why you choose ArchLinux?

knightzx · 2013-10-02 01:13:44

1. rolling release
2. bleeding edge
3. KISS
4. Wiki and community

I used Ubuntu, Mint, Debian and Manjaro but they have a lot of things i don't need. So I chose Arch and be very happy with it. Arch takes time for the newcomers to install and configure it but the Wiki really helped me there. Now I really feel comfortable with it.

ashnbclarke · 2013-10-22 08:22:48

.

Last edited by ashnbclarke (2013-12-01 15:03:07)

nathema · 2013-10-23 10:56:36

1. rolling release
2. bleeding edge
3. a great way to learn more of GNU/Linux compared to an one-click-install.

quayasil · 2013-10-24 11:31:38

I switched from Gentoo to Arch a few years ago because:
- it was really KISS,
- it was a FreeBSD-like organized Linux distro too but it found it more consistent, simpler and more lightweight. The syntax of /etc/rc.conf was really ingenious!,
- IMHO not using any USE flags etc resulted in simpler bug tracking and stabilization.

Nowadays I'm thinking of returning to Gentoo or searching for a new distro based on good old Arch. The main problems with further using Arch are:
- systemd which I find a `let's make Linux like Windows but even better' idea,
- ignoring Unix *standards* in favor of `Linuxism' which is a consequence of the above,
- unsatisfactory package testing before making them available or trying to be too much up-to-date cutting edge. The result are numerous serious regressions and even kernel crashes after system upgrade.

Last edited by quayasil (2013-10-24 11:32:47)

thedude0 · 2013-10-25 18:30:37

Great documentation in the wiki, it's as fast and nimble as you want it to be, KISS in terms of configuration and it's rolling.

My first Linux endeavor was Ubuntu.... it worked, it showed what Linux is capable of but I wanted more, I wanted complete control. Arch gives me exactly that.

Last edited by thedude0 (2013-10-25 18:32:35)

bulletmark · 2013-10-25 23:04:30

I have come to arch from 8 years using Ubuntu full time on desktop and laptop, most recently Ubuntu GNOME. I had been finding that many of my google searches for linux information ended me up on the arch wiki which was very detailed and well structured. I've not seen a better wiki anywhere, well except perhaps wikipedia?! So the arch wiki is certainly the shining jewel which brought me here. I also like that I can install generic current release software, e.g. GNOME 3 DE. There will be problems but nothing I won't be able to deal with using the arch web site and forum.

mixer · 2013-10-26 02:27:38

I went looking for a Windows replacement and was surprised that my least likely candidate won. The heavier distros seem like the obvious choice, but Arch's excellent Wiki and pacman made things easy, Infinality fonts made everything beautiful. I'm impressed.

shomyo · 2013-10-26 09:48:34

It's all about simplicity. Back then it was KISS. I'm sad to say that but it's not anymore.

ashnbclarke · 2013-12-01 11:28:58

.

Last edited by ashnbclarke (2013-12-01 15:02:49)

BGK · 2013-12-09 22:59:57

1) Ridiculously fast on high end hardware
2) Get me familiar with techs what will be standards in 1-3 years on mainline dristros I use at work (Debian/Red-Hat)
3) Faster than a bullet
4) Documentation
6) Rolling release
7) No heavy packages/sources changes
8) PKGBUILDS

Hum and i almost forget, because it's fast as hell.

Kitkin15 · 2013-12-16 22:06:32

I agree with quayasil 100%. Had its benefits and now not so much.

gowikel · 2013-12-23 10:56:37

I tried a lot of distros before Arch, but, i love arch, and i want stay here for:
1- KISS
2- Rolling Release
3- Pacman (its excelent)
4- Minimal and Faster
5- It teach me a lot of thinks every day
6- community behind

Awebb · 2013-12-23 17:02:16

After almost a year of doing almost nothing interesting with computers (sending mail, chatting, playing games, reading news. listening to music and watching cute animals trip over their own feet), I came to the conclusion, that I still use Arch, because it never surprises me. I don't use a major DE, that could interrupt my workflow with "new features" (aka. UX crap nobody needs). The last manual intervention during an update was half a year ago. There is basically one big change every year, which is probably not a high price to pay for having the latest packages all the time. The last time I had to come up with a different solution than whatever I was currently using was the deprecation of hosts{allow,deny}. Then there was python going python3. I always made sure my scripts use env instead of the real python path, so no surprises there either. The systemd transition was a no-brainer for me, as I never really used custom init scripts at home and the deprecation of rc.conf was not an issue as well, as I memorized all the systemd config files after deploying the third Arch system. All those changes combined were less stressful as figuring out a way to keep Pidgin up to date on Ubuntu, after they decided to remove the tray icon. Yes, having that try icon was an integral part of my work flow and they tried to force me to change that, because some UX-perts (formerly known as people without friends) decided, that tray icons are bad. Arch never does this. It always keeps my applications intact.

mamamia88 · 2013-12-23 20:15:41

I chose it because it has everything I need either in the official repos or in the aur. Ubuntu + ppas is pretty good but some ppas get abandoned or don't ever support the new releases. In ubuntu there are a few apps I have to install manually to get the latest version. Granted it's usually as easy as running sudo make uninstall or rm a few files but it can still be a pain in the ass.

