I have some experience of working in linux and I can use the command line also. I want to move to debian testing since it has largest number of applications available, it is rolling release (so that I do not lead to reinstall every now and then) and it has updates which are intermediate between very old/stable and very new/untested. On this I intend to install LXDE desktop. There are a number of debian-testing based distributions available, such as anti-X, linux mint debian edition (LMDE) and crunchbang linux. Which one should I choose? Or should I directly install debian-testing? Any suggestions will be appreciated.

Best anything is a question loaded for failure. Best for what?

It is difficult to beat the Debian distro. If all you want is a rolling, Debian based, desktop distribution there are several options. Only select one if you have tested and tried it and are sure it does the things YOU want. Loading a bot directly from Debian is a better answer for me, but I tend to more server level 'stuff'.

I recommend Debian Unstable/Sid for "rolling release Debian." No need to use a derivative distro in my opinion; LXDE is very well supported by the parent distro.

Basically, I would say Debian, because all the derivatives are based on it, so Debian is naturally going to be the first released.

Debian Testing is not a rolling release. Additions and changes are made until about half a year before it becomes the next Stable release. (Where it is now.) After that point, nothing is added. The purpose is to work out any bugs before it is released as Stable. The reason Debian is a stable system, is because it is not a rolling release. (New packages and new versions of existing packages added immediately. Bugs and all.)

Interesting idea. A system is either stable or it is not stable. "Intermediate" means only a little unstable. Debian is the wrong place to look for such a thing.

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I think it is cyclically-rolling release as you explain and from the refs: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rolling...Debian-related

Anyway, I got myself debian-testing-lxde iso and tried to install it on an external usb drive (sdb). I was shocked when it installed grub2 on sda. I thought it would install grub2 on mbr of sdb and there was no prior notice or confirmation asked.

Also, although I was installing from CD, it tried to setup network so as to arrange for packages from the net. I could not configure the network properly, so I ended up with only the base system installed (not lxde desktop).

Most likely these problems are due to my ignorance/inexperience in this area but please help me sort these out. Thanks for your help.

I managed to sort out both above problems and I now have LXDE desktop on debian testing. But I wanted to have a true rolling-release distro so that there would be no need to reinstall but only upgrade to maintain the system. Should I go in for Linux mint debian edition (LMDE) which is truly rolling-release (http://www.linuxbsdos.com/2010/12/29...dition-review/) or can my make my present setup a rolling-release one? After all, LMDE is also based on debian testing (according to above review). Your comments will be very helpful. Thanks.

With any and all 'rolling release' distros/versions there is a chance of breakage. I would not be installing a rolling release distro just to avoid reinstalling....its quite possible that you'll have to do more reinstalling with a rolling release if/when something breaks. Or spend just as much time as you would reinstalling, if not more, asking forums 'how do I fix XXXXX' when an update/upgrade breaks something.

LMDE used to use debian testing repos, now its got its own repos. I'd use debian testing over LMDE.

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I wanted to clarify one point. Can one changes the /etc/apt/sources.list file at any time in a debian based distro and update/upgrade? Can I change from debian testing to unstable repositories at any time? Will it cause problems?

Yes you can, and maybe it will, depends on what packages you have installed and your definition of "problems".

LMDE is NOT a rolling release and is even less so now than Debian Testing because of how it has its own repository setup. If you want a true rollong release from Debian you will never find it. Sid (unstable) is the closest thing to a true rolling release from Debian as you will ever get but when Testing goes into freeze Sid also slows down.

Debian Testing is the Alpha/Beta/Release Candidate for the next Stable release, I don't really consider it a "rolling release" and it has the greatest risk of breakage of the Debian repos in my opinion/experience. (Although right now it is really quite stable due to the pending Stable release; after that, packages will come flooding in from Unstable and things get weird for a while.)

My personal preference is Stable. There is also no "need to reinstall but only upgrade to maintain the system" with Stable, because upgrading to the next Stable when it comes out does not require a reinstall. This is true of almost all distros, which is why I've never really bought into the "rolling release" concept personally.

Thanks everyone for your suggestions. Considering everything, I have decided to stick with debian for now. As I mentioned above, there was a problem during the installation. I have basic install + lxde desktop. However, I think not all packages from cdrom were installed. The /etc/apt/sources.list file has only one line:
How can I know whether all packages from cdrom were installed and how can I install all remaining packages?

Also, I think I would need to change the source.list to following, before I can install anything from the internet:
I will then probably need to run "apt-get update" and "apt-get upgrade" commands.

Please advise.

^--- No, you never mix stable and testing repos.

If you don't have an active internet connection when you install then the debian installer will assume you want to use local CD-ROM, that's why your sources.list looks like that.

Here is a debian source list generator you might find helpful: http://debgen.simplylinux.ch/

That's pretty much the standard sources list when you install of a CD, if you installed of a dvd the cd would be dvd. If you had used a dvd instead of a cd you would have installed the full system without having to connect to the internet. The cd pretty much just provides the basic Desktop Environment.

Anyway just adjust your sources.list and run in that order, then install any new packages you want to install.

Snowpine is spot on don't mix stable with anything else unless it is backports for stable.