Posted on December 15, 2006 - by Justin Hartman
Debian etch is now my local flavour
After grabbling long and hard about the whole Ubuntu dropping PowerPC support issue I have made a decision to move my Apple iBook G4 from my recently installed Ubuntu 6.10 to the ever popular Debian platform.
Mark Shuttleworth’s email to me and the whole debate that has gone on about Ubuntu’s decision to drop PowerPC has made this decision difficult however seeing as I have only recently moved from Apple OSX to Ubuntu I figured it’s better to move now and stick with a distro that will support PowerPC for probably a few more years than be stuck with a distro that is left to the devices of a community that might simply let PowerPC support die a slow and bitter death.
The overall consensus I got from the Ubuntu Forums is that PowerPC users are already looking for a new Linux distro which has also played a big part in deciding to move to Debian. That said I will still support Ubuntu and keep my current 6.10 installations on my PC at home and work while my iBook will now begin the big migrate to Debian.
I have also recently offered my services to the Ubuntu Za LoCo Team and I will be doing work with other South African Ubuntu users to help promote and get the Ubuntu name out in the local community.
So, here’s to a new installation and hopefully the last for quite a while!
6 Comments
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January 23, 2007
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Hi Justin, I’m curiously reading about your experiences with Ubuntu and Debian on your mac. I didn’t hear of the plans to drop Ubuntu ppc support – ubuntu ist what I’m running on my ibook G4.
Could you please let me know how easy it is to get on with Debian in comparison to Ubuntu? I had Debian on my previous machine, but just for 2 months or so because I was quite a newbie and didn’t get on with it… How easy is the installation of etch and yaboot? Is it “all inclusive” as in ubuntu?
Sincerely, silke (from Germany)
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January 23, 2007
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Hi Justin, I'm curiously reading about your experiences with Ubuntu and Debian on your mac. I didn't hear of the plans to drop Ubuntu ppc support – ubuntu ist what I'm running on my ibook G4.
Could you please let me know how easy it is to get on with Debian in comparison to Ubuntu? I had Debian on my previous machine, but just for 2 months or so because I was quite a newbie and didn't get on with it… How easy is the installation of etch and yaboot? Is it “all inclusive” as in ubuntu?
Sincerely, silke (from Germany)
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January 23, 2007
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Hi Silke
I have to be honest Debian was much easier to install than Ubuntu. You must bear in mind that I came from a Red Hat/CentOS RPM background because those seem to be the popular Linux distros at ISP’s around the world.
I have tried all as a personal OS but never lasted because I found them too unstable and unreliable for everyday use. I decided to give Ubuntu a bash (as has been documented) because I was a little scared of Debian myself but what I did find was that Ubuntu didn’t handle PowerPC very well and was very buggy. I often ran out of resources, system crashes etc.
That said Ubuntu was still more stable as a personal OS than the others I tried. When I learned that Ubuntu were dropping PPC I decided to give Debian a try. I started with the “testing” version A.K.A. Etch and within a week I was using the “unstable” version A.K.A. Sid.
I found that the unstable version of Debian was far more stable than Ubuntu ever was for me and this is testament to the Debian team. Debian runs a much newer kernel version than Ubuntu and I think as a result you shouldn’t have a problem installing on a Mac.
If I knew then what I knew now I would have gone with Debian from the start, Don’t get me wrong Ubuntu is GREAT but for PowerPC and Mac I would go with Debian any day of the week.
If you’re still not 100% sure download a Debian Live CD (http://debian-live.alioth.debian.org/) and boot up on your mac to see how it goes. If you can run the live CD you know that Debian and Yaboot will install without problems.
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January 23, 2007
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Hi Silke
I have to be honest Debian was much easier to install than Ubuntu. You must bear in mind that I came from a Red Hat/CentOS RPM background because those seem to be the popular Linux distros at ISP's around the world.
I have tried all as a personal OS but never lasted because I found them too unstable and unreliable for everyday use. I decided to give Ubuntu a bash (as has been documented) because I was a little scared of Debian myself but what I did find was that Ubuntu didn't handle PowerPC very well and was very buggy. I often ran out of resources, system crashes etc.
That said Ubuntu was still more stable as a personal OS than the others I tried. When I learned that Ubuntu were dropping PPC I decided to give Debian a try. I started with the “testing” version A.K.A. Etch and within a week I was using the “unstable” version A.K.A. Sid.
I found that the unstable version of Debian was far more stable than Ubuntu ever was for me and this is testament to the Debian team. Debian runs a much newer kernel version than Ubuntu and I think as a result you shouldn't have a problem installing on a Mac.
If I knew then what I knew now I would have gone with Debian from the start, Don't get me wrong Ubuntu is GREAT but for PowerPC and Mac I would go with Debian any day of the week.
If you're still not 100% sure download a Debian Live CD (http://debian-live.alioth.debian.org/) and boot up on your mac to see how it goes. If you can run the live CD you know that Debian and Yaboot will install without problems.
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January 24, 2007
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Hi Justin,
thanks for encouraging me! I did the installation! In my opinion Ubuntu developers did some practical work that’s missing in Debian etch (like mouse button emulation, sleep mode, appearing desktop icons when mounting things). But some copies from Ubuntu live and some online research made me figure out the important things quite fast.
Enjoy Etch and thanks!
silke
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January 24, 2007
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Hi Justin,
thanks for encouraging me! I did the installation! In my opinion Ubuntu developers did some practical work that's missing in Debian etch (like mouse button emulation, sleep mode, appearing desktop icons when mounting things). But some copies from Ubuntu live and some online research made me figure out the important things quite fast.
Enjoy Etch and thanks!
silke