Greets CLUGgers, 2009/8/14 Daniel Hill <daniel.h...@orcon.net.nz>: > I'm about to acquire a old computer from my friend (AMD 1.6GHz 80GB HDD) > and want to eventually set it up as a webserver, game server, wireless > router and any other servers that I mite want to play with > I also want to learn linux properly (currently running ubuntu on my desktop) > > so I'm wondering which distro would be a good learning experience and in > the end be stable for a server > a couple of distros come to mind: (please correct me if I'm wrong) > * Gentoo , Pros: Configurable; Cons: Huge comiple/install time > * Slackware Pros: Configurable; Cons: Doesn't have a automated update system > * Debian Pros: Stable; Cons: pre-configured? > * LFS Pros: Configureable; Cons: same as Gentoo and Slackware? > * rPath Pros: Conary Package managment Cons: New unproven technology > * Any other suggestions ? > the other option would be to just setup the server with ubuntu server or > debian, and use a VM on my desktop to learn linux with maybe slackware > I was an avid Gentoo user until about a year to 18 months ago. I got sick of the huge amount of effort needed to keep the thing up to date, and the number of times the update process borked. A very polite, responsive and helpful set of IRC channels on freenode. ( For someone just starting out with Gentoo this is probably the most important feature. )
PROs: I like the idea of an open source distribution being distributed as source code. The use-flags give you a huge amount of flexibility. It's definitely faster than many other distros. ( Not as much now-a-days as it was 5 years ago when I started out with Gentoo ) I like the principles behind the Portage package management system which has 99.999% solved the dependency hell which has in the past plagued other PMSs. They don't have cock-ups very often. There is a differences system which substantially reduces the volume of your downloads needed to keep you up to date, The documentation is some of the best I have ever seen in the industry. e.g. the installation manual is a real work of literature. CONs: You have to know what you are doing with a Linux distro to be able to use it Gentoo to best effect. The use-flags are a huge labyrinthine maze of interdependences which are sometimes incorrect. When they have a cock-up it is of monumental proportions. You have to compile any _new_ software you might want to install. It takes them far too long to get new and updated packages from the ~ ( unstable / testing ) classification into the mainline archive of the distro. If you like Gentoo, but want to avoid the horrors of a source code distribution then you might care to consider the Sabayon variant. http://www.sabayonlinux.org/ -- Sincerely etc. Christopher Sawtell
