Best Linux Distributions for 2024

[@EdwinMartin]

In Debian, you can add “non-free” to your APT sources, so you can easily install software that’s outside of the strict Debian Free Software Guidelines.

[@MarkRiverbank]

I’ve become a huge fan of ZorinOS. It’s still Ubuntu behind the scenes, but just a lot more polished and consistent.

[@philipslighting8240]

Just different wallpaper and icons.

[@plutack]

@@philipslighting8240💀

[@tytanyo007]

Im out of Zorin because of error input/output on install. :/

[@Bhaiyabhomsle]

I hate zorin😢

[@techofebd]

@@philipslighting8240 True indeed, just another gimmick of eye candy, nothings else.

[@MrOrtmeier]

Great video mate. I'm an IT Technician/Sysadmin and my distro of choice is Linux Mint Debian Edition 6 because it is imo the best of both worlds: Freedom respecting Debian with the beautiful Cinnamon desktop and I like the software selection of the Mint team. Timeshift is also great and saved my bacon recently with the 6.1.66 kernel issues recently. Like with Red Hat, I'm a bit sour towards Canonical as well because they've made some seemingly community hostile decisions lately like disallowing the flavours to have flatpak support out of the box and forcing snaps. Then there was the opt out data collection, ads in the terminal, the Amazon issue in the past and of course WSL which is still a pain point in the community. I also have an uneasy feeling that they may eventually make the entire iso snaps only, in which case downstream distros like Mint would tend to abandon ship and go Debian . I'm glad the Mint team had the foresight to start with a Debian version long in advance of that...

[@deultima]

I know, I too have come full circle. After starting on Mint I lived in Manjaro, Garuda , Endeavour, and Nobara. But, after being done with random updates breaking my system I wanted more stability and moved into Debian for awhile until the LMDE 6 beta was released. I just wanted to play with it, but I ended up falling in love and moved in.

[@MrKomer]

my thoughts exactly! 👍

[@deultima]

Not all Ubuntu distros are to be avoided, my personal suggestion is Linux Mint. They do a very good job of stripping out all the corporate non-sense you want to avoid and are a very privacy centric distribution.The Cinnamon Desktop is very Windows user friendly and makes the transition easy. It's a great distro for a newbie coming from Windows to learn. Also because it's Ubuntu based you have a very large support structure in place. As for your second question, the two main community/non-corporate distros would be Debian & Arch. Arch while very bleeding edge is not the most stable and is easy to break, so it would be great for a gaming system, but not so much as a production machine unless you take precautions. Debian on the other hand is all about stability, so is great for a production machine, but the packages can be very old. However Flatpak solves a lot of those issues now a days. Personally I started with Linux Mint for about a year and once I got more comfortable with Linux I started playing with Arch and Debian based distos. My current system is running on LMDE (Linux Mint Debian Edition). It's solid as a rock, and with the Steam Flatpak, I have a stable production machine that allows me to game no problem as well. I know I sound like an ad, but my personal recommendation is give Linux Mint a try, if you really want to avoid Ubuntu all together then go with their Debian version, LMDE. @EvilWorldOfGreed-do1ox

[@Uhfgood]

@@deultima - From what I understood LMDE has exactly the same experience as regular mint, from the users perspective. I'm still considering, I may go with LMDE

[@kevinsteinman8967]

Actually there is no best distro. The best distro is the one that works for you.

[@philipslighting8240]

Its called MacOS

[@schmalzanlage_der_blutritter]

@@philipslighting8240Wow

[@NotThatEpic7492]

I like Mint.

[@__Brandon__]

Debian, Arch, and Gentoo cover almost all the bases

[@johanb.7869]

@@philipslighting8240 No openSUSE Tumbleweed😜

[@HeIsHarsh]

Not mentioning RedHat RHEL is understandable but Fedora is literally a community run distro 🤷 And one of the best one at that.

[@gurung1812]

best distro for developer

[@GaryExplains]

Fedora feeds directly into RHEL. All the effort the community is putting in is being absorbed and abused by RedHat.

[@HeIsHarsh]

​@@GaryExplainsyeah, so? Is it Fedora's fault? 🤷 Fedora IS a community based project, just because RHEL is feeding off of Fedora, doesn't mean it doesn't deserve the recognition.

[@pip5528]

Yeah, Fedora is great and I'm pretty sure their source code is still free which only further makes it distinctly different from its downstream of RHEL.

[@EdwinMartin]

If you want to install Linux on an old laptop, I’ll recommend MX Linux. I tried several light distributions and MX Linux worked best.

[@Bob-1802]

MX also has its famous Live Snapshot that can be burned as an ISO file on a thumb drive. It can even be encrypted. To reinstall your whole system in case of disaster or just on another computer, it's child play.

[@JeanPierreWhite]

Thanks for the tip

[@andykeys74]

MX is great on older hardware

[@Vantud391]

I really like it for it's lightspeed but it turn me away with non-friendly apps center.

