Is Slackware hard
 

Hi, i've recently entered into the world of linux. I'm currently running Ubuntu, but have been reading up on other Distros. People say that Ubuntu is the easiest for beginners but i did try out Mandriva on a virtual machine and it was just as easy to use, and it's supposed to be about the same as opensuse. I've read a little about slackware and that it is supposed to be hard to use for noobs, and although that's perhaps not good, my curiosity keeps drawing me back to it, and i'd like to know what's so different about slackware, and what other people have experienced with it.

So just give it a try on a virtual machine and decide for your self.

Here is my answer to your question, "Is Slackware hard?" No it is not.

I think Ubuntu is hard. ;)

Try it in a virtual machine and you'll see for yourself.
I wouldn't say that slackware is hard to install/run.
It's just sometimes you do things manually editing config files instead of clicking on buttons as it is in Ubuntu.

It kinda depends on your attitude, which so far is good. I mean, the fact that you are curious about it, and are willing to use it, that's a good attitude. Some people who try Slackware have the attitude that it should be like Window$ and Ubuntu, and it should have all these GUI configs and it should hold your hand all the way through ... well, they will be disappointed. However, it is a great distro and is definitely worth trying, just make sure to read some install guides before trying it, so you don't freak out when it drops you to a CLI. This also does not mean that you cannot configure slackware to login using a GUI, which you can do.

You can always try Salix: Slackware with added tools, dependency resolution, and 500 extra programs. Of course, with any distro you don't have to use the GUI. When I installed the Fedora 14 I'm using, I did a lot of the configuration with the CLI.

It's true Salix is somewhat more friendly for a newbie, I've used it myself. However, I still prefer slackware, it's closer to what I want.

I really do want to give it a go. I did go on the websight to attempt to download the iso, but the mirrors were down that day(yes all of them). Once i get time again, and the speed lol, i'll give it another shot and try to set her up in a virtual machine.

Hi,

Here's additional links;

Official List of Mirrors
AlphaGeek's Unofficial Mirror List <<<<<<< Great
LinuxQuestions.org > ISOs > Slackware®
elektroni <-FTP
Oregon State <- FTP/HTTP + Open Source Lab + Hosting Policy + bandwidth of over 1 gigabit per second
AlienBase <- Alien_Bob's mirror + 'via http' + rsync://taper.alienbase.nl/mirrors/ + 'The physical server is on a gigabit Internet connection, so I guess I can offer a speedy mirror service! In fact, the mirrors are already complete. With a re-sync of several times a day, I hope to offer an up to date service.' Read the intro + Alien has always been unselfish when it comes to Slackware :)
The Linux Mirror Project <- Categories: Distributions, kernel & Applications

The above links and others can be found at 'Slackware-Links'. More than just Slackware® links!
:hattip:

Know now that you'll never escape...

Yes, I don't find that there's much to choose in terms of user-friendliness between Ubuntu, Mandriva, Fedora, etc... They're all pretty much equally difficult/easy to install and to use in my experience.

Despite its reputation amongst new Linux users, Slackware's not really that difficult --- if you've tried Ubuntu and Mandriva, you've already got some understanding of Linux under your belt, and there's loads of good, well-written documentation on Slackware (some of which other posters have already recommended) --- many have found that the experience of getting Slackware up and running has provided them with more of a window on how a Linux system works than, for example, installing Fedora from a DVD.

...Anyway, you asked what's so different about Slackware (presumably as compared with something like Ubuntu) --- here's what I reckon the most noticeable things are for a newbie...

1. No X-based installation. The installation is text-based, and requires some (fairly rudimentary) knowledge of your system. (For example, users need to know the basics of how their network is set up --- not exactly rocket-science, though!)
   
2. No simple non-destructive repartitioning on installation. If your entire hard disk is one big Windows partition, then you'll either have to use something like gparted (available on a Ubuntu live CD) or repartition it destructively (after backing up your data) using the Linux fdisk provided on the Slackware installation disk.
   
3. No dependency-checking. If you install a piece of software which depends upon another package in order to work, Slackware will not by default check whether the latter package is installed or not. Hence when you come to run the software, you may get dependency errors. (It's usually a trivial matter to track down & install the missing packages, though.)
   
4. No graphical login. You log in at a text-screen, and then configure & start X manually. This might sound rather daunting but these days it really isn't that hard --- indeed it may merely entail entering just one or two commands.

Anyway, I hope that this has answered your question: I run a slightly old version of Slackware (simply because I'm too lazy to upgrade on every release), so things may have changed a little since I last installed it, but I imagine that the differences which will strike you first will nevertheless be those listed above.

...And in reading the above, please bear in mind that Slackware is my favourite distribution and that love is blind... ;)

Take it for a spin and let us know what you think...

Good luck!

I have nothing to add. Ignotum Per Ignotius gave an excellent description of the differences between Slackware and most distros.

I just wanted to add my encouragement for learning Slackware. Slackware is not hard, but it doesn't hold your hand; it expects you to do your homework. The Slackware community is large and supportive. (In fact, the LQ Slackware forum is the "unofficial official" Slackware support forum.)

Once you learn your way around Slackware, no Linux distro can ever intimidate you again because you will know the basics of how Linux works and will know that you will be able to figure out how to do whatever you want to do.

I did a series of blog posts at a blog where I sometimes post (guess that's a little redundant, what I mean is I'm a guest poster) on installing Slackware. This is the last one; it points to the preceding ones.

I'll say when I first started with linux, other than installing Caldera Linux, my first distro, and had to manually install X and KDE. After that when I tried other distros, Slackware & Debian was the only two I had luck with. All the so-called easy distros wouldn't install on my hardware at the time. Go for it!