Help me find a fitting distro

Hello there!

After some lurking on r/Unixporn and its Discord, I'm more and more tempted to try Linux as a daily driver. While I'm by no means a pro, I've been using WSL at work the past year and generally I can fiddle around finding solutions when something doesn't work.

These being said, the main requirements I would have from a distro is to be able to run League of Legends (saw that it's pretty straight forward using Lutris) and not be insanely complex from the get-go (wouldn't want to jump straight into something like Arch), I intend to use something like Hyprland.

So far I am split between OpenSuse Tumbleweed, NixOS, Fedora and EndeavourOS, but would gladly hear alternatives.

LE: Read (and tried to reply to) most messages. I will come back with an update once I decide my pick and see how it goes. Thanks everyone!

lynny,
@lynny@lemmy.world avatar

If you aren't familiar with Linux yet at all I would suggest a Mint. You can think about using stuff like Nix after you're a but not familiar with the way Unix-likes work.

Balssh,
Balssh avatar

I'm a bit familiar with Linux, but not that familiar I would be able to use Arch straight from the get-go.

Xeelee,
Xeelee avatar

Mint is perfect for getting started. And unless you have very specific requirements or like tinkering is just fine as a daily driver. It just works and doesn't get in the way. I've been using it for years and never had any reason to try anything else.

nlm,
@nlm@beehaw.org avatar

Of those I think I'd recommend Tumbleweed, it's a great polished distribution with some extra helpful administrative tools (yast for instance). It's rolling but feels as stable as a normal dist to me.

The others are far from bad though! I just have a soft spot for suse and opensuse :)

Ubuntu or pop_os could be nice starting choices as well since they're so big and well supported.

Balssh,
Balssh avatar

Not really fancying about Ubuntu to be honest.

Do you have any Tumbleweed tips/hints? (˵ •̀ ᴗ - ˵ ) ✧

Reorder9543,

Not the other person, but openSUSE is amazing. You just have to add the Packman repos as explained on their wiki. Haven’t used it for gaming and such yet so can’t really give more specific tips regarding that.

QuImUfu,

The btrfs rollback feature is also a huge pro, allowing experimentation without any real risk.

Jarmer,
Jarmer avatar

Also recommend Tumbleweed. I've distro hopped for many years, and currently am using Tumbleweed and have no plans of leaving soon. It really is the best I've ever used.

I wouldn't recommend doing a Hyperland setup right away on first time ever using linux. Just run with KDE or Gnome for a while until you're comfy then you can try Hyperland. The reason I say this is check this page:

https://wiki.hyprland.org/Useful-Utilities/Must-have/

"Must Have
This page documents software that is critical / very important to have running for a smooth Wayland / Hyprland experience.
DEs like KDE / Gnome will do this automatically, Hyprland will not (because you might want to use something else)
A notification daemon
Starting method: most likely manual (exec-once)
Many apps (e.g. Discord) may freeze without one running."

So you have to do a LOT more setup and configs to get Hyperland up and running. Just use KDE lol. Tumbleweed rocks with Plasma.

fr0g,

Those all sound like good distributions to me. Although I would probably scratch NixOS off that list if you don't want to start out with something complex. It is an extremely unique distro which does things very differently than most distros. Which isn't a bad thing, but unless that's specifically what you're looking for, I'd probably choose something more traditional as first distro.

Balssh,
Balssh avatar

Thanks man ╰(´꒳`)╯

fr0g,

Of the remaining ones I'd say Fedora is probably the safest bet. Not as cutting edge as the other two, but well engineered and stable.
Rolling releases like Tumbleweed and Endeavour can be more interesting and partifularly good for gaming because they always have the newest stuff and patches and performance improvements. Which can also bite you a bit in the back though if you have an Nvidia graphics card. Nvidia doesn't play too well with open source and they don't put a lot of effort into it, so the newest versions of their drivers occasionally break or do stupid stuff. Which isn't a big deal if you have a system that can rollback (tumbleweed can, dunno about endeavour) but might be a bit annoying sometimes

Limitless_screaming,
Limitless_screaming avatar

I don't think NixOS is a good option because you'll have to learn a lot more than any other distro. Tumbleweed and EndeavourOS are good , for more graphical tools you could also consider Manjaro and maybe switch to unstable if you want more up-to-date packages, but I am a little biased as you can see.

