Just about every week on the PCMech LIVE show I am asked (more or less), "Where do I go to get a list of Linux distros that people actually use?"

The answer I always give is DistroWatch. Is that place the be-all/end-all for all things Linux? No (because there are many), but it’s a darn good start to get the news on what’s going on with different distros.

On the right sidebar there is a list of 100 different Linux distributions sorted by hit ranking. This gives an indication of what’s being actively used/developed. It is not by any means a master list, but like I said it gives a good indication on what you can try out that other people use.

As of this writing, the top 10 are:

1. Ubuntu
2. openSUSE
3. Mint
4. Fedora
5. Debian
6. Mandriva
7. PCLinuxOS
8. MEPIS
9. CentOS
10. Puppy

Want to see the rest? Check out DistroWatch for yourself.

What sites do you go to for Linux distro information? Are they better or worse than DistroWatch?

Write a comment and let us know.

The other day I got into a somewhat heated discussion about why Linux is a viable alternative desktop OS. Despite my best efforts, I was unable to move the other side past the rhetoric and myths that seem to surround Linux. It is because of this discussion that I am writing this…as a way to give accurate information. Let’s start by looking at some of the most common myths.

Myth 1: “Linux is hard to install”

This could not be further from the truth. Many Linux distributions are as easy, if not easier. to install as Windows. Ubuntu, Linux Mint and PCLinuxOS are but three of the most popular. The install is nothing more than a few mouse clicks and basic options like timezone, language and name. All these are explained well and you need to provide the same information when installing ANY operating system. Continued

There are times in the live chat were I’m asked what Linux distribution is used most. While that particular question can’t be readily answered, the site www.DistroWatch.com will to a degree indicate what distributions are being downloaded most.

On that site, scroll down and look to the right. You will see a “Page Hit Ranking” which by default will show hits in the last 6 months. This isn’t an end-all/be-all listing of what’s used most but it’s a good indicator.

At present, the top 5 are:

1. Ubuntu
2. PCLinuxOS
3. openSUSE
4. Fedora
5. Mint

If you were looking for somewhere that lists all the distros and how they’re faring out, DistroWatch is the place to be.