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Is it serious? The five best Arch Linux distributions Archlinux distributions

Date of publication: January 1, 2015
Translation: A. Krivoshey
Date of transfer: June 2015

Arch Linux is unique. Unlike most Linux distributions, it doesn't even have an official live CD. If you want to run it, you need to use the terminal. Many people like this. Arch gives users the freedom to put together the system they like.
If you don't like building your system from scratch, that's okay. There are a bunch of Arch Linux derivative distributions, each of which has its own peculiarities, despite the fact that they are all based on Arch.

It's just a perfect derivative. Its developers did not replace the entire Arch database with their own repositories. When installed, it downloads everything from the main Arch Linux repositories, so you don't even need to update it after installation. Everything is freshest and ready to go. Among other things, the developers of the distribution work closely with Numix, so Antergos is doing well in terms of themes. In general, he tries to adhere to the Arch Linux update and repository cycle whenever possible.

Like CrunchBang Linux, it is lightweight, fast and highly customizable. The ArchBang developers, like their Antergos counterparts, prefer to stick with the main Arch repositories rather than make their own. This is good, since you get updates at the same time as the users of the parent distribution. In fact, there is only one difference between the two branches: CrunchBang uses Debian as a base, while ArchBang uses Arch Linux.
With ArchBang, you get an Openbox-style desktop with a Tint2 panel - a minimalist solution. Basically, if you want a very simple and lightweight version of Arch Linux, then this is ArchBang.

Do you love KDE, Arch Linux, and want to get it working out of the box? Only a few distributions offer this functionality today, including Chakra Linux. The distribution kit is positioned as completely sharpened for KDE, so in the official repositories of the distribution kit you will find programs only for this graphical environment. The use of GTK-based programs is discouraged (although they can be found in the additional repositories).

I can't say that everyone will love KDE, but for those who are happy with it, Chakra offers an excellent rapid deployment system with KDE based on Arch Linux.

Looking for a modern yet stable Arch-based distro? may be the best choice. He has many strengths. First, the distribution uses its own repositories, so its developers have complete control over the software provided to users. While those who prefer to get new updates first, this can be annoying.

Another strong point of Manjaro is the presence of multiple editions of the distribution, which sets it apart from its competitors. ArchBang offers you a heavily redesigned Openbox, and if you don't like it, you won't be able to select an image with a different window manager. Chakra assumes that you like KDE and nothing else. In general, having multiple editions is definitely an advantage.

In terms of Manjaro, the XFCE version is considered canon, but you can choose from a variety of suggested editions (both official and community made). Manjaro suits almost everyone!

It is positioned as an easy-to-learn Arch Linux. It also uses the official Arch repositories. Bridge Linux is not tailored for a specific graphical environment and is released in several editions (LXDE, XFCE, Gnome, MATE, etc.). Choose the one that you like.

Conclusion

Building Arch Linux is not everyone's liking. Many people prefer to simply install the system and use it. The distributions featured in our roundup will allow those users to get started with Arch as well.

Archlinux software

In my opinion, software will largely determine the distribution. What are Debian and Ubuntu famous for? The fact that you can install almost any software from the world of OpenSource with one command, which cannot be said about RPM distributions. In addition, Ubuntu has a wagon of PPA repositories with the freshest software. This allows you to install any software and not have to build it from sources and study the device deb / rpm packages. Ubuntu also has an excellent package manager, apt, which is the heart of the system and allows you to manipulate packages so conveniently that Windows users are drooling. What will Arch surprise us with?

Rolling release update model

Most people are used to the standard update pattern. First, a system release is released, be it Windows or Ubuntu, and then you receive minor software updates with security patches or bug fixes. Arch is a little different. There is no concept of a system release in principle. Packages appear daily and you can use the latest versions right away. This is, so to speak, a constantly updated distribution kit, which makes it unnecessary to make new versions in the form of installation images.

Pacman and the AUR

Arch has its own binary package manager called Pacman. How is it different from Apt in Ubuntu?

