[sf-lug] The distro waltz (was: Major laptop issue with linux)

[Rick Moen]

I wrote:

> One takeaway lesson, which some people (present company very much
> excepted ;-> ) take a long time learning, is that distro installation
> defaults are not engraved in stone, Linux is not a locked-down
> appliance, and your configuration is up to _you_.

In which sense, once you bother to become familiar with Linuxes
generically, practically any of them (within limits) can be wrestled
into meeting your needs, and the main thing to do is take one and learn
what it's like to really live with and understand it.  If dissatisfied,
try another.  Rinse, repeat.

Which _can_ be taken to extremes.  Here's a hilarious comment recently
posted to Distrowatch:


105 - Re: all the distros I ever ran and whether I liked it or not.
(by Unny likes corn on 2007-10-23 00:37:55 GMT from Canada)
1. First I ran Mandrake 10 or something but didn't like it. I had
Windows XP too and I didn't like it.
2. Then I ran SUSE 9.1 Pro and liked it. (I think I ran it but I can't
remember for sure, but if I did I'm sure I would have liked it)
3. Then I ran SUSE 9.2 and liked it.
4. Then I ran SUSE 9.3 and liked it.
5. Then I ran Debian 3.0 and didn't like it. Later I would realize I
should have liked it.
6. Then I ran Fedora 4 and didn't like it.
7. Then I ran FreeBSD 6.1 and liked it.
8. Then I ran Slackware at the same time as FreeBSD and liked it. I was
also running SUSE 10.0 at this time and I liked it. That was the only
time I liked 3 different operating systems on my computer at the same
time.
9. Then I only ran openSUSE 10.1 and I didn't like it.
10. Then I panicked and ran Ubuntu 6.06 and thought I didn't like it. I
later realized that I was being protective of my favorite SUSE 10.0. I
was just jealous that it worked faster.
11. Then I ran Kubuntu and I didn't like it.
12. Then I ran Vector and I liked it.
13. Then I ran Yoper and didn't like it.
14. Then I ran Solaris and didn't like it.
15. Then I ran dynebolic and didn't like it.
16. Then I ran Zenwalk and I liked it.
17. Then I ran Pardus and didn't like it.
18. Then I ran Fox Desktop and didn't like it.
19. Then I ran open SUSE 10.2 and liked it.
20. Then I ran Ubuntu 7.04 and I liked it now.
21. Then I ran Debian and liked it this time. But now I was tired of
configuring my computer.
22. Then I ran Ubuntu 7.04 and liked it again.
23. Then I ran openSUSE 10.3 and liked it. But Firefox opened 0.4
seconds slower than Ubuntu so I didn't like it as much.
24. Then I remembered Firefox didn't open as fast on all my SUSE
installations so I retroactively didn't like them as much. Except for
SUSE 9.3 which I still liked.
25. Then I remembered I ran PCLinuxOS between 19 and 20 and I liked it a
little but I was still protecting openSUSE in my mind.
26. Then I remembered I ran Damn Small, Puppy, Frugalware, Xandros,
SymphonyOS, and some other distros and some I liked and some I didn't
like, but I mostly didn't like them.
27. Then I realized I was spending way too much time on the computer so
I didn't like Linux anymore.
28. Then I installed Windows XP on a spare partition and I kind of liked
it again.
29. Then I contracted a virus on Windows XP the next day and didn't like
it anymore either.
30. Then I realized I tried to run Plan 9 somewhere in the teens, and
thought I would have liked it except I could get it to run.
31. Then I realized I had wondered occasionally about running Gentoo but
was glad I didn't because of some off-the-wall humour site that poked
fun at Gentoo users because they thought they were the coolest.
32. Then I realized that at one time or another I had thought about
installing NetBSD, OpenBSD, Dragonfly BSD, CentOS, Sidux, and a bunch of
other distros and retroactively hated myself for spending way too much
time thinking about Linux and BSDs.
33. Then I thought about getting rid of my computer.
34. Then I decided to just run Ubuntu because I liked it.
35. Then I stopped thinking about Linux so much and started living more
day to day.
36. Then I realized that I didn't want to be a geek anymore.
37. I didn't like the name Iceweasel so that's why I liked Ubuntu better
than Debian. But I like Debian's logo better. A decision had to be made.
38. Now I like Linux again.
39. I like traffic lights.
40. But only when they're green.