Hello Slackers.

In the near future I will be getting a new laptop which of course means a fresh install of Slackware. This also seems like a good time to reevaluate some of the software choices I have made in the past and so I hope to pull on the vast collective experience of the community.

Stable versus Current

On the one hand I like the idea of having the OS up-to-date but on the other hand it needs to be stable and I don't really want to be frequently updating the OS, especially the kernel. I suppose I've answered my own question but I'd still like to hear pros and cons of stable versus current.

Email Client

I have been using Thunderbird for many years but I admit that it is growing thin on me. The main obstacle is the migration/conversion of several GB of filed mail. So what ever I switch to I will need a way to either use the Thunderbird files as-is or convert them. If conversion is necessary I really want to be certain of the client because migrating back is hard (at least it was last time I did this).

Backup Software

I have been using dar and it works but recovering files can be a challenge, though I have done it. A graphical front end would be an asset, especially to browse the archives for files to recover.

Flash Alternatives

I have had it with Adobe Flash on my current system. I also understand that only security patches are being done on the Linux version. What is the current best alternative to Flash. Alternatively, if a browser other than Firefox has better support, I am willing to switch.

Firefox versus others

I've been on Firefox for years but, like Thunderbird, it also grows thin on me. What are the best browsers available on Slackware these days?

Acrobat Reader

Should I continue to keep acroread around or are there better options that are quick and will integrate well (not that acroread has integrated well for awhile) with browsers?

Package Management

I have been using slackpkg with slackpkg+ since that recognizes the multilib setup. I have also just learned about the existence of sbotools for managing SlackBuilds packages. What are your thoughts on package management options?

I think (hope) that covers the main issues. Thanks for reading and thanks in advance for your thoughts.

Hi,

I use current since it has been very stable last year. When I know I have important work to do or not much time to tweak and fix, I just wait a week before upgrading.

I use chromium for usual browsing. From AlienBob's repo. For that, multilib, kde5 and few more packages I use slackpkgplus. On the other hand I keep a full mirror either to revert easilly usual updates or to perform a critical update. For other stuff, sbopkg is perfect.

Will look at answers, always useful !

So you're not happy with some of the choices that Patrick made for Slackware. Well, this is the ideal distro for experimentation but it may be a while before you find a mix where everything works and gives you a vastly superior system.

In response to your specific queries:

Stable versus Current

Stable.

Email Client

Thunderbird works. I can send and receive emails (and click on hyperlinks). If there are other features that some different client might offer, I don't want to know.

Backup Software

The CLI tools are just fine for me. With a 1 TB drive and the "cp" command, I could backup my entire PC, and was good to go once I setup my new one.

Flash Alternatives

Once in a blue moon, flash crashes and every now and then I have to download and upgrade the flash package. It's minimal hassle for something that I otherwise don't have to think about.

Firefox versus others

Firefox works.

Acrobat Reader

I still use xpdf. It's a bit primitive but who cares?

Package Management

The standard CLI commands are all I need. I don't even use slackpkg or any of the other automated tools (although this is mainly because I like to keep my Linux skills going). Once a month, I download the latest updated packages from the patches/ directory and "upgradepkg" them. Since I also have multilib, I sometimes also have to download 32-bit versions of the updated packages and run "convertpkg-compat32" on them before doing an "upgradepkg" with them.

Again, it's minimal work and keeps my Linux knowledge fresh.

Stable versus Current

This will mostly depend on the hardware of your laptop. Slackware 14.1 is over 2 years old now, and it is missing proper support for a lot of newer hardware. This may force you to -current. However, just because you are running -current, doesn't mean you need to update every time a new update is pushed out (there's probably valid reasons for them to get pushed out, especially if it is a security issue), but there is nothing actually forcing you to do so. I put -current on my HTPC because the AMD APU was too new to be supported by Slackware. I don't think I've done any updates to it since the beginning of November. I got it running the way I wanted it, and I left it. Once 14.2 stable is released, I'll likely update it and rebuild my needed software, but until then, I see no reason to have that machine constantly updated, especially when depending on what those updates entail, I may have to rebuild my software.