Balssh,
Balssh avatar

Also heard about Manjaro, but from what I've seen several people say it's not ideal.

Limitless_screaming, (edited )
Limitless_screaming avatar

The maintainers have slipped up a couple of times, mostly their website's SSL certificate expiring, but it has never affected me really.

people will usually send you to this lovely website but it's been a while since the maintainer's last felony.

If you're concerned about the stability of the AUR then you could simply switch Manjaro to Unstable, so that the repos are synched with Arch.

InFerNo,

Manjaro considers Arch unstable, but itself stable?

Limitless_screaming,
Limitless_screaming avatar

No:

Unmodifed packages synced from Arch repo are considered stable as they have already been vetted by Archlinux Community.

It considers the AUR, and Manjaro's new tools unstable when they enter the unstable branch. Please read the notes.

clobubba,

deleted_by_author

    •
    Trebach,

    But then they release it and ask in the forums "We released a new update. Did we break anything for you?" instead of actually performing integration testing.

    Limitless_screaming, (edited )
    Limitless_screaming avatar

    No matter how much you test, you'll never hit every edge case.

    Just let users tell you what problems they faced, put their feedback under the update page on the forum, users open the forum page for the update they're about to install and they see all the problems people faced, it's a very good idea.

    camelbeard,

    Thanks I have been using Manjaro for a few years now and like it, but didn't know about those issues. Like how aur scripts are not checked. Maybe it's time to switch around again.

    The only reason I switched from Mint to Manjaro was that my new laptops video card wasn't supported (like mint wouldn't boot). But that was a few years ago, so it's probably not an issue anymore.

    I used to like Ubuntu but hated Unity and hate snap.

    Limitless_screaming,
    Limitless_screaming avatar

    I couldn't boot Linux Mint unless I switched from UEFI to Legacy so after 2months of using it I switched to Fedora and then Manjaro.

    To this day Kali Linux and Linux Mint cannot boot on my device if it's using UEFI. I tried searching around, asked on forums and nothing came out of that, it's really weird.

    Trebach,

    Linux Mint turned snap off back in 2020 and replaced the snap packages with debs again.

    Gex,

    Ubuntu?

    epocsquadron,
    epocsquadron avatar

    If you’re going to go as far as configuring a desktop from scratch with Hyprland, I really recommend considering Arch. Most of the distros you mentioned bring their own desktop environments and all the resources are around using them that way — I wouldn’t want to modify Fedora into an Sddm + Hyprland setup. You’re going to end up on the arch wiki at some point, because that has some of the best help content for this style of computing, so you’d be having an easier time. Arch gives you everything you need to make it yours without learning anything specific to arch (unlike NixOS where you need to learn Linux underlying setup AND a functional language for configuring your system that fights where all your software expects to be). Yeah, you’ll need to make a lot of decisions for installation, but you’ve already made the decision to go with Hyprland for a compositor, and you can keep the internals simple - unencrypted, ext4 file system, systemd-boot - and get to the fun parts.

    Alternatively if you just want to get to gaming, Fedora Silverblue and flatpak steam/lutris and you should be golden.

    Balssh,
    Balssh avatar

    Thanks for the detailed response!

    sadreality,

    Mint or popos for pro nomie gamers...

    vanquesse,
    vanquesse avatar

    I switched from win11 to pop_os this week. I've had a good deal of linux exposure but most of that was in the '00s. As such I don't have familiarity with any other distro in recent times, but I would not recommend people start out with pop. It feels not quite ready for prime-time yet. It would probably be perfect to try after you've had a bit of experience.

    sadreality,

    Thank you for heads up. What are your concerns?

    I also recently switched and Pop was my first choice; however, I could not get it install, it would get stuck with some weird error where it could not load core files from my flash drive.

    So I went Mint, no problems really besides having some BT disconnects from my xbox controller. Still working on fixing it.

