Definitely, if you're going to compile kernels, then it's much harder nowadays because there's so much more going on. But that's not a function of distro. For some time now Slack includes precompiled kernels that just work. (As do all the other distros, I'm sure.)
On 2/28/22 11:17 AM, Emery Rudolph wrote: > Wow! No, I don't recall ever having anywhere close to 60 floppies. More > like 20 or so. I seem to remember installing the pre-release version of > 0.97 on an AST 286 pizza box system. I loved that machine and am so > amazed at how far systems have come. My home computer is now a 64GB, > Intel I9-12900k with an AMD 6800 GPU mining ETH. For anyone in IT and > into computers, it is a wonderful feeling to know that we have played a > part in progressing the industry. > > I will say you rightfully listed "Community" as the first item, as that > is the most enriching part of being in technology and Linux > specifically, regardless of distro. With regard to ease of use, I would > question that one. If you are still compiling kernels, there is no way > that is easier than other more sysadmin friendly distros. I say this > knowing how many curse words I've uttered over the years when I had to > chase down a parameter, syntax or typo in a config file (HaHa). With > that said, I do remember the sense of achievement when I was successful, > which is something you don't necessarily get with many other distros. > > I think it also has a lot to do with what you are doing with the OS and > a desire to keep your skills honed and the pride with being able to > navigate the internals. There is also a sense of loyalty to the > community, which is also an awesome thing. > > Thank you all for taking the time to share your thoughts. Whatever you > use, may it continue to fill your purpose and bring you joy! > > ---------------- > Very Best Regards, > > Emery Rudolph, MS > > Director > > Division of Information Technology > > > > erudo...@umd.edu <mailto:erudo...@umd.edu> > > (301) 405-9379 > > > > > > > On Mon, Feb 28, 2022 at 10:41 AM Judah Milgram <milg...@cgpp.com > <mailto:milg...@cgpp.com>> wrote: > > > > I seem to recall 60-plus floppies, but maybe that's because I installed > X and everything else. X on a 486 (60 MHz?) with 8MB RAM... those were > the days. It was still faster than the Sun 3/50 X-terminal they gave me > when I first got to UMD. > > Why Slackware? > 1) active user community > 2) we know it well > 3) simplicity itself > 4) it has everything, either in the distro or on slackbuilds.org > <http://slackbuilds.org> > 5) if it's missing anything, roll your own slackbuild and contribute > 6) everything is built and installed from the sources - no patched > nothin' if it can be helped. > 7) it really is an easy install > 8) we hate and fear systemd > 9) easy package management with slackpkg. Perhaps less automated but we > like it that way. > 10) nostalgia - UMLUG itself originated with a group order for Slack 1.2 > CDROMs. (Kernel 1.1.59, I think :) > > I have looked at other distros but none seemed appealing enough to > warrant switching. Others might ... it's a matter of taste. > > > On 2/28/22 8:36 AM, Emery Rudolph wrote: > > Yep, I had that same large stack of floppies and it was such an > > accomplishment to finally arrive at a system that had all of the > > components you needed, because so much had to be done from the command > > line and understanding how to dig into the internals of Linux to get > > everything to compile correctly. Those experiences made us very strong > > OS folks, but today everything is so much easier. I haven't had to > > compile a kernel for a very long time and my system runs like a top. I > > prefer Debian based systems and have been using Linux Mint since > it came > > out. I tried Redhat and Fedora for a while, but once they were > acquired > > by Oracle, I knew it was not going to end well for personal users. > > > > Like everything else, Mint have their glitches, but I have been very > > pleased with it thus far :-) > > > > ---------------- > > Very Best Regards, > > > > Emery Rudolph, MS > > > > Director > > > > Division of Information Technology > > > > > > > > erudo...