Speed. It is so fast that apt will seem like the last century to you. When apt dies on older machines, pacman runs at the speed of light.
Control. Pacman does not have a GUI, but it is so well thought out that there is no need for an interface. Of course, it is possible to install a GUI, but over time you will no longer need to use it (more details in the next part).
Dependencies. The ideology of the distribution kit implies simplicity and elegance in everything, from which the dependencies in Pacman are made in such a way that when installing a program, the dependencies necessary only for the operation of the program itself will be used. Let's take a look at this using an archiver as an example. For example, we will install any of the GUI archivers in Ubuntu and in the dependencies we will definitely get additional software, such as zip, unrar, and so on. What if I use tar archives and I don't need zip and rar? Pacman will only install the archiver and list the recommended dependencies including all possible archive formats. Ubuntu doesn't have this option, even with --no-recommends-install

Pacman, by the way, does not contain so many packages and it is far from always possible to install what the standard Ubuntu repositories have, but there is such a wonderful thing as AUR.

So what is AUR? AUR (Arch User Repository) is an enthusiast-supported repository containing scripts to automatically build applications from source. Everyone has the right to add their favorite application to the AUR repository. If the package in the AUR gets a certain number of votes, then it goes to the official repository. AUR is the place to find almost everything. Users are constantly adding a huge number of new packages and updating old ones, which makes up for the meager official repository.

Distribution configuration

Everything in Archlinux is configurable. Any distribution settings are made through configuration files, instead of GUI programs in Ubuntu. And again, we have the opportunity to configure everything exactly how we want without resorting to the GUI. Why use a low-functionality GUI to configure the system when everything can be done through configs? (stone in the garden Ubuntu Tweaker and other dregs). On the other hand, it is extremely difficult for novice users to do, but this is not about us.

Search for information

Ubuntu users are used to looking for information in Google, getting to the forums where they recommend doing
perl -e "$ ?? s:; s: s ;; $? :: s ;; \u003d] \u003d\u003e% - (<-|}<&|`{;;y; -/:[email protected][-` (-); `- (/" - ;; s ;; $ _; see "

Everything is much simpler and more convenient in Archlinux. Archlinux has its own Wiki, where you can find 95% of the information on the system and almost all the software in it. The remaining 5% of information falls out in the first search lines from the official forum. However, there is one drawback. Many articles in Russian in the Wiki are very outdated and do not correspond to the current software, so I recommend immediately opening the English version and looking there. Although, who knows, perhaps you, the new archevod will help to update the documentation for Archlinux.

Conclusion

Arch Linux is a constructor from which you can build at least a simple system for weak machines, and a system filled with software for working on powerful machines than. Arch takes a while to get started with the distribution, but it makes up for it in that it is much more customizable than Ubuntu, for example.

Unlike the so-called user-friendly distributions, the setup is rather complicated and thorny. To install the system, you will at least have to read the Beginners Guide from the wiki before installing. Since there is no concept like a standard installation in Ubuntu. To install, you will have to make many decisions yourself and prescribe many parameters. If done correctly, you will have a system without unnecessary junk.

Quote from Lurkmore:

Despite the external complexity, installation and configuration is not that difficult. It is enough to have perseverance, clear understanding and awareness of your actions and attentiveness (and also study ArchWiki very carefully). That is, to put it simply, take your time. The documentation describes everything in great detail, with examples, which allows you to quickly begin to understand what is happening in general and why it is needed.

That's all for now. Next time, we will install the system from scratch to a production environment. Thanks.

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Comments (174):

In my daily work, I like to use the browser as a player, snapping it to the left side of the screen, and VS Code leaving space on the right, since newer versions of Windows handle window snapping perfectly. Unfortunately, even the screen space of a 27-inch monitor is catastrophically small for all "wants", so more and more people want to buy a second monitor.
My main browser is Vivaldi and it is good for everyone, except that by default it uses completely disgusting, fat scrollbars straight from the past. The screen is already small, and then there are scrollbars 15 pixels thick. Fortunately, fixing this problem is as easy as shelling pears and you don't even have to resort to the Google Chrome Extension Store.
You can install modern scrollbars directly from your browser by enabling a special flag in the experimental settings.