[@JoelJosephReji]

I have heard regarding the Manjaro distro maintainers messing up on several occasions so I'm kinda on the fence regarding recommending Manjaro to a newcomer. (and sticking with Ubuntu or Ubuntu-like would have its advantages on being the most popular install base)

[@Alex-ur3vt]

Manjaro have addressed their mistakes. Many of the impacts were severely overstated in the first place, and none have been actually detrimental to security or even general system stability. You will now find a well-maintained and active distribution with a great support network.

[@Minja-i3z]

Manjaro is pile of trash. Tried to install few days ago and formatting stopped for no reason during installation from live media. After successfull installation package manager was visible just as black box no matter what theme I was using. Uberjunk.

[@tantraman93]

Just in the last few days Manjaro updated and broke for many people (me included). I’m not tech enough to understand it all but apparently they knew of a potential issue and implemented an update that has caused problems.

[@jasongooden917]

Imagine viewing an Android Penguin eating an Apple through a Window

[@diotitus]

What?

[@MRSZ5440]

AI could not get it right but the penguin would be Linux not Android Android is a robot.

[@Zyo117]

I think the guy meant a robot penguin eating an apple through a window

[@pd4252]

My new favorite is Linux Mint 22 Cinnamon - brand new within the last 2 weeks or so. Installed in about 6 minutes, configured it the way I like, works great on my 10-year old Asus Motherboard, i3-4300, with 8 GB of RAM.

[@masterquan4891]

Highly recommended, has the newest kernal update 6.8, games run really smooth on this distro on steam experimental. If you have new hardware it will pick it up and work with it perfectly. I have bitlocker on a external drive and it allowed me to open the drive up and use it from a windows work machine. I think this is one of the most polished desktop versions for new users and intermediate.

[@deniswauchope3788]

Thanks to you both for this recommendation, I'll give it a try!

[@kensmith5694]

For most people I would suggest Linux Mint. It is an easy transition from Windows.

[@Zero-4793]

thats where im gonna start

[@billyellis1552]

I have tried it and liked it but my mouse buttons don't work. They also stopped working on win 10 recently. Tried everything sometimes they work and sometimes they don't . Never had this until recently ​@@Zero-4793

[@dezmondwhitney1208]

Good video. My favourite is openSUSE Leap 15.5 KDE , Long term support. I agree that nearly all Linux distros are just fine.

[@steeltormentors]

MX Linux user here..migrated 2 months ago from Win10. I'm actually pleasantly surprised at how stable and functional Linux is. Been my daily driver and not missing Win10 at all.

[@MellexLabs]

Kubuntu helped me absorb the shock of moving from Windows 11 to Linux... i much prefer the KDE look, which is relatively similar to Windows 10. Don't think i will be moving back to Windows any time soon, but i have a dual boot setup with Windows on a second drive, just in case. ZorinOS looks interesting and may give it a shot in the near future.

[@AnthonyManzio]

How do you create a dual boot setup?

[@paulablomberg153]

I have tested a few Linux distros to install on old/small laptops to give to poor ppl with little experience. I ended up with two favorites: Zorin OS and Mint. Both easy to wrap your head around and intuitive. At the very end, I found Linux Mint more stable. I just handed the first 'puter today and made a person very happy! That, of cause made me very happy too :)

[@StaceyAyodele]

Windows 11 was what finally made me jump into Linux and stay there. My new PC came with Windows 11 and when I installed some programs that I used under Windows 10 on it, Windows 11 would constantly crash. Now I run Manjaro on all my systems and the software that I use runs smooth as butter. Windows 10 is EOL next year? Doesn't matter to me, I moved to Linux and I'm happier for it.

[@kolz4ever1980]

Definitely a you problem going on. I've never seen windows 11 crash.

[@k1ry4n]

​@@kolz4ever1980​I've seen win 11 crash onlyna couple of times... BUT i've seen many open source apps I use daily working fine under win 10 and not working properly under Win 11.

[@musicalneptunian]

Danny Rensch, please stick to chess@@kolz4ever1980

[@YourFellowBrother]

Skill issue

[@esra_erimez]

Happy and Healthy New Year to Gary and all the Gary Explains viewers! Who's watching in 2024?

[@jeffreyjoshuarollin9554]

I’m surprised Linux Mint is so far down your list. It’s really good. I adore Manjaro, but I’ve been running Linux for about 25 years. I think I’d pick Mint over Manjaro for a beginner.

[@kensmith5694]

I agree. Mint is good for Windows users to pick up

[@MrJacksparrago]

I am using it as my first experience ever with Linux. It's amazing, and it actually works better than Windows for me, I am a bit surprised. Also have completed some games with it and they worked with no issues whatsoever (Rise of the Tomb Raider, Baldur's Gate 3, Pillars of Eternity and now I am starting Divinity OS2). If you come from Windows, Linux Mint is mostly plug and play.

[@JeanPierreWhite]

@@kensmith5694 Mint is very intuitive and auto installs printers ina very obvious manner. Another distro for windows users is Wubuntu, which mimics Windows 10/11 very closely.

[@mikesymanzig6812]

I would vote for Solus (they had a tough time, but they are back), very good distro, modern, stable, not bloated, low ram usage, very fast, even good for beginners (just eopkg instead of apt). On the bad side, community is small. Very underrated ditro in my opinion.

