this post was submitted on 30 Nov 2023
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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).

Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.

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I'm going to replace my host os on my shitty laptop with Linux specifically puppy Linux or alpine Linux from scratch and I need to know how will I get started and make it easier for myself, I use a HP notebook 540

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[–] MiddledAgedGuy@beehaw.org 10 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

I'd recommend against any of those choices.

  • Puppy Linux: It's a solid live boot environment but it's not really ideal in comparison to the major distros on a permanent install.
  • Alpine Linux: Since it uses musl instead of glibc, you're likely to run into problems
  • Linux from scratch: Going through LFS is a great way to get a solid understanding of Linux, but unless you want to spend more time maintaining your system than using it, it's going to be a frustrating experience.

Try one of the distros others have suggested.

Edit: I checked the specs on that hardware and yeah that's going to struggle. Maybe Alpine would be ok. It's fairly easy to spin up and might be fun to play with on that hardware. You'll probably want a fairly large swap if you're planning on using a desktop environment.