Another version of fave distro and why. Im always distro shopping, and I have yet to ever find a fave.

yet to try freebsd. Is it still actually linux? not even sure what the deal with it is.

No, FreeBSD isn't Linux -- it's BSD Unix. To clarify, here's a brief run-down of the different (major) types of Unix-like operating systems:

1. System V Unix is a direct descendant of the "original" AT&T Unix. There aren't many System V variants around anymore, due to a bunch of big patent issues in the late 80s and early 90s. SCO Unix was the only major publisher of System V Unix in the 90s, and they went bankrupt a few years ago (hence why they tried to sue the pants off of Linux distributors).
2. BSD Unix is short for Berkeley System Distribution, and is a clone of System V from UC Berkeley that first began in the 80s. FreeBSD, NetBSD, OpenBSD, and Mac OS X are all derivatives of the original BSD Unix. Even though it began as a clone of System V Unix, BSD Unix distros are usually considered to be "real" Unix operating systems, since they're almost exact duplicates of System V.
3. Solaris, published by Sun Microsystems, is another Unix-compatible variant. It was originally an amalgam of System V and Sun's BSD-derived SunOS, but it's diverged a lot in the last 20 years.
4. Linux is based on BSD and System V Unix, but is a complete kernel written from scratch that isn't (directly) derived from any of the above operating systems. (Also, technically Linux is just a kernel, whereas the other ones are complete OSes...but I digress.)

FreeBSD is BSD, which is the same kernel Mac OSX is based off of. It's pretty nice, but I still prefer the Linux kernel over the BSD kernel. BSD is like a middle ground between Linux and true UNIX.
In order from least UNIX like to most UNIX like, it goes like this:
NT - some other kernels that aren't really used anymore, like BeOS and shit - DOS - Linux - BSD - UNIX


Anyway, my favorite distro is probably Arch Linux. It's more of a power-user distro, but unlike Gentoo, you don't have to compile everything.

Mac OS X's kernel is actually based directly on the Mach microkernel, with FreeBSD bits fused into the kernel. It differs considerably from the FreeBSD kernel.

Well that contradicts nearly everything I've heard. I'm going to have to look into that.

XNU: The Kernel (from an excellent book on the OS X kernel called Mac OS X Internals)

now could someone explain what a kernel is?
Cj didnt you say your were basically re writing the windows kernel on a pc of yours?

Im def gonna try bsd. It sounds like something I might like. Thanks for the run down.

O and no one has answered my main question. haha. I think I dont have a prob with ubuntu I just dont want to be using the same distro as so many n00bs.

debian vs. fedora?
Downloading them both now.
inb4 gentoofags

A kernel is the low-level component of an operating system that basically manages hardware resources. It provides the bridge through which software talks to hardware. Typically a kernel interfaces with drivers to provide access to hardware, manages memory allocation, controls processes running on the machine, and that sort of thing. It's the only program on a computer that can run in supervisor mode on the processor, so it's the only program that has complete access to the machine's hardware.

Debian beats fedora, easily. It will be a very easy change for someone who is used to Ubuntu or Mint, since they're both based off Debian.
If you want to try something different, then Fedora. It's based off the other major distro, Red Hat.

If you want a power user distro, then Arch is the way to go. If you're retarded and think compiling everything you want to install is fun, then go Gentoo.

In my opinion, Gentoo is a very crippled distro. The only real advantage to it is it's security and scalability, which, despite popular belief, isn't much greater than even the most bloated mainstream distributions, like Mandriva or Suse.

I like bloated.
you know I have never gotten suse to work, on any pc.
Ill try. I liked mandriva, but then it got uglier.

What reason could you possibly have to like bloated?

Full featured, sure, but bloated?

ok nvm. haha.
i was thinking along the lines of linux.
but vista is bloated and doesnt have more features then xp.