Add to del.icio.us     Digg this

Feb. 4, 2010

We often get the question: "To the best of your knowledge, which Linux distribution do you really think is the best?" Or "Is Ubuntu better than Fedora?" To be real honest, they are all good, really...

For the most part, since April 2008, both Fedora and Ubuntu have consistently topped the downloads on Distrowatch. Visit Fedora and Ubuntu user forums, and people who despair of one are constantly announcing their intention to switch to the other. Sounds familiar?

Although other distributions, including Linux Mint and openSUSE for example, offer comparable features, for better or worse, Fedora and Ubuntu are widely viewed as the desktop distributions of choice.

Of course for servers this is totally something different.

But you can still find many comparisons of the two on the Web. But except for one posted on PolishLinux.org, few answers are detailed enough to be of much use. And since the one on PolishLinux.org was done four long years ago, it’s at least six versions behind the current releases (Fedora 12 and Ubuntu 9.10, to be specific).

Overall, providing a definitive answer to this question is not as easy as it used to be -- a discovery that, if nothing else, suggests the current state of desktop Linux.

Then of course not everyone will agree. I beg to differ!

The so-called "connection between the two" (I don't there was ever one in the first place) has caused some critics to dismiss Fedora as a beta version of Red Hat Enterprise Linux. And we all know that that's not true!

While it is perfectly true that releases of Red Hat Enterprise Linux are snapshots of Fedora (and what about CentOS. Did you forget that one?) the truth is that Fedora largely manages its own affairs. Or so it seems from the outset...

Like its other Linux cousins, Ubuntu is the community arm of Canonical Software. Both were founded by Mark Shuttleworth, who jokingly refers to himself as Self-Appointed Benevolent Dictator for Life. Hummmm... OK!

The general concensus tends to be decided by the Technical Board, which tends to be dominated by members who have served several years and are Canonical employees. But just like Fedora, daily decisions are mostly left to community-based teams. Aha!

Since 2005, both Ubuntu and Fedora have attracted large and rapidly growing communities, often governed by codes of conduct and having their own in-person meetings -- FUDCon for Fedora and the Ubuntu Developer Summit for Ubuntu, to name a few.

Members of both of those associations are also active in other free and open source software meetings, especially GNOME's GUADEC.

In a nutshell, Fedora and Ubuntu have evolved surprisingly similar Linux structures. The main difference lies in their goals: Ubuntu aims to provide "an open-source alternative to Windows and Office," and is currently focusing on usability improvements.

On the other hand, Fedora's goal is to create a Linux-based operating system that showcases the latest in free and open source software.

Sometimes, these goals leave both distros open to some criticism. Some suggest that Ubuntu's eagerness to make changes means that the distribution may make changes without ensuring that the changes are spread throughout the Linux community.

Similarly, users sometimes accuse Fedora's emphasis on innovation as being made at the expense of stability.

Most Linux users install Ubuntu or Fedora from Live CDs that require minimal input from users and complete in well under half an hour, including some post-install configuration. Should you have problems with either one's installer, you can use them in text mode.

For its part, Ubuntu also boasts an alternate installer that is actually Debian's standard one, which gives fine-grained control over every aspect of installation.

These two Linux distributions also include other variations, including ones for USB drives and remixes or spins --customized installation disk images, often ones for less popular desktop choices such as LXDE or Sugar.

Ubuntu also offers WUBI (Ubuntu Installer for Windows), which installs on to an existing Windows partition and chooses either operating system as your computer turns on, giving you the option between Ubuntu or Windows.

Both Ubuntu and Fedora alike are each centered on the GNOME desktop. But each also includes packages for KDE and Xfce4, should you choose to go that route.

Ubuntu even has separate distributions for these other desktops called Kubuntu and Xubuntu. Both Linux distros, especially Fedora, are sometimes said to neglect these alternative desktops by focusing too much on GNOME and KDE.

Add to del.icio.us     Digg this

Source: LNT.

All logos, trade marks or service marks on this website are the property of their respective companies or owners.

ADVERTISERS:
Linux News Today.org is read by over 450,000 people involved in the field of Linux application development, professional Web hosting services, Linux security, Linux Web development, etc. Inquire about our reasonable advertising rates on our news website. One of our advertising representatives will be in touch with you. Simply email us to learn about our ad rates and how we can help drive relevant traffic to your website. Advertising space is limited.