[@sm-xd1wr]

Why does almost everyone pronounce GNOME as Nome. That pronunciation is for garden objects. The desktop GNOME is pronounced as GE NOME, which is a nod to GNU, GE nu.

[@ObsidianMercian]

Brilliant video, thanks Gary. Worth noting (as you have in the past) that another way to try out Linux in a low risk way is to purchase a Raspberry Pi and use Raspberry Pi OS. Doesnt take up much space on your desk either 🙂

[@GaryExplains]

Good point! 👍

[@TheLexikitty]

Rad video. Starting to poke at this - ran plenty of Debian VMs but always been stuck on Windows or OS X for the screen magnifiers and accessibility software (I’m legally blind). Hadn’t tried some of these and will do that tonight. Thanks!

[@polyakoviv]

Manjaro was great until it updated and stopped working on one sunny day. Yes that could be fixed and all that but I've never encountered such stuff with Ubuntu or Debian

[@Minja-i3z]

That is beauty of rolling distros. They roll themselves to oblivion.

[@aravjain]

I love Ubuntu, can’t wait for 24.04 LTS!! And Raspberry Pi OS on the Pi 5 is a monster with speed!!

[@__Brandon__]

You should give Debian a try. It's like Ubuntu, but without all the bad stuff

[@IAmPattycakes]

I died a little inside when Gary said "open Susie" But also openSUSE (tumbleweed or slow roll) are really worth a look, SUSE is really making some progress in becoming an actually user friendly replacement for red hat, and the user experience is very clean coming from windows with YaST being a good analog of control panel, and default KDE being familiar to windows UI.

[@philipslighting8240]

Not abnormal for US americans to mis prounounce.

[@GaryExplains]

US American?

[@philipslighting8240]

Yes as opposed to the rest of America.@@GaryExplains

[@GaryExplains]

LOL. No, I mean you think I am American?

[@johanb.7869]

Tumbleweed KDE user myself since a little more than a week and so far it has been running great. It's quick and stable so far despite all the updates.

[@gimcrack555]

I have many favorites; MX, Netrunner, PCLInuxOS, Lite, Elementary, Mint, Solus, openSUSE, Voyager, and EndeavourOS

[@philipslighting8240]

You just like reinstalling linux....

[@gimcrack555]

@@philipslighting8240 Been on MX for like 5 years. Not going to another Linux distro. I try out 44 Linux distro's in my 20+ years using Linux. MX is my sweet spot. It's prefect for me all around. Only reinstall Linux when MX changes it's next Debian Stable version. Which will be trixie. Right now I'm using bookworm.

[@Quarky_]

I feel called out as a long time Fedora user, can't fault your stance though. I've been eyeing Arch from a distance for a while. So far only tried on non-critical systems or RPis. I really like the reliability of Fedora despite being somewhat on the bleeding edge. Would Pop_OS offer a similar experience?

[@pip5528]

OpenSUSE Tumbleweed seems pretty stable as rolling release distros go. The package naming is different and may trip you up but it arguably has the best Btrfs snapshot implementation. Fedora is on my main machine and Debian is on my old machine but I really want to get into Tumbleweed.

[@Quarky_]

@@pip5528 Ooh! Btrfs snapshoting could lure me away ;)

[@Skibbehify]

I switched to tumbleweed about 2 weeks ago after being a long time debian/lmde fan & it has been a fantastic experience & on my main desktop it will 100% stay.@@pip5528

[@jollyswagman4714]

Building my first PC in the next few weeks (when all the parts arrive). Planning to run Linux on it. Perfect timing for this video.

[@jollyswagman4714]

@@user-om4oh9xp2i love it. No issues whatsoever. Ended up going with Fedora if you were wondering what distro I chose.

[@jollyswagman4714]

@user-om4oh9xp2i really well. Runs like a dream, I'm mostly using it for gaming (and a little Dev work here and there) and I'm pleasantly surprised how many games run without issues. So glad you don't have to put windows on gaming computers anymore.

[@hermanstokbrood]

Yeah I always tell this to Linux fans: de enormous diversity is holding Linux' growth back. I tried several distro back in the days but never was satisfied. It mostly boiled down to hardware problems and problems using certain software.

[@motoryzen]

Choice doesn't hold Linux back...I That never has What holds lenex back is usually a chicken in the egg problem as well as. Money involving pain lennox software and hardware developers

[@tonytenbreock8546]

Thanks for a nice, uncluttered summary. A report on the "backdoor to linux" problem that surfaced over the weekend would be a nice follow-up.

[@MarkRobinson-o3c]

Can I run Lennox on Mac studio or or can I just spy? There’s no one that is there you have to buy apple or a windows right? I’m confused and frustrated been two years now and let me know.

[@aron6814]

For beginners and experienced users Linux Mint #1 absolutely easy to install and use solid as rock and absolutely trustworthy

[@Daniel-wn5ye]

No KDE Plasma support, so it's not good!

[@kellbrekoo3487]

Is been a few decades since i ran slackware and you needed to rebuild the kernel when you added a new driver and seeing what has become of Linux is just amazing. I chose Linux Mint as I use it for my daily driver and I don't feel like tinkering as much as I used to so it works pretty good and all my peripherals are supported as well. And yes I jumped in feet first on this one, not regretting a single moment😊

[@christopherfothergil]

I have tried them all but for me Zorin I found to be the best for my needs.

