Linux babies first OS recommendation

There are often no build instructions for openSuSE for stuff you have to compile yourself though, because it's unpopular. Also Firefox there comes with a google key.

Debian stable or Ubuntu LTS.

You want a Windows/OSX replacement?
{L,X}Ubuntu.
You really want to learn how to operate an UNIX(-like) OS?
Unless you're ready to go big boy Gentoo/CRUX/Slackware right now, I'd say Debian testing or Arch WITHOUT a preinstalled DE/WM.
Then you choose something simple like fluxbox, fvwm/icewm to start simple and have fun ricing your shit reading the arch and gentoo wiki.
Then you learn how to solve your automation problems with tldp.org/LDP/GNU-Linux-Tools-Summary/html/index.html, tldp.org/LDP/Bash-Beginners-Guide/html/index.html, tldp.org/LDP/abs/html/index.html and grymoire.com/Unix/index.html
After you've learned how to have your way with Bash scripting, I recommend really learning POSIX with pubs.opengroup.org/onlinepubs/9699919799/ (mainly available with man 1p instead of man 1), etalabs.net/sh_tricks.html and dwheeler.com/essays/fixing-unix-linux-filenames.html so you can voluntarily choose to break it and not simply confuse sh with bash like all the pajeets. I also suggest you look at *BSD man pages when you plan on using a nonstandard extension (like xargs -0).
You should also choose between emacs and vi while knowing the basics of both at some point.

Congrats, if you're here and also know C, you have traded your life for invaluable UNIX-fu and longing for death.

It's worth noting that if you can learn the stuff in this post as well as server daemon administration (Apache, Nginx, BIND, SSH, an FTPd or two, Docker, maybe some rare stuff like HAProxy) you will be a somewhat rare commodity in the IT field and basically never have to worry about being poor again if you're willing to relocate for work.

+1 for xubuntu

it's as good as jewbuntu is going to get and it's user friendly enough that a noob can survive without ever touching a command prompt.

Solaris 10

Ubuntu is a bugged POS, but Xubuntu isn't?

Ubuntu is a good starter Linux. I'd go with the Mate version. If you'd like to try Debian instead, here's an easy way to get started:

dpaste.de/bHWy

The kernel is what defines the operating system. The kernel is what matters for binary compatibility between distros. If you have an application (and all it's dependencies) installed, you can swap out the userland for another userland (ie. BusyBox instead of GNU) and the binaries will still be compatible. However, if you swap out the kernel for BSD, Hurd, Darwin, etc... you lose binary compatibility and your applications will not run unless you recompile them and their dependencies.

Before you spew some nonsense about Android being Linux, let me shut you down by pointing out that the Android Linux kernel has been modified in such a way that it is no longer binary compatible. That is what makes it a different operating system.

If you care about gaming I would suggest Ubuntu or Kubuntu (which is just Ubuntu with KDE preinstalled) because Ubuntu is the only officially supported distro for Steam and Gnome, KDE, and Unity are the only officially supported desktop environments. support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?ref=1504-QHXN-8366

If you don't give a shit about gaming you can try Linux Mint (vaguely resembles a Windows desktop and tends to just work). Linux Mint is also likely to have high compatibility with Steam games because it is based on Ubuntu (although it uses a different software repository so compatibility is not gauranteed).

Eventually when you get sick of installing applications manually that are not found in the official repository for the distro you choose I recommend hopping over to Antergros or Arch Linux. The primary advantage of this distro is that it has a very extensive (unofficial) user repository which can be used to supplement the official repository. It is likely to contain all the software you could possibly need that isn't in the official repos. This is especially great if you are a software developer who uses a lot of uncommon libraries or if you like to try a wide variety of different applications for different purposes. Additionally it is rolling release and uses bleeding edge software. The downside is that it is not very user friendly and requires the user to configure a lot of things manually that come preconfigured on other distros.

Me again

I forgot to mention that if you go with Ubuntu you should pick the latest LTS version (which is 16.04). That stands for "long term support" and use it until a new LTS version comes out (18.04). This will help ensure compatibility. There have been numerous reports in the Steam community forums regarding incompatibility issues with Ubuntu 17.04 and various games. It's not likely that those magically vanished with 17.10 either.

change the /etc/apt/sources.list to testing/unstable

Troubleshooting is the last thing new friends new to worry with.

having new programs is better than a tiny amount of instability

Ubuntu Mate

Gentoo, baby's first distro is a meme.

