It is difficult for me to say that these are my four favorite distributions, period, without any qualifications. On the Ubuntu project alone, I am always torn between the XFCE based Xubuntu derivative and the KDE based Kubuntu derivative, and the 8.04 release is no exception. I like the boot screen and the default wallpaper on XFCE better, but those are only window dressings, so they do not form the full basis of any evaluation of mine.

1) What else could it possibly be? sidux has impressed me more than any other system that I have used in three or four years. Only the old Libranet was even close. Given that sidux has newer technology, sidux wins. Why? First, it has a very fast kernel and always detects the hardware I use in my four systems, two desktops and two laptops. These systems span seven or eight years in time, so I believe sidux will do well on most systems, but a sample size of four, of course, is inconclusive evidence. sidux installs very quickly. It is very similar to the speed in which the original Lindows.com would install - you'd throw it on your system, and ten minutes later it was there. The difference is, with sidux, you have a working system.

2) Ever since I found MEPIS in May 2003, I have like the MEPIS systems. I really liked the first Live CDs that I ran across. They were my favorite Live CDs. Unfortunately, when MEPIS went for the "Simple" in SimplyMEPIS (my favorite stable distribution), they also significantly upped the size of the CDs by moving from a lightweight window manager to a full featured desktop system. I thought that antiX was giving up a bit by making that change, but the more and more I use antiX, the less and less I feel that way.

3) I have elevated Mandriva back to the spot I once had it in the Mandrake 8.0 timeframe as one of four regular partitions I include on my best system.

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