[@puyol8700]

I think I'll join the choir of EndeavourOS supporters in the comments. Having distro-hopped quite a bit myself through the past 18 years, I find that Arch is probably the best experience I've had over all, however, I don't really care much for the tedious process of installing everything manually as much as I used to. Having played around with EndeavourOS in a VM recently, I think it's very close to just being Arch with an easier installation process. Fedora would be high on my list as well, but I see why some people avoid recommending it. Still excited to see what they have in store for the future.

[@Nenad_bZmaj]

Thank you for a thorough introduction. I needed it.

[@raderator]

Create a Ventoy thumb drive and put a bunch of ISOs on it to try. I don't recommend VMs. Something always doesn't work and it takes too long. I'm happy with Zorin Core 16 until 4/25. All of my PCSs are old biz desktops.

[@JeanPierreWhite]

Ventoy FTW

[@arnonart]

i'm a linux user since 2019. i don't believe i'll ever go back to windows. i started with linux mint cinnamon but since 2020 i use manjaro gnome as my daily driver. i'm not a computer nerd to the full extent but i have some clue how to run my systems. i believe if presenting linux for people who are intending to try it for the first time, it's better to emphasize the abundance of desktop environments. for me for example, it's significant. when i installed my first mint i choose cinnamon without really knowing what doe's it mean. once i realized there are other desktop environments, i decided to check gnome. at least for me it made a huge difference. i switched to the arch based manjaro cause i wanted to have new versions to my favorite apps without the need to wait half a year. even though i activated the AUR i had very little problems with manjaro so far. i must admit i expected much more. linux is not at all that complicated. in fact it's real fun!

[@motoryzen]

Tell me a windows user who is coming to Linux world for the first time that there are easily 5 plus possible deaths top environments. He or she can pick from. It's not a bad thing, but it's not paramount to convincing them and helping them migrate two and feel at home in the linux world. The reason why Lennox meant cinnamon has been one of the top 2 or 3 most successful Lenox, distributions and desktop combinations throughout the past 7 plus years. In volving windows users going to lenox full time..... Is that the customizations needed for a windows? User to fill out at home are very very minimal or low at best If you're home shopping and with the real life and you find the overall dimensions, the build quality. Everything about a home pretty much matches your dreams. Then the amount of structural or room size adjusting manipulation you must do is virtually 0 and that is a huge selling point that people don't realize or some may not realize. The sentiment menu AK what some would call. The start menu functions 99% the same as window 7 and Windows 10 start menus only without the Bing without the microcrap. Till emetry and privacy invasion end without internet search engines bogging it down.... Also opens with the precisely saying physical keyboard key. Which is the windows logo key a k meta a k superkey out of the box. Nemo, the Linux mint cinnamon. File manager functions 99% the same as Windows 7 and tens. File managers which is file explorer only in mints case.... Nemo is a little bit more customizable Aside from one little quark, the cinnamon panel is very much like the window 7 panel and Windows 10 panels AK. Task bars Like in my move to any of the four sides of the screen, Can be resized, Transparency effects can be implemented, The sky is the limit. Even the same little show desktop button that's available on Windows 10 is available on Linux mint 21 versions if one needs that which I personally don't but whatever.

[@johanb.7869]

@@motoryzen KDE taskbar is more Windows like, because Microsoft copied it.

[@johanb.7869]

User since 2017. Currently Tumbleweed KDE. Rolling, quick and it's been running smooth so far.

[@kevingary7018]

I started out using Red Hat 6 as my first Linux adventure - it seems like only a few years ago. I got a copy along with a Linux for Dummies Book from my local book store. Thankfully GNU/Linux has evolved. I wish IBM and Canonical well with their business. Today, I no longer use distros controlled by a single commercial entity. I am enjoying Debian 12 at the moment with the Gnome desktop (mainly because the bash scripts I used with Ubuntu also work with Debian, and I am too lazy to modify them). I think more important than all the Linux distributions that are available today, is the customization that can be done on the GNU/Linux platform. Users truly have freedom of choice.

[@carlosmachado1440]

Have you ever try... "Big Linux"... a nice and practice distribuition based on Majaro with an unique interface, lower memory used.. It's worth a lot....!!! Regards and Congrats for the good explanation

[@dianaalyssa8726]

Nobara is currently my 2nd OS. I've used Fedora, Mint, ArcoLinux, Manjaro. My old friend had me leave Mint for Manjaro but I returned to & mained Mint for a while last year, it's a nice distro. Both ArcoLinux and Manjaro from Arch based are beginner friendly. I keep a VM for Fedora (couldn't figure out how to set one up for Nobara and Fedora is enough for my needs) when I'm in Windows. Gaming and file archiving are the main things I do. Debian is great for older hardware (people could also use a Fedora/Nobara LXQt) but I spent a couple hours trying to figure out adding firmware for my recent AMD gpu. So there are things where it's a compromise between stability and wanting to be on a bleeding edge distro (I've broken Arch based a few times experimenting in years past). I am loving Nobara's KDE, it's what I've been looking for. If you find a good distro/family, stay for a bit, then hop around when it's not stable/what you want anymore.