    Otherwise, I am doing what I need to do and gaming like a Chad. Kept Win10 for CoD and BF. However, I am not playing them much anymore, might just go full Linux over next few months.

    vanquesse,
    vanquesse avatar

    It's a pretty young distro so there's some stuff missing or not working. My main issue (beyond struggling to install it due to a wrongly setup usb that would fail at the end of the install for no discernable reason) is window snapping not working properly on monitors in portrait orientation.
    But I've had a few times where stuff should work but didn't with no feedback from the OS. It feels like a beta version that's almost ready for release.

    roadkill,
    roadkill avatar

    deleted_by_author

    •
    rokejulianlockhart,
    rokejulianlockhart avatar

    I find that most of its user-friendlyness is due to every app having at least a .deb version, whereas no guarantee exists that a .rpm will exist, much less anything else.

    aegisgfx877,
    aegisgfx877 avatar

    Mint is the best ubuntu derivative that I have seen and I use it for a lot of installs. Its easy to upgrade and maintain, easy to use, rock solid. Great overall distro for desktop or server

    jabeez,

    Kubuntu or KDE Neon (also a 'buntu). I absolutely love KDE, and the Linux desktop experience in general has come a long, loooonnng ways in recent years.

    rokejulianlockhart,
    rokejulianlockhart avatar

    Is Kubuntu with KDE backports or KDE Neon better?

    Trebach,

    Depends on if you want the new shiny on things other than KDE.

    KDE Neon is Ubuntu 22.04.1 but the newest KDE stuff all the time. The base system won't upgrade until 24.04.1 in November 2024. There's still updates like a regular LTS though.

    cassetti,

    As others have mentioned, Linux Mint is my preferred distro.

    knubuntu is awesome if you like/need KDE, but Gnome works well enough for my needs these days.

    I installed Linux Mint on a computer for my (computer illiterate) big brother a decade ago and I'm pretty sure he's still running that computer. Just helped a veteran friend who had a 5 year old lenovo laptop dual boot a fresh copy of Linux Mint and he's tickled - it's restored function to his old laptop and it recognized all the hardware to my surprise - even when he tapped the screen and the touch screen responded (I was not expecting that, coming from Linux 10-15 years ago lol).

    I'm seriously considering dual-booting to Linux mint myself as my high end Windows10 HP Envy 32-inch AIO PC has always been glitchy from day-one (computer will randomly freeze up once or twice a month with the GPU fan spinning up to high speed for no reason).

    I hadn't made the switch because Windows was easier from a productivity standpoint, but that has quickly changed. Windows is trying to inject more advertising while getting more buggy with every update. I'd rather play with a stable version of Linux Mint these days

    aegisgfx877,
    aegisgfx877 avatar

    Mint is excellent, its one of the most stable distros I have found as well as being fleshed out and easy to use. Would I prefer it was based on straight debian instead of ubuntu, yup. But it isnt so I just live with that.

    draoda,
    draoda avatar

    Mint does have their Debian Edition https://linuxmint.com/download_lmde.php

    rokejulianlockhart,
    rokejulianlockhart avatar

    Kubuntu has never been stable for me, and it nuked my father's installation a few months ago 3 days after installation.

    cassetti,

    Wow! Thanks for that feedback. I've heard about Kubuntu for years but never took the leap

    StarChip,

    I have been using Mint as a daily driver for years now and loving it. Started off dual-booting with Win10, then pretty soon barely ever booted to Windows. I think it's a nice place to start.

    Wheeljack,

    Use Ubuntu until you have a first-hand reason why you should use something else.

    It's not perfect, but it's still the 800 lb gorilla, and it's what things have the least chance of not working with. It has the most eyes on it and the most immediate solutions when you google a problem.

    If you don't like Gnome, then use Kubuntu.

    riidom,
    riidom avatar

    To add to this: Try to avoid adding software via the software center, instead prefer flatpak, appimage or plain .deb if there is no alternatives. (Application) software in the official repos is often outdated.

    I also wanna stress the point that you should not only research different distros, but also whether you would prefer KDE or Gnome. There are other desktops, but for your first time, I'd go as mainstream as possible.

    rokejulianlockhart, (edited )
    rokejulianlockhart avatar

    I have tried Debian, (K)Ubuntu, Fedora, and OpenSUSE Tumbleweed. For myself, I use OSTW, because it supports both x86 and x64 (regarding UEFI and/or CPU) which I need due to my mess of really old and really new devices. Also, YaST (like Windows' Control Panel) is absolutely wonderful when I just want to get something done now and graphically. Also, due to its quick update release cadence, I get the newest updates immediately. It lacks a few important packages despite/due to this though, like WayDroid, so if you use the Windows Subsystem for Android, use Fedora instead.

