I’d like to settle on a distro, but none of them seem to click for me. I want stability more than anything, but I also value having the latest updates (I know, kind of incompatible)....
@pluja You'll be happiest using whatever you're comfortable maintaining/troubleshooting. I've spent ~20 years playing with many different distros for one reason or another and the only one I can't stay away from is #gentoo. As with most things, everyone's got different tastes, that's the great thing about having so much choice.
Nobody's reason for "the best" distro is gonna be the right one for you. You'll know what's right for you because it's the one you always want to use more than any other.
I have tried to learn Linux for ages, and have experimented with installing Arch and Ubuntu. Usually something goes wrong when I try to set up a desktop environment after installing Arch in VirtualBox. KDE gave me a problem where I couldn't log in after getting to the point where my username was displayed in a similar format to...
@gronjo45 The big question here is; what do you mean by "learn linux"?
If you really want to learn and understand what you're doing, here's a solution that will not leave you empty handed. No matter if you decide to call it quits half way through, you still have a great deal more knowledge than you'd get from simply installing a distro that does all the hard work for you.
No one ever listens when I say it but I'll say it again; follow the #gentoohandbook cover to cover doing a stage3 install. When you encounter something you don't understand, go read about it, usually links are included. Once you've gotten to any graphical environment, wipe it and start again. Repeat this process until you only reference the handbook to verify you're doing it correctly.
I would also advise doing this on metal, as the VM approach will likely give you no hardware problems to solve along the way. You'll never learn how to fix what never breaks. ;)
Installing something that just works, or where you only need to click next in the installer only gets you a working system. It offers you absolutely nothing in the way of knowledge or understanding. What good to you is a working linux system if you know nothing about it? The method I propose will ensure you have all the basic skills and knowledge you need to be a (mostly) self sufficient linux user.
If you do take my advice and have any questions along the way, feel free to send me a direct message. I'd be happy to help.
What is your go-to Linux distro and why?
I’d like to settle on a distro, but none of them seem to click for me. I want stability more than anything, but I also value having the latest updates (I know, kind of incompatible)....
Linux for the Airheaded Layman?
I have tried to learn Linux for ages, and have experimented with installing Arch and Ubuntu. Usually something goes wrong when I try to set up a desktop environment after installing Arch in VirtualBox. KDE gave me a problem where I couldn't log in after getting to the point where my username was displayed in a similar format to...