First off are the major distros, then some derivatives. I will preface this with a disclaimer, because I?ve certainly seen flames before on this subject. These are general observations, meant to give users a better idea of the scope of various choices, not an endorcement or slam of any one. This will cover only a handful of distros, and not even the best. I hope to add more later. (edit: This has hit Slashdot, and I?ve had a lot of feedback, some helpful, some flames. Much less flaming that I expected. I only managed to get in a limited number of distro?s, I hope to add more later. I personally love MEPIS btw. In terms of the core of Slack being BSD based I?m referring to the init scripts. By saying core I hoped to make it more understandable for those that don?t know what init scripts are. And I?m absolutly wrong on how to say SuSE. I will make the change. Also fixed at least a lot of the its/it?s stuff, and the Debian trees -JWH) There are two major trunks for most Linux distros. There are plenty of ground up distros, but most are derived either from RedHat using RPMs (RPM stands for RedHat Package Manager) or Debian using dpkg files. This file formats are used to install software on your computer. Currently, the biggest distros not derived from RedHat or Debian are Slackware and Gentoo which also have their own package management systems with various advantages/disadvantages. And on to the distros? RedHat/Fedora- Often cited as the industry leader, it certainly has a strong foothold in the corporate world due to being a major company with resources to support and market their OS. For this reason, the biggest plus to RedHat or Fedora is that there is a multitude of packages and support for it. It installs a desktop with most any tool that an average user would need, and if it doesn?t have it, both YUM and Apt-get (or just downloading RPM?s) allow an easy way to add software. These days, RedHat is no longer free-as-in-beer by itself, but as the community driven Fedora. Fedora has regular and quick updates, and is the testing ground for RedHat. In recent weeks, it has been revealed that RedHat has plans to even further spin off Fedora as its own organization like the Mozilla Organization. One downside to RedHat/Fedora is the size. It isn?t a small download to get a fully featured desktop installed, and the OS will require a stronger system than some other distro?s. It can be installed off 1 CD as a slimmer non-graphical system, and one strong point for the distro is they do still include many CLI tools that newer desktop centric distros exclude for X-based utilities. Because of its popularity and emphasis on ease-of-use, one can expect a harsh reaction from the more hardcore crowd. Alabama Arizona Arkansas Colorado California Florida Illinois Michigan New York Ohio Pennsylvania Texas Connecticut Georgia Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maryland Massachusetts Minnesota Missouri New Jersey North Carolina South Carolina Tennessee Virginia Washington Wisconsin Birmingham AL Hoover AL Huntsville AL Montgomery AL Tuscaloosa AL Mobile AL Chandler AZ Phoenix AZ Mesa AZ Tucson AZ Yuma AZ Flagstaff AZ Scottsdale AZ Tempe AZ Glendale AZ Little Rock AR Ft Smith AR Pine Bluff AR Jonesboro AR Springdale AR Anaheim CA Bakersfield CA Chula Vista CA San Bernardino CA Santa Ana CA Santa Barbara CA Escondido CA Fontana CA Fremont CA Fresno CA Hayward CA Huntington Beach CA Long Beach CA Los Angeles CA Modesto CA Oakland CA Oceanside CA Ontario CA Pomona CA Riverside CA Sacramento CA Salinas CA San Diego CA San Francisco CA San jose CA Santa Rosa CA Stockton CA Oxnard CA Arvada CO Boulder CO Colorado Springs CO Fort Collins CO Denver CO Pueblo CO Bridgeport CT Bristol CT Danbury CT Hartford CT New Haven CT Norwalk CT Waterbury CT Ft-Lauderdale FL Ft-Myers FL Gainsville FL Hialeah FL Hollywood FL Jacksonville FL Melbourne FL Miami FL Orlando FL Ocala FL Plantation FL Saint Petersburg FL Sarsota FL Tallahassee FL Tampa FL Clearwater FL Lakeland FL Athens GA Atlanta GA Augusta GA Macon GA Marietta GA Roswell GA Savannah GA Boise ID Idaho Falls ID Pocatello ID Aurora IL Bloomington Normal IL Chicago IL Decatur