viernes, 17 de julio de 2020

MX Linux: The Ugly Duckling

Three days ago, I decided to test a Linux distro that has become very popular in DistroWatch, MX Linux.

Megatotoro started using it as soon as it came along, carrying the legacy of the extinct, but amazing  Mepis Linux combined with the speed and versatility of AntiX.  Although, back then, this distro was but a faint bleep in the DistroWatch radar, today it has the top 1 spot in the chart, way above Mint and Ubuntu, once rulers of Linux popularity.

What prompted me to try it was an experiment with OBS Studio, which required me to use a 64 bit distro that worked with .deb packages.  I have always used .rpg distros: Mageia, OpenMandriva, PCLinuxOS, and Fedora.  Well, I have Elive 3, but it is 32 bits, so it did not work for me.

I needed to replace one distro, so I chose to erase Fedora.  Anyway, I could always put it back once I finished my OBS Studio experiment, I said to myself.

MX Linux installed very quickly and without any problem.  I had no GRUB2 issues and found myself quite at ease with the DE.  Thanks to my experience with PCLinuxOS, using Synaptic in MX represented no learning curve at all.

So, I carried out my experiment and failed miserably.  However, contrary to what I had originally intended, I had already customized the appearance of the DE and stuffed the system with my favorite programs.  When I saw myself syncing my files and Firefox, I knew that the distro was staying in my laptop.

Now I understand why so many Linux users prefer MX.  Just like in Andersen's story, I had grossly underestimated this distro... until it became a beautiful swan-like OS powering my computer with grace and ease.

It is no coincidence that its code name is Patito Feo.

 

1 comentario:

  1. I do have Patito Feo and used it sometimes, but my main production MX is one distro behind, hehe. I am a late adopter, just like back in my Mepis times: everybody used Mepis 8.5 and I was on Mepis 8. :P

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