[@kdzvocalcovers3516]

dual boot..Linux on 1 drive..windows on the other drive..start in bios..go to boot order...select which o.s you want to boot from...seems the most logical way to incorporate both o.s systems on one p.c and run them on separate drives and have 2 o.s boot options..great vjdeo mate!

[@JuanMendez-mw4kf]

Been a while since i used Ubuntu back in 2007-2009, i loved it they used to add really cool effects when adding an app called Beryl, would let you add fire effect when closing a window and all that cool stuff. Does ubuntu still support beryl?

[@grapy83]

WTH! Ironically this turned out to be the Best overview intro to the jungle that is Linux! This is the first time I get a sense to why there are sooo many terminologies involved when talking about linux. Please take the first 7 minutes of this video and make a detailed comprehensive explainer with examples.

[@GaryExplains]

Why "Ironically"???

[@grapy83]

@@GaryExplains well that's a complement. It's ironic because over the years I've watched many random videos on similar topics but never got why Linux distros are so confusing. And here you explained it so simply that everything just clicked 😀

[@GaryExplains]

I am glad the video was useful. I try to make all my videos the same way. Personally I would have used "pleasantly surprised" rather than "ironically." Irony has a slight different meaning.

[@ramonlewisataucklanduniver5378]

Win 11 on the horizontal gave me the excuse to jump to Ubuntu as my daily driver at home - work is still Windows based - I also have Mint, Kali, RPiOS running on other PCs/Raspberry Pis or as VMs.Investigating MXLinux, Ubuntu, Mint, Mte, RPiOS, and Debian at work using VMs. Have Ubuntu Server as well as FreeNAS/TrueNAS and pFsense running everything at home. Having a ball. Only 1 machine on Windows to play one game that doesn't work under Steam/Linux combo - there are many games working well that I play off and on.

[@theplaymakerno1]

For beginners, I still recommend EndeavorOS with KDE, even with Nvidia GPUs. I know that getting used to it will be painful (depends on what the user wishes to do with it), however, it will save the new user from a lot of headaches that I suffered from when using Linux Mint as a beginner.

[@ridakesserwan8712]

Zorin is much better

[@theplaymakerno1]

I agree. It is also based on Ubuntu?@@ridakesserwan8712

[@joey199412]

I agree with this. EndeavourOS was my first linux OS and it is just beginner friendly enough to get easily used to while respecting your intelligence and actually explaining how things work and what to do if you want to get a bit deeper into things.

[@MarkDavidMcCoskey]

After doing quite a bit of Distro hopping, I've also settled into Endeavour OS, but I'm currently using the Cinnamon desktop (also very much enjoy Budgie). Love their forum as well.

[@DarrenSaw]

Endeavour is really nice but for beginners? Some Arch package bork is never that far away and a beginner doesn't want to deal with that.

[@MarkRobinson-o3c]

How do you buy a system already built you have to build one huh by all the components and put it together then I can do what you’re doing now right I love arch I used that on my friends system but I want my own system. How can I get the hardwarein two years now and no one today I was frustrated

[@MW-mn1el]

The best linux distro it's OpenSuse Aeon, or previous call (MicroOS Desktop [Gnome]). It's the best immutable, auto update, rolling release distros.

[@syedumairali4345]

Hi Gary, I'm running elementary os that I installed on the 31st of decemeber and it has been nothing but amazing. All of hardware and apps work and I've also switched to foss apps since they play along nicely with the theming of the system.

[@Adeel00000]

Are you using a nvidia gpu?

[@syedumairali4345]

@@Adeel00000 intel hd 4600

[@Adeel00000]

gpu 1660 super nvidia and intel

[@Joe-uc9kf]

I think you could have mentioned that Ubuntu comes in different flavors with different desktop environments. My favorite is Kubuntu. You get Ubuntu with its large user base and Canonical backing it up but at the same time you get the KDE more Windows like environment.

[@GaryExplains]

True. I cover the variants more in my Ubuntu vs Mint video.

[@lorduggae]

I disagree with Endeavor being good for beginners. It's very terminal centric and someone coming from Windows may not want to deal with that.

[@motoryzen]

Exactly incoming windows users 99% of them. Chances are don't want to have to deal with a command line interface window or command promp. Exactly incoming windows users 99% of them. Chances are don't want to have to deal with a command line interface window or command prompt or terminal. Now in Lennox minute, just like any other Linux. Distro one has the option of dealing with a terminal if one wishes add any time, but for nutty nine percent of any trouble, shooting or other use cases, one doesn't have to use the terminal anymore.

[@FlakeyPM]

I've had a long journey with Linux. Started with Redhat in 1999, Mandrake, Mandriva, Mageia, Manjaro and now Blackarch. Tried lots of others in between. I love the flexibility of being able to set things up the way I work rather than being shoehorned into a 'one size fits all'. I finally got rid of windows in 2008 when XP I was using got hacked while I watched, even with 3 separate pieces of software designed to protect me.

