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#1 2016-09-07 18:56:53

garchws
Member
Registered: 2015-10-31
Posts: 18

What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

Does anybody have any idea what the rough breakdown is between Arch, Ubuntu, etc?

Right now Ubuntu claims it has 40 MM users. This seems quite high (probably inflated).

I'm wondering how many users of other Linux distros there are (esp. Arch Linux). I'm only thinking about laptop/desktop OS right now (not mobile devices).

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#2 2016-09-07 19:31:29

circleface
Member
Registered: 2012-05-26
Posts: 639

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

There is basically no way to measure this, especially with arch.  If you don't have to register the product, there is no way to count.  I could download the iso one time, then install it on 20 computers.  Your guess is as good as mine.

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#3 2016-09-07 19:39:48

2ManyDogs
Forum Moderator
Registered: 2012-01-15
Posts: 4,645

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

And assuming it could be known, how is this information useful? I hope this isn't another "Arch needs to attract more users" thread.


How to post. A sincere effort to use modest and proper language and grammar is a sign of respect toward the community.

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#4 2016-09-07 21:01:16

WorMzy
Forum Moderator
From: Scotland
Registered: 2010-06-16
Posts: 11,787
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Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

garchws wrote:

I'm wondering how many users of other Linux distros there are (esp. Arch Linux).

There are at least 10.

Hope this helps.


On a serious note, the only statistics we have are here: https://www.archlinux.de/?page=Statistics

Note that pkgstats is completely optional, so any information on the statistics pages is not a perfect representation of Arch or it's users.


Sakura:-
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#5 2016-09-07 21:25:22

Allan
Pacman
From: Brisbane, AU
Registered: 2007-06-09
Posts: 11,365
Website

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

We are the 1%.

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#6 2016-09-07 22:29:29

ngoonee
Forum Fellow
From: Between Thailand and Singapore
Registered: 2009-03-17
Posts: 7,354

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

Allan wrote:

We are the 1%.

I think you overestimate...


Allan-Volunteer on the (topic being discussed) mailn lists. You never get the people who matters attention on the forums.
jasonwryan-Installing Arch is a measure of your literacy. Maintaining Arch is a measure of your diligence. Contributing to Arch is a measure of your competence.
Griemak-Bleeding edge, not bleeding flat. Edge denotes falls will occur from time to time. Bring your own parachute.

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#7 2016-09-08 08:57:46

ayekat
Member
Registered: 2011-01-17
Posts: 1,589

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

WorMzy wrote:

There are at least 10¹.

¹ LICENCE AGREEMENT: The recipient of this information is free to choose the numerical base as he or she wishes. The information is provided WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of BASE TEN.

Last edited by ayekat (2016-09-08 08:58:07)


pkgshackscfgblag

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#8 2016-09-08 13:45:28

zerophase
Member
Registered: 2015-09-03
Posts: 228

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

Allan wrote:

We are the 1%.

Isn't that Gentoo?

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#9 2016-09-08 15:05:11

tlaloc
Member
From: Lower Saxony
Registered: 2006-05-12
Posts: 359

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

Well, we do have some sources (such as this: https://dev.archlinux.org/~dan/archstats.svg). A little bit outdated, and I really wish that Dan would have made his script public). Then, there is Distrowatch, but no one gives a damn on clicks at Distrowatch, right? Don't trust any stats which you haven't faked yourselves.

So the best answer to the OP would be: We don't have a clue, and we simply don't care.

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#10 2016-09-08 16:24:42

lightdot
Member
Registered: 2014-04-22
Posts: 22

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

tlaloc wrote:

... A little bit outdated ...

These graphs are really interesting. If there is any chance of updates, that would be great.

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#11 2016-09-12 12:49:52

whitelight999
Banned
Registered: 2016-05-17
Posts: 16

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

.

Last edited by whitelight999 (2016-10-15 17:32:39)

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#12 2016-09-12 13:02:10

ayekat
Member
Registered: 2011-01-17
Posts: 1,589

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

whitelight999 wrote:

You would think/hope that everyone who installed and uses arch or at least majority of them would at least  sign up to the forum?

I know more Arch user IRL who have not signed up for the forums than users who have.
Also, there are other communication channels like IRC, the mailing lists, the wiki, ... (so people can still participate in the community without being involved in the forums at all).

Also, concerning DistroWatch: I don't even know how it works, and so far my life with Linux has been pretty OK without knowing it. I assume that I'm not the only one. So +1 for

tlaloc wrote:

Then, there is Distrowatch, but no one gives a damn on clicks at Distrowatch, right?


pkgshackscfgblag

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#13 2016-09-12 13:04:36

Trilby
Inspector Parrot
Registered: 2011-11-29
Posts: 29,449
Website

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

whitelight999 wrote:

You would think/hope that everyone who installed and uses arch or at least majority of them would at least  sign up to the forum?

The rest of your post makes good sense - but I competely disagree with this.  I can't comment on the 'hope' part - that seems much more a statement of personal preference than of any measure of reality.  The 'think' part, however, is where I completely disagree.  Given any hobby, interest, bit of software, fetish, etc, only an exceedingly small percentage of those who partake would also join a web forum about the subject.


"UNIX is simple and coherent..." - Dennis Ritchie, "GNU's Not UNIX" -  Richard Stallman

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#14 2016-09-12 13:12:40

2ManyDogs
Forum Moderator
Registered: 2012-01-15
Posts: 4,645

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

whitelight999 wrote:

This forum  has 75,000 registered users. it says at bottom of main page.
You would think/hope that everyone who installed and uses arch or at least majority of them would at least  sign up to the forum?

Accounts are not deleted when they become inactive, and there is no requirement that people who register for the forum actually use Arch, so some percentage of the registered forum users may not still be using Arch or may have never used it.

Last edited by 2ManyDogs (2016-09-12 13:13:02)


How to post. A sincere effort to use modest and proper language and grammar is a sign of respect toward the community.

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#15 2016-09-12 18:28:21

eschwartz
Fellow
Registered: 2014-08-08
Posts: 4,097

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

And some of the registered users actually turn out to be using Ubuntu or Fedora (and usually get permabanned pretty quickly when they keep trying to get help for other distros).


Managing AUR repos The Right Way -- aurpublish (now a standalone tool)

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#16 2016-09-12 19:18:36

2ManyDogs
Forum Moderator
Registered: 2012-01-15
Posts: 4,645

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

Eschwartz wrote:

And some of the registered users actually turn out to be using Ubuntu or Fedora (and usually get permabanned pretty quickly when they keep trying to get help for other distros).

I think banned users still count as "registered users" though... (-:

The point being that the number of registered forum users is completely useless as any measure of the actual number of Arch users.

Last edited by 2ManyDogs (2016-09-12 19:20:00)


How to post. A sincere effort to use modest and proper language and grammar is a sign of respect toward the community.

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#17 2016-09-12 19:55:41

eschwartz
Fellow
Registered: 2014-08-08
Posts: 4,097

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

Excellent -- it sounds like we are in agreement! On all counts...


Managing AUR repos The Right Way -- aurpublish (now a standalone tool)

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#18 2016-09-25 15:15:51

whitelight999
Banned
Registered: 2016-05-17
Posts: 16

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

.

Last edited by whitelight999 (2016-10-15 17:33:09)

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#19 2016-09-25 15:24:16

Scimmia
Fellow
Registered: 2012-09-01
Posts: 11,466

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

whitelight999 wrote:

Distrowatch says Manjaro Linux(5) is more popular than Arch(10)?

Among people that go to distrowatch, I have no doubt that's true.

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#20 2016-10-16 20:06:04

ojas
Member
Registered: 2016-10-15
Posts: 4

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

It would be possible to get a rough count by checking for the amount of distinct IP addresses connecting to package mirrors.

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#21 2016-10-16 22:24:29

Morn
Member
Registered: 2012-09-02
Posts: 886

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

The Linux counter (https://www.linuxcounter.net/statistics/distributions) has registered 4,733 Arch machines vs 39,400 Ubuntu machines. Their guess for the total number of Linux users is about 88 million.

So, if Ubuntu really has 40 million users and using the machine distribution ratio, there should be about 4.8 million Arch users, equal to about 5.5% of all Linux users.

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#22 2016-10-17 02:36:19

ngoonee
Forum Fellow
From: Between Thailand and Singapore
Registered: 2009-03-17
Posts: 7,354

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

Morn wrote:

The Linux counter (https://www.linuxcounter.net/statistics/distributions) has registered 4,733 Arch machines vs 39,400 Ubuntu machines. Their guess for the total number of Linux users is about 88 million.

So, if Ubuntu really has 40 million users and using the machine distribution ratio, there should be about 4.8 million Arch users, equal to about 5.5% of all Linux users.

All the stats you've quoted have varying degrees of possible error/uncertainty, but this one is the most uncertain smile. Giant pile of salt needed.

As far as I'm concerned, Arch has about 200 users max. That is to say, people whom others would notice if they stopped using Arch.


Allan-Volunteer on the (topic being discussed) mailn lists. You never get the people who matters attention on the forums.
jasonwryan-Installing Arch is a measure of your literacy. Maintaining Arch is a measure of your diligence. Contributing to Arch is a measure of your competence.
Griemak-Bleeding edge, not bleeding flat. Edge denotes falls will occur from time to time. Bring your own parachute.

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#23 2016-10-17 04:11:46

basica
Member
From: Australia
Registered: 2012-10-31
Posts: 217

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

Morn wrote:

So, if Ubuntu really has 40 million users and using the machine distribution ratio, there should be about 4.8 million Arch users, equal to about 5.5% of all Linux users.

I would find it hard to believe that Arch has 4.8 million users. Even a number in the hundreds of thousands would surprise me.

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#24 2016-10-17 10:20:31

Morn
Member
Registered: 2012-09-02
Posts: 886

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

5% doesn't sound too far-fetched to me as a guesstimate, but it is probably an upper bound. Arch Linux is currently the #10 distro on http://distrowatch.com/, which is not too shabby. So I would definitely think that the number of Arch users has to fall between 1% and 5% of all Linux users.

I'm just a bit puzzled why Mint is ranked so low in the Linux Counter stats and yet so highly on Distrowatch. Maybe some of the reported Ubuntu machines on LC are actually running Mint.

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#25 2016-10-17 14:56:55

fsckd
Forum Fellow
Registered: 2009-06-15
Posts: 4,173

Re: What percentage of Linux OS users are using Arch?

Morn wrote:

5% doesn't sound too far-fetched to me as a guesstimate, but it is probably an upper bound. Arch Linux is currently the #10 distro on http://distrowatch.com/, which is not too shabby. So I would definitely think that the number of Arch users has to fall between 1% and 5% of all Linux users.

DistroWatch stats are very misleading. Don't judge anything by them.


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