IL Joliet IL Moline IL Naperville IL Rockford IL Waukegan IL Elgin IL Peoria IL Anderson IN Evansville IN Hammond IN Lafayette IN Indianapolis IN South Bend IN Gary IN Fort Wayne IN Muncie IN Cedar Rapids IA Davenport IA Des Moines IA Sioux City IA Wichita KS Olathe KS Lawrence KS Topeka KS Louisville KY Lexington KY Owensboro KY Bowling Green KY Kenner LA Monroe LA New Orleans LA Shreveport LA Baton Rouge LA Boston MA Lowell MA Worcester MA Cambridge MA Brockton MA Annapolis MD Baltimore MD Bowie MD Cumberland MD Frederick MD Gaithersburg MD Rockville MD Hagerstown MD Ann Arbor MI Detroit MI Flint MI Grand Rapids MI Kalamazoo MI Lansing MI Livonia MI Troy MI Westland MI Bloomington MN Duluth MN Minneapolis MN Billings MT Missoula MT Gulfport MS Jackson MS Independence MO Joplin MO Kansas City MO Saint Louis MO Albuquerque NM Las Cruces NM Santa Fe NM Camden NJ Newark NJ Trenton NJ Charlotte NC Cary NC Fayetteville NC Greensboro NC Raleigh NC Winston Salem NC Albany NY Binghampton NY Buffalo NY New York City NY Levittown NY Rochester NY Syracuse NY White Plains NY Yonkers NY Utica NY Paterson NJ Henderson NV Las Vegas NV Reno NV Sparks NV Lincoln NE Omaha NE Akron OH Canton Massillon OH Cincinnati OH Columbus OH Dayton OH Elyria OH Hamilton OH Lorain OH Mansfield OH Middletown OH Toledo OH Youngstown OH Parma OH Cleveland OH Warren OH Lawton OK Norman OK Oklahoma City OK Tulsa OK Beaverton OR Hillsboro OR Eugene OR Gresham OR Portland OR Salem OR Allentown PA Bethlehem PA Erie PA Harrisburg PA Philadelphia PA Pittsburgh PA Reading PA Scranton PA Alexandria VA Arlington VA Chesapeake VA Hampton VA Newport News VA Norfolk VA Petersburg VA Portsmouth VA Richmond VA Roanoke VA Springfield VA Virgiania Beach VA Columbia SC Greenville SC Rock Hill SC Spartanburg SC Bellevue WA Everett WA Kent WA Seattle WA Spokane WA Tacoma WA Vancouver WA Appleton WI Green Bay WI Kenosha WI Madison WI Milwaukee WI Racine WI Casper WY Cheyenne WY Salt Lake City UT Sandy UT Ogden UT Orem UT Provo UT Sioux Falls SD Washington DC Providence RI Fargo ND Charleston WV Huntington WV Memphis TN Clarksville TN Murfreesboro TN Nashville TN Knoxville TN Chattanooga TN Laredo TX Fort Worth TX Plano TX Waco TX Mesquite TX Lubbock TX Houston TX El Paso TX Garland TX San Angelo TX San Antonio TX Corpus Christi TX Dallas TX Brownsville TX Austin TX Beaumont TX Amarillo TX Abilene TX AL cheap ISP provider DSL service AZ cheap ISP provider DSL service AR cheap ISP provider DSL service CA cheap ISP provider DSL service CO cheap ISP provider DSL service CT cheap ISP provider DSL service FL cheap ISP provider DSL service GA cheap ISP provider DSL service ID cheap ISP provider DSL service IL cheap ISP provider DSL service IN cheap ISP provider DSL service IA cheap ISP provider DSL service KS cheap ISP provider DSL service KY cheap ISP provider DSL service LA cheap ISP provider DSL service MD cheap ISP provider DSL service MA cheap ISP provider DSL service MI cheap ISP provider DSL service MN cheap ISP provider DSL service MS cheap ISP provider DSL service MO cheap ISP provider DSL service MT cheap ISP provider DSL service NE cheap ISP provider DSL service NV cheap ISP provider DSL service NJ cheap ISP provider DSL service NM cheap ISP provider DSL service NY cheap ISP provider DSL service NC cheap ISP provider DSL service OH cheap ISP provider DSL service OK cheap ISP provider DSL service OR cheap ISP provider DSL service PA cheap ISP provider DSL service SC cheap ISP provider DSL service TN cheap ISP provider DSL service UT cheap ISP provider DSL service VA cheap ISP provider DSL service WA cheap ISP provider DSL service WV cheap ISP provider DSL service WI cheap ISP provider DSL service WY cheap ISP provider DSL service Buffalo NY bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing Newark NJ bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing Louisville KY bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing Birmingham AL bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing Norfolk VA bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing Las Vegas NV bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing Rochester