This.
You'll learn more spending an afternoon with Gentoo than anything else.

A distribution isn't for everyone if I point out gaymers (people who don't want to learn) for example I won't recommend parabola or gentoo (actually for these kind of justwerks people I wouldn't recommend using a computer).
Anyway 90% of normie users who don't play game can use Trisquel which from my experience has the best interface adaptation for new users.

Or ubuntu m8 for people who can't get of their games.

Learn how to use git and apt-get build-dep to compile the bleeding edge whateverthefuck you think you need, all within a stable environment.

...

...

yeah you learn how to use Gentoo.

OP asked for a beginner OS to switch from Windows. I highly doubt he wants to build everything himself. And Open Build Service (OBS) is there for everything else.

I can't find anything about that. Please point me to the source.

Are you retarded?

What does Arch Linux have that you think makes superior to Debian? And inst Arch Linux more like an advanced user OS?

Why did all the Archbabies have to come here?

Xubuntu is not a good option to escape the Windows monopoly. It features the Xfce desktop environment which is still maintained mainly to allow thin clients to have a low startup time without expecting kiosk users to start things with the command line. Ubuntu uses the current GNOME desktop which was designed to enable professionals to effectively multitask without their work environment getting in the way of their work, but if you can't get over Windows XP or your XP-era machine there exists Linux Mint with the MATE desktop: a continuation of the previous GNOME desktop which functions well enough that you won't go back to Windows because you took bad advice from people on the internet.

Nothing. And why would you be using Debian if you don't have a specialized use case such as a web server or an airgapped workstation for viewing classified information?

I heard good things from Manjaro. Being Arch Linux but easy for users looks interesing. Anyone used it? Is good for a beginner?

It's specifically for wannabe skiddies who heard Arch is what the L33T H4X0R crowd use but are too stupid to actually install it themselves. Stay far away from it and the people who told you about it.

Holy shit really? I self taught 80% in my pre-wizard NEETdom years. I submitted a few/bunch of resumes for such work over the decade but got no bites. I had even started trying to look for shit pay beaner-tier jobs but I never seem to get past the interview. It seems "social compatibility" > ability/knowledge here in SoCal...

It's okay. It is based on Arch Linux but has a lot of packages preconfigured. It's still not great for a beginner in my opinion. Additionally, Manjaro uses a different software repository than Arch Linux which means that it doesn't have perfect compatibility with packages from the AUR. Also, both Arch Linux and Manjaro will have incompatibilities with Steam games at higher rates than distros like Ubuntu and Linux Mint due to the bleeding edge packages.

I'll look into that.
Got to about:support and look for Google Key in Application Basics. Relevant bugs:
bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=882485#c0
bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1377987#c3
Related:
bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=368255#c0

Wow how is that even a valid response to that question?

Because it answers the question and provides more information that might be useful to the person asking the question.

You'd think, but no. Consider the situation and the audience and try again.

He asked if it was good for a beginner and I told him it is not. Stop being such a retard.

After Ubuntu dropped Unity, System76 rolled their own Ubuntu-derivative called (seriously, with the punctuation) Pop!_OS
It's pretty good. Straight gnome3 but customized to suck less than normal.
The real Linux-newbie advantage for Pop!_OS though is that if you buy a laptop from system76 you get the OS installed already and set up already for your hardware (except for additional drives being formatted but otherwise unconfigured, for some reason).
As good as Linux Mint is for example, if you have an NVidia card you still have to open the drivers app to switch away from Nouveau. With System76 you'll be using the proprietary drivers on first boot. And if that bothers you, you're looking for Fedora or Debian instead of simply for something easy to get into.

Don't.

As opposed to RedHat, Canonical, whateverSUSE? The nice thing about being Holla Forums is that you can recover trust for some segment of humanity without joining a death cult.

With this level of cynicism, I wonder why you're even on the Internet. Literally everything you own is designed and manufactured by a profit based entity. Don't you know your electricity and tap water is by a profit based entity?

Seeing that the most recommended Ubuntu is Xubuntu, I see that you anons do really like Xfce DE? Any reason why?

They're autistic 20somethings who got into technology on /g/ back when I managed to install Arch Linux and couldn't get GNOME working properly so insisted that the one that worked for me out of the box was the best no matter how shitty it actually was. Of course I moved on but they didn't.

