Almost 2 years with Ubuntu 12.04. Ready to try something else.

[Arcadio]

My Ubuntu 12.04 is giving me some serious-looking errors. Instead of trying to fix it, I think I want to try a different version/flavor of Linux. What do you recommend? I don't consider myself a newbie, but I also don't want to spend a long time trying to setup or troubleshoot a Linux installation

 

[Jodell88]

Arch Linux. It's a bit more involved at installation, but in theory you only have to do it once.

 

[sze5003]

Try linux mint 16. It's pretty decent. If you are running and amd card make sure to use the latest beta drivers and build deb packages for Ubuntu/raring. This doesn't work using their official latest amd stable drivers.

 

[lxskllr]

Debian testing. It's like a generic Ubuntu so all your knowledge will easily transfer, and it's relatively up to date and stable.

 

[jae]

Experiencing something rolling would be plus. Would you prefer something based on Debian?

I would say Fedora (it has good guides online, and some utilities to get all the codecs and proprietary software setup), Antegros (based on Arch but everything is configured), Mageia Cauldron (the package manager would take a little to get used to).

 

[Jodell88]

I've always been curious how Arch based distros handle the distro breaking changes that Arch does.

 

[jae]

Manjaro tests packages first I believe... besides I've never had Arch break on me. I think rolling distro breakage is less common then people make it seem to be.

 

[Arcadio]

Experiencing something rolling would be plus. Would you prefer something based on Debian?

I've never tried anything else other than Redhat (I know, I know...) and Ubuntu. I might give Debian a try.

 

[Jodell88]

Manjaro tests packages first I believe... besides I've never had Arch break on me. I think rolling distro breakage is less common then people make it seem to be.

I use Arch and haven't had it break on me either.

 

[Bootleg Betty]

Arch linux!

 

[FrankRamiro]

None of those distros mentioned are better than Ubuntu believe me,
just use the LTS and you have no problems,the problems start when folks want to try the testing editions, stick to LTS and you will have the best distro of them all.

 

[Crusty]

None of those distros mentioned are better than Ubuntu believe me,
just use the LTS and you have no problems,the problems start when folks want to try the testing editions, stick to LTS and you will have the best distro of them all.

Except that he's now using 2yr old software, that's what you get with the LTS.

I would suggest Debian Testing as well. It is what I use personally, and have been for many years.

 

[theevilsharpie]

Except that he's now using 2yr old software, that's what you get with the LTS.

There are enough packager-maintained PPAs available that I'm able to use many modern software packages on 12.04, if I so choose. I do this to stay up to date with the latest stable versions of Chrome and LibreOffice, while leaving my base OS alone.

So far, I haven't felt like I'm missing anything.

 

[lakedude]

Unlike some who try a distro and get locked in, I like to try a bunch and pick a favorite. Since they are free you could do the same...

I've done this several times over the years and a couple of my favorites are Puppy and its cousin Fat Dog 64.

Both are tiny yet relatively full featured. Their advantage is in their small size. They are small enough to fit completely into RAM! Being completely in RAM makes them FAST! It is like having a poor man's SSD!

Check em out! Fat Dog 621 is stable, 630 is bleeding edge.

http://distro.ibiblio.org/fatdog/web/

http://distro.ibiblio.org/fatdog/iso/

 

[FrankRamiro]

Except that he's now using 2yr old software, that's what you get with the LTS.

I would suggest Debian Testing as well. It is what I use personally, and have been for many years.

That maybe! but it does the job! and doesn't brake,he can get ubuntu 14.04LTS if he has the Hard ware for it.

 

[Chaotic42]

Debian testing. It's like a generic Ubuntu so all your knowledge will easily transfer, and it's relatively up to date and stable.

Agreed. I've yet to find a compelling reason to switch from Debian.

 

[jae]

There are enough packager-maintained PPAs available that I'm able to use many modern software packages on 12.04, if I so choose. I do this to stay up to date with the latest stable versions of Chrome and LibreOffice, while leaving my base OS alone.

So far, I haven't felt like I'm missing anything.

Something will break. Big software like Chrome and Libreoffice keep a PPA updated sure, but what about the smaller projects?

Been there, done that. Actually asked this in Ubuntu's IRC channel and they laughed at me. Well.. I see more and more people/distros switching from Ubuntu to something else, usually rolling. Why? Because Linux/OSS is ever evolving and you can't experience it on a 2 year old platform. LTS is good for businesses and a non-tech-just-surf-and-email person, but if you're actually into the system and stuff then it sucks.

 

[RossMAN]

Unlike some who try a distro and get locked in, I like to try a bunch and pick a favorite. Since they are free you could do the same...

I've done this several times over the years and a couple of my favorites are Puppy and its cousin Fat Dog 64.

Both are tiny yet relatively full featured. Their advantage is in their small size. They are small enough to fit completely into RAM! Being completely in RAM makes them FAST! It is like having a poor man's SSD!

Check em out! Fat Dog 621 is stable, 630 is bleeding edge.

http://distro.ibiblio.org/fatdog/web/

http://distro.ibiblio.org/fatdog/iso/

Sorry for the n00b questions.

I'd like to install this on a Dell XPS 1647 laptop, will Wifi and flash work out of the box or will it require a lot of tinkering/troubleshooting?

 

[lxskllr]

Sorry for the n00b questions.

I'd like to install this on a Dell XPS 1647 laptop, will Wifi and flash work out of the box or will it require a lot of tinkering/troubleshooting?

Your best bet is to boot to a live session, and see if everything works. Puppy wouldn't necessarily be my first choice for someone new. It's a fine distro, but some corners get cut to keep the size down. It might not have the polish, or ease you're looking for. Download it, and give it a try live. I'll suggest Xubuntu also.

 

[lakedude]

RossMAN I agree with lxskllr regarding the "install", don't bother as an install isn't necessary to check out the OS. Download the ISO, burn the ISO as a bootable disk with an ISO burner (not as a data file), boot from the optical disk and see how you like it.

WiFi hardware is a bit hit and miss. It might just work really nice or it might take some fussing. NDISWRAPPER will allow Windows drivers to work with Linux so WiFi can almost always be made to work but some hardware is going to take more work than others.

By "flash" do you mean Adobe Flash? I'm pretty sure Fat Dog includes AF, puppy might as well.

 

[RossMAN]

Thank you both, maybe I'll stick with Mint for now.

 

[TSDible]

Ross, Mint is a great distro. It is my daily driver.

What chipset is your wireless?

Broadcom chips are tough... back in the day, I replaced a broadcom wireless card with a realtek one. Made a world of difference and was cheap.

Now I always try and get something with an Intel wireless card.

They are cheap and easy to replace though.

 

[lakedude]

Thank you both, maybe I'll stick with Mint for now.

It will not hurt you to try. There is no commitment needed, no install required. Just burn the disk and try it. There is a good chance Fat Dog will work just fine with no fussing required.

I liked the features of Mint but it was one of the slowest distros out of dozens I tried...

 

[Arcadio]

One thing I forgot to mention is that I use Eclipse frequently, so I need it to work without issues.

 

[lxskllr]

One thing I forgot to mention is that I use Eclipse frequently, so I need it to work without issues.

That shouldn't be an issue with any distro. AFAIK it has feature parity across platforms, and GNU/Linux is fully supported.