To do this, enter in the search bar vivaldi: // flagsand find "Overlay Scrollbars" through the search. After that, we transfer it to the Enabled state. After restarting the browser, you will see a truly modern scrollbar that only appears when you use scrolling and is hidden the rest of the time.
And I also want to recommend a little-known extension for Chrome browsers from Google itself, which allows you to unpin videos from YouTube and watch it even on the desktop like in a miniplayer or as it happens in MacOS with video.

June 24, 2019

In my personal life, I suddenly had a sufficient amount of free time and observing the extremely sad state of the industry in the Russian Federation, I decided to fulfill my old dream - to master as a web developerin order to be able to practice freelance... Having closely come into contact with the topic of web development, I realized that there simply would be no Internet for these ten years (it was then that I fully tried to self-study the design and layout of sites) has come an incredible way.
Millennials have come up with trendy new names for web developers: front-end and back-end. The front-end makes up the site from a layout that a professional designer drew for him, adds various simple scripts in javascript (so you need to be able to program) and possibly attaches the layout to the CMS. The backender is responsible for the site's engine and work with databases, and he also turns his nose up and considers himself a real programmer, and not like these "form slips". If 5 years ago it was possible to learn layout in HTML5 and learn CSS in order to proudly be called a layout designer, now these are basic skills with which you cannot find a job in any web studio, because very few people need layout itself. The stack of technologies necessary for modern website development has grown incredibly and the layout designer is now a bit of a programmer, and the programmer, if necessary, can typeset from the layout and make the interface himself. But in our time it was possible to "cut" the site and make it up on tables ...

Here's a quick summary knowledgeand the tips that I learned in a month of hard home schooling:

is now the most popular code editor, covering 90% of all frontend tasks. Atom not popular due to its glitchiness and slowness, on Sublime text sitting only old web developers who just got used to this "notebook" over the years of use.
Without the hated Adobe Photoshop, when working with layouts, nowhere. This is the de facto industry standard. Yes, there are some really cool alternatives, like the paid online services Avocode, Zeppelin or Figma, but they are more geared towards the rapid development of mobile interfaces rather than website layouts. And although they declare support psd, with more or less complex layouts, there will definitely be problems. Not to mention, they misread the text layer options and don't show / disable overlay effects. The guys who created Sketch for Mac OS profiled a huge market not wanting to port their product to the web or Windows. Where can I get Photoshop? Unfortunately, Adobe's pricing policy leaves few options for newbies like me. Although for students, they give discounts and long trial periods.
The Internet is now very vector and hypertext, so the vector graphics format SVG used everywhere. In conjunction with Photoshop, it would be good practice to have an open vector graphics editor Inkscape on your computer to open and edit such files. Well, or draw a couple of arrows, if nothing beautiful is alien to you.
Professional training on online courses is quite expensive: from 12,000 to 20,000 rubles and more, I generally keep quiet about the advanced level of knowledge (for which companies, and not the programmer himself, usually pay). You can say that I download any lectures on torrents (and this is so, they are there), any books, and I will study myself. In the courses, you pay not for the lectures themselves (instead of them you can read a bunch of articles on the topic for free), but for the work of mentors with you, for correcting mistakes and assessing your real knowledge. I do not urge anyone to run and sign up for any courses, but learning on your own, you will not get some knowledge. Not to mention the possibility of unknowingly getting "wrong knowledge and training bad practices."
The human brain is able to adequately perceive new information for no more than 4 hours, then a sharp drop in efficiency begins.
Without practices your knowledge is worthless. Practice should take 80% of your learning, and 20% should be theory and lectures. This is the most valuable thing in online courses that you do not download on torrents: they will kick you in every possible way, give and check homework, indicate where to improve knowledge.
Be prepared for the fact that website development technologies change every 2 years: old browsers die, new frameworks and layout methods appear. Get ready to learn new things. Eh, but I really remember those times when the pages were made up with tables and just switched to "divas". And now only "divas" will look askance at layout - now flexboxes are in vogue.
There are many free psd templates on the internet that you can download, design and make a portfolio of. And, of course, Chrome DevTools (which opens with F12) and a similar developer tool in Firefox are cool things: constantly look at the code of the sites that interest you to understand how this or that thing was done, or where the layout designers screwed up (children's mistakes are common).

