A number of answers spring to mind -
1. By using so many, when Members ask for an opinion on a Distro, chances are I am running it, and can weigh in.
2. By using different Distros from different Families (Debian, Arch, Redhat, Gentoo), I can acquire the knowledge of those commands which are unique to those Families, as opposed to the commands which are shared across the board, and so help more people here.
3. I could put a number of Distros onto Virtual Machines, but I believe you get the best idea of performance from conducting a full install.
4. I have Terabytes of space available, and
5. I am obsessive.
Maybe equal weight can be placed on each of the above.
When you are keen to help people, as so many of us here are, it can be easy to say "This works in Linux Mint, it should work in Ubuntu" (or vice versa).
That is not only not the case sometimes, it is quite often NOT the case.
Why? Because different developers put a different "stamp" sometimes on even basic commands. An example that springs to mind is
sudo
If you want to list the partitions that are on your rig, you can use the command
In Mint, you can just type in
blkid
and enter.
In Ubuntu you must use
Rebooting/shutting down
In Ubuntu and Linux Mint, you can use
to reboot or shutdown (these refer to runlevels that have been around since Unix days).
In Debian, you must preface that with sudo or it will not work.
In Arch-based distros you can usually count on being able to reboot by typing in and entering
That applies in every Arch-based distro I have (14), with one exception -
Artix
where you must preface it with sudo.
By experiencing all these Distros, I can give Members accurate information, and for me, this is particularly important, living in Australia, as they may not see me for another 12 hours or more.
SYSTEM RECOVERY
Many people here will know that my favourite tool for system recovery is Timeshift.
One of the benefits of running so many distros is that I can tell people how to install Timeshift on them. I have yet to find a distro that cannot be made safer with Timeshift being installed, and if it is not immediately apparent, I can tell people how to do it.
So that's it in a nutshell. Fire away if you have any questions.
I downloaded the Beta version of Linux Mint Debian Edition (LMDE) 5 codenamed 'Elsie' yesterday, so now I have to decide whether to install it or wait until later in the month for the final release. I'll take a look and see.
Decisions, decisions, decisions.
Wizard
EDIT: I should have mentioned at the beginning of this Post that I run 75 Linux Distros. I will update with any changes.
76 now ... make that 77 ... make that 83 ... make that 84... make that 89
...back to 77 now after EOL culling
...and back to 90, lol
1. By using so many, when Members ask for an opinion on a Distro, chances are I am running it, and can weigh in.
2. By using different Distros from different Families (Debian, Arch, Redhat, Gentoo), I can acquire the knowledge of those commands which are unique to those Families, as opposed to the commands which are shared across the board, and so help more people here.
3. I could put a number of Distros onto Virtual Machines, but I believe you get the best idea of performance from conducting a full install.
4. I have Terabytes of space available, and
5. I am obsessive.
Maybe equal weight can be placed on each of the above.
When you are keen to help people, as so many of us here are, it can be easy to say "This works in Linux Mint, it should work in Ubuntu" (or vice versa).
That is not only not the case sometimes, it is quite often NOT the case.
Why? Because different developers put a different "stamp" sometimes on even basic commands. An example that springs to mind is
sudo
If you want to list the partitions that are on your rig, you can use the command
Code:
blkidIn Mint, you can just type in
blkid
and enter.
In Ubuntu you must use
Code:
sudo blkidRebooting/shutting down
In Ubuntu and Linux Mint, you can use
Code:
init 6
// or
init 0to reboot or shutdown (these refer to runlevels that have been around since Unix days).
In Debian, you must preface that with sudo or it will not work.
In Arch-based distros you can usually count on being able to reboot by typing in and entering
Code:
rebootThat applies in every Arch-based distro I have (14), with one exception -
Artix
where you must preface it with sudo.
By experiencing all these Distros, I can give Members accurate information, and for me, this is particularly important, living in Australia, as they may not see me for another 12 hours or more.
SYSTEM RECOVERY
Many people here will know that my favourite tool for system recovery is Timeshift.
One of the benefits of running so many distros is that I can tell people how to install Timeshift on them. I have yet to find a distro that cannot be made safer with Timeshift being installed, and if it is not immediately apparent, I can tell people how to do it.
So that's it in a nutshell. Fire away if you have any questions.
I downloaded the Beta version of Linux Mint Debian Edition (LMDE) 5 codenamed 'Elsie' yesterday, so now I have to decide whether to install it or wait until later in the month for the final release. I'll take a look and see.
Decisions, decisions, decisions.
Wizard
EDIT: I should have mentioned at the beginning of this Post that I run 75 Linux Distros. I will update with any changes.
76 now ... make that 77 ... make that 83 ... make that 84... make that 89
...back to 77 now after EOL culling
...and back to 90, lol
Last edited:
