Using Which Version of Linux

[Steven D'Aprano]

On Sat, 05 Nov 2005 12:50:44 +0000, Jeffrey Schwab wrote:

> blah at blah.blah wrote:
>> ok, i m going to use Linux for my Python Programs, mainly because i 
>> need to see what will these fork() and exec() do. So, can anyone tell 
>> me which flavour of linux i should use, some say that Debian is more 
>> programmer friendly, or shold i use fedora, or Solaris. Because these 
>> three are the only ones i know of that are popular and free.
> 
> Solaris isn't Linux, but it is good.  I've never installed it from 
> scratch, though.
> 
> I might get lambasted for suggesting this, but try Slackware.

If only you knew how hard I had to work to overcome the bad impression
Slackware makes on first-time Linux users.

> It will 
> let you do a very minimal installation, which means there's less stuff 
> that can go wrong.  

And less stuff that can go right, because it just isn't there. There is
something sort of sad about watching an experienced Linux guru trying to
get things done on Slackware, especially when the purist set it up with
FVWM2 as the window manager. It is kind of like going back in time to 1980...

> It also has nice, beginner-friendly FAQs to help you 
> get started.  

Just so you understand what Jeffrey is talking about, by
"beginner-friendly" he means the FAQs walk you through the process of
compiling your own kernel. (Okay, okay, so that's a *tiny* bit of an
exaggeration... but not much. Slackware isn't quite Gentoo *wink*)


-- 
Steven.