NY bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing Lexington KY bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing Chicago IL bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing Houston TX bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing Akron OH bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing Raleigh NC bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing Richmond VA bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing Dayton OH bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing Tampa FL bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing New York City NY NYC bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing Wichita KS bad credit car loan bankruptcy auto financing Cheap hand gun ammo discount rifle ammunition online Federal Winchester Remington military surplus Online sports betting pro NFL football gambling NCAA basketball bet baseball wager Play online poker game Texas holdem party poker online games Alabama DSL service AL ISP provider Birmingham Montgomery Mobile Huntsville Tuscaloosa Hoover Dothan Decatur Auburn Gadsden Arizona DSL service AZ ISP provider Phoenix Tucson Mesa Glendale Scottsdale Chandler Tempe Gilbert Peoria Yuma Flagstaff Arkansas DSL service AR ISP provider Little Rock Fort Smith Fayetteville Jonesboro Pine Bluff Springdale Conway Rogers Hot Springs Colorado DSL service CO ISP provider Denver Aurora Lakewood Fort Collins Arvada Pueblo Westminster Boulder Thornton California ISP provider CA DSL service Los Angeles San Diego San Jose San Francisco Long Beach Fresno Sacramento Oakland Santa Ana Anaheim Florida DSL service FL ISP provider Jacksonville Miami Tampa Saint Petersburg Hialeah Orlando Fort Lauderdale Tallahassee Hollywood Pembroke Pines Illinois DSL service IL ISP provider Chicago Rockford Aurora Naperville Peoria Springfield Joliet Elgin Waukegan Cicero Michigan DSL service MI ISP provider Detroit Grand Rapids Warren Flint Sterling Heights Lansing Ann Arbor Livonia Dearborn Westland New York DSL service NY ISP provider Buffalo Rochester Yonkers Syracuse Albany New Rochelle Mount Vernon Schenectady Utica Ohio ISP DSL service OH ISP provider Columbus Cleveland Cincinnati Toledo Akron Dayton Parma Youngstown Canton Lorain Pennsylvania DSL service PA ISP provider Philadelphia Pittsburgh Allentown Erie Upper Darby Reading Scranton Bethlehem Lower Merion Lancaster Texas DSL service TX ISP provider Houston Dallas San Antonio Austin El Paso Fort Worth Arlington Corpus Christi Plano Garland Connecticut DSL service CT ISP provider Bridgeport New Haven Hartford Stamford Waterbury Norwalk Danbury New Britain West Hartford Greenwich Georgia DSL service GA ISP provider Atlanta Augusta Columbus Savannah Athens Macon Roswell Albany Marietta Warner Robins Indiana DSL service IN ISP provider Indianapolis Fort Wayne Evansville South Bend Gary Hammond Bloomington Muncie Anderson Terre Haute Iowa DSL service IA ISP provider Des Moines Cedar Rapids Davenport Sioux City Waterloo Council Bluffs Dubuque Ames Falls city Kansas DSL service KS ISP provider Wichita Overland Park City Topeka Olathe Lawrence Shawnee Salina Manhattan Hutchinson Kentucky DSL service KY ISP provider Louisville Lexington - Fayette Owensboro Bowling Green Covington Hopkinsville Frankfort Henderson Richmond Jeffersontown Louisiana DSL service LA ISP provider New Orleans Baton Rouge Shreveport LaFayette Lake Charles Kenner Bossier City Monroe Alexandria Iberia Maryland DSL service MD ISP provider Baltimore Frederick Gaithersburg Bowie Rockville Hagerstown Annapolis College Park Salisbury Cumberland Massachusetts DSL service MA ISP provider Boston Worcester Springfield Lowell Cambridge Brockton New Bedford Fall River Lynn Quincy Minnesota DSL service MN ISP provider Minneapolis Saint Paul Duluth Rochester Bloomington Brooklyn Park Plymouth Eagan Coon Rapids Burnsville Missouri DSL service MO ISP provider Kansas City Saint Louis Springfield Independence Columbia Joseph Lee's Summit Charles St Peters Florissant New Jersey DSL service NJ ISP provider Newark City Paterson Elizabeth Edison Woodbridge Dover Hamilton Trenton Camden North Carolina DSL service NC ISP