in this matter; that's why
> I said "...(at least) one of the best GNU/Linux distributions...". But
> don't forget that OpenSuse is a testing environment for SLES, same way
> Fedora is for RHEL. Well; this doesn't mean they are bad distros, but a
> fact is still a fact....:)
And you are right: openSUSE is the base (testing "lab") for the paid SuSE
Linux flavours (SLED and SLES). And this (being the testing lab) has
"pros" and "cons":
As "cons" I'd say that more than often decisions affecting the system are
taken based on the upstream needing (SLED and SLES). This happened with
ZENworks/libzipp, which had to be finally retired completely from the
openSUSE distribution (the community based distro) while is still being
used on the SLED/SLES side. It was a total disaster and we had to
supported for a long time :-/
As "pros" I'd say that openSUSE is an enterpise-grade focused
distribution, solid as a rock, very well polished in many aspects (and
not only visually but technically, their YaST tool is unique among its
species), and you have a set of tools that are not available for any
other distribution in the same convenient way it is there: you can manage
LDAP, Samba, iSCSI, AppArmor, Cyrus+Postfix combo, Bind9, almost all your
hardware, tweaking kernel parameters... and all that run from easy GUI
based wizards, with a pair of clicks, perfect for novices.
Greetings,
--
Camaleón
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