Novice developer page
It is extremely difficult for a beginner to find a job on freelance exchanges. As I already said, they rarely order the layout, and if they order, these simple orders are intercepted by the masters, who will naturally make it very quickly and efficiently. There are exchanges for perfect beginners like Work-zilla, but if you read the reviews, there will be a lot of negative ones. In addition, this exchange grabs 15% of the completed order, imposes a restriction on the withdrawal of money and requires payment for a subscription every month. It also resets your rating over time. In general, there you will literally work for food for inadequate customers who want a full-fledged website for 1000 rubles. Used to be foreign Upwork, but it is now paid, and there is no way to get there because of the Indians.
I learned cool concepts: semantic layout, responsive layout, flexbox, grids, pixel perfect, cross-browser compatibility. Without real knowledge of these things, they won't even talk to you like a layout designer.
Surprisingly, Internet Explorer isn't dead yet. The 11th version of this "wonderful" browser, which was buried by the creators from Microsoft, is still alive and is part of the concept called "cross-browser compatibility" (and sometimes it is required to ensure that the layout and work of the site match in Chinese mobile browsers and Opera Mini, where it does not work half of modern web technologies). And IE 11 will definitely break your layout, because it differs from browsers on Chromium and Gecko (Firefox).

Once you start coding, you will very soon want to install a second monitor. This is a work necessity
Soft Skills work as before (since the days of the Neanderthals). Namely: the ability to communicate with a customer, advertise yourself, look for clients where your numerous competitors cannot think of - all this will help you find a job and receive a stable income. Well, or it will help to ask for money for food near the church with the help of "selling texts" on a cardboard (sad joke).
All relevant and high-quality information on HTML and CSS technologies is only in English, so basic English is a necessity (to be honest, I have not yet met a developer who does not understand English from a word at all - some use online dictionaries at the learning stage, professionals taught with tutors). This information is often (poorly) translated and posted on the Medium blogging platform, and then all sorts of YouTubers, whom I do not recommend to watch, steal (there are not very many suitable developers among Russian-speaking bloggers on the frontend). Oh yeah, never watch Gosha Dudar's videos - this is Timur Sidelnikov from the programming world. Freelancers love to run YouTube channels as a great advertisement for their skills, but whether they teach the right things ... that's a big question. For many of the things that they easily show in their videos, you will be scolded by team leaders in web studios.
In the provinces, there is very little work for web developers and the niche is occupied by long-running web studios of various calibers (I saw a studio of one person and of three people who know how to pull design on Wordpress and work with jQuery as much as possible).
By the way, if you learn how to "pull the design" on Wordpress, ModX, Joomla and other popular CMS, you may not die of hunger, because the demand for such work is very high. The share of sites on Wordpress in the world is constantly falling, but they are still about 40%.
The overwhelming majority of web developers (as well as users) are on Windows and do not have cool 4K monitors, so Retina and layout for Safari are exotic for few people. But the proportion of users who visit the site from mobile devices can be more than 60%, so your site must work properly and look good on smartphones and tablets.
Time! Some people think that the layout can be thoroughly studied in 2 months and even up to half a year spent learning the basis of javascript, automation tools and a popular framework. In any case, it is crazy to think that now you will quickly learn and go to earn money with your knowledge. The volume of material for obtaining the status of "junior web developer" - 2000 hours of lectures and practice.
Professional programmers love mechanical keyboards, but how loud they knock at night (I have cherry mx black)! Take the keyboard to cherry mx redto make it even quieter. I don't know how much you can trust all the top keyboards on the Internet, but Cooler Master Storm QuickFire Rapid is most often advised as the first mechanical keyboard. True, this is not a very cool brand among keyboards and the lack of a digital block is annoying (and front-end developers need to enter numbers often), but this is a rather old keyboard model and can be found in Russia at a price 4500 rubles... However, for 5000 rubles, you can already pick up a normal keyboard on the switches you like.

The front-end path is very difficult and thorny, knowledge becomes obsolete and requires updating almost every year (with the release of a new version of the framework used). But personally, I like this occupation and it would be cool if the knowledge I gained were also paid for, allowing me to change my current profession to a new one. The road will be mastered by the walking one.

