Alright, peeps, I want to build Linux on my new PC and need some help with that. On my old PC, I had kubuntu installed, which I liked (at least until downloading Skype fried most of my installers and rebuffed all attempts at deinstallation). When installing kubuntu, I had a lot of help (and by a lot, I mean my friend did like 90% of the work) but as I don’t see them quite as often and I would like to be a little more self-sufficient this time around, I implore thee, Linux users of Hexbear. So here are some general questions:
- Which distribution is right for me?
I have some experience with MINT and kubuntu. I really liked the KDE environment of kubuntu and generally preferred it to MINT. My friend uses archlinux, but they also warned me that arch requires a bit of expertise and isn’t necessarily user firendly. It looked really cool, though. I am willing to learn, but I generally suck with computers. I will mostly use my PC for basic programming tasks and data analysis (mostly python using jupyter, but I would like to learn some basics in C++), similar work related tasks (using TeX-Studio, the pdf editing functions of programs like okular, Libre office on rare occasions etc.) and the occasional Minecraft session.
- Where can I find useful resources for learning about a given distribution?
Keep in mind that I suck absolute shit at computers. I know how to access/use the basic functions of the terminal and how to superficially navigate the PC, but anything beyond that is magic to me.
- Y’all got any good wallpapers?
A FALGSC themed wallpaper that doesn’t burn your eyes out due to being perdominantly red would be cool.
-
Pop!_OS and Zorin OS are both really nice beginner friendly distros (besides the ones already mentioned).
I often point people at Pop! OS if they want tiling or dislike immutable file systems.
-
-
I generally aim newbies at Mint, but ubuntu derived distros are pretty easy and stuff often ‘just works’. That’s why my daily driver is xubuntu.
-
All over the place, really. Another advantage of ubuntu derived distros is you’ll find a lot of the tutorials and stuff will assume you’re using ubuntu. I just hit a search engine if I need help with something.
-
Can’t help you there I’m afraid.
-
With all you’re describing, you can’t suck at using computers.
Someone knowing how to use terminal is already a god to me😅
- 1
If you’re looking for something that won’t break, Debian and openSUSE Tumbleweed are two good options. Both offer the Plasma desktop, though openSUSE may have an easier installation interface for some. Note that some video codecs aren’t (officially) available, so if playing “differently acquired” media is a concern, perhaps Debian would be easier.
If you wanna try arch, consider EndeavourOS. It simplifies the installation process significantly, though it doesn’t do much to help maintain the system. That’s on you. Avoid Manjaro like a plague.
- 2
The Arch Wiki is universally considered the best source. 99% of what you’ll see on there will work on any linux distro, so don’t worry about the name. Aside from that, your favourite search engine is your best bet.
- 3
No clue what FALGCS means, but https://wallhaven.cc a great place for wallpapers.
Edit: seems the Manjarno site is down. Shame, genuinely useful site for times like this.
An alternative to Kubuntu is TuxedoOS (similar to PopOS (Gnome) but for KDE). You can also try KDE Neon.
You can use VM to install and try new distro, worst case you make a new VM and start again.
For learning, if it was me I would just roll with Arch, using distro like Garuda that has BTRFS rollback or even EndeavourOS. A fuck up can be saved from BTRFS rollback, back up dual boost or 2nd pc.
Since you’re interested in KDE, why not try Fedora Kinoite?
It’s an immutable distribution in much the same was as Steam OS 3. For individual pieces of software, you just install Flatpak versions. It’s deeply convenient if you don’t want to perform maintenance on your PC and want it to “just work”.
If that’s not noob friendly, what is?
If you want immutability, Vanilla is the only good option right now. Services can be a nightmare on Fedora’s immutable systems, and some applications (qbittorrent, in my experience, though I haven’t seen anyone else have issues with it specifically) sometimes just outright decide to off themselves. I wouldn’t say it’s a bad distro, but recommending it to someone who states they don’t know much about computers could cause them trouble in the long run.
I am keeping a close eye on Vanilla myself, but I wouldn’t say it’s ready yet. Mostly because you need a Github account and install an alpha build to get built in disk encryption.
I love Kinoite. I have done my time fixing broken Linux systems. I love how it “just works.”
Install popos play with arch in a vm
For the second question, the Arch Wiki has loads of helpful information. It doesn’t just talk about Arch stuff though, it goes over a bunch of programs and configurations.
If looking to put in the work while also leveling up in programming since you have some basic experience already, NixOS/Guix should be on your shortlist.
Both have programmatic, declarative configuration instead of a mangle of configuration files that tend to break with entropy as software developers update config files & it’s very easy to miss a broken build until you restart (I remember when PAM had an update & a lot of folks, including myself, panicked as they could no longer log into their machines). Since these config files are tied to versions of software, such issues are much rarer, & with stateless config you get rollbacks to previous working versions for free. Both ship with a powerful package manager that can replace bad programming language package management & tools with overhead like Docker.
The biggest downside is having to learn Nix (language) or Guile Scheme to be able to script your config, but once you get the hang of it, it’s hard to feel confident in any stateful system & you learned valuable skills for package management.
Which distribution is right for me?
Step 1: Take a look at the most popular desktop environments: Cinnamon, GNOME, KDE Plasma and Xfce. If possible, consider even booting up a so-called live-usb and/or VM for some proper testing.
Step 2: Pick either one out of Fedora, Linux Mint, openSUSE and Pop!_OS as long as they provide a Flavor/Spin of your favorite desktop environment (which you should have found out by now (See Step 1)). While not exhaustive, the following might help you out:
- If you have an Nvidia GPU, then just use Pop!_OS. Unless you really, but like really hate its GNOME implementation.
- Linux Mint and Pop!_OS are arguably the most newbie-friendly out of these. This doesn’t mean that Fedora or openSUSE are hard by any means. (Heck, I started my Linux journey with Fedora.) However, both Fedora and openSUSE are known for their great adherence to FOSS. Therefore, some decisions related to initial setup might not have been taken with a focus on making it as user friendly as possible.
- If security is your highest priority, then consider either one of Fedora or openSUSE with GNOME/KDE Plasma. It’s not like the others are security nightmares, however Fedora and openSUSE are known to take security more seriously than the others do.
- Both Linux Mint and Pop!_OS are distros that are based on LTS distros. As such, the base system will not change a lot until you upgrade to the next big release; which happens once every two years. Fedora, is able to change more considerably between its major releases; which happen once every half year. On the other hand, openSUSE Tumbleweed doesn’t really hold back updates at all; there’s an (almost) constant stream of updates. Though openSUSE also offers distros with a ‘more stable[1]’ release cycle; the likes of Slowroll and Leap come to mind.
Where can I find useful resources for learning about a given distribution?
Consider asking it here. We’ll do our best to answer. Furthermore, DistroWatch.com is a great resource.
- Stable, in this context, refers to slow to no rate of change while running software. So, in this context it isn’t used to convey breakage etc.
do you have a spare computer? maybe try installing Linux using some YouTube guides if you have one, it’ll help you gain confidence