Lightweight, baby.

See? That's one of the arguments I used. It's not true. If you want lightweight you can install JWM that they use on Puppy Linux. It just takes a little more effort to get right when you install it.

But isnt the LXDE DE more lightweight than the Xfce, for what i can see?

gentoo because -Ofast

But isnt Mint based on Ubuntu? And what wrong with the KDE version of Mint, because there is a KDE version, so there shoulndt be serious problems with Steam. Plus, how stable is Kubuntu? some say its somewhat buggy.

Yes it is, but it's developed by a Korean.

Stable doesn't mean not buggy. In fact if stability is a priority you should expect some superficial bugs because fixing them would require server downtime. If you want the latest now you want Fedora which also has a KDE spin.

The recent KDE, GNOME and Enlightenment versions run much better on my low-end machines than xfce. And they all use Wayland too.

LXDE is just too dumb. I'd rather call it a window manager than a desktop environment.

>but I can run my xfce/lxde on muh

Disable display compositing. I don't know why it's become common practice to enable it in XFCE4 by default. Gnome is absolute garbage, KDE is bloat, and Enlightenment is a joke. LXDE is most certainly a desktop environment.

Fuck off you memelord you don't actually know what you're talking about no matter how sure you are that you do.

Does nobody use Alpine anymore?

No. Everyone is too busy obsessing over their ganoo slash linocks meme to acknowledge any Linux distro that doesn't come with gnu.

Ubuntu for your personal fun

Redhat for educational and career advancement

Because it's the best general-purpose Linux distribution?
Ubuntu is the only competition, but it has a vastly smaller software library that is properly maintained (the security team does not support universe and multiverse).

"the best" means absolutely nothing. If your reason is that you use many different packages on a weekly basis and compiling will cause unwanted downtime, just say that.

Actually he's pretty much right on the money. Are you new to Linux?

Debian is a great general purpose distro, m8. What are you on about?

So many angry young n00bs today...

If by "Linux" you mean regurgitating nonsense, then yes he's right on the money. Doesn't mean he or you are not retarded.

Literally any distro that can run the X server and not kernel panic when you try to use an office suite is a "great general purpose distro". Do you lot get your tech opinions from Anthony Fantano?

I disabled it.
Even though I agree that GNOME is garbage, it is still a faster garbage than xfce...
Nice argument from 1999. Grow up kid, the world is changing.

I only use alpine when I i'm emulating iots

hello nsa

Xubuntu
ElementaryOS

Mint / debian

Manjaro kind of sucks
Antergos is better

What car do you consider as the best option to give to whoever wants to escape the walking monopoly?
And why?. Because even when excluding anything more complex than the basic, there are multiples choice, and to a normal person you would give one, or perhaps two options.
So every user here must have different opinions to what car is the most recommendable beginners car. So what in your opinion would be the recommended car?

Except the best car in the world is obviously a Honda Civic if you can't afford a BMW M3 if you can't afford a Ferrari Testarossa. How does this apply to the thousands of Linux distros out there?

GNU has always been the name of the operating system as a whole (since its inception in 1983). It's from the old tradition of using a recursive acronym as a name. GNU stands for Gnu is Not Unix. It was made to eliminate any need to use the proprietary operating system Unix, replacing it with a system that respects the user's four essential software freedoms.

Manjaro used to be good for it's easy to install openrc version.
But now Manjaro-openrc is dead so there is no point in running it.

The GNU operating system didn't exist until about 2001 when Hurd was ready. What we and the save for a few fanatics the rest of the world is a Linux distribution, an operating system that uses but is not defined by the compiler and shell utilities it is by license allowed to include.

Linux is not an operating system unto itself, but rather another free component of a fully functioning GNU system made useful by the GNU corelibs, shell utilities and vital system components comprising a full OS as defined by POSIX. The GNU OS existed in 1984 when the first parts GNU were published.

You're 100% full of shit. I've been usin Linux over 20 years, and it's *always* been called "Linux" by 99% of everyone at every level.

Has your mental illness advanced so far that you're resorting to out and out lies now, or are you completely out of touch in your fantasy world?

You even got the year wrong. Linux came out in 1993, not 1983. Further proof that you don't onow wtf you're talking about.

That's because the Linux meme spread quickly and now 99% of everyone at every level is confused. The fact of the matter is that Linux is not an operating system in itself but an operating system kernel.