June 10, 2019

A lot of good games were announced at the ongoing E3 exhibition, but my attention was attracted by the announcement Microsoft Flight Simulator... The Dead King of Civil Aviation Flight Sims Returns To Kick X-plane and Prepar3D... I would very much like to see a triumphant return and there is hope for this, even after a disastrous Microsoft Flight , which was beautiful, but completely useless game for simulator lovers. It's scary to imagine, but the full-fledged numbered simulator part of the series (MS FS X - "ten") was released in 2006 - about 13 years ago.

There are no details about the game, but the trailer shows that this is the coolest graphics engine that provides an incredible degree of detail in the simulation of the game world. However, I suspect that traditionally most of the world will be flat and procedurally generated, and the United States will have beautifully detailed airports and cities. I really hope that Microsoft understands that without a community of modders, their game has no future, and they will open the API for creating missions, maps and planes. Many people now have a business built on this and a well-developed airport scenario or an airplane for the previous version of the simulator can cost under $ 100 and they are willingly bought. If Microsoft wants to make money on it, well, organize the sale of add-ons for the game through your store, take a percentage. It will be better than releasing a "dead" game in which nothing can be changed and selling endless paid DLCs to users (the way of some railway simulators).

Screenshot from 10th version with mods

I also hope that the game will have full built-in support. VR... This technology has long been asking for in aviation simulators and in MS FS its enthusiasts, of course, tried to implement it, but it did not gain much popularity.
The simulator will be released in 2020.

June 9, 2019

With the release of the penultimate Windows 10 update and Nvidia drivers, I was beset by a disgusting iron problem that is simply unrealistic to catch and fix - a short-term monitor disconnection for 2-3 seconds when using a displayport cable. As I later became convinced, the problem was not so much in the crooked Windows drivers from the "beloved" Nvidia as in the iron problem of the 2014 video card itself, the Chinese cable from Aliespress and the modern monitor from Dell for 35,000 rubles (which is quite a shame).
Starting to google the problem, I realized that there are thousands of us such sufferers all over the Internet (google for "nvidia displayport blackscreen problem")! On the Nvidia and Dell forums, people are trying to solve the problem with various shamanistic actions from reinstalling "Windows", editing the registry to disassembling the computer and replacing the power supply. I even updated the bios of my video card to the standard one, having found a file with bios for the GPU in the bins of the Internet, which has not been on the manufacturer's website for a long time (maybe he is shy about his products?). The problem goes away for a day or two, and then the screen starts to go off treacherously again while playing a game or when using a Chrome browser like mine. To work, constantly waiting for the monitor to turn off, is extremely uncomfortable psychologically (personally, my involuntary swearing breaks out and my eyes begin to twitch from this).
I tried almost everything that was offered on the Internet: I plugged the cable into another slot - it helps for a while, but the problem came back again and again! In addition, going into the BIOS and seeing how the screen twitches and turns off there, I realized that this the problem is solely with the video card and the Chinese displayport cablerather than the operating system. Thus, for myself this very unpleasant problem with turning off the monitor, I decided radically - refused to use displayport cable and connected Dell monitor with 2K resolution over HDMI... Yes, the hdmi cable is also 100% Chinese and was bought for 400 rubles in the nearest store (when the displayport cable cost me more), but at least it is simpler and works flawlessly. I'm not a professional designer who needs a cable that supports specific color spaces, and I'm not a gamer with a 4K 144Hz monitor, but an ordinary computer user who needs the monitor not to turn off suddenly! And if you still need a displayport cable, then you probably should take care of buying a special expensive vesa-certified cable, but I'm afraid it won't cost 600 rubles.
While I do not know for certain who is to blame for the problem: the manufacturer of the video card, the unknown manufacturer of the displayport cable (in his defense, I will say that it worked perfectly for six months without any complaints), or when I was cleaning the computer from dust and accidentally hitting something. Or maybe no one is really to blame, because in 2014 Nvidia supported displayport versions 1.3 and 1.4 for its video cards, without having an officially adopted specification and did it a little bit wrong as a result, and when in 2018 cables and monitors appeared, for which they need dp cables of newer versions (high resolution monitors and screen refresh rates), they began to fix it by flashing it.
Nvidia has even released a special utility that attempts to patch the BIOS of video cards with this problem. But again, I do not understand why the problem did not manifest itself in any way before, but it did manifest itself recently?
Remembering all the shoals and troubles that the video cards brought me Nvidia (three of them just burned out, the last two gave out a blue screen of death in games, a scam with 4 GB of memory, which is actually only 3.5), I'm thinking about switching to the camp AMD... Yes, the "red" video cards do not always shine with performance, game developers rarely optimize their games for them, some of the cards are quite hot, but absolutely all the cards from AMD bought from me are still alive and work perfectly.