MrPotato · 2014-01-09 14:59:53

i started off with ubuntu then i got really tired with the unity crap then on january 2013 i moved to debian and was very happy till i hear some ppl talk shit about arch and i was clueless to why must ppl talk shit about arch so that got me curious. about a week ago i downloaded arch iso poped onto stick drive and started installing, got into a slight hiccup installing grub but got sorted out after being advised to use syslinux instead. long story short, holly crap! arch is AMAZING!!!! TIL:those who talk crap about arch obviously are ignorant haters. so to answer your question why i chose arch simply because snappy performance, incredible package manager, awesome community and the best of all, there's no other linux wiki like arch wiki.

xtraroot · 2014-01-09 22:11:09

I don't like having to use unsupported and/or outdated software/drivers.

blueprint · 2014-01-12 22:44:54

quayasil wrote:

I switched from Gentoo to Arch a few years ago because:
- it was really KISS,
- it was a FreeBSD-like organized Linux distro too but it found it more consistent, simpler and more lightweight. The syntax of /etc/rc.conf was really ingenious!,
- IMHO not using any USE flags etc resulted in simpler bug tracking and stabilization.
Nowadays I'm thinking of returning to Gentoo or searching for a new distro based on good old Arch. The main problems with further using Arch are:
- systemd which I find a `let's make Linux like Windows but even better' idea,
- ignoring Unix *standards* in favor of `Linuxism' which is a consequence of the above,
- unsatisfactory package testing before making them available or trying to be too much up-to-date cutting edge. The result are numerous serious regressions and even kernel crashes after system upgrade.

I switched from Arch to FreeBSD about 5 years ago, never looked back. I am still running my first install of FreeBSD, which I keep up to date, no re-installs etc. How many Arch users are still running their very first Arch install? Given that it is a rolling distro. The difference with FreeBSD is, while the upgrade may require more steps, I use the same instructions every time, no deviations, no one off tweaks for special circumstances etc. The upgrade works first time, every time.

It's rare to meet people that are truly happy with their Linux distro of choice. They go through this honeymoon period where they will describe it as the best thing since sliced bread. Then they will discover and live with its flaws, then they get frustrated with it's flaws and distro hop. Rinse and repeat this process. I have had discussions with even the staunchest of distro followers, and like clock work a few years later their tune is different.

Last edited by blueprint (2014-01-12 22:48:48)

madnerves · 2014-01-14 11:29:16

I've chose it simply because, all distros should follow the directive lines of Arch Philosophy. Tried over 100 distributions (in fact I tried all the distros on distrowatch.com), and the only one that does really do what you want, the way it should be done and all that staying up to date (I mean package versions), is simply ArchLinux.

If you're new to Linux World, do learn by yourself, try to do common things with the command line, understand how it works, even with a debian or anything else, and when you'll be able to say that you don't like this or that, or that if you had designed the distro you'll have done it another way, you'll comeback to Arch because here, what's missing is simply what's the difference.

My opinion, if you ask the question, you're not able and ready for it. Just my opinion.

madnerves · 2014-01-14 11:33:00

I think blueprint that what's your explaining is simply what you were looking for. BSD and Linux is not exactly the same, if you under it, it means it suits your needs, not that Linux is not great or BSD is worst or better.
My experience, is that i'm still under the same installation since 2008, and except some tricks due to major changes, it works like a charm.
Anyway, everybody's got his opinion on what's better for him, but because you have a lot of money, doesn't mean you'll buy a porsche, if you prefer a simple bmw for example.
Cheers

mmix · 2014-01-17 11:37:51

installing latest glib make no trouble on arch,
so gitg-0.3.1, gedit-3.11.2 running fine.

