[cybermole]

Hey all. I'll cut to the chase.

I'm interested in using Linux as my operating system when I'm programming. Simply because I do a lot of work in Assembly language, and Windows does not like the fact I like talking to hardware without using it as the middle-man.

So like many budding programmers before me, I've decided Linux is the way to go. But I have no idea which distribution is best for me. I've looked into them, but I thought I'd ask you guys, since you're programmers too:

What's your favorite Linux distribution? And why?

[Amadeus]

Well, this could generate a lot of discussion, so I'll try and keep mine short.

I've run a bunch over the years, and was always a Debian man - I found it easy to work with, easy to set up, and it's package system was a godsend.

I now use one of the Debian offshoots - Ubuntu. Smooth and easy.

[William_Wilson]

yup, i have Debian installed right now for school purposes, but once i'm finished this course i am putting ubuntu back on myself.

[Thorian]

I use Mac OS X but for the boy im using Edubuntu

Yep getting the kid started out right

[tody4me]

I have tried a few different distros also, and I keep going back to Gentoo (also Debian based). Gentoo takes a LOT longer to install, but I think it's worth it because it's completely customized to your exact configuration.

[GWatt]

I prefer the Fedora Core Line of OSes. The reasons are that the latest Fedora version is up-to-date on just about everything. Bleeding edge of software. It's also plenty customizable. Although, if you have some money lying around, get a mac. Nothing beats them for looks and UI.

[rahulbatra]

CentOS 4.x. Stable and usable.

[Nova Dragoon]

I use Fedora, it just fits me I guess, and it is the one I am most familiar with and most comfortable with. I have also run long stints of Debian/Ubuntu and Gentoo.

[Mrafcho001]

openSuSE and Madriva for me

[Israel]

Definitely a Debian & Ubuntu fan. I like Knoppix, but I've found that I keep coming back to Mepis. It has excellent hardware support and is very user friendly compared to other versions of Linux. The later versions use Ubuntu and Debian sources. I've found the forum at mepislovers.org to be extremely helpful.

[beef]

Started with Ubuntu, experimented with a few others and settled for openSUSE.

[max302]

I use Fedora Core 5 on my server, works fine, but I regret wanting to try out KDE. KDE is the devil. Also, I know somebody that helps maintain nUbuntu, and I'm pretty much doomed to try out an Ubuntu based distro when I find drivers to go with my wireless card on my laptop or if I buy another computer.

I think that Fedora Core or kUbuntu is the way to go if you're new to linux.

[DilutedImage]

I just loaded up Slackware 11 on my laptop. I haven't had a chance to play with it a whole lot yet, to compare it with older versions, but so far it seems to hold true to the Slackware legend. I'm glad I loaded it.

2¢

[CyberCoder]

It solemnly depends on what purposes you need it for. I use linux for security testing, so I am using a distro named backtrack (nicknamed: bt) that evolved from slackware (nicknamed: slax). I'd recommend slackware though and not backtrack, because the slackware contains all of it's features and not just the best of it. For example, in backtrack they removed essential modules such as video4linux which prevents a webcam from being detected in messenger.

This post has been edited by CyberCoder: 29 March 2007 - 01:50 AM

[1lacca]

A long time ago (8years?) a friend installed me RedHat but I've never really started using it, and I knew nothing about it's configuration.
A few years later I've installed Debian myself, and I am using it since then. I was thinking about changing to Ubunto or Gentoo, but only time will tell if it's gonna happen...