Honor band 4 I decided to start with a simple one: giving up starchy foods and running in the morning, and in order to run not so boring, I decided to buy a fitness bracelet that is fashionable this season, since the Chinese industry produces them in incredible quantities and you can find simple models from 800 rubles to 2000 rubles for new models with an excellent screen.

Xiaomi Mi Band 3

At the moment, there are two bestsellers: a fancy one Huawei Honor Band 4 with a bright AMOLED screen and a bunch of function, and more budget and simple Xiaomi Mi Band 3 with a simple non-color screen (the new 4th version with a high-quality screen is still on the way). It is also worth paying attention to the products of the Amazfit brand - people praise them, but their price is also 3000 rubles. The Honor Band 4 has more functions and types of workouts (ha, there is even Chinese gymnastics), but it also costs more, and besides, you have to pay for the opportunity to see a beautiful and bright screen with increased battery consumption. However, fitness bracelets consume little energy, so it's okay if you charge your bracelet more than once a month, but once every 2 weeks, especially since the charging process for Honor Band is very simple - using a small dock that connects from the bottom ... But charging at Xiaomi is not very convenient: you need to pick it out of the strap.
There are a large number of videos on YouTube comparing the Honor Band 4 and Mi Band 3, but most reviewers come to the conclusion that the Honor Band 4 is naturally better. The advantages of the Xiaomi fitness bracelet are only the price: you can take it for 1800 rubles with delivery from China. I took Honor Band 4 for 2200 rubles from a store that has a warehouse in Russia, so it was brought to me in just a week by courier. Do not try to take Honor Band 4 from the official Russian store Huawei: they are completely insolent and are fighting 4500 rubles for this popular device. I believe that 1000-2000 rubles is the amount that can be given for a fitness bracelet and it will not hit the wallet too hard.
Huawei Honor Band 4 is made excellently, there are no complaints about the assembly. I decided to play it safe and pasted a film on the protective glass, which was sent by the Chinese seller in the kit (two small strips cost me an additional 100 rubles to the final price). I figured out how to turn on and update the device immediately and without any instructions. It's not that difficult if the device has only one button (and the touchscreen, of course). For pairing, I used a proprietary application Huawei Health, which detected the bracelet with bluetooth turned on and offered to update it, after which it flooded the new firmware for 20 minutes (it was extremely necessary to do this, because the bracelet worked so-so on the old firmware). During the connection process, the application honestly admitted that it would send data to the PRC servers.
The bracelet is controlled by flipping the screens and pressing the screen. To stop or interrupt the workout, you need to press the menu button on the bracelet for 3 seconds. The bracelet can constantly measure the pulse, as well as monitor sleep, but personally I am uncomfortable sleeping with it, and there are people who do not take it off around the clock and even in the shower, since it is waterproof. Another problem with a bracelet (and a watch, for a person who stopped wearing it) is that you constantly touch all sorts of things, doors, tables, etc., out of habit.
Naturally, the bracelet is great friends with your phone and it can send you notifications to the bracelet (quite strong vibration), SMS, messages from programs like Twitter, weather, and so on. In addition, you can turn on the unlocking of the phone with a bracelet when they are nearby, and the bracelet has the “Where is my phone?” Function, after which the phone starts yelling in English in a female voice “I am here!”. Another cool feature is switching the music tracks in the phone by turning the wrist with the bracelet. The bracelet itself does not have the ability to track GPS coordinates (this requires devices like Huawei Band 3 Prowhich are more expensive - prices start at 2800 rubles), but if you run with your phone, then the Health application can bind your coordinates to the map and save tracks. Personally, I would not run with my phone, but for cyclists and tourists, that's it.
Both Huawei and Xiaomi have lighter budget versions of their fitness bracelets that you shouldn't take. At a price they are cheaper by 1000 rubles, but do not know how to measure the pulse... Honor has a version of the Honor Band 4 Running Edition that can only count steps. For me personally (an overweight person), constant heart rate measurement is important. And for regular runners, it's important not to keep your heart rate high during training to avoid muscle soreness.
Thus, the prices for fitness bracelets have now dropped to an acceptable psychological level. I hope this purchase motivates someone to do sports every day.

