livecode on xubuntu 13.10

[Martin Baxter]

On 26/12/13 13:49, Peter Alcibiades wrote:
> Well...   why Ubuntu?  An inconvenient question?
> 
> Why not Debian Stable with 32 bit libraries?  64 bit Seems to work 
> perfectly.   If you want XFCE just install it.  That is a sensible
> choice given the total mess that Gnome has become.  XFCE is fast and
> simple.  I have replaced xfwm with metacity for one installation.
> Its pretty close to Gnome 2.  Or there would also be cinnamon or mate
> as an alternative.
> 
> Or, if you want to get really purist, Slackware with xfce.  If it
> doesn't run on Slackware you know its the package.  If it doesn't run
> on Ubuntu, all you really know is that you have a problem.  Which may
> or may not go away or be replaced by a different one in six months
> time.
> 
> The popularity of Ubuntu is quite baffling, but what is even more
> baffling is the fact that so many people see it as the only option.
> 
> 

Speaking only for myself, I have the hardware that I have, and the Linux
that ends up installed on it is the Linux that installs without major
issues. I don't really have the chops to resolve installations that go
badly wrong and anyway of course that isn't even the only thing I have
to do in my life.

I have found that Ubunutu and derivatives are much more likely to
install successfully on the hardware that I actually have than are
distros that perhaps I would in fact prefer to use if only I could get
them to even install, and my suggestion is that this is perhaps a major
factor in the popularity of Ubuntu and its derivatives.

The machine I was playing about with in this case reacted badly or
inconsistently to pretty much every LIVE distro I tried to run on it,
except for xubuntu, and that is the simple reason why that particular
software got installed.

I've somewhat changed my plans due to the niggling issues that have
arisen and remain unresolved. I do in fact now plan to install Debian
but on a separate machine, which seems happy to run wheezy live DVD.
Just waiting for a new HD to be delivered before I go ahead.

One issue with Debian in the past was that they did not provide ready
made live media and I have had experience of Debian installation
apparently going fine only to be decidedly pear-shaped once actually
booted. Now that there are live dvd images I think it is easier for
someone like myself to evealuate the chances of successful installation
in advance.

Essentially I completely agree with your sentiments Peter. I much prefer
the idea of a stable platform with real long term support, to the fickle
testbed that is Ubuntu. The decider though is the available skills and
hardware.

Martin