i recently left Windows 7 (again) for Linux, and this time Ubuntu 12.04 Precise pangolin. However, I'm getting more and more tired of Ubuntu and am looking to try something else out.

What can you recommend? Preferably not Arch as it's too barebone for me and I only got a headache running it through Virtualbox.

I have various partitions, so luckily my /home isn't touched. Only root is affected, right?

Laptop specs:

2.3 Ghz AMD Athlon II P360 CPU
1GB AMD Radeon HD 6650M
4GB RAM

I want a distro that has some pre-configurations done, but not all. Not as much as Ubuntu, but still not as low as Arch. I like debian package management over .rpm and I like aptitude.

From the advise of other members here and my own research I found that Debian is a rock solid distro.

The Linux Mint 12 KDE is nice also; I downloaded the ISO file and burned it to DVD. I liked it but everyone has their own preferences. Fedora is cutting edge and you get to try new software.
http://linuxmint.com/
http://fedoraproject.org/

The good new is that you can try all of the distributions if you like but it could get costly in dvd's or usb memory sticks.

The other things that you could think about that might help you to decide on which distro is what is it that you really want and is the use of your new distro going to be for home use or business.

Best of luck to you

This is only my opinion, so take it for what it's worth, eh?

You might want to try Slackware; complete, rock-solid, dependable, un-fooled-around-with (no branding, utilities and system programs are as close as possible to what developers intended).

Easy to install -- not a GUI installer, an ncurses interface. Install everything and you're got everything (save a couple of extras found, strangely enough, in the extra directory on the distribution media -- either CD-ROM or DVD). 32-bit or 64-bit, your choice, just flip the DVD over.

Oh, yeah, your /home directory? During installation, when you specify partitions, just add the /home partition but don't format it; couldn't be simpler.

Mostly "just works" on first boot -- you set up your network during installation, you set the root password during installation, you specify what you want started at boot time; e.g., mail, Apache, MySQL, etc. The system is up to you.

Want or need more? SlackBuilds.org has hundreds of utilities, libraries and other good stuff all ready for you to install -- want OpenOffice, got it, want LibreOffice, got that (nope, they're not included in the base system install, you have control).

Downside? Well, Adobe doesn't make Reader in a 64-bit version... but, there's Okular and other PDF readers installed by default. Want to mix 32-bit in on a 64-bit platform? There is a MultiLib package available so you can run 32-bit software (and there goes the Adobe Reader problem).

Don't like KDE? Pick one of the other window managers, such as Xfce (among others). Really, really can't live without GNOME? It's available.

Give it a shot.

Hope this helps some.

i do not have any DVD's, nor do I have that many CD's left to burn Slack on those. If there's no viable way to have a liveCD format of Slack, I'll drop it.

Err.. wait. I do have this 8gb sd-card from an old phone. My new phone (Galaxy Nexus) has no sd card slot. I put the sd card in some sd card usb stick to use it as a usb drive. I guess if there' some way to put a bootable slack on that, it'd be fine.

---------- Post added 07-03-12 at 01:26 PM ----------

Gonna rethink regarding Arch though. Burned it to a CD to try it out. I know it's as barebone as a Linux OS could get, but maybe I'd learn something that way.

Hi,

More than one way to skin a cat: mini ISO image is CDROM to boot, and install packages from an NFS server or local hard disk.

Also look at: usb-and-pxe-installers/ (Slackware64) but the same technique for a Slackware x86_32.

For current;The above links and others can be found at 'Slackware-Links'. More than just Slackware® links!

Have a look at Salix. You get the contents of the Slackware repository, plus extra programs, a sensible installer, and decent package management software. There are installation disks for Xfce, KDE, Mate, Fluxbox, and (for a really weird experience) Ratpoison.

The live CD iso can be transferred to a USB stick and contains software for both Windows and Linux to make that bootable:
http://www.salixos.org/wiki/index.ph..._on_an_USB_key

I think I'm gonna stay with Ubuntu for a while. It's livable and I hardly have to set shit up by myself. I'm officially never gonna run arch again in any way whatsoever. I sat for approx. 5 hours to get the damn internet working. Reinstalled Ubuntu and now I'm happy with things as they are.

I fear Windows had its grip on me for so long that I got used with shit working without needing (to some extent) self-configuring. I might try other distros some other time, but not arch and not right now. My work is keeping me from spending too much time Linux-ing.

For your future experiments with other distributions I would recommend to just keep Ubuntu installed and use Virtualbox to try other distributions.

Really, you came to Linux from Windows only a short time ago, decided to try Arch (generally considered to be one of the advanced distros) and call it up hill and down dale?

When you are more experienced with Linux, you may revisit that choice. Ubuntu is fine for beginners, but the day will come when you are hankering to try something like Gentoo, Arch or even LFS simply for the level fo control and personalisation you get.

I like

http://antix.mepis.org/index.php?title=Main_Page

I will be moving my Ubuntu 10.04LTS Desktop over to that when end of life kicks in next year.
I already run it on my Netbooks and Laptops. It is very customizable and based on Debian Testing. Nice forum also with Mepis forum help thrown in.

Another one you might like maybe

http://distrowatch.com/table.php?distribution=solusos

since you are used to Ubuntu.

Another one I like is

http://distrowatch.com/table.php?distribution=semplice

Kinda like Crunchbang but based on Debian Unstable.(which stock updated Ubuntu, not LTS versions are based on also,kinda sorta.

My experiences with Slackware are good -- it's easy to install and I was pleasently surprised by how easy it was to update too.
Try a few distros though,a d try them properly, it is worth it. Oh, and seperate a home partition is always a good idea -- it means no fear of losing anything.

I understand your secure feeling with Ubuntu as I have for the past 2 years. However; I am glad that I have reached out to Linux Mint 12; slowing learning it and like it. IMO most people that like Ubuntu should like Mint. But we all have our preferences.

I've also been reading the documentation and visiting the main website for Debian, It's good to learn other distros but don't do it on my words...do it when your ready. Best Regards

Sorry guys. Went back to Windows 7 again. I'm not ready to go full-out Linux. Thoght I was, but I'm not. I will however try out some other distros in virtualbox other than these mainstream ones (fedora, ubuntu, mint) and so on)

Then I'll set up a dual-boot.

read up about unetbootin mate. I've used it in the past and it worked nicely.

Question. What makes Debian Squeeze so great compared to other distros?