Why Slackware Sucks (fwd)

[Steven Pritchard <steve@silug.org>]

By popular demand...  I sent this out to silug-discuss a while back.
I thought some of you might enjoy it.

(There will also be one other.  You'll recognize it when you see it.)

----- Forwarded message -----

From: Steven Pritchard <steve@silug.org>
Message-Id: <199710132225.RAA04810@osiris.silug.org>
Subject: Why Slackware Sucks (was Re: blanking screen)
In-Reply-To: <199710102306.SAA01707@tempest.pdnt.net> from Allan Peretz at "Oct 10, 97 07:21:25 am"
To: silug-discuss@silug.org
Date: Mon, 13 Oct 1997 17:25:16 -0500 (CDT)
Reply-To: silug-discuss@silug.org
Organization: Southern Illinois Linux Users Group


Allan Peretz said:
> If you're using Slackware (as you should be)
[...]

I beginning to think Allan and I will never agree on this, and
sometimes I wonder what he's been smoking ;), but here are some real,
concrete reasons why I think Slackware sucks:

a) It isn't supported well enough to matter, i.e. security fixes are
not available nearly fast enough.  And even if they were...

b) It has no package management system.  Every other Linux
distribution does.  Most use rpm (Red Hat's package manager).  While I
have problems with rpm, it is certainly better than nothing.

c) There is no easy upgrade path between versions.

d) It isn't using System V-style boot scripts.  (It uses some
bastardized psuedo-BSD boot setup on top of a SysV init.)  If you are
wondering why you should care, first of all, it is easier to maintain.
Second, it allows you to easily do runlevels properly.  Third, the
rest of the unix world is moving that way, so why fight the standard.
Besides, when Linux does things the same way as the rest of the unix
world, that makes it more valuable as a learning tool.

e) It doesn't follow the Linux Filesystem Standard, or anything else,
as near as I can tell, which simply complicates things.

I could probably keep going on like this for days.  :-)  (Just don't
get me started on Red Hat now...  Although, by comparison, Red Hat is
a dream...)

Slackware is early 1994 Linux technology.  It is an outdated toy.  It
was fun then, but it is time to move on.

Steve
-- 
steve@lanscape.net          | System Administrator
(217)698-1694               | LANscape
Steven Pritchard            | http://www.lanscape.net/

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