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Hey all, im getting a brand-new laptop in the next month or so to take along to college with me. I know im going to be dual booting between linux ...
  1. 06-20-2003 #1
    Hazmat
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    debian vs. slackware



    Hey all, im getting a brand-new laptop in the next month or so to take along to college with me. I know im going to be dual booting between linux and windows, but my question is this: which linux distro to use? I'm trying to decide between debian and slackware. any pros/cons for either?
    What i really want is a stable, highly configurable platform, but one that doesnt hold my hand too much (cough cough mandrake cough) so i can learn about how the computer works and how the linux kernel works.

    Thanks!

    -Jordan
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  2. 06-21-2003 #2
    pcroft
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    Slackware 9.........then download dropline Gnome.
    You'll have the most beautiful desktop out there IMHO & more configurability than you can shake a stick at

    ENJOY!
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  3. 06-21-2003 #3
    bpark
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    You want stability, then the answer is Debian. There's no doubt about that. Debian offers three branches: stable, testing, and unstable. The only thing that you may not like is that the software in stable is old. If you want the latest packages, then unstable it is. You can also have a mixed system if you like. I run stable and frankly, it's the best.
    I haven't tried out slackware but the other distro that I might consider is gentoo. I've been hearing good things about it.
    The best things in life are free.
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  4. 06-22-2003 #4
    Dolda2000
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    Gentoo probably isn't for those who are new to Linux becuase of its installation process. But if you do know your way around at least a bit, I really, really recommend it. Sure, the installation process might take a day or so, but it is so worth it.
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  5. 06-22-2003 #5
    bpark
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    I don't mean to sound negative towards RedHat but installing Debian taught me a lot about how a computer works. That's maybe because the installation process is a lot more manual than RedHat.
    The best things in life are free.
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