[@Winnetou17]

Maan, Mandrake, Mandriva, Mageia, Manjaro ... seems like you tried all the ones starting with M. Should've went with Mint next :P Or MX Linux

[@FlakeyPM]

@@Winnetou17 Mint was among the many others. Didn't like it. Something about debs that doesn't gel with me. I dabbled with arch early in the piece but finally came back to it.

[@jkrules4161]

Why does no one put links to what they talk about in the description, but put links to their merch... Makes me really want to buy that t-shirt

[@GaryExplains]

What links did you need? Surely it is easier to find a distro by doing a quick Google search than looking in the description?

[@ElbahethAmrSrour]

Great Video , what is the name of the Pen screen that you use please

[@CtechniQ]

Your videos are very instructive

[@ivicaluketin386]

An excellent, friendly style, without the intrusive teaching common in schools what repels students. Thorough knowledge of the subject. Congratulations ! (from a retired teacher)

[@GaryExplains]

Glad it was helpful!

[@matijacizmar9372]

Linux can be separated in two versions. Cutting/bleeding edge- less stable and tested totaly stable little older packages and kernel(debian) i dont count forks as they are not main distros. So the big ones are: Debian, Fedora and Arch. Others just confusing people, but basically they are the same thing just with some custom preinstalled software out of the box. I like to choose what i want or dont want to be installed. I want stable and fast os, so my choice is debian 12. Never thought of change it for anything else for a good reason

[@raderator]

Started with Zorin Core two years because it was the only one that wasn't ugly. Tried a bunch on Ventoy but see no reason to switch. I'm in Chrome 90% of the time anyway.

[@fuseteam]

Rpm is not just for red hat, and the different rpm types are not interoperable

[@HasanAYousef]

Thanks, it came on time as I'm planning for a switch from Windows, by the way, I liked the background of your slides, where can I download it as a background image

[@richardz6049]

When you're talking about package manager you mention .deb instead of apt. regarding Debian based distros any reason doing so. I understood .deb as being archive files?

[@spud1907]

this post is many months old... but .deb are also software packages that you can double click and run.

[@steverpcb]

My first experience of actually using Linux was having to remotely set up and use a server in a French data centre. This was done remotely with Ubuntu server and tools, initially with a server on the other side of the room lol. I recently tried Mint, but was put off by the way that mouse scrolling is reversed by default :( I always describe Linux as being too fragmented and as awkward as possible !

[@juwon1234]

I gave up on windows 5 years ago and joined the Linux band. But it took me ages before finding a destro I really like. Finding one in the sea of Linux destro is the biggest change when going from windows to Linux. And this is even after watching numerous videos, using chats, going through forums and even testing all the different destro Gary mentioned. I ended up with BigLinux which I have been with for 3 years now. Based on Manjaro Linux running KDE. I will say it has been 98% stable.

[@johanb.7869]

In 2017 I made the jump to Linux. Currently Tumbleweed KDE.

[@fuseteam]

Security updates are also managed by the package manager

[@jeancorriveau8686]

Manjaro package management and app installation is confusing. Not for beginners. I got conflicts error too often.

[@Olsby31]

"This year is a great year to try Linux" - EVERY year is a good year to try Linux.

[@Zero-4793]

My main desktop is windows. but i've just bought a work/holiday laptop on which i plan to try linux

[@fuseteam]

I hope you define criteria for 'best'

[@randomdebris]

Going to try making Alpine Linux my main FOSS OS in 2024

[@thomas-i5o7h]

I have a question for you about Linux compatibility. Is there a distro that is compatible with the common desk top inkjet printer ? So far, I've asked this question a number of times and have never received an answer from anyone. So I thought I would ask you this question.

[@LiamMcBride]

I use fedora workstation 39 and when I went to add my brother laser printer, it was already added from the fact that it was already on my network and didn't have to do anything at all to get it working.

[@techofebd]

What is the model number and company of the printer?

[@lenshand]

Cool graphic. Do you mind sharing the link to the image if it is available please.

[@celdepescaun39]

Maybe, can make a follow up .... To explain the beginners that some of Linux Distros can NOT boot on a PC/Laptop which has SECURE BOOT activated in UEFI(BIOS) 🙂

[@motoryzen]

That's why you disable it That's not rocket science to understand very simple And don't tell me it can't be done because I've seen enough to know from experience. It can be done... As far as you're down the dozen laptop and desktop pre built computer varieties Always disable secure root because it does not do what micro crap claims. It does anyways other than try to make it more difficult for you to boot any other operators. System other than windows Disable fast start up also as it has nasty tendency to lock all the hardware.... And of course, just like secure boot. It doesn't do what micro crap advertises it does. Sorry to sound possibly Harsh here. But facts don't care about anyone's feelings took me a while to realize these things too.

[@jeanpol1836]

The best Linux distro for beginners is Gentoo, the best for experienced users is Ubuntu, the best for customization is Elementary OS and the best for servers is Arch, I'm on Pop OS btw

[@GaryExplains]

Gentoo for beginners 😂

[@MyTestAccount-md6tb]

I like Debian because I use Raspberry Pi's but I use Linux Mint on another OLDER computer. Linux is great and works on OLDER hardware and doesn't want all of your PERSONAL INFORMATION, like Windows does... Ubuntu is great too...

