Hi there.

I'm a 28 year old computer student from Norway. I'm not a complete newb when it comes to linux,- have been using Red hat, Mandrake and Suse.

I think I'm about ready to get my hands dirty, and try a "real" linuxdistribution, and was thinking about Slackware or Debian.

Can someone help me make my choice,- Pros / Cons with both distributions.
Speed and stability are important.

I will be installing on my home-computer, and besides the regular stuff (internet, music etc.), it will be used for programming (java).



the_c.

see www.distrowatch.com

-Joey

Like we say about every distro around here, they're all the same and different as well. The only way your going to know which one to use is to most likely try them out for yourself to make that conclusion of which one you think is going to work best for you.

One of the only main differences I know of when using either, Debian has apt-get and Slackware is a source based distro, but you can use swaret or slapt-get to upgrade packages..

So try them both to find out which one your going to like using..

You'r right.

Reading my first post again make's me feel like a complete newbie, but I was just wondering if there were some major differences between the two distros that made one of them superior to the other.

Anyway,- off to install Debian...



the_c.

Well, considering you have a grand total of 4 posts, isnt that kind of newbieish? Anyhow, I like slack alot, but it all depends on what you want. For me, I have reinstalled linux around 25 times so far, and I think im going to stick this one out, it isnt a simple which is better, its what suits you

like pauli said it all depends on what your looking for. i never used debian but i use slack. the only thing that stood out for me on deb was apt-get. but slack has swaret that can update your system to current and dropline gnome.

but best advice is try both.

on the subject of debian/slackware anyone willing to point me in the right direction to understanding cfdisk and fdisk in linux?

sadly my CDs for Slackware are bad, need to download them and reburn them again.

so i tried debian after burning all 8 CDs (do i need them all) and sadly my laptop did not display cfdisk properly so i could not get it to save with the W command.

i am looking to get a debian box up and running sometime so i can start to learn the ways of linux servers.

thanks for the heads up.

You only need the first disc for dweebian (I think its only one), the others are a shitload of apps and stuff (or so Ive been told). It is a myth that you need them all.

hehe I was once told that Debian had a kind of kid-like ring to it.. now we have another kid calling it dweebian. LOL
So in conclusion, the main differences:
both are package-based though you can compile apps on either one.
Debian >> sys5 init scripts which I think are a little convoluted than Slackware's BSD-style scripts IMO
Slackware + slapt-get or swaret works pretty much the same as debian with apt-get, but the package library size/selection is debateable.
If I still ran slackware (cause it's so cool ) I'd install portage on it and pretty much have the best of both worlds, that is, Slackware's simplicity, reliability, excellent install, etc. along with Gentoo's roll-your-own sourcebased package distribution (though you can fetch compiled packages with that one, too)

Damn, you can do anything with anything in linux
anything at all..

Oi! Im not a kid!

I call it dweebian because all my friends who use it, are dweebs They hate windows with a passion (I happen to like it, it has a place as does linux) so I make fun of their disto

Of course, they have nothing to insult when I use Slack

yeah I like to make fun of Debian too.. even though it's probably as solid as anything else. Slackware is bulletproof on all fronts (security, stability, image) You can't go wrong with any of the major hands-on distros like debian, slackware, gentoo, archlinux, etc. and can, with all these great choices, can afford to think of how it looks.. a gravy train is what it is. ~~nice!

I like Debian and Slackware very much. I just found Debian's installer very, very nasty. First time I've tried Debian was with Potato "2.something". I put it in an older machine here (Dell P2 - 400MHZ). I could install everything just fine, but not the sound card. Since I use that computer only for mail, scanning, printing and reading, the sound card is irrelevant. I then decided to put a "newer" version of Debian, Woody it was "3.something". The packages was "newer", the installer still the same nasty. Funny thing happened here, my network card, which was perfectly installed under Potato, would not install in Woody. That is, using the very same name for the card during installation and the modules would not load. Kinda hilarious...

Slackware, on the other hand (at least since 8.1, I've used 3.5 too) never gave me a headache. The installation is smooth (not as well presented as Redhat or Mandrake, but good enough), hotplug detects all the hardware very well and the best, at the end of the installation, you are up and running a very up-to-date distribution. Slackware always have nice newer packages. With Debian Woody, all packages are way to old, meaning that after the installation is done, you will waste a good time updating your system right off the box.

Coming from Slackware, you most likely will hate Debian. That was not my case, since now I'm running Libranet 2.7 in my old computer and 2.8.1 in my new one, which is Debian. But most of the Slackers cannot go back to Debians, at least not the ones I know .

Read a review of Libranet here if you still want to give Debian a try and skip that terrible installer that Debian has...

Good luck!

I like slackware. My general impression of debian is that if you like to run the absolute bleeding edge software it is not that good. I know that there is a version that comes with all the new software but the stuff they have is still to old. But the last time I checked was a year or two ago so things may have changed.

Slackware gives a nice balance between allowing you choice and helping you with configuration etc. You can choose how hardcore you want to be. I like that. You are also expected to do a lot yourself so you can learn a lot.

Sorry to revive an old thread, but I figured it was better than making a new thread altogether...

Does Slack do well as a Server? I have a Debian Server and love it very much. Apt-get is truly wonderful and reminds me a lot of Portage with Gentoo. But I only realy run Debian as a Server (though I did for some reason that is beyond me, installed Gnome on it).

The only time I installed Slackware, I did a full install. So how does it fair in the area of servers? Is there a minimal server install?

Mike