@umd.edu <mailto:erudo...@umd.edu> > <mailto:erudo...@umd.edu <mailto:erudo...@umd.edu>> > > > > (301) 405-9379 > > > > > > > > > > > > > > On Mon, Feb 28, 2022 at 8:28 AM Peter Teuben <teu...@umd.edu > <mailto:teu...@umd.edu> > > <mailto:teu...@umd.edu <mailto:teu...@umd.edu>>> wrote: > > > > I think you have to be nostalgic perhaps. I did indeed learn linux > > on a 15 floppy install from slackware in 94, but I've gone to > redhat > > for a while, and now quite a while I've been using kubuntu. > All the > > different distro's have good and bad sides. It's funny again > that a > > 15 floppy install on an i486 takes not a lot longer than a USB key > > install on a modern i9. > > > > On 2/28/22 08:22, Emery Rudolph wrote: > >> Good morning, > >> > >> For those who are using Slackware, just wondering if you've > >> considered using other distros? I learned Linux on Slackware in > >> the early-mid 90's and grew quite adept at compiling and > >> troubleshooting the OS, but as distros matured, including package > >> management, I left it behind. Every distro has features that make > >> them attractive to specific use cases, thus I am not throwing > >> shade on anyone for using anything that appeals to them, but > >> rather, I am interested in what features make Slackware an > >> attractive distro in 2022. > >> > >> ---------------- > >> Very Best Regards, > >> > >> Emery Rudolph, MS > >> > >> Director > >> > >> Division of Information Technology > >> > >> > >> > >> erudo...@umd.edu <mailto:erudo...@umd.edu> > <mailto:erudo...@umd.edu <mailto:erudo...@umd.edu>> > >> > >> (301) 405-9379 > >> > >> > >> > >> > >> > >> > >> On Sun, Feb 27, 2022 at 9:43 PM Ben Stern > >> <bst...@electromagnetic.net > <mailto:bst...@electromagnetic.net> > <mailto:bst...@electromagnetic.net <mailto:bst...@electromagnetic.net>>> > >> wrote: > >> > >> On Mon, Feb 07, 2022 at 10:23:24AM -0500, Judah Milgram > wrote: > >> > If anyone (who cares) didn't notice, Slackware 15.0 > came out > >> last week. > >> > >> At 22:22:22 on 2/2/22. :-) > >> > >> I switched to 15.0 from current and I miss the giddy pace of > >> daily updates. > >> Current has immediately started breaking things, as promised > >> by its nature, > >> and I'm happy with 15.0 but it's an adjustment. :-) > >> > >> Now waiting for SBo to move to 15.0 so I can upgrade all > of my > >> SBo packages > >> trivially. > >> > >> > If this isn't an occasion for an UMGLUG I don't know what > >> is. Virtual I > >> > suppose. > >> > >> A virtual UMGLUG has not been tried. I am eager to try one. > >> > >> Ben > >> -- > >> Ben Stern > >> This space intentionally left blank. > >> > >> You received this email because you are subscribed to the UM > >> Linux User's Group (UM-LINUX) mailing list. If you would like > >> to unsubscribe from this list, simply send an email to > >> lists...@listserv.umd.edu > <mailto:lists...@listserv.umd.edu> <mailto:lists...@listserv.umd.edu > <mailto:lists...@listserv.umd.edu>> > >> with the message signoff UM-LINUX in the body. > >> > >> You received this email because you are subscribed to the UM > Linux > >> User's Group (UM-LINUX) mailing list. If you would like to > >> unsubscribe from this list, simply send an email to > >> lists...@listserv.umd.edu <mailto:lists...@listserv.umd.edu> > <mailto:lists...@listserv.umd.edu > <mailto:lists...@listserv.umd.edu>> with > >> the message signoff UM-LINUX in the body. > > > > You received this email because you are subscribed to the UM Linux > > User's Group (UM-LINUX) mailing list. If you would like to unsubscribe > > from this list, simply send an email to lists...@listserv.umd.edu > <mailto:lists...@listserv.umd.edu> with > > the message signoff UM-LINUX in the body. > > -- > Judah Milgram > milg...@cgpp.com <mailto:milg...@cgpp.com> > 301-257-7069 > -- Judah Milgram milg...@cgpp.com 301-257-7069 You received this email because you are subscribed to the UM Linux User's Group (UM-LINUX) mailing list. If you would like to unsubscribe from this list, simply send an email to lists...@listserv.umd.edu with the message signoff UM-LINUX in the body.
