I'm interested in installing Arch Linux, but I also don't want to try it if it's going to take days to install (like gentoo). Anyone knows what gnome version Arch Linux is currently using ?

Those are really two separate questions but I happen to know the answer to both.

Q: How hard is it to install Arch?
A: It is exactly as described here: https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Beginners%27_Guide
In my experience it can be done in an afternoon (less for experienced users).

Q: What version of Gnome does Arch use?
A: Generally speaking, the latest stable version within a few days of its release. What you should do is go to http://www.archlinux.org/ and type the name of the package of interest into the Package Search box at the top right of the screen.

Good luck with Arch (or whatever distro you choose)!

Easier than gentoo.

Think of it like Linux boot camp. If its too hard to install, you may want to look for another distro.

Its very easy to install. Just remember that it is a very minimal installation.

It's easy to install and won't take that long
https://wiki.archlinux.org/index.php/Beginners%27_Guide

But if you just want to try it out, then try to download VMware image and run it on VMware player (version 5 is out): http://virtual-machine.org/vmware-im...10-05-download
Username: root Password: tom

You can install Arch in 15 minutes on a good day, but installing Arch and installing a full desktop system are two different things. The base install will give you just that, a base to build on. You can spend 2 -3 more hours building to a functional day to day desktop system, but there are pre-requisites for Arch.

Unlike mainstream distros, you don't get much handholding. You'll have to configure a lot of stuff yourself that would be pre-configured on distros like Ubuntu, Mint etc. Depending on your experience, this can take minutes or days.

Having said that, the Arch wiki is excellent, and apart from a couple of recent glitches, once installed it's rather easy to maintain and an excellent resource to learn from.

Heh! Much easier (and faster) than Gentoo. The "too" is a labor of love, I hear.

Securitybreach's excellent Arch Linux Installation Tutorial

Enjoy!

the basic install of Arch is easy
HOWEVER ( the "but" )
it is a minimal install

and as such YOU have to manually install and configure everything

so read , then REREAD the documentation and take notes
think of it as studying for a final exam

Deleted

I apologize for this statement, not trying to butt heads
The above link is outdated so it doesn't apply to todays installer.
They removed arch setup in the 2012 release. Although it may work for 2011 release.
I recently installed the 2012 release in VB & it worked, don't know how I got it to work, nutupon trying to do it again hasn't worked.
Maybe it's just more difficult in VB.

No head butting. I'll just have to nag ol' Securitybreach to update that tutorial.

Thanks for the headsup, actually.

Yes I know, I have just not got around to it yet.

Fast repl on both of your parts
Any way VB is not playing fair

Nagging often works.

Going to start my own thread to finish my new installation.
Will post link here hopefully I can get resolved.