Whenever I start teaching someone Linux, the conversation inevitably turns to choosing a distribution. Is RedHat better? Or Ubuntu? Most beginners only think of these two options at first.
In reality, there are roughly 300 active distributions in the Linux ecosystem. This number is hard to pin down precisely because the Linux Kernel is released under a free and open-source license—the GNU General Public License—and most accompanying software follows suit. Consequently, anyone with the technical know-how can take this foundation, tailor it to their specific needs (such as desktop use or supporting legacy/modern hardware), package it up, and redistribute it.
Navigating this vast “sea of distributions” can be overwhelming, but someone thoughtfully created a tool to help you choose: distro chooser. Using this tool might save you from spending three precious years of your life figuring it out through trial and error, like I did.
Though, to be honest, I found the journey quite fun.
Today, let me share my firsthand experiences and thoughts with you!
The Desktop Experience #
Let’s start with the desktop experience. Surprisingly, the desktop experience has less to do with the actual distribution and more to do with your choice of “Desktop Environment” (DE). Here are some of the most common DEs:
- GNOME: Currently the most mainstream desktop environment. It features a modern, clean interface with an operating logic somewhat similar to macOS. It serves as the default desktop for Ubuntu, Fedora, and Debian.
- KDE Plasma: Known for its extreme customizability. Its default interface layout aligns closely with the classic Windows user experience.
- XFCE: A classic, lightweight desktop environment. If your computer hardware is on the older side—for example, an old IBM ThinkPad X200—XFCE is an excellent choice.
That’s the beauty of Linux: if you don’t like your current desktop, you don’t need to reinstall the entire operating system. You just run a single command using your package manager to completely switch styles. There are plenty of other desktop environments out there, but I’m sticking to the ones I have personal experience with.
I’ve put together a list of other common options here for anyone interested: Mainstream Linux Desktop Environments
When it comes to daily usability, I’d say most modern desktop environments are neck-and-neck in terms of user-friendliness. However, if you are installing Linux on a laptop, I highly recommend GNOME. Its default touchpad gestures feel remarkably similar to a Mac, making it incredibly smooth to use. Additionally, if your laptop features a touchscreen, GNOME shines even brighter because its large icons minimize accidental misclicks.
Choosing a Distribution #
Now, let’s talk about the distributions themselves.
First, regarding server deployments: I unconditionally advise against installing a desktop environment (GUI). GUIs consume significant system resources, particularly RAM—averaging anywhere from 2 GB to 4 GB. From my experience, memory consumption from highest to lowest generally ranks as GNOME -> KDE -> XFCE. Save yourself the overhead and skip the GUI entirely on servers.
Distributions can broadly be categorized into two major families: Red Hat-based and Debian-based.
- Red Hat-based (e.g., RHEL, Fedora, Rocky Linux, Oracle Linux): Designed to fit production environments, their package management tends to ship a service with all its dependencies and companion tools fully bundled. Furthermore, they enable enterprise-grade security and performance tuning tools by default (such as SELinux and firewalld). While this allows enterprise sysadmins to rapidly deploy environments that meet strict compliance standards, it also means beginners face a steeper learning curve. For instance, if you set up a website but can’t connect to it, troubleshooting will require deeper system administration knowledge to debug.
- Debian-based (e.g., Debian, Ubuntu, Linux Mint): This camp leans heavily toward “modularity” and “freedom of choice.” Packages are broken down into granular components, and the default system environment remains bare-bones. This grants users precise control over exactly what gets installed, without pushing unnecessary bloatware. This lightweight philosophy is precisely why Debian and Ubuntu are the darlings of Docker base images and minimal system builds.
There are also distinct behavioral differences post-installation. On Red Hat-based systems, most services do not start automatically. For example, after installing PostgreSQL, you must manually initialize the database and explicitly enable/start the service using a command like systemctl enable --now postgresql. Conversely, Debian-based systems typically complete the entire deployment and start the service automatically right after installation.
Quick Recommendations #
If you are still suffering from decision paralysis, here is a quick summary to help you choose:
- For a daily driver to browse the web and write code (Desktop): I highly recommend starting with Ubuntu or Linux Mint. They offer the most comprehensive out-of-the-box hardware driver support, and their massive communities mean troubleshooting on Google is a breeze.
- For a stable, lightweight server that doesn’t require constant updates (Server): You can opt for Debian, which is what I currently use.
- For learning enterprise environments and prepping for career advancement (Server): Look no further than Oracle Linux or Rocky Linux (both serve as flawless, enterprise-grade replacements following CentOS’s shift in release strategy).
Ultimately, there is no absolute right or wrong choice when picking a distribution. The most important thing is to find an environment that fits your current needs, and then dive right in and embrace it. Once you master the core mechanics of Linux—such as the file system hierarchy, permissions management, and command-line operations—switching to any other distribution in the future will be a walk in the park.