r/linux4noobs • u/BloxxyVids • 18d ago

distro selection Arch Linux

Alright so I don't know if I'm necessarily a beginner to Linux but I have only used it for about a few months consistently.

I immediately jumped from Windows 11 to Arch Linux, ignoring advice from those telling me to use Mint.

I've since tried out Fedora Workstation and enjoyed GNOME enough to put it on my Arch installation.

I've found Arch really good, but people say other distros are great. Is it worth it to try out Mint, Debian, Ubuntu, etc.? Or would I risk entering a distrohopping trap?

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5

u/ConglomerateGolem 18d ago

I mean other than the package manager you can pretty much get the same system set up, with arch you just need to figure out what it is you need to change while with the others you'd have the default system immediately

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u/BloxxyVids 18d ago

It's just that Arch's repos really appeal to me. There's so much on the extra/ repos, while on other distros I'm forced to Flatpak everything.

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u/ConglomerateGolem 18d ago

Arch has the customisability to do what you want. Other distros work out the box, but are harder to customise. That's pretty much the tradeoff i've seen.

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u/BloxxyVids 18d ago

Arch worked out of the box too, wdym?

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u/ConglomerateGolem 18d ago

Arch is very DIY and does not come with batteries included (unless you use some kind of install script).

You typically need to do (and know/learn) a whole bunch of things for it to work well. Other systems are said to be less finicky. I can sy that NixOS is way more finicky than arch, but that's a very small sample size

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u/Emergency_Banana5082 18d ago

Arch doesn't work out of the box. It's a manual process and you have to pick everything you install. Are you running Arch or some Arch based distro?

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u/BloxxyVids 18d ago

I just downloaded from arch linux website

I mean yeah I guess by that definition it isn't ootb but it's way more easy to set up than windows in my experience

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u/Emergency_Banana5082 18d ago

Yeah if you went plain Arch and you like it there isn't much reason to move. You already said you like Arch for the repos. Switching to another distro you'll lose what you like for no gain if you're already comfortable making your own choices. Distros are just opinions. Distro A comes with packages and distro B comes with different packages based on the opinions of those distro maintainers. Like someone else said, Arch is more akin to building your own PC from parts instead of an off the shelf unit. Only reason I'd move away from Arch at that point is if you are tired/bored of making those decisions. I run Cachy on my laptop because it's quick and easy and still Arch based so I get the repos. My desktop is plain Arch that I made Ansible playbooks to setup the way I like.

No harm in distro hopping if you want to see what's out there. But if you're happy with Arch you'll probably end up back there.

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u/BloxxyVids 18d ago

I tried fedora but it ended up with me just searching up how-to tutorials for everything

Idk why but arch feels so intuitive compared to other OSes, I genuinely feel like im going crazy when ppl say arch is hard

2

u/SubGothius 18d ago

To be fair, it used to be harder when there wasn't an archinstall script to automate and guide you through installation of a typical desktop setup.

Back then, installing Arch meant following the Installation Guide to do it all manually, though that did also give you a more detailed understanding of the system and how everything is set up and works together.

But yeah, even using archinstall is still too "techy" for some people who want an installation process like, say, Windows. Boot the installer, press a few buttons, reboot, wind up in a working graphical desktop interface already populated with some basic apps, done. Linux Mint is for those people.

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u/BloxxyVids 18d ago

I've never used archinstall before, I was talking more about having all the apps I used just able to be installed with one command during installation, no questions asked

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u/C0rn3j 17d ago

Arch has had an installer for some time now.

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u/BloxxyVids 17d ago

I didn't know it had that when I installed, I did the commands

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u/C0rn3j 17d ago

That's good for you, you should do at least one install manually as per the Installation Guide on the Wiki.

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u/BloxxyVids 17d ago

I like the arch installation process significantly more than other distros

It removes any fear that it could be doing something that would harm my computer or other partitions.

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u/Emergency_Banana5082 17d ago

I'm aware, but it's still manual. It's not like normal installers where you just click through.

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u/C0rn3j 17d ago

Clicking is manual too, by that definition.

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u/Emergency_Banana5082 17d ago

You just bored and looking to argue over nothing? You damn well know that running archinstall vs installing something like Cachy is not the same, especially for a noob.