Is Puppy Linux the best option for me?

[Andyr]

 

Hello!

I was wondering if there's a Linux distribution that I can use alongside Windows on my computer. I've always been a Windows user and plan to stick with it for work, but I'm interested in learning Linux. Do you think Puppy Linux would be a good choice for me, or is there a better option?

I'd really appreciate your advice!

[8tg]

Just bone stock Ubuntu. 
If you’re learning Linux, start with what has the largest documentation and existing support base. Which is anything Debian based, so Ubuntu or its variants, popOS, Linux mint, etc.

 

Youll be able to google anything you come across and there will be existing documentation for it.

Puppy Linux is definitely easy to work with but it’s got some niche quirks that can be limiting at times.

[Inception9269]

2 minutes ago, Andyr said:

 

Hello!

I was wondering if there's a Linux distribution that I can use alongside Windows on my computer. I've always been a Windows user and plan to stick with it for work, but I'm interested in learning Linux. Do you think Puppy Linux would be a good choice for me, or is there a better option?

I'd really appreciate your advice!

Puppy linux isn't exactly the one I see people starting with when it comes to learning Linux.

 

You should probably mention what kind of hardware your PC has. If it's newer, more recent hardware, or if it's older but still relevant, or if it's a straight up fossil.

 

Me personally, Linux Mint Debian Edition (LMDE) would probably be the one I'd recommend for Linux newcomers. It's based on Debian which is regarded as the king of stability, with it also using the APT package manager. I consider it much better version than the standard Ubuntu based Mint iso.

[Needfuldoer]

Just run Ubuntu in some form or another. That's what the vast majority of the information you'll find that's geared for new Linux users will be written for.

[Inception9269]

2 minutes ago, 8tg said:

Just bone stock Ubuntu. 
If you’re learning Linux, start with what has the largest documentation and existing support base. Which is anything Debian based, so Ubuntu or its variants, popOS, Linux mint, etc.

 

Youll be able to google anything you come across and there will be existing documentation for it.

Puppy Linux is definitely easy to work with but it’s got some niche quirks that can be limiting at times.

Ubuntu has become ass for Linux newcomers. PopOS is also one of the last distros I'd recommend anyone, especially since it's devs have straight up abandoned it for over a year now, with them all working on their Cosmic desktop environment. Linux Mint (non-LMDE) is also one I will never recommend. I had a basic non-gaming laptop that I used only as a web browser and word editor that I used it on for hardly even a month, and just trying to update it (via the terminal and even the GUI due to issues I was having) straight up killed the install. I will never use anything with Ubuntu as a base ever again.

[Andyr]

19 hours ago, Inception9269 said:

Puppy linux isn't exactly the one I see people starting with when it comes to learning Linux.

 

You should probably mention what kind of hardware your PC has. If it's newer, more recent hardware, or if it's older but still relevant, or if it's a straight up fossil.

 

Me personally, Linux Mint Debian Edition (LMDE) would probably be the one I'd recommend for Linux newcomers. It's based on Debian which is regarded as the king of stability, with it also using the APT package manager. I consider it much better version than the standard Ubuntu based Mint iso.

Thanks for your reply!
I'd describe my computer as a bit older, but I've kept it up to date by adding some extra memory, so it's running smoothly. What are the hardware requirements for running both Windows and Linux Mint on it?

[thevictor390]

On 12/4/2023 at 8:21 AM, Andyr said:

Thanks for your reply!
I'd describe my computer as a bit older, but I've kept it up to date by adding some extra memory, so it's running smoothly. What are the hardware requirements for running both Windows and Linux Mint on it?

There's no specific requirement. When you set up Linux in a virtual machine you will specify how much "hardware" it gets. This is sort of like splitting the machine up into Windows and Linux sides. Linux can run on very little resources but it won't necessarily run fast if you don't have much to spare. For example if you have 8 GB of RAM you could give the Linux machine 2 GB or 4 GB, it would work but not super well since Windows really wants that RAM for itself. If you have 16 GB of RAM or more you can split much more comfortably.

[Andyr]

On 12/5/2023 at 7:18 PM, thevictor390 said:

There's no specific requirement. When you set up Linux in a virtual machine you will specify how much "hardware" it gets. This is sort of like splitting the machine up into Windows and Linux sides. Linux can run on very little resources but it won't necessarily run fast if you don't have much to spare. For example if you have 8 GB of RAM you could give the Linux machine 2 GB or 4 GB, it would work but not super well since Windows really wants that RAM for itself. If you have 16 GB of RAM or more you can split much more comfortably.

I wasn't aware of this. Thanks!

[E-waste]

On 12/5/2023 at 12:18 PM, thevictor390 said:

Linux can run on very little resources but it won't necessarily run fast if you don't have much to spare. For example if you have 8 GB of RAM you could give the Linux machine 2 GB or 4 GB, it would work but not super well since Windows really wants that RAM for itself. If you have 16 GB of RAM or more you can split much more comfortably.

My machine has Windows 10, 64-bit with a shocking 2048 MB of memory.  I can easily run Windows 10 and a 768 MB Linux virtual machine.  Use XFCE and not Gnome 3/4 or KDE.  This will massively reduce desktop memory use for the Linux virtual machine.

 

Web browing in the virtual machite will be slow, so don't use programs like that which the host system (windows) can.