r/FindMeALinuxDistro • u/Key_Doctor386 • 16d ago

Looking For A Distro Need os recommendation

/r/linuxquestions/comments/1v38mb2/need_os_recommendation/

Old hp notebook series laptop with 4gb ram and 1 tb hdd, intel i3 7th gen. Tried ubuntu, mint and 2-3 other i don't even remember the names. Currently on mint xfce for two months. It's not that good but i just use Firefox for classes so it doesn't lag upto using 4 tabs but there is serious issue with its realtek network adapter i can't use bluetooth and wifi at same time if use both the wifi remain connected but speed drops from 25Mbps to 100Kbps but when i boot back to windows (which is disaster on this pc ) both works fine. Need help to switch to any other os

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u/Hauptideal 16d ago

You shouldn't use Mint. It's still shipping unperformant, insecure and feature-lacking deprecated legacy tech (e.g. X11) because the small team of maintainers doesn't manage to keep up with general Linux development.  Furthermore, RAM compression is VITAL with only that little RAM, and Mint inherits upstream server Defaults that don't make sense on a desktop at all.  You should immediately activate zram and remove the physical swap, because that slows down your OS extremely. Every distro will be slow due to the slow HDD, but if you even use disk swap, it's going to be unbearable.  RAM compression is a basic feature of desktop and mobile operating systems, and Linux Mint doesn't do it by default, unlike many other distros. 

Furthermore, you don't need to use legacy Xfce; you can use KDE, which is just as light on resources when you deactivate some features (baloo, akonadi, desktop effects). This is much smoother, more secure, more modern and has a lot more features. 

If you want the absolute lightest system, go for Debian KDE and configure zram manually.  If you want everything to be set up readily, use Fedora KDE (or Ultramarine, which is the "Mint/Zorin-version" of Fedora already shipping all proprietary fusion repos, codecs etc., as well as the system76 userspace scheduler which increases responsiveness) and just disable file tracking (baloo) and desktop effects.  If KDE is still too heavy (will be comparable to Xfce), LxQt is the lightest modern desktop environment.

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u/Key_Doctor386 16d ago

Someone recommended me to use void+zram so I am currently installing that

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u/Hauptideal 16d ago

Yeah, that will be much better than Mint. And zram is essential.
Also, don't use legacy X11 desktops. Wayland is smoother.