[@dafyddrees2287]

Any comments on compatibility issues installing Linux on laptops these days? Any major hardware compatibility pitfalls to deal with or is it mostly fine these days?

[@notjustforhackers4252]

Yeah, if it says for Windows, ChromeOS or MAC on the laptop box then it might not work. If it says 'for Linux' it most likely will.

[@motoryzen]

Honestly about the main one you have to ever worry about is, And this is still becoming more and more rare these days, The wi fi and that depends on the manufacturer of the wi fi chip Sometimes Realtek Can be a headache but these days that is becoming less and less frequent 99% of the time if you can find a laptop that has an Intel WI. Fi module, you can bet your rothai that it will work out of the box with Linux Mint twenty or newer.

[@johanb.7869]

If you have the latest hardware you need the latest kernel. That's why the kernel is constantly updated to be compatible with the latest hardware. I always use refurbished computer, Dell Optiplex, and I've never had a problem installing Linux. Other users may have problems though.

[@dj__grizzly]

after using windows since the nineties it became so simple : 1 operating system called windows. when i want to try linux it becomes hard to keep up, there are like 100 names, they probably all are different and they are all linux, i have no idea where to start with this. and what about programs that i can only find for windows, for example i have some laser programs that are specifically made for that laser, it only exists for windows. should i create a dual boot system and switch every time or create some typ of VM inside the linux operating system? i checked a couple of videos already and a lot sounds like 'chinese' to me :(

[@deniswauchope3788]

This is my problem too. Newcomers to Linux have to deal with repositories, grub, all kinds of unfamiliar terms and (in my case anyway) always end up having to do something I don't understand using the command line, with uncertain results since I don't know what to expect & don't know if I've done it right. Windows may be a lousy OS, but at least I know how to use it, and I seldom have to use a command line for anything. Still, Win 11 is total crap so I guess I'll try Linux again (can't say I'm looking forward to the learning curve tho.)

[@dj__grizzly]

@@deniswauchope3788 meanwhile a couple of months have passed and Linux Mint Cinnamon, the first one that i tried, became my daily driver that boots when i turn on the pc. Some tips : when you find a solution for any problem : save the website or video or take a screenshot, My first weeks were mostly testing everything and messing up everything while having a usb stick to start over and a dual boot to my win 10 just in case. i wasted a lot of time not remembering and having to search ahain :-) I have to say, installing and setting up Mint was pretty simple (with a youtube video to have a dual boot), and when done it almost looks like a modified windows with more options and more things you can change (and mess up lol). I learned how to use same golders in both windows & linux (documents, music,.) create symlinks (same like shortcuts but it needs getting used to), mounting ssd drives at boot (because by default linux didn't do that) and many other little things, at the it was sometimes panic because i needed a youtube video and a linux forum for everything, meanwhile after a couple of months i know most things that i need, BUT....deleted my old win10 and i reinstalled a stripped, debloated 'mini' version of win10 that is configured for gaming only, it is not logged in to anything except steam. I know, people will say many games work in Steam, but many also need a lot of extra time to get them working and i got bored with the try and find out method. so i have an extra nvme with windows and a bunch of games for the weekends, rebooting/booting linux or a stripped win10 takes less time then watching the startup screen of the computer anyway

[@gmanprime500]

I would make the argument that Ubuntu lost it's defacto beginner friendly when they rolled out Unity. Going from Win Explorer to Unity can be very jarring and I would put Zorin or Mint in the defacto spot on that list but that's just me.

[@post22unboxing22]

how play with 2 ubuntu and zoinos i like both

[@Destide]

Mine in no particular order Open suse, mint, fedora, garuda, Debian,Novara, pop if cosmic comes out this year

[@miloncop]

Do not forget Artix! --> Artix Arch Kali only in VM (isolated environment) Mate or I3vm

[@paulablomberg153]

Not stable enough (yet?) In my opinion.

[@davidwayne9982]

Distrowatch shows like over 300 distros... and now with the IMMUTABLE ones-- you can COMBINE a lot of this into ONE... but I can't get them to work correctly.. (and I"ve been using Linux since 2004.)... I personally don't NEED imutability-- because I install the operating system on ONE disc and my "DATA" goes on a separate disc-- so it won't be lost in case of breakdown.

[@test40323]

My favourite is Slackware but running inside virtual machines. Ubuntu is great for compatibility but a bit bloated. Great explanation as always.

[@madmadmal]

This would be better if the type of use was described and then recommended. For example a server environment, compared to virtualization, compared to security, compared to development, compared to home use, etc, etc. My web and mail server environments might be good under virtualization while real time home user desktop environments work well elsewhere. This is confusing because it doesn’t address use cases, but environment types.

[@JoeyGarcia]

I typically describe GNU/Linux as basically being the software version of Frankenstein's Monster. A bunch of software pieces (i.e., Linux kernel, libraries, and applications) sown together into a working Operating System. It's alive!!!

[@vasudevmenon2496]

I would suggest Ubuntu it Linux mint or Fedora for development. Linux mint Debian edition for home and office usage.

