I've been using Linux as my main OS for several years now. I always found distros too bloated, too complicated, or not flexible enough until I discovered Arch Linux. Before then, I quite liked Slackware and ZenWalk, and SuSE was nice as a "heavy" desktop. I tried dozens of other distros but never really got to grips with any of them.
Arch is for computer-literate people who want to control every aspect of the OS in a simple, modular way. It's probably a bit like Marmite (you either love it or hate it), but I think I'd quit using Linux altogether if Arch disappeared.
Installing it takes longer than other distros because you start with a minimalist system and install and configure the components you want. This makes it incredibly flexible, and by following the installation/configuration guides, by the time your system is up-and-running, you are already familiar with much of how it works.
It uses a rolling-release model so there's never a "major upgrade" and reinstall, and since I installed it 8 years ago, it's been more-or-less rock solid. It's lightning-quick as an installation just gives you a simple text shell and you install the packages you need. Package management works much better than other distros.
Inevitably something will go wrong, but because nothing is unnecessarily overcomplicated in Arch, and the Wiki is so comprehensive, fixing problems is relatively easy. The forums are great too, but there is little tolerance for asking stupid questions where you haven't
fully investigated (and explained) the issue as best you can. This does make posting a little intimidating, but it also means that you are forced to outline what you have done to fix the problem... which often leads you to the solution before you hit "submit", and it also means that the forums aren't clogged up with repeated questions or vague rambling.
I'd go as far as saying that using Arch makes me just a little bit excited every day! It's exactly what I want in an OS. (But I've talked it up too much now!) :smile1:
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Jeremiah said:
Linux Mint is what I have been using. It comes basically ready to go and works decent enough.
Coming "ready to go" is the complete opposite of Arch! :smile1: That's what I like about GNU/Linux -- there's a distro for everyone's tastes.