So, you’ve decided to move to the best OS in the world and don’t know which distribution / flavor to use? This is the post you’d definitely want to read. I’d be telling you about Top 10 Linux Distributions of 2011. The criteria of choosing the best linux distribution of 2011 was based on the amount of updates one distribution got this year and the type of updates that user community loved most. Don’t forget to post your feedback about the list by leaving a reply below, here we go..
10) Mandriva Linux
In February 2005, MandrakeSoft merged with Brazil’s Conectiva to form Mandriva S.A., with headquarters in Paris, France. Their flagship product! Mandriva Linux. Not to mention that this veteran linux was launched in 1998 with the ‘Ease of Use’ for the end user in mind. RPM is the repo style.
Home Page: http://www.mandriva.com/
Download Mirrors: http://www.mandriva.com/en/download
Desktop: KDE 4
9) Puppy Linux
Another Linux Distribtuion? Whats the difference? Well, its small and its feature packed. So small that it loads into the RAM from CD unlike other Operating Systems that work from Hard Disk or from CDs. This makes it faster than any other OS out there. Once its loaded into RAM, your CD/DVD drive is free to use. You can even use it to write CDs/DVDs to backup your data. Pretty interesting, right? :)
Home Page: http://www.puppylinux.com/
Download Mirrors: http://www.puppylinux.com/download
Desktop: JWM
8) CentOS
If you are a small business corporation, an organization or an indivitual and don’t want to spend money on expensive professional support then this is your Operating System. CentOS is a replica of Red Hat Enterprise System, a 100 percent compatible distribution that is pretty handy if you want an enterprise class OS without paying the cost of certification and support. Did I mention that its FREE?
Home Page: http://www.centos.org/
Download Mirrors: http://www.centos.org/modules/tinycontent/
Desktop: Gnome 2
7) PCLinuxOS
PCLinuxOS is one of the most user friendly Linux distributions out there. The main purpose is to give users graphically the most easy to use and out of the box experience possible. Comes with a live CD prepacked with all the latest applications that a normal desktop user needs and with a clean installation system its never been easier to install it as your primary OS. They recently changed to RPMs in their latest release.
Home Page: http://www.pclinuxos.com/
Download Mirrors: http://pclinuxos.com/?page_id=10
Desktop: KDE 4
6) Arch Linux
A linux distribtuion that hails from Canada. Based on individual personnels, arch linux is mainly aimed at the more advanced users of this operating system. Pacman is used as the primary package management tool and this linux distribution can be installed either via a CD image or via FTP. There is also a system that allows you to make your own customized distribution based on Arch Linux.
Home Page: http://www.archlinux.org/
Download Mirrors: http://www.archlinux.org/downloads
Desktop: User specific. [Thanks to Kyle in comments]
5) OpenSUSE
OpenSUSE is a community project sponsored by Novell. The same company that has alliance with Microsoft to make software compatible for Linux Operating System. It is RPM based just like Fedora and provides ease and freedom of choice to the end user. Gets updates once or twice a year.
Home Page: http://www.opensuse.org/
Download Mirrors: http://software.opensuse.org/
Desktop: KDE 4
4) Debian
Unlike other distributions, Debian project is an association of individuals with a common cause ‘To create a free operating system’. Debian GNU/Linux or simply Debian uses Linux Kernel and comes with almost 20,000 precompiled packages to be used with it.
Home Page: http://www.debian.org/
Download Mirrors: http://www.debian.org/distrib/ftplist
Desktop: Gnome 2
3) Ubuntu
Ubuntu Linux by canonical did take the Linux and operating system world by storm. First reason for it becoming popular was the distribution of free CDs worldwide free of charge and then from the vast online based user community. “Ubuntu” is an ancient African word, meaning “humanity to others”. The Ubuntu distribution does bring the spirit of Ubuntu to the operating system world. Ubuntu used to be at no. 1 spot at the start of the year but some changes at the package management and graphical environment especially with the use of ‘Unity’ as its default environment did bring ‘em down to no. 3 spot.
Home Page: http://www.ubuntu.com/
Download Mirrors: http://www.ubuntu.com/desktop/get-ubuntu/download
Desktop: Unity
2) Fedora
The second most used linux distribution is Fedora. There were days when Red Hat ruled the linux desktop distribution world and fedora was the most used desktop operating system after Red Hat itself. Fedora-project is the openly developed distribution by Red Hat. Purpose of this project is to make an operating system that is all purpose and easy to use for the end user and this is achieved with the help of vast user community which includes developers and bug trackers. Fedora is RPM based Linux that uses ‘yum’ as its repository / package management too.
Home Page: http://fedoraproject.org/
Download Mirrors: http://fedoraproject.org/get-fedora.html
Desktop: Gnome 3
1) Linux Mint
Linux Mint is an Ubuntu based distribution, its aim is to provide out of the box friendly features to the end user. Unlike Ubuntu, you don’t have to install any extra/additional features like browser plugins, media codes, media players or extra utilities. The user menu is customized and so is the main explorer. What makes Mint Linux stand out from other linux distributions is that it uses ‘Ubuntu’s Repositories’ and package information. So its like you’ll be using Ubuntu on steroids. :)
Home Page: http://linuxmint.com/
Download Mirrors: http://www.linuxmint.com/download.php
Desktop: Gnome 2
So now you’ve been given the freedom of choice. Choose the distribution that best suits your needs. If you still have any question, leave a comment below or follow me on twitter. I’d be glad to help you.
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