Reader supplied reviews for Gentoo Linux
Average rating
8.4 from 56 review(s)
Version: unstable
Rating: 10
Date: 2023-10-22
Votes: 45
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When I first used Gentoo, I fell in love with it.
The install process is intimidating, but once it is set up, maintaining Gentoo is easy. You only need to run two commands to update your system. The Handbook guides you through the whole process.
OpenRC is a great choice as an init system, as it balances speed and ease of use. However, systemd is an officially supported option if you want to use it.
The package manager, Portage is helpful and intuitive. It automatically applies any needed changes to config files when it can, but when it doesn't, it usually tells you what was wrong and what you need to do. When there's a dependency loop, Portage even gives you a possible solution on what you can do! There are also optional tools to make system maintence easier, like Gentoolkit, which includes the euse command to add and remove use flags without manually editing configs.
A lot of packages that I want to use are in a "testing phase", which means when you try to install them, Portage by default blocks them. This is easily fixable by either whitelisting the package you want, or globally adding the ~amd64 (or whatever your architecture is) keyword in your config, which is what I did. So far I experienced no problems with it.
However, there are quite a few packages I wanted that just weren't in the repos. Because of the flexibility of Gentoo, one could probably write their own Ebuild file for these packages, or search the GURU repository. The GURU repository is Gentoo's version of the "Arch User Repository".
As a Wayland user, having the ability to exclude X support is cool. For my usage, I exclude X globablly but specifically give support for the apps that need it, like Xwayland.
On my computer, programs compiled with Gentoo are more efficient with RAM. It makes me wish I could compile closed-source programs, but sadly I cannot :(
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Version: stable
Rating: 10
Date: 2023-10-15
Votes: 17
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I started using Linux in 1998. When I first installed Gentoo many years later, I knew it is my best distro.
Pros:
- source based
- portage and emerge - the best package manager
- openRC - the best "init"
- USE flags and other fine tunings like possibility to switch to clang, etc
- freedom of choice
- community
Cons:
for me, really none.
It is the most difficult distro ever :), but this is the point :) I have a full control! For me, it is another advantage :)
Yes, I am biased :)
As for today, I can't imagine switching to another distro. Maybe to Arch + openRC or Debian + openRC, but really? I need emerge and sources :)
Cheers!
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Version: stable
Rating: 10
Date: 2023-10-08
Votes: 4
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Among all the distributions I operate for different purposes, this is my #1 for my closest, personal machines since the last almost 20 years.
Part of the philosophy is to tailor your system to the essential needs and optimize for the envisaged tasks while keeping things simple and close to the original Linux spirit.
The cost is the time spent when installing/updating the packages, as you'll compile them - as long you don't go the binary way (and therefore skip the magic).
Compared to my 2nd love Debian Gentoo packages are much more up-to-date, but the system needs more care.
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