You're confused. The GNU operating system started in 1983. The Linux kernel program came out in 1993.

You're insane.

"Linux Definition
Linux is a high performance, yet completely free, Unix-like operating system that is suitable for use on a wide range of computers and other products. Most distributions (i.e., versions) consist of a kernel (i.e., the core of the operating system) together with hundreds of free utilities and application programs in a coordinated package.
A narrower, and somewhat less common, meaning of the term Linux is just the kernel itself. However, when referring to just the kernel, usually the expression 'the Linux kernel' is used."
linfo.org/linuxdef.html

"Lin·ux (lĭnŭks)
A trademark for an open-source version of the UNIX operating system."
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition.

"Linux (ˈlaJnʌks) (ˈlJnʌks) n
(Computer Science) a nonproprietary computer operating system suitable for use on personal computers"
Collins English Dictionary, 12th Edition

"Linux
Pronounced lee-nucks or lih-nucks. A freely-distributable open source operating system that runs on a number of hardware platforms."
webopedia.com/TERM/L/Linux.html

"Linux (/ˈlJnəks/LIN-əks [9][10] or, less frequently, /ˈlaJnəks/LYN-əks [10][11]) is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open-source software development and distribution. The defining component of Linux is the Linux kernel, [12]"
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linux

According to GNU propaganda.

Thanks for proving my point. The Linux meme spread quickly and now 99% of everyone at every level is confused. A kernel program is not an operating system by itself. People today believe that Linux is an operating system in itself because of the loose language that people used at the birth of Linux.

Do I have to dig up that Dennis Ritchie clip again?

Dennis Ritchie was wrong.

Just use ubuntu, it's simple enough, just werks, has a lot of copy paste commands online(be careful doing this)
Do not use fedora or opensuse, they are journeyman distros, fedora requires rpmfusion to be at all usable, opensuse likes to do a lot of things through yast.
Skip arch, use opensuse if you want rolling.

Nirvana is NixOS/GuixSD

Are you stupid or just another robot?

The OP was asking for suggestions for "babby's first linux to wean them off windows" not fucking "Unix for severe autist's who enjoy fucking around with operating systems for the sake of it".

...

lol, where have you been? Plasma5 is reverse bloat.

You should read that annoying copypasta sometime.

tl;dr Linux is intentionally POSIX compliant, which stipulates that Linux isn't a full OS.

Elementary OS.

solus

Can you run a vrms on your system?

The GNU operating system that uses the kernel Linux is still the GNU operating syatem. Some people call it GNU/Linux.

The GNU operating system project was announced by Stallman in 1983, and development began in 1984. Eight years later, the operating system was nearly complete, it only needed a kernel. A kernel called Linux was added around 1991 and 1992. It wasn't a great kernel, but it worked, and that was enough to make the GNU operating system complete.

You're wrong, and here's why. The GNU operating system project was announced near the end of 1983. Programming began in 1984. The final missing component of the GNU operating system, a kernel, was added in 1992. The kernel that was added in 1992 was named linux. The operating system as a whole, whether it comes with linux or a different kernel, is still the GNU operating system.

Using a "lightweight" window manager doesn't make you learn Unix better than using any other GUI. Tons of knowledgeable Unix developers run GNOME/KDE or macOS.

The GUIs are interchangeable because the CLI is Unix's native language.

{Free,Net,Open}BSD "just works" for servers, routers, and stuff like that. It's not so good as a desktop though.

unironically arch linux.

Yes.

Kubuntu unironically. I have a few complaints but it's pretty good.

t. loonux for 8 years for general computing and programming.

You can also try PearOS. Who bought them?

Mint

Install Gentoo

Is Kubuntu still as buggy as it used to be? I had to stop using it in favour of KDE Neon because of how buggy earlier packages were.

Imagine being this disingenuous.

Only had the DE crash on me once on the first launch after install. Only other noticeable "features" are missing account photos in the log in screen for accounts that aren't admin (maybe it's because the photos were in the admin's home folder?), and the cursor being the X from the default X server window manager (forgot what it's called). The GUI program for installing .deb files doesn't let you install if the software has dependencies (it just keeps highlighting the "More" button that shows you which dependencies you need when you hit "Install".), but you have to be a nigger not to know how to $: sudo dpkg -i faggotsoftware.deb It would be a bit annoying for a normienigger though.

