[H-GEN] unbloated, stable, rolling release distros

[Mick]

On Tue, 25 Oct 2011 16:47:22 +1000
Paul Gear <humbug at libertysys.com.au> wrote:

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> 
> On 25/10/11 13:32, Mick wrote:
> > ...
> > Just wondering what is available these days in the way of unbloated,
> > stable, rolling release distros.
> 
> Hi Mick,
> 
> As a sort of meta-answer, might i suggest that you re-think what
> you're asking of your distro?  In my experience, it's very difficult
> for a distro to be all of those things.  If you want unbloated and
> stable, you generally should expect it to be a little slower to
> release and less feature-rich.  If you want to be up-to-date, you
> tend to have to sacrifice memory efficiency and stability.

there has to be a balance point somewhere in the middle - my target.
> 
> > ...
> > debian 3r0 was fine but OLD even at release performed well once I
> > built a decent kernel
> >
> > debian 3r1 slower than a 3 legged donkey in the melbourne cup.
> > tried to build a kernel but selinux refused to let it run.
> 
> I can't fix your experiences with it, but i've found all the Debian
> releases from 3 to 6 to be very solid.  I run it on all my servers,
> and i like the fact that there's not a release every 6-12 months
> (saves a lot of upgrade time! :-) ).

I might still be on debian if selinux didn't prevent my custom kernel
from booting, once I had attempted to boot my new kernels it stopped
even the distro kernel that I kept from booting. My only option was
re-install and forget about trying to get my video capture card or
graphic tablet to work, I also missed the 20% performance boost from
using less generic kernel options that I got on 3r0.


> 
> > (k)ubuntu - if there was any option that just one person MIGHT use
> > once in their lifetime it was locked in, bloated was a gross
> > understatement. then they went to KDE4 and half the functionality
> > was left behind but you could never run out of eye candy to play
> > with.
> 
> I use Ubuntu 10.04 LTS on my laptop.  The big win for me came when i
> realised that i didn't actually need more up-to-date versions of
> everything and stuck on LTS.  Prior to that my laptop had been
> upgraded to every standard release, and i spent a lot more time on
> care & feeding and a lot less time being productive.  I don't like
> where Canonical is going with Unity, so if they don't support
> something vaguely reminiscent of GNOME 2 on the next LTS release,
> i'll probably head back to Debian.

After a brain-fart trying to fix a dead hard disk on my server I tried
xubuntu 10.4 and removed packages I didn't need that wasted over 400 mb
of disk but was stuck with half as much again that was bound in by
spurious dependencies. 
> 
> > I have also flirted with slackware but found package management was
> > like groping in the dark wearing oven mittens.
> 
> You would have to pay me a lot of money to recommend a distribution
> that was not apt- or yum-based.  I think apt is a little more
> lightweight, stable, and feature-rich, but yum has made great strides
> in the last few years and is pretty functional now (it was extremely
> bloated for the hardware of the RH9-FC1 era).

APT is definitely state of the art in package management.
> 
> I'm very happy with the combination i have now, with Debian on the
> server and Ubuntu LTS on the desktop/laptop, but that reflects my
> choice of tending more towards stability and low bloat, and that
> means i'm a little behind the update curve.  If you want a distro
> that leans a little more towards the bleeding edge, OpenSUSE or
> Fedora Core might be more your style; but don't forget that it's a
> trade-off of size and stability vs. up-to-date features.

The only time I chase very up-to-date features is where the 'tried &
true' fail to meet my needs, a concept alien to archlinux zealots, if I
could get something like arch with an ethos of 'its got to work before
it gets in' I'd be happy

I keep thinking about making a debianesque distro but truly there is no
space for another distro by someone who has neither the skill or
resources to keep it up to date.

mick