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What's The Fastest Growing Linux Distro?

Posted by simoniker on from the everybody-wins dept.

darthcamaro writes "What's the fastest growing Linux distro? This really solid article on InternetNews.com contains interviews with the Debian Project leader, the founder of Mandrake, SuSe, Red Hat and TurboLinux to get their take on who's the biggest and who's the baddest on the distro block. Also includes some interesting insight into the next round of releases."

8 of 530 comments (clear)

  1. I'd think it's Knoppix by darnok · · Score: 5, Interesting

    People who I suspect don't know what Linux is, are now starting to talk to me about this cool "whole computer thing on a CD". When you ask a few questions, it turns out it's Knoppix they're talking about.

    I've got no idea if they're ever going to actually switch to Knoppix, but it has a coolness about it that's pretty impressive to a whole lot of people. That's what getting distributed in magazines will do for you. In fact, reading those magazines the month after they bundle a Linux distro, there's always a bunch of reader's letters talking about how great "this Linux thing" is after all.

  2. Stats by Doesn't_Comment_Code · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Red Hat -> Lots of enterprise and business users
    Suse -> More of the same, except mostly in Europe
    Mandrake -> Fast growing with non-techies and some businesses too
    Fedora/Old Red Hat -> Fast growing with home users
    Debian -> Growing with home users Slackware/Knoppix/Gentoo... -> all have niche audiences

    http://www.distrowatch.com/ has a ranking of people downloading each distro from them at the lower right of the page.

    --

    Slashdot Syndrome: the sudden, extreme urge to correct someone in order to validate one's self.
  3. Somewhat useful... by chamilto0516 · · Score: 5, Interesting
    This type of information is interesting to know but is less useful than Linux as a whole (all distributions) and how it compares to competitors. This info could be made more useful if it is broken out by Sales vs. Free (as in beer) downloads and company/group for business use vs. hobbyist for personal or educaiton use.

    I read a review of about a dozen distributions and being only familiary with very early Slackware and RedHat (from v.4) was supprised at how different they are. I just recently downloaded Knoppix and I see a real niche for it. I have some old equipment and want to know if there is a distro that will perform less sluggish than the latest RedHat 9 (either through a default config options or ommisions of unnecessary packages).

    However, I have found value in going with the popular thing (how often is the majority wront?) sometimes so yes, after all this "useful?" speak, I see some value in these kinds of things from some angle.

    --
    Magic Eight Ball: Outlook not so good., Hmmm, how about Excel and Word?
  4. Re:The fastest shrinking distro by DebianRcksLindowsLie · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Finally Debian is getting its due! RedHat is fastest, as the first post noted, but shrinking. Debian's security is LEGENDARY. Spinoffs of Debian such as Xandros only help to entrench Debian as a secure OS.

    ANYONE making a secure and stable Linux distro deserves props. Debian leads the pack. Xandros puts out a different GUI. Props to them all.

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    To find out about people leeching off Debian, and exactly how to stop the cancer that is attacking Linux, click the link in my .sig. More info at my homepage.

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  5. Confusion Reigns Supreme by tonyr60 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    As with most IT articles, the objective seems to be a good headline rather than a factual appreciation of the facts.

    From the article, RedHat seems to have the most numbers out there, AND Debian has the fastest growth as a platform for Apache. No conflict there.

    But which is the fastest growing distro? Who really cares. If I sold 1 last week and 10 this week I may have the fastest growing distro, but with .0000001% of the market - so what.

    However if Sun really start shipping the Java Desktop (Suse based version) to all those chinese sites then it would likely win

  6. Soldi article? Really? So where was Slackware then by Viol8 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Can someone tell me why Slackware hardly ever gets a mention in these sorts of articles that purport to be written by journos with their fingers on the pulse?
    Slackware is used by a LARGE number of sys admins so though it may me small fry in the home market its anything but in the server arena. Perhaps these writers should get a bit more clued
    up about whats really going on out there rather than just finding out and waflling about distributions that their mates have mentioned to them.

  7. Google riding by sokk · · Score: 5, Interesting
    I had some time to play. I did a google on the following distros, and sorted the hits:
    "Red Hat" Linux.. 4,290,000
    Debian Linux..... 3,820,000
    Suse Linux....... 3,320,000
    Mandrake Linux... 1,860,000
    Gentoo Linux..... 1,130,000
    Slackware Linux.. 1,030,000
    Fedora Linux..... 686,000
    Knoppix Linux.... 490,000

    Btw. I included "Linux", to remove irrelevant hits. Hopefully, it scaled down evenly.
  8. What I don't understand about Debian by beforewisdom · · Score: 5, Interesting
    Is the comment in the article that Debian is working towards making the distro more friendly.

    Knoppix has been around for a while now. Aside from being a live CD distro it is also known as an "easy Debian".

    Its GPL

    Why can't the Debian folks just cobble all of the good stuff Karl Knopper did into Debian?

    Steve