[@41fora]

what I really need is an overview of the functionality :-) personally, I need to understand how to install .apk without the command line, why software stores are not compatible and how to combine incompatible (use mint)

[@timetraveler_0]

So Debian, Arch and OpenSuse still the king, decades later.

[@mentalplayground]

Lovely list and for once I do agree with you 100% :)

[@rojoroj9777]

Help me , I want a light weight linux updated os for Celeron single core single thread 1GB RAM system

[@bilashadhikary8691]

A computer os should be lightweight, easy to install and takes little time to install and it should have great arrays of softwares. I think mx linux could easily outweigh others. Just go for it and you can easily understand that it's a power house. It's from grand daddy debian but still it's different. Cutting edge software, yes. I tried almost every distro. I think it's the 2nd fastest, only after Antix linux.

[@-zero-]

no point using these fork distros even for beginners, just use debian + gnome if you're a beginner. advanced users can also use debian + gnome, arch or gentoo, depending on the stability/customisability requirement.

[@marasion0862]

I can imagine beginners to struggle with the installation progress, let alone to find the correct Debian iso in the first place ...

[@-zero-]

@@marasion0862 download iso button is right on their homepage, installation process is the same as ubuntu

[@marasion0862]

@@-zero- You're right about the download iso button - they used to have it much more cluttered. However, the installation is not the same. There are a lot of options that would confuse beginners, like picking the desktop environment. Ubuntu's installer has much less options in comparision.

[@linuxsever5727]

@@marasion0862 less is better for beginners. I am an quite experienced linux user and Debian installer isnt easy. And Debian has one of the worst websites and download pages. Debian has a good philosophy but not good for beginner or average linux users. It is not an install and enjoy distro. You must be ready to face many challanges plus very old packages.

[@-zero-]

@@marasion0862 what option, there only difference I can think of is that on debian you can choose your DE, just check on gnome and its done.

[@busterj11776]

Excellent, thanks for posting

[@GaryExplains]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@tsvigo11_70]

Вам может понадобиться заблокировать ядро Линукс иначе может перестать работать проприетарный видео драйвер nvidia.

[@larry4037]

There are a lot of good Linux distros out there. "Best" is a subjective term. The distros may differ in appearance, but what really matters is what programs you're using and will your distro run them. If you're using Libre Office, will your distros run that. Or Gimp, Inkscape, Shotcut, etc. So it's not really the distro itself, but will it run your favorite programs because that's why we're using the computer to begin with.

[@GaryExplains]

Are there distros that can't run certain programs? Can you give me an example of a distro that can't run LibreOffice?

[@rootcanal7188]

The only problem with Linux is that there is only one anti-virus (that I know of): ClamAV - which doesn't work. Hopefully you can do a video which troubleshoots ClamAV. Thanks.

[@logicalfundy]

I searched for Linux threats, and found a very short list, and everything listed was noted as either harmless or the bugs that it exploited were long patched. The Wikipedia page does list some AVs that can be used with Linux if you want. The truth is that the need for AV in Linux is practically nonexistent. Even with Windows, Microsoft elected to build in its own AV, and I suspect the technology to remove threats will be further integrated into the OS in the future, lessening the need for third party AV. I think the general concept of AV is dying as OSes are increasingly serious about dealing with threats at the OS level rather than ignoring it and letting users and third parties deal with it.

[@dragonwood4562]

I've been using Linux exclusively since Microsoft released Windows 11. That OS, and the fact they made the Office Suite online only drove me away from Microsoft completely. And I started on computers with Windows 95 and have used every version since. I am in the Intermediate to Advanced user realm for Windows and Office as well. But I refuse to use them anymore. I tried installing Ubuntu on my laptop, however, it doesn't work on my system. Something to do with the processor and UEFI. I tried turning that off in the BIOS, but that didn't work. So I tried Kubuntu, which worked great. I used it for over a year and then my hard drive literally died. I got an SSD drive, but it was only 140 GB in size, so I looked around for smaller distros and ended up with MX Linux. I've been using that for a year (mostly). I try other distros every once in a while. Recently, I started using a VM to test the distros and to my surprise, Ubuntu can install in a VM. However, earlier today when I tried to install it directly, it still didn't work. All-in-all though, I love Linux and do not see myself every going to anything else.

[@AnthonyManzio]

How much does ChromeOS cost? What is Chrome OS and who is it for? - Android Authority Chrome OS is an operating system developed and owned by Google. It's based on Linux and is open-source, which means it's free to use.Jan 21, 2024

[@johanb.7869]

Another way to try a distro is on distrosea. But you have to log in or no internet.

[@bm1066]

Fedora users are encouraged to use DNF now, not RPM from what I understand.

[@Adeel00000]

Elementary OS i don't know what happen to them, i tried them several years ago everything was ok now i install it i have a VERY BRIGHT GREEN-YELLOWISH hue on my display which i can barely see anything on the desktop.

[@maxdslr]

Gotta change the color profile

[@PEDERSTEENBERG-or2ww]

is it better then windows ?

[@GaryExplains]

Define "better".

[@bryophyta9500]

I really hate it when people's main focus when recommending distros is it's "look and feel." I feel like the desktop environment really doesn't have much do to with the distro, and generally you can use any de on any distro. Also, please learn how to pronounce gentoo.