Gentoo VS. Mandrake (Please!...no wars, OK?)

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Date: Sun, 08 Feb 2004 12:55:14 -0500

I have been using Mandrake increasingly for 3 yrs. now since version
7.1/7.2...and I know they have made great strides, in many ways.

I have, like many, installed & checked out for myself, many of the most
popular distros. All of them so far, except Gentoo, have been in my
opinion lacking in what I'll call "userability & friendliness".

...I am sure others would disagree, but let's please not turn this into a
war. I am trying to get good observation & input concerning these two
distros -ONLY-.

I want to see how much I may be overlooking in each.

Mandrake has in my opinion done extremely well -CONSIDERING THE
CIRCUMSTANCES-.

Their biggest mistake IMHO was to jump the gun on version 9.2...but we all
have done...or will do this...in time. I do not hold that against them
too much. I am hopeful that the recent change in release schedule, etc.
will/has put a stop to that problem. And, I am burning the version 10 b2
CDs to install as I type.

I installed Gentoo about a month ago after several false starts, and
failed attempts. It took that to weed my way through the problems I was
having, and although not completely my own fault, has a lot to do with the
fact that my eyes don't focus like they used to. I am in the hateful
position of absolutely *loving* to read, and to dialogue online, but doing
so with sore/tired eyes, carpal tunnel, and a typing disability not just
associated with poor typing skills. :)

At first I didn't like or understand Gentoo...but it hasn't taken long for
me to change my mind, and to grasp/understand the wisdom behind it's
differences. The main reservation I have now is it's installation issues.

Yes!...I know there's GRP...but I am talking about a stage 1 install.

GRP installs are OK for a lot of people, but I feel that if someone is
going to truly understand & appreciate Gentoo, then they need to do it
from a stage 1 install.

(My Mandrake CDs are done now so I'll be installing/upgrading to 10b2 as
soon as I post this.)

The most significant difference that I see in Gentoo compared to Mandrake,
-OTHER THAN THE MOST HIGHLY LAUDED DIFFERENCE-, is the upgrading/updating
setup.

While Mandrake (and many other distros) upgrade in leaps & bounds from one
version/beta to the next....Gentoo has the amazing ability to upgrade to
the newest, most up to date version/software available...at any time a
person wants to do that.

One may upgrade nightly...always having the latest version/software.

...almost like they were getting CVS (or 'Cooker') installed, instead of
the latest version that is a month or more old.

The big difference is this (IMHO): ...almost no bugs, and it 'works'
almost immediately in most cases.

I have emerge 'sync'ed, and emerge '-uD world' almost nightly for the last
month, with only a few minor issues...just 'irritations' for the most part.

Now I am going to hold off for a week, just to see how it acts when some
time goes by between 'sync'ing....I want to see if it makes a big
difference if the -amount- of the upgrading is more significant.

I see a huge increase in broadband connections coming very soon...and
dialup is soon to be 'history'.

With this change I see an update setup like 'portage' and online DL
updates as no longer an 'issue'.

This might sound bold to some, but I see a day where there is no longer a
"I have version X, but will update as soon as version X.1 is available.'
reality...people will have/be updated in real time.

"Versions"....will be history. It will be more like: 'I am current to
<date>'.

The big thing that caught my attention was the ease & simplicity in Gentoo
of going from what I have now (version 1.4) to the new '2004' that is
coming soon.

The fact that it's nothing more than "emerge sync" ---> "emerge -uD world"
and I am all set with the new 'version' (SIC) is amazing.

I am not familiar with BSD. but this 'portage' system compared to the RPM
system that I am used to (Yes, I can/do install tarballs, and use
checkinstall.), is like "Amazing, dude!". :)

I think I'll be migrating to Gentoo, as I learn more about it, and linux
in general, but it will probably be a while before I leave Mandrake
completely...if I ever do.

It used to be 'normal' to have only one OS...usually Windows.

With the advent of the LiveCDs that are common today...we might get back
to that again. <grin>

...but it won't be Windows this time.

Going furhter into the future...imagine your complete OS, along with all
your data, games, setup, configuration...everything:

...on your keyring.

...just plug it into a box --> anywhere <-- and it's just like the PC
sitting on your desk at home.

Instead of sync'ing a palm pilot or laptop...you'll be sync'ing your
keyring.

This is a whole lot different than the 8086 Processor & 512K RAM with no
hard drive & two 5.25" floppies, on a monochrome monitor, that I first sat
down in front of...

[/rambling]

Now...tell me more about Mandrake & Gentoo that I am missing: :)

-- 
-Joseph-
Probably the most linux friendly computer builder on the internet.
These people are top-notch...see: http://www.resellerratings.com
http://snipurl.com/4b3e

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