trying Slackware?
 

I was wondering why Slackware is so popular, especially with the techies on the board? I have always used Ubuntu based OS's and I was thinking that I might be missing out on something. I am not very technical, I only use simple commands in the terminal ... so would it be worth my while downloading the live CD/DVD and giving it a whirl?

gael.

I'm sure you will get many answers to this. For me, stability is key. The process to go from one release to the next is not governed by time, some distros set a date, and kick it out the door whether is ready or not. Slackware isn't released until its ready.

Only you can answer that question. Are you ready to learn? What are you expecting?

For me the main points for switching to Slackware (from Debian) were (and still are):
- Total control over the system
- Adhering to the KISS principle, for me very important: the very simple and straightforward package format and package management system
- Stability, even running -current (the development version) very rarely gives me problems, running a stable version never at all

Whether these points are relevant to you is up to your decision, but you can't loose anything but a little bit of time with just trying it. I tried Slackware out of curiosity also, and it is true: Once you Slack you will never go back.

See if this helps at all:

http://www.zegeniestudios.net/ldc/

Member Response
 

Hi,

First, LQ Slackware forum is the official Slackware forum.

Slackware 32/64 Install DVD is not a live system. You would use the DVD to boot a system then install. You can look at: Get Slack <- Slackware® Linux Project Referenced mirrors to get the ISO for Slackwarex 86_32 14.0 or Slackware x86_64 14. Be sure to check the downloaded ISO hash before burning the image to media.
HTH!

I took the Distribution test from Grail and finished with the OS I already have :)
However, I want to try new and different distributions for the experience.
They have to be practical and reasonably easy to use as I don't want to spend hours feeling my way around a maze of a distro.
I'm a writer of Celtic fiction, adventures and magic. I also write short stories that my wife reads on Radio for the Blind here in Scotland.
So my demands on a distro are fairly simple ... but reliability is key.
I will give Slackware a look, that I promise.
Thank you all for your help and suggestions.
Most appreciated,
gael.

And that is why Slackware is so popular... reliability. Slackware is solid, reliable, and will do what you ask of it, nothing more, nothing less. You will need to learn to configure things the UNIX way, by editing text files, but it's not hard. Once you get used to doing things this way, you will wonder why you ever did it otherwise.

I guess you just need to take the plunge. Try it in a virtual machine if you want. Here is a quick installation guide from Slackware documentation project.

Slackware is stable that gives user full control. It doesn't mess around with vanilla packages (released by developers). Almost all packages are pretty recent and there are loads that comes with Slackware dvd. But if you still need more (e.g, conky) go to Slackbuilds.org.

As Onebuck said, this is the official/only Slackware forum, so all the Slackers are here. As you might notice, they tend to be a bit fanatical... It's not actually popular in terms of numbers of users: if you go to Distrowatch, you'll see none of the well known reviewers have ever bothered to review it. One review by a very experienced professional got over 100 furious comments because she didn't recommend it: the discussion is rather fun:
http://news.oreilly.com/2008/06/slac...est-versi.html

Slackware is actually a very good distro in terms of quality, but so are others. It's also very small: I expect a distro to have such commonplace programs as a professional-grade word processor and accounting software.

If Mint works for you, use it. Now that the ordinary versions of Ubuntu are only going to be supported for 9 months, that means that the corresponding versions of Mint will only be supported until the next one appears; using a Long Term Support version will solve that.

Member Response
 

Hi,

I agree that Slackware users can come across as fanatics or zealots. Sometimes :jawa:

Slackware is stable and most new releases are at least 12-18 months apart. PV does provide security patches and upgrades throughout life of a stable release. I believe he just dropped 8 series.

You can always use Slackware -current but it is not advised for production use. I do have Slackware64 -current running on a boxen but that is not a true production machine. Just used for experimenting.

BTW, I really do not care for distribution test(s).

Happy Slacking! Try it, you just might like it.
:hattip:

WOW! You guys are really "enthusiastic" about Slackware.
Well, I am determined to give it a go even if it's just for the learning curve, however, I want to install it within a VM ... how do I do that?

Okay, I went online and watched a couple of Youtube video's on how to install Slackware & Derivatives in my VB. Well, I'm pleasantly surprised with Salix14, in fact I'm sending this message from within my VM via Salix14 ... I like it :)
Thanks to everyone who encouraged me to try it.

gael.

Welcome to Slackworld.

I was going to say why I use Slackware, then saw you had taken the plunge. (It's pretty much because I started with it and learned it. It always works and never breaks, though user--me--can break it just fine.)

The other thing I would say about Slack is that, once you understand Slackware, no other distro will ever intimidate you. Another distro may not work like Slackware, but learning Slackware gives you the confidence that you can figure it out. And learning Slackware is nowhere nearly so difficult as its reputation among non-Slackers would lead you to believe.

Member Response
 

Hi,
Welcome to Slackware!

Yes, some Slackers are very enthusiastic! :)
Salix14 is a Slackware fork/derivative but at it's core still very stable.

You should be able to use the VM instructions too install Slackware to a VM. If you have any real issues then post to Slackware forum with details.

Happy Slacking!
:hattip: