[gentoo-user] Re: Gentoo is the best linux distro

[Grant Edwards]

On 2012-09-12, Alex Schuster <wonko@×××××××××.org> wrote:

> It takes some more time though to maintain it, compared to the other
> distros.

My experience is the opposite.  Before Gentoo, I used mainly RPM-based
distros (first RedHat, then later Mandrake).

I find Gentoo requires much less maintenance effort than RH or
Mandrake did.  RH and Mandrake were fine right after install, but they
gradually deteriorate over time. Eventually you get to the point where
everytime you need to install or update something you end up in RPM
dependancy hell: package A requires one version of a library but
package B requires a different version.  You then spend _days_ trying
to find a compatible combination of applicaation and library RPMs.
This continues to get worse and worse over time, until...

... there's a major version upgrade.  Upgrading between major versions
always failed miserably, so you end up having to do a reinstall from
scratch every couple years.

None of that is a problem with Gentoo.  Occasionally, an upgrade
requires some tweaking of keywords or use-flags, but it's nothing like
the RPM dependancy hell and major-upgrade fiascos I had to put up with
from other distros.

I also used Debian on a few machines. They tended to be less hassle
than the RPM-based machines, but they were fairly minimalist server
machines (no X, no "desktop environments", no monster application
packages, just mail servers for a couple mailboxes).

> And the installation is much more complicated of course.

The installation itself is more complex, but when you're done the
system works.  With CentOS and Fedora Core, there's always hours of
futzing around after the install trying to get things like networking
running.  For most things, anything other than the one or two cases
allowed by the installer turns out to be a mess.  Don't get me started
on RedHat's two completely separate network configuration subsystems
that don't get along with each other...

And try telling Ubunto to install the bootloader in something other
than the MBR.  It gives you that option if you click enough buttons,
then it claims to have done it, but it just doesn't work...

-- 
Grant Edwards               grant.b.edwards        Yow! I threw up on my
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