Distro Guide

GNU FSDG Distro Hopper's Guide

Not sure which distro to choose? This article is here to help.

If this article does not lead you to a strong preference, many distros provide a "LIveISO", which allows you try-out the system without installing. Trisquel is (arguably) the optimal option for most people to try first (where: "optimal" (arguably) means "LTS" and "Everyone" in the table below).

	Releases	Curation	Audience	Init-System	Graphical Environment	Strain
Dragora	LTS	Conservative	Techies	SystemV	CLI, IceWM	Independent
Freenix	LTS	Conservative	Techies	SystemV	CLI, KDE	Slackware-like
Hyperbola	LTS	Conservative	Techies	OpenRC	CLI, MATE	Arch-like
Trisquel	LTS	Liberal	Everyone	Systemd	LXDE, KDE, MATE, Sugar	Ubuntu-like
GuixSD	Rolling	Liberal	Techies	Shepherd	CLI	Nixos-like
Parabola	Rolling	Liberal	Techies	OpenRC, RUnit, Shepherd, SystemD, SystemV	CLI, LXDE	Arch-like
PureOS	Rolling	Liberal	Everyone	Systemd	GNOME	Debian-like

Explanation of Categories:

• Releases: Indicates the repository stability (the time period between new releases). See the Rolling vs. LTS article for a detailed explanation. This is by far, the most significant distinction for most people, and so, the most important to understand.
• Curation: Indicates whether or not most of the trendy, bloated, or opinionated programs are available or excluded, such as 'systemd', 'pulseaudio', 'GNOME', 'KDE', and obese web-browsers. "Liberal" indicates that more of those programs are available. "Conservative" indicates that most of those programs are excluded, likely because they would not work properly (eg: without 'dbus', 'pulseaudio', etc).
• Init-System: Indicates which Init-Systems are available. Distros which offer only one Init-System, are said to be lacking 'Init Freedom'. However, Init Freedom has only a small intersection with Software Freedom. It extends only Freedom #0; and primarily for sysadmins and other experts. All Init-Systems serve the same purpose(s), necessarily and adequately. Most people never see nor interact with their Init-System, and so, need not be concerned about it's form.
• Graphical Environment: Indicates which Desktop Environments are the standard or defaults. Note that distros, especially those with "Liberal" package "Curation", may have many more Window Managers and Desktop Environments available than the ones listed (eg: all conventional UNIX-like systems expose a command-line interface _somehow_). The examples listed are the one(s) pre-configured by the standard installer(s) (ie: the most recommended or best supported).
• Strain: Indicates the heritage of the OS design, most evident by it's package management system, and to some degree, it's FHS compatibility. Much like the Init-System, if you are not already familiar with the FHS, then it is probably not a relevant factor for your choice of distro.
• Audience: Indicates the general target audience. "Everyone" indicates that the distro strives to be user-friendly (eg: everything, including installation, can be done using a mouse). "Techies" indicates that the distro is highly-customizable, but requires some experience with the command-line, to install, customize, and/or maintain.