Switching from Ubuntu to ?

[ColourblindKid]

Ok so I just updated to Ubuntu 11.10, pretty much straight from 10.10, and I don't like what I see. Running linux for me is now SLOWER than running windows! On top of that, though it is handy having window options in the top bar, unity for me just seems too mac-ish and gnome shell is even worse. After that I did a bit of research and decided I wasn't comfortable with Ubuntu's philosophy, and am thinking of switching to a more orthodox, faster and lighter distribution.

I admit, I am a novice in a way and know very little about what happens under the bonnet, but don't take that to mean I need some fancy GUI for everything, I am quite capable of an apt-get from time to time if needs be.

So far I've been looking towards Debian, because of the philosophy and simplicity, and Mint (in particular the Debian edition) because I'm not sure whether I'm cut out for full-blown Debian. But I'm open to any suggestions.

As for the desktop environment I want to steer away from gnome shell, I was thinking gnome 2 or xfce.

Any comments would be more than welcome!

[mitofik]

You can always install xfce or gnome2 on your current ubuntu right? or are they not in repos? Or kde? i dont even know how it looks nowadays :P
Mint is good choice and they started something called cinnamon which is gnome shell fork that aims to look like gnome 2 and have as many configurable options

Btw after using gnome shell for longer then a year i must say i'm used to it by now. Using few extensions (not official ofc) made it work pretty well.

[oz]

Ok so I just updated to Ubuntu 11.10, pretty much straight from 10.10, and I don't like what I see.

Hello and welcome!

I'm personally not a fan of upgrading from one version of a distribution to another because of various issues that can sometimes develop, but instead I always choose to do a fresh install. If you really like Ubuntu, you might try that before you give up on it. Otherwise, moving to Debian may be a wise move for you, and I feel quite sure you can handle it if you'll invest a little time and effort.

Having said that, it's been many years since I've run Debian or Ubuntu, but I did prefer Debian on a personal level.

[ColourblindKid]

You can always install xfce or gnome2 on your current ubuntu right?

Yes, but part of my problem is with slower boot times which I don't think that can help

Mint is good choice and they started something called cinnamon which is gnome shell fork that aims to look like gnome 2 and have as many configurable options

I'm really looking for something more lightweight though, which is why I'm considering xfce

I'm personally not a fan of upgrading from one version of a distribution to another because of various issues that can sometimes develop, but instead I always choose to do a fresh install.

I really can't face the installation process every few months, I'm much more drawn to Debian's rolling release style at the moment, I don't want too much hassle


Thanks for the quick responses, does anyone have any suggestions about desktop environments, what are xfce's advantages and disadvantages compared to gnome 2?

[MASONTX]

Another alternative desktop is LXDE, or if you don't want to try and install a desktop, Lubuntu. I like LXDE a little better than XFCE.

[oz]

I really can't face the installation process every few months, I'm much more drawn to Debian's rolling release style at the moment, I don't want too much hassle

You can take a look at Arch to see if it will work for you, as it is a true rolling release. However, any time you upgrade software there is that chance that something is going to break. With rolling releases, you'll generally have new packages to be updated on a daily basis. I've been running Arch for about 8 years now and get along fine with the daily updates.