Geeky Fun: Testing Out Arch Linux
Well, I spent about an hour and a half installing and configuring Arch Linux today only to be faced with a ‘read-only’ file system error. My tolerance is about…oh…1 hour from boot to actually working when installing a new distro, so Arch Linux goes into the waste basket like 90% of all GNU/Linux distros I’ve tried.
You know, I was thinking about this the other day. Exactly 2 GNU/Linux distros have worked me well enough that I could use them on a day-to-day basis. I’ve tried about 20. That’s just not a good percentage. I’m not bitching, I have a lot of fun learning and playing with new distros. I just don’t want anyone else that’s experiencing the same numbers as me to feel left out.
To be fair, Arch Linux is very clear that this distro isn’t for newbies or impatient people like me, so I’m not coming down on them. I thought I’d give it a whirl since there’s been some talk about it lately on the net.
But heck, since my system is clean right now I may as well try out some other distros. I suspect that at the end of the day I’ll be back to Kanotix though 
Hi Jon,
I have been trying to ween myself off windows and have been trying quite a few distros. I have a similar philosophy to you – if it is not working in an hour or two then on to the next one. I thought you might be interested in my view so far.
I seem more comfortable with debian based instead of rpm based (this isn’t empirical just gut feel).
SimplyMEPIS – (I used 3.3.1-1) was pretty good and clean and being a Pink Floyd fan I thought their logo was cool
FedoraCore 3 – just a gut feel that I wasn’t gettign the best out of it. Not sure if this was Fedora or KDE fault.
Libranet 2.8.1 – this was good, even when using IceWM. Only trouble is that to get the latest 3.0 you have to pay
But the one I am currently working with and am most comfortable with is VectorLinux SOHO 5.0.1. It goes against my Debian favouritism, but is not rpm, but instead Slackware based. Guess what? It is clean, useable, tweaked to work out of the box. Oh and nice and fast. I even was comfortable enough with it to update the kernal from 2.4.29 to 2.6.13. In fact I am so comfortable with it that when SOHO 5.1 comes out in a couple of weeks I am going to be ditching Windows
)
If you have older hardware or want faster response then there are a couple of other VectorLinux variants to choose from.
Keep up the great shows
Some people call me impatient or crticize me because they think that my 1 hour time frame means that I’m unwilling to tinker with a distro to give it a chance. That’s somewhat true, but not entirely. One of the reasons that I started using GNU/Linux was for the geek factor which includes the ability to get into the guts of the thing and tinker with it. However, there is a certain level of functionality that I require in order to *use* the computer on a day-to-day basis. If a distro can’t give me that basic level of functionality (keyboard, mouse, video, networking and sound) within the first hour, then it’s got to go because I can’t *use* it while I’m tinkering with the other stuff.
However, a growing number of users such as yourself are starting to back me on my philosophy. It appears that I’m not alone in wanting my computer to work for me, instead of me working on it to achieve some basic funtionality. It’s gratifying to see
Thanks for the tip on Vector Linux. I’ve always had a hankering to try out Slackware, but I just can’t bring myself to use a 2.4 kernel. I have enough problems with the hardware in my laptop with the 2.6 kernel. I will give Vector a go, though
Thanks for the kind words about the show. Glad you enjoy it!
I forgot to say that the VectorLinux SOHO 5.1 that is RC1 at present should be going gold in a couple of weeks is currently based on kernel 2.6.13 with OpenOffice 2.0 and KDE 3.4.2, etc.
Jon, I think I have a similar outlook to you – but I my patience stretches a bit further than one hour! My opinion is that if you can’t get a distro up and running the way you want it over a weekend, then that particular distro is probably not the best choice for you or your PC’s hardware. Is your hardware particually exotic?? That may explain the high percentage of GNU\Linux in your rejects pile.
Hi Ben,
I guess I’m being a little tongue-in-cheek. I probably spend 2-3 hours on a distro before writing it off. I don’t have a weekend, though. I need my laptop up and running and with all the work I do online, I really can’t afford to go without it for an entire weekend. I have Kanotix on my desktop, but I have to share the desktop so I can’t really count on access to it all the time.
I wouldn’t have thought that my hardware was particulary exotic, it’s just a run-of-the-mill Dell Inspiron 1000, but there’s doubt that a VAST percentage of the distros won’t even make it to through the install without crapping out (and not gracefully, either) and the majority of those that do make it through the install fail one of my basic requirements (keyboard, mouse, video, sound, networking).
The ones that do, though…wow….they rock. I’ll never go back to Windows
You say only two distros have worked as fast as you liked – one of them is apparently Kanotix, what’s the other?
So far I’ve tried Mepis (great install, can’t get 3d working), Yoper (great install, fast, 3d works… but feels “old” and unsupported, despite having responsive forums) and vanilla debian via network install.
I’m with you. If it’s not working for me by the time I have to go to bed, its coming back off the next day!
Hi Kyle,
The other distro that worked well for me on my laptop was Fedora Core II and III. I ran FC for 8 months or so, but left it when FC 4 broke my sound. I decided it was time for a Debian distro anyhow, and went rooting around.
Since then I’ve found that *generally* Debian distros seems to boot faster and respond quicker during use than RPM-based distros. I’m sure that’s a gross generalization on my part, and since I’ve really only run one Deb and one RPM distro for any length of time it’s hard to support, but that’s the feel I get from Live-CDs and forays into new distros.
I’m actually running my second Debian-based distro right now which I’ll write about shortly. I think I’m going to get my ass kicked though….
All this trouble getting distros to install gives me an appreciation for the work and effort that goes into an operating system. It is a difficult job to make your software, and everybody elses software, work with every computer, but it has to be done if its going to practical. That’s why I am less critical of windows than most linux users. At the end of the day, windows works pretty well on just about everybodies computer. Never mind that it has some gapping security issues.
Good point, Jeff.
I like to take pot shots at Windows just as much as anyone else, but I agree that MS has done a lot for the home computer industry.
Nonsense – with their resources it’s shameful they don’t do better. The reason hardware is supported so well is that manufacturers of the hardware write drivers for windows which have to be vetted by microsoft to be official. Nice work if you can get it, but they definitely have what might be termed a major unfair advantage.
Stephen
Who? Microsoft?
I didn’t say they did a good job, I said they had done a lot for the home computer industry.