Arch Linux are a universal distribution that can be used for a wide range of tasks.

Development priorities are simplicity, minimalism and code perfection. Arch is installed as a minimalistic base platform, flexibly customizable by the user by installing individual components required for specific needs.

The GUI customization utilities are not officially supplied and most of the configuration operations are performed using the command line and a text editor. By using the rolling release model, Arch always includes the latest versions of most applications.

Arch Linux overview

Arch Linux is an independently developed Linux distribution optimized for i686- and x86-64 architectures for advanced Linux users. "Pacman" is used as the standard package manager - the solution updates applications and monitors all dependencies. Arch Linux is a "rolling release" system and can be installed not only with a disk, but also via an FTP server. The standard installation provides a solid base installation that allows users to create their own assemblies. In addition, the Arch Build System (ABS) allows you to create new packages, change the configuration of standard packages, and share packages with other users using the Arch Linux repository.

Let's list the basic principles of the Arch distribution (known as the Arch Way or the Arch philosophy):

Simplicity*

* Simplicity means not the ease of using the OS, but the simplicity of its internal organization: minimalism, brevity, adherence to the principles of KISS and Unix-way.

Arch Linux symbolizes simplicity by eliminating unnecessary additions, modifications and complications. The distribution kit includes programs in the same form in which they were released by the developer with minimal changes.

Centralized patches are excluded. Targeted updates mainly include fixes for porting errors that are deprecated with a new release. Likewise, Arch ships configuration files - these only include distribution-limited changes, such as adjusting the path of system files. Automation features are not added, such as enabling a service after installing a package.

Arch Linux packages usually correspond to centralized projects. Packages are split only when there are compelling benefits. Partitions are only used to save disk space in severe cases.

Modernity

Arch Linux strives to maintain the latest stable versions of software as long as system package problems can be ruled out. The distribution uses a floating release system, which allows a one-time installation with regular updates, without the need to reinstall or perform complex procedures associated with installing system updates. With just one command, you get the latest version of the Arch system.

Arch includes many of the features available to GNU / Linux users, including the systemd init system, modern file systems (Ext2 / 3/4, Reiser, XFS, JFS, BTRFS), LVM2, software RAID support, udev and initcpio, and the latest system kernel versions.

Pragmatic

Arch is more of a pragmatic distribution than an ideological one. Design decisions were made by the developer community on an individual basis through discussion and technical analysis.

The large number of packages and scripts in various Arch Linux distributions guarantee freedom of choice. They offer free open source products for users who value functionality more than ideology.

User-oriented

While GNU / Linux tries to be friendlier, Arch Linux has always been focused on end users. Arch is able to satisfy the needs of a particular set of users and does not try to please everyone. The distribution is suitable for experienced users who are not afraid to solve problems on their own and sometimes look through the documentation in search of a solution.

Each user can contribute by reporting bugs, improving the community wiki documentation, and providing technical support to other users. The Arch Linux repository offers a large number of user-edited packages.

Versatility

Arch Linux is a distribution for a wide range of tasks. After installation, the command line environment becomes available. Instead of cluttering the system with unnecessary packages, the user can install only the set of tools necessary for specific tasks. The Arch Linux design and implementation philosophy makes it easy to extend a system from a console machine to a system with a desktop environment of choice.

Author: Derrik Diener
Date of publication: January 1, 2015
Translation: A. Krivoshey
Date of transfer: June 2015

I can't say that everyone will love KDE, but for those who are happy with it, Chakra offers an excellent rapid deployment system with KDE based on Arch Linux.

In terms of Manjaro, the XFCE version is considered canon, but you can choose from a variety of suggested editions (both official and community made). Manjaro suits almost everyone!