On 19/10/13 02:51 PM, Ralf Mardorf wrote:
I am exactly trying to do what you're suggesting. I want to maintain a reliable linux which would allow me to concentrate on my work without keeping me distracted by system updates, bugs etc.A multi-boot to test a few distros can't harm, however, they all use Linux and user space from upstream, just the versions differ, some settings differ, the structure differs, e.g. for startup some use init others systemd and Ubuntu upstart, so solving issues by switching distros unlikely will end up with an optimized install. You should maintain one or two installs and customize them to your needs.
Personally, I never expected Debian would be optimized when I selected it; just to give an example, when I run powertop for optimizing Debian I am seeing untunable parameters giving me the clue that Debian may not be optimized for my laptop. And I never expect Debian to bring up-to-date software.
While I guess Ubuntu made some steps in the wrong direction, you're mistaken regarding to be forced to upgrade every 6 month. You should add security updates daily, but you don't need to make more. 12.04 LTS was released April 2012 and is supported until April 2017.
I tried Xubuntu and it was having similar problems with its parent Debian; these click sounds randomly. With Xubuntu 13.04 (included kernel 3.8 ported to its LTS), I was having additional problems like sound going down casually.
You can customize what ever Linux distro you use by several levels. Even compiling a kernel yourself is easy to learn. It's easier to learn how to build a kernel, than to learn commands for RPM and DEB package management.
I compiled a kernel by myself in another computer while trying to Gentoo in the past (yes, I gave it a try too). While I can see why compiling a kernel is logical in Gentoo, I have my doubts for Debian. My doubts are:
1. If I go ahead and compile a vanilla kernel from source, it would be excluded from Debian support obviously. But in this case, how can I do security updates without recompiling again and again? 2. From what I see, the main reason Debian is shipped with kernel 3.2 is that it is a long-term release. I would naturally do the same to ease the maintenance but in this case what advantage would it bring to compile a kernel by myself? 3. I read from internet that if you change the critical components like the kernel of Debian, the system would be less stable. So, how stable would Debian be if I attempt to change its core components?