Introducing Linux Distros

The first barrier that a new Linux user has to face is the overwhelming number of “flavors” that this operating system has. These “flavors” are commonly known as distros (from distribution), and to date there are more than three hundred active distros to choose from. So, how to choose one? You can choose the most popular at the moment, or take heed of what your friend says, but are you sure that this is the one that you need? Making the wrong decision on this matter is behind a good number of disappointments with this operating system. You need to choose the distro that is right for you and your needs.

Introducing Linux Distros teaches you the pros and the cons of the most frequently used distros in order to find the one that is right for you. You will explore each distro step by step, so that you don’t have to endure hours of web surfing, countless downloads, becoming confused by new concepts and, in the worst cases, reading complex and marathon installation guides. You will benefit from the author’s long-term experience working with each distro hands on, enabling you to choose the best distro for your long-term needs.

Linux offers us a wonderful open source alternative to proprietary software, and using Introducing Linux Distros you can decide how to best make it work for you. Start exploring the open source world today.

Table of Contents

Part 1: Linux Distros
Chapter 1: Deconstructing a Linux Distro
Chapter 2: Linux Distro Selection Criteria
Chapter 3: The Linux Distro Family Tree

Part 2: General Purpose Distros
Chapter 4: Ubuntu
Chapter 5: Fedora
Chapter 6: Debian
Chapter 7: openSUSE
Chapter 8: Linux Mint
Chapter 9: Mageia
Chapter 10: elementary OS
Chapter 11: Arch Linux
Chapter 12: Gentoo Linux
Chapter 13: Slackware
Chapter 14: NixOS
Chapter 15: Other Alternatives

Part 3: Task-Oriented Distros
Chapter 16: Task-Oriented Distros