this post was submitted on 11 Jul 2026
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Linux

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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).

Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.

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Distro recommendations and the right questions to ask (lemmy.ml)
submitted 4 days ago by GaumBeist@lemmy.ml to c/linux@lemmy.ml
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A lot of distro recommendation threads focus on the questions that novices think are important, but leave out the questions people would have after experiencing the differences (things that distro-hoppers might ask). As such, answers vary between "use _____, I found it very user friendly" and "use whatever, you can turn any distro into any other, and tweak it to your needs."

What are some questions that newbies should ask when deciding on which distro to use as the basis for their system. Things like "what package manager suits my needs and how do I try out different ones without changing distros?" Or "what is a desktop environment/window manager, and how do I figure out which suits me?" Or "how does an init system affect my user experience as a newbie?" Or "how what are the choices made by such-and-such distro during install?"

Bonus points for also answering the questions you propose (I don't have answers, picked a distro and stuck with it)

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[–] BananaTrifleViolin@piefed.world 2 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

I'd say distro choice for newbies should probably come down to the following questions:

  • What are you using Linux for / what device will it go on? A desktop distro is very different from distros for servers, or single board devices like Raspberry Pi. Also even for a desktop, a modern PC versus an older device changes things up too.

  • Which desktop do you like the look of the most? If you like the look of KDE, go for something KDE based like OpenSuSE or Kubuntu or Fedora KDE spin. If it's Gnome then Fedora, or Ubuntu or OpenSuSE Gnome. If you want something windows like and straight forward, then Linux for Cinnamon. If you want something newer then Pop_Os! for Cosmic

  • What kind of release schedule? Do you want something stable and robust; big well tested upgrades every few years but otherwise just something very reliable - then go for Debian. Want something cutting edge with all the latest packages then go for a rolling release distro like OpenSuSe or Fedora or Arch based distros.

  • How popular do you want it to be for support? If you want to have lots of simple advice and tutorials then maybe go for something thats been widely popular like Mint or popular and around for a long time like Debian. If you want a technical challenge but with good documentation then go for Arch. Otherwise most mainstream distros will have support or you can learn to turn generic advice to your chosen distro.

  • Does the distro's ethos or location matter to you? If not then go by other factors. Location generally doesn't matter too much, but if it does to you (e.g. such as the legal system the orgs are under governance with), then maybe for European distros like Mint, or OpenSuSe. If you don't mind American based then maybe Fedora. etc. Similarly ethos - free software only vs proprietary software.