    OSTW also isn't 100% stable. There is the occasional bug. The Fedora KDE Spin, on the other hand, because it by default isn't a rolling release distribution (its release cycle is more like Windows stable, whereas OSTW's is like Windows Insider Dev/Canary) it's amazingly stable. It is very barebones though when compared to OSTW, since it doesn't have any custom distribution-specific features at all, not even YaST, so you'd need to be vaguely more familiar with the commandline unless you can find 3rd-party graphical apps for everuthing you want to do. This is probably possible, but I don't bother since I have YaST.

    I'm not going to recommend Debian to you, because until last month, it didn't even come with proprietary drivers by default, and the technically-not-yet-official image with them in is hard to find. It's also very much an LTS distribution. However, it wasn't on your radar anyway.

    NixOS is though, and whilst an incredibly stable distribution that's been around for ages and has undoubtedly the best (cross-platform! yes, it works on Windows too) package manager, it needs basic technical skill to configure. I have no idea whether you have that.

    hyperspace,
    hyperspace avatar

    I've recently switched to NixOS and I'm loving it. I'd say that it's as much of a learning curve as Arch, but without the breakage when you screw something up.

    You install all your packages and do all your configuration from the main config file. Should something somehow break you can simply switch to an older generation (a state of your computer, basically) and go on with your day. Also, if you configure something incorrectly it will warn you and refuse to apply it. You can even check the config file into git and keep track of your changes!

    The new terminology can be pretty daunting, especially when people start talking about flakes. My suggestion is to simply avoid those until they've matured.

    I can't comment on it's ability to game, but I'd definitely give it a try :D

    Balssh,
    Balssh avatar

    That's what appealed to me with NIX, the fact that you can't really break it. I am not so keen on reinstalling something like Arch a hundred times just because I forgot to do a step at the right time ╮（￣▽￣）╭

    rankshank,

    My NixOS install games as well as my Arch one does. Actually better than it since the latest Steam UI update.

    I'd definitely recommend against starting with NixOS. Learning resources are way more sparse than something like Arch. Things like the division with flakes and the fact that everyone sets up their configuration differently means that finding examples that work in your config when you're starting out is even harder. Combined with learning how to setup a Linux system is too much for a beginner imo.

    If OP is really interested in Nix they should install the Nix package manager on another working Linux installation so they can learn at their own pace.

    Balssh,
    Balssh avatar

    Fair points, thanks!

    genoxidedev1,
    genoxidedev1 avatar

    I think if you want something aesthetic you could give Garuda Linux a try/look it's based on Arch linux but not as complex as far as I remember. I used it for a while on my laptop. They also got a suite that should ease gaming.

    tikitaki,
    tikitaki avatar

    I vote Fedora

    I've tried lots of different ones. Arch is cool if you really wanna set up your system how you like it. But Fedora works well right out of the box and updates don't break the system. Keep in mind.. I'm a Gnome-ist. I think it's the best WM for Linux.

    lifebeyondwalls,

    Seconding Fedora, as it’s very polished while not adding extra cruft to the UI that isn’t needed. I honestly prefer apt as a package manager, but stick with Fedora because the user experience is just so darn good.

    captainsiscold,
    captainsiscold avatar

    I'll give a third to Fedora, it's definitely a good option (though I'll admit I prefer KDE to Gnome, so I tend to go with the Fedora KDE spin). I'd also agree with several of the other commenters suggesting Linux Mint. It's a pretty good distro to get started on, and the Cinnamon desktop environment is reasonably familiar to those coming from a Windows background.

    Notamoosen,
    Notamoosen avatar

    As you can see there's lots of excellent choices. Check out distrosea.com if you want to get a feel for different ones without installing. FWIW I prefer Fedora and RPM based distros as I've found their hardware support to be a bit better than Debian based. This is just personal experience though so your's may differ. Please report back on what you ultimately choose.

    Balssh,
    Balssh avatar

    Definitely will come with an update after I choose something and see how it goes.

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