Well, I've been using Linux for more than a year now. Have been doing a bunch of research bumping me from a noob to an advanced user :p. Well, my favourite all time distribution is SuSE. I have it on my desktop and my laptop which I bring to school since I don't trust Windows for mission critical data anyways. I haven't touched Windows for normal usage for months (since Linux got whacky on me). I only use my Windows partition for Gaming only now...

gnutux

I find it funny that most, if not all current distrobutions, have the same software with only minor personal tweeks, which all come from the same SORCE ;^>. yet the package managements between, lets say, RHFidora,Suse,Mandrivia all use .RPM and yet are not interchangeably compatable. but if you compile the sorces by hand and it wont/shouldn't matter. the only diffrence between each distro is how it interacts with the user but with tweeking that can always be changed ;^> .

Dear Folk, 2050806, I have to use Windows for work reasons on my desktop at home. I tried , some while ago to dual boot with Xantos - it distroyed my system and could not be undone, or at that time I had no ability to undo. I reformatted hard discs and reloaded Windows XP and then used Knoppix as my emergency system. However playing with live distros, I came across SLAX. I found it very good and use a reduced version (Slax Pineaple , old version as an emergency disc and travel use for e-mail / browisng with Firefox / Thunderbird. It is an excellent introduction to Linux.
Knoppix is better for hardware selection.

No live distro can find all my hard disc partitions with Windows Norton GoBack active, and I keep it active as it saves a lot of Windows problems.

I feel a need for a very good introdcution to say GRUB and explaination of how to undo any changes, if dual boot goes wrong, to get back to a running a Windows system, (as safety factor is paramount to remove fear in trying Linux). This would be the best way to introduce others to try Linux, before removing windows or co-existing with Windows

Regards
Eion MacDonald

This distro, Ubuntu/Kubuntu, of linux really should have been a part of the selection list. More and more people are turning to this wonderful Debian based distro. This distro is not only for the newbie, but also for the no nonsense high end user. Just set it up and get to work. :)

After using SuSE for a number of years, and prior to that Red Hat and Mandrake versions, this distro has got to be the best yet. The community support is unreal, the package updates are awesome, and you cannot beat the price.. free and will always be so. :)

If one is unsure about linux, or would like a clean change.. try out Ubuntu. :)

I have skirted around linux distros for a while but after installing ubuntu I was well and truely sold. I have installed Ubuntu on my kids computers (age 6 and 8) and they have had no problems with it at all. This has to be one of the best tests to show how far linux has come as an easy to use desktop system and not just a geek thing. Ubuntu has to be the best distro to date (Hoary Hedgehog)

Of all the Linux distributions, Mepis is easiest to install, has incredible hardware detection and is not bloated with applications. Because it is based on Debian, upgrading or adding new applications is simple via the Debian repositories and there is no "dependency hell".
Mepis was featured in your early issues, is the example used in the book "Point to Click", and has consistently rated in the top 5 in Distrowatch.
So, let's update the survey and add the true best.

Please add Ubuntu and Kubuntu as distrubutions available for Linux.

Why isn't Kubuntu the EXACT same as Ubuntu, except for the WM change?
It didn't come with Firefox standard. Ubuntu did. Kynaptic sucked. Synaptic was great (except for the crappy GTK style).

I might reccomend it to people. But I would like this to change first. Slack is the best for me, but for my friends I think Kubuntu might appeal as easier.

Wasn't listed, But i would recomend Ubuntu linux or kubuntu if you prefer KDE

http://www.ubuntulinux.org/

they will send you a cd Free No shipping.

i dont use SUSE because it is annoying. i dont like Yast and dislike the default stuff. They dont give you anything to start and it looks like windows to start.

Slackware gives most me everything i want, to start. If it isn't stable enough... Pat wont put it in. Which is why you use 2.4 kernel as the default in 10.1 . slack 11 will rock you all! I dont get annoying RPM problems and slapt-get keeps me up to date.

If you're not afraid of the console (a stupid thing to be) then try it out at least.