Flash Alternatives

Many sites that use flash also have alternative HTML5 players available. That being said, Chrome includes newer versions of flash, and Eric (Alien Bob) has made packages of Chromium and flash (the flash is extracted from regular Chrome) available on his site.

Firefox versus others

I hardly ever use Firefox anymore. I use Chrome and I keep it up-to-date with ruario's latest-chrome script. But Chromium is also pretty close and with a few extras from Eric, it is able to do most everything Chrome can (including playing Netflix).

Acrobat Reader

I use the built-in PDF reader on Chrome.

Package Management

I don't install many pre-built packages. Most everything I install is from SlackBuilds, most of them being from SlackBuilds.org (SBo). For SBo, I use sbopkg, which, when paired with sqg, can install all the dependencies for a package as well. sbotools does this as well, but I have no experience with it, as I've been happy with sbopkg.

I like rsync over SSH, with incremental snapshots.

http://www.microlinux.fr/microlinux/...te/backup/lan/

As for email clients, it somewhat depends upon how much you are willing to spend.

In my case, I've "invested" in an additional server that sits between my ISP (FIOS now, but I used to use a cable modem) that:

1. Is a linux box running Slackware.
2. Runs dovecot as an e-mail server.
3. Polls the ISP for e-mail and delivers it to dovecot.
4. Dovecot uses IMAP to deliver e-mail to clients.

So, other than the initial download of message headers, I don't really care what e-mail client that I use to see my e-mail. My cell phone also accesses the same dovecot server, so I have global access of my personal e-mail.

YMMV.

I'm running Slackware64-current on five stations at the moment; -current is very stable for me. I like and use Thunderbird. Seamonkey mail is a nice client to use. Claws-mail is available on slackbuilds.org.

Hi, statguy
I would like to recommend you give Sylpheed a try for email. Absolutely sold on it. It's available on slackbuilds.org.
It's super simple in setup and operaton, and has some (in my estimation) advanced features.
Very lightweight.
Regarding Firefox, I've always stuck with ESR. As for Flash, mostly it just sits in /tmp un-installed. Can't really speak to the other stuff: I don't use multilib (32bit here), but am thinking of going -current in an attempt to KISS :-) since many old-timers here report few hiccups.

Regarding Adobe Acrobat, if your needs aren't sophisticated (e.g., annotations/comments, bookmarking, fillable forms), I might suggest either evince or mupdf. Both are to be found in the SlackBuilds repository, although you're best off downloading the latest source tarballs of each and tweaking the SB scripts for the upgrade.

Flash on Linux is a dead-end. Actually, Flash is steadily becoming a thing of the past on all platforms, but basically, if you still need it, then you probably cannot avoid running Adobe's version. Short of running a browser in WINE, I suppose there's Gnash.

Regarding the Email Client, what irks you about Thunderbird? If you like text-based, try mutt or even doing email in emacs. Having tried it, I can also vouch for Sylphseed, even though I remain a satisfied Thunderbird user.

I would like to know more. A how-to would be nice if one exists. I do not want to hijack this thread -- would you please provide details in a new thread (or contact me)?

firefox is good still i think their desktop version if different than their portable but when they work its the same

This is a good question and one that was alluded to by another poster.

Here are the issues. The mail server at work is running on Exchange and naturally it's preferred client is outlook or ActiveExchange. It does have IMAP and STMP options available. Recently though, a change on the server resulted in errors (I can't remember) when sending, especially replying. I would have to hit send multiple times before it went. I assume this might be fixed with a newer version of Thunderbird, but those are not updated frequently in the "stable" repository. You might suggest I download the latest from mozilla and install it. When I did that once with firefox, things seemed to break so I am a bit wary of replacing Slack builds with generic tar balls.

Hope that helps.

My school makes flash a hard requirement, as I don't ever want to run adobe flash again I have compromised by using lightspark for that one use case. However it probably requires being built from the git master. Gnash is old, doesn't really work well and relies on xulrunner which relies on java... *shudder*

I'll crank up a new thread for it. Probably not today, I've got fish of my own to fry. But in a couple of days.

Thank you.