nomorewindows · 2014-01-18 10:03:29

blueprint wrote:

quayasil wrote:
I switched from Gentoo to Arch a few years ago because:
- it was really KISS,
- it was a FreeBSD-like organized Linux distro too but it found it more consistent, simpler and more lightweight. The syntax of /etc/rc.conf was really ingenious!,
- IMHO not using any USE flags etc resulted in simpler bug tracking and stabilization.
Nowadays I'm thinking of returning to Gentoo or searching for a new distro based on good old Arch. The main problems with further using Arch are:
- systemd which I find a `let's make Linux like Windows but even better' idea,
- ignoring Unix *standards* in favor of `Linuxism' which is a consequence of the above,
- unsatisfactory package testing before making them available or trying to be too much up-to-date cutting edge. The result are numerous serious regressions and even kernel crashes after system upgrade.
I switched from Arch to FreeBSD about 5 years ago, never looked back. I am still running my first install of FreeBSD, which I keep up to date, no re-installs etc. How many Arch users are still running their very first Arch install? Given that it is a rolling distro. The difference with FreeBSD is, while the upgrade may require more steps, I use the same instructions every time, no deviations, no one off tweaks for special circumstances etc. The upgrade works first time, every time.
It's rare to meet people that are truly happy with their Linux distro of choice. They go through this honeymoon period where they will describe it as the best thing since sliced bread. Then they will discover and live with its flaws, then they get frustrated with it's flaws and distro hop. Rinse and repeat this process. I have had discussions with even the staunchest of distro followers, and like clock work a few years later their tune is different.

I've been able to install FreeBSD under qemu on i686 machines with IDE interfaces without any problem (with no extended partitions). Even though I have previously installed FreeBSD on my x86_64 machine with SATA drive, it goes through the installation, but won't boot. I remember the last time I tried it some time ago, it wouldn't do anything with my wifi card.Needed extra loader options to make it work. It wants to use my whole disk in MBR mode even though I already have Arch on there, so it must be my extended partitions it doesn't like.Converting to GPT made it work. OpenBSD works ok. Wasn't able to use external monitor with FreeBSD. So I guess it's stay with Arch time.

Last edited by nomorewindows (2014-01-23 21:50:58)

dunkles · 2014-03-01 19:54:54

1. rolling release
2. bleeding edge

But fail a hdd and now install antegros, i't archlinux with a installer of the 21st century

the text installer of arhlinux was good, but now... the install is a pain in the ass, with antegros it's much faster

ewaller · 2014-03-01 20:11:16

Dunkles,

I note that is the second post you have made in which you encourage the use of Antegros. Antegros is a fine Linux distribution, and I would encourage anyone who wishes to try it to do so. But, to be very clear, Antegros is not Arch Linux. These are the Arch Linux forums, not the Antegros forums. As a moderator, one of my charters is to ensure that these forums are an accurate technical resource for the users of Arch Linux.

Everyone is welcome to read these forums to obtain support for whatever distribution they happen to use. Also, users of other distributions are welcome to offer advice to these forums that is of use to Arch users. We cannot, however, entertain questions related to non Arch distributions; including any forks of Arch. These other distributions have differences from Arch. We do not know what those differences are, and we don't particularly care. As there are differences, and we do not know when those differences will bite us and create ambiguities in these forums, there are no exceptions to this policy.

I would point out also that the Arch Linux forums are not the place to promote other distributions. So please, let this be the last.

Thanks.

Last edited by ewaller (2014-03-01 20:11:41)

Jristz · 2014-03-02 04:44:31

because I want...
or why I remmain 3 years with the same distro and no reinstall?

yes, Arch is what I need and I no regetz-whatthever of it, no les no more.

Head_on_a_Stick · 2014-03-02 12:03:09

Complete control over every aspect of system setup,
Speed of bootup,
Arch wiki...
Just to note: two days ago I installed WattOS on my girlfriends laptop; great distro, very snappy & light, but the lxappearance application didnt operate consistently. Got frustrated & setup Arch on another partition, cloned the setup of microwatt & had lxappearance working perfectly plus it boots up in half the time -- says it all, I think...
EDIT: also infinality fonts are the most beautiful on-screen text redition I have ever seen -- quite amazing!

Last edited by Head_on_a_Stick (2014-03-02 12:07:50)

Arch Linux

#376 2013-10-02 01:13:44

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#377 2013-10-22 08:22:48

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#378 2013-10-23 10:56:36

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#379 2013-10-24 11:31:38

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#380 2013-10-25 18:30:37

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#381 2013-10-25 23:04:30

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#382 2013-10-26 02:27:38

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#383 2013-10-26 09:48:34

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#384 2013-12-01 11:28:58

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#385 2013-12-09 22:59:57

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#386 2013-12-16 22:06:32

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#387 2013-12-23 10:56:37

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#388 2013-12-23 17:02:16

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#389 2013-12-23 20:15:41

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#390 2014-01-09 14:59:53

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#391 2014-01-09 22:11:09

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#392 2014-01-12 22:44:54

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#393 2014-01-14 11:29:16

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#394 2014-01-14 11:33:00

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#395 2014-01-17 11:37:51

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#396 2014-01-18 10:03:29

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#397 2014-03-01 19:54:54

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#398 2014-03-01 20:11:16

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#399 2014-03-02 04:44:31

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

#400 2014-03-02 12:03:09

Re: why you choose ArchLinux?

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