:) I think I'm through ranting about this.

i use archlinux. if you havent seen it or heard about you should check it out. very nice distro.

i use ubuntu
cool distr
off site

I've had a long association with SuSE but got rid of it since I upgraded to Windows XP. But now I've taken the plunge and completely uninstalled XP in favour of SuSE 9.3. That in turn was instrumental in converting me to Gnome which I hadn't tried before: Basically the KDE 3.4.0 in SuSE 9.3 is buggy with access to the floppy only through the Konsole and sound from the CD players non-existent. So I reinstalled with Gnome and SuSE 9.3 ran perfectly out of the box.

Ubuntu has been rated the most popular disto (by page hits) on Distrowatch for over eight months. Leaving it off the list is a serious oversite.

You should add Minislack to the list. It is focused on Desktop usage.

It is quickly climbing the ranks, for good reason.

I use and prefer Kubuntu. I'm a newbie and I first tried to install Mandriva but had lots of problems. After about ten days of frustration I gave up and switched to Ubuntu. It worked fine, but I prefer KDE to Gnome so I switched to Kubuntu. It works great and I don't have any complaints, so I'm sticking with Kubuntu.

by the looks of the results so far you've left out some crucial distros from this poll.

Ubuntu is the hottest thing since sliced bread and should have been in there

UBUNTU. Hands down the best. Fast, powerful, expandable, and extremely easy to use, built on Debian. Im sad to see that its not posted here as a choice, so I wont be voting...

hard but not to hard thats why it rules

I think ubuntu should be in the list!!!! For me it is the best distro.
Congratulatios for the web site.

Libranet, Xandros, Yoper and Linspire made the list, but not Ubuntu?

Given that RedHat is so far down the list, Yoper has more votes than it, and both Gentoo and Slackware are scoring pretty well, the credibility of the poll is a little (ahem) questionable.

Dave.

Slackware forever! That`s all I say after few year with Linux, trying many distros. I allways came home to Slack.

Slackware has many things from BSD in it. That means, its better build. KISS is the motto. Tarballs are easy to use and not as hard to find as RPM users think. Slapt-get rocks. Once it is updated ( whether it'll be 10.2 or 11, no one knows). There is a reason that it is the longest running distro around. It was my first distro. It was the nicest one that still kept KDE-centric. Kubuntu was okay, but I had to install the Ubuntu stuff to get full advantage of it. SuSE was annoying and bare. Fedora Core seemed to say, "Look at me! I'm nothing like Unix! Use GNOME!" Sorry, but the Slack will still be my favorite.

ubuntu no#1

I have 5 years of experiences in using linux.. tuxmagazine should include CRUX, its a lightweight linux distro aim for advance user.. its fast and secure..

I'm shocked MEPIS wasn't listed in this poll, as well as PCLinuxOS and Kubuntu/Ubuntu. IMHO these are the 3 best distros presently being offered.

Hi All
I dont know how to use linux so it really does not really matter what linux i use.I prefer windows XP as it is more easy than Linux.
I love Linux because it is different.But it needs to take a big change.
By the way i use Fedora Core 3 now. Previously i was using elx bix desk 4, Knopics,FC1,Red hat 9( worst of all ).

-Ram

Why was Mepis not included in the pole???
Considering there were several good articles on Mepis in this issue, an easier distro to setup I haven’t found. The Mepis Livecd is meant to allow you to test a linux distro on your machine. If all goes well, it’s also intended to install Mepis on your hard drive, again simplicity itself.

Tyro

http://mepislovers.org/

One word:

Damn Small Linux

I am using Kanotix 2005.3 as my operating system and kde for my desktop . Kanotix is the best of all. It is a live cd, so no install is needed it can run from the cd. It also has a install script so it can be installed to your hard drive. And best of all it is built on the solid Debian distribution. It has a very active user forum and is in very active development.

Ubuntu is where it's at! The power and stability of Debian with great usability!

pclinuxos is the best of ALL.