Long time XFCE user since I tried it with Fedora 16. XFCE's fucked up up now with it's "I don't know if I'm using GTK2 or GTK3" and that gets really annoying. Decided to use Unity since it came with Ubuntu by default and I figured they would have put in a lot of effort to make it actually work with the rest of the OS. It did, but it sucked ass. That dumb gnome shit they use now gave me a good excuse to find time to switch. KDE is like XFCE with more settings.

OP, try Fedora (Gnome), Ubuntu (Gnome custoized), Kubuntu, or Xubuntu. You can start getting more esoteric from there if your autism is so inclined.

Your favorite flavor of Ubuntu is good enough for anyone new to GNU/Linux or those who don't have time to configure everything and just wants something that works.

I personally like Ubuntu Budgie.

Debian stable just has too old software packages
Mint is so downstream, and less support than Ubuntu
Debian Sid isn't stable enough

Ubuntu OTOH seems to have the most support, has mostly up-to-date packages, works out of the box

Xubuntu

Because it's a good combination of flexible and lightweight. Of the "mainstream" desktop environments, LXDE, Xfce, and KDE are the top of the class. GNOME, MATE, Cinnamon, etc. are all inferior in customizability to Xfce while having a similar memory footprint. Maybe they had something over Xfce in the past or something, but everything you can do in those these days you can do in Xfce along with a lot more. While I prefer LXDE on my laptops, I like having a bit more features for desktop usage. KDE has some admittedly nice features (especially the folder Widget) but it's uses up too much memory for my tastes.

Taiwanese, actually. And PCMan is just one of the developers, though he has done pretty significant work on some of the components.

im also looking for first linux recommendation. Should i go with ubuntu for simplicity or should i do void? gonna use virtualbox until i get used to it

I've been in love with mint for a while. Some say that it's not compatible with too many games, but it's a Ubuntu derivative so I don't understand why there would be any conflict with any game that Ubuntu is able to run. Am I just a potato?

Did you even read it? The point is getting interested in tinkering, and ricing is a good entry to tinkering. The hard part (for lazy faggots) is going from tinkering/ricing to scripting/programming.

Recommendations aren't much to be honest. From my experience using linux, it's a hot mess adapting to different hardware. I use Manjaro on my main computer because it works with no bugs at all for me(for me). But that is just a coincidence. I tried it on another computer and I had to do all kinds of weird fixes to run trivial stuff I run on my main computer to the point where I needed to get another distro.
The distro I guess adapts the better is Lubuntu. Other than that you will have to keep looking until you get lucky.

You think we need your opinion?

Xubuntu, when you are more confortable and know the basics, you can try a more "hard" distro like Arch or Gentoo. Even better, grab a book about linux admin and learn the true guts of Linux.

tl;dr: Xubuntu if you have a normal PC or Lubuntu if you have a toaster.

Not OP, I am using OpenSUSE for about a month. I am a long time Ubuntu user and I find it ok for most task. Some personal highlights:

zypper is way faster than aptitude
less packages
zypper way to show packages and info about them feels clearer and more verbose than aptitude
Yast is fucking heaven
wicked service is an actually pretty good alternative to Network Manager (I use cable)
patterns are a great way to build a DE fast
cool icon
you cannot use PPAs and OBS doesn't look like a good alternative
Chromium build is faster and more responsive than the one from Ubuntu
In my PC, Ubuntu LTS has this fucking issue with IPv6 and making my whole internet fucking slow, even after aplying the hack to deactivate it, it doesn't improve too much. OpenSUSE with wicked and disabling IPv6 in YAST is enough.

OP, just try Xubuntu, if it works out of the box with your PC, keep using it.

Would you recommend opensuse for a beginner?

should i move to ubuntu/kubuntu for an easier time or just keep mint?

Yes.

Ive been using it for a year (xfce)
arch performance, AUR access, easy install and seperate more stable repo, pretty much everything of small stuff such as libs and codecs you might want preinstalled

would recommend as beginner distro. ubuntu sucks ass

Really you consider arch distros to be good for beginners? Im fine wit my Ubuntu that I have been using sice a year. Altought I heard about Antergos and im curious. It just that im not well know into arch-distros, and if its true that they require knowledge to not screw it. How true is that?

Manjaro is newbie friendly and it's got just the right features.

t. used to love manjaro, now a gentooman

it just werks.
Also the Arch Anywhere xfce styles look amazing.