provider Charlotte Raleigh Greensboro Durham Winston-Salem Fayetteville Cary High Point Wilmington Asheville South Carolina DSL service SC ISP provider Columbia Charleston Greenville Rock Hill Mount Pleasant Spartanburg Sumter Hilton Head Island Florence Tennessee DSL service TN ISP provider Memphis Nashville Knoxville Chattanooga Clarksville Murfreesboro Jackson Johnson City Kingsport Franklin Virginia ISP DSL service VA ISP provider Beach Norfolk Chesapeake Richmond Newport News Arlington Hampton Alexandria Portsmouth Roanoke Washington DSL service WA ISP provider Seattle Spokane Tacoma Vancouver Bellevue Everett Federal Way Kent Yakima Bellingham Wisconsin DSL service WI ISP provider Milwaukee Madison Green Bay Kenosha Racine Appleton Waukesha Oshkosh Eau Claire West Allis Delaware DSL service DE ISP provider Wilmington Dover Newark Milford Seaford Middletown Elsmere Smyrna New Castle Georgetown Idaho DSL service ID ISP provider Boise Nampa Pocatello Meridian Coeur d'Alene Twin Falls Lewiston Caldwell Moscow Maine DSL service ME ISP provider Portland Lewiston Bangor Auburn Brunswick Biddeford Sanford Augusta Scarborough Mississippi DSL service MS ISP provider Jackson Gulfport Biloxi Hattiesburg Greenville Meridian Tupelo Southaven Vicksburg Pascagoula Montana DSL service MT ISP provider Billings Missoula Great Falls Butte Bozeman Helena Kalispell Havre Anaconda Miles City Nebraska DSL service NE ISP provider Omaha Lincoln Bellevue Grand Island Kearney Fremont Hastings North Platte Norfolk Columbus Nevada DSL service NV ISP provider Reno Henderson North Las Vegas Sparks Carson City Elko Boulder City Mesquite Fallon New Mexico DSL service NM ISP provider Albuquerque Las Cruces Santa Fe Rio Rancho Roswell Farmington Alamogordo Clovis Hobbs Carlsbad Oklahoma DSL service OK ISP provider City Tulsa Norman Lawton Broken Arrow Edmond Midwest City Enid Moore Stillwater Oregon DSL service OR ISP provider Portland Eugene Salem Gresham Hillsboro Beaverton Medford Springfield Bend Corvallis Rhode Island DSL service RI ISP provider Providence Warwick Cranston Pawtucket East Woonsocket Coventry North Cumberland West Utah DSL service UT ISP provider Salt Lake City West Valley Provo Sandy Orem Ogden Jordan Layton Taylorsville St. George West Virginia DSL service WV ISP provider Charleston Huntington Parkersburg Wheeling Morgantown Weirton Fairmont Beckley Clarksburg Martinsburg Wyoming DSL service WY ISP provider Cheyenne Casper Laramie Gillette Rock Springs Sheridan Green River Evanston Riverton Cody 50 Cent Aaron Tippin Alan Jackson All-American Rejects Backstreet Boys Black Eyed Peas Black Sabbath Bob Dylan Bowling for Soup Christina Aguilera Clint Black Creedence Clearwater Revival Diddy Eminem Fat Joe Glenn Lewis Good Charlotte Green Day India Arie Janet Jackson Janis Joplin Jennifer Lopez Jesse McCartney Jimi Hendrix Justin Timberlake Kanye West Kelly Clarkson Kylie Minogue Led Zeppelin Lil Jon Madonna Mariah Carey Montgomery Gentry My Chemical Romance Nelly Omarion Pussycat Dolls Rihanna Sean Paul Shakira Snoop Dogg The Click Five The Doors The Grateful Dead The Rolling Stones The Who Toby Keith Toni Braxton Van Morrison ZZ Top Audioslave Breaking Benjamin Chevelle Coheed and Cambria Cold Crossfade Damageplan Damien Rice Dashboard Confessional Dave Matthews Band Deftones Drowning Pool Fall Out Boy Filter Finger Eleven Five for Fighting Franz Ferdinand Gavin DeGraw Guns N Roses Howie Day Incubus Jack Johnson James Blunt Jason Mraz Jimmy Eat World John Mayer Keane Lifehouse Marilyn Mason New Found Glory Nirvana Oasis Queens of the Stone Age Relient K Rob Thomas Rob Zombie Ryan Carbrera Saliva Seven Mary Three Shinedown Smile Empty Soul Stone Sour Sum 41 Switchfoot Taproot Three Days Grace Tori Amos Trapt Velvet Revolver Yellowcard Alabama AL Arizona AZ Arkansas AR Colorado CO California CA Florida FL Illinois IL Michigan MI New York NY Ohio OH Pennsylvania PA Texas TX Connecticut CT Georgia GA Indiana IN Iowa IA Kansas KS Kentucky KY Louisiana LA Maryland MD Massachusetts MA Minnesota MN Missouri MO New Jersey NJ North Carolina NC South Carolina SC Tennessee TN Virginia VA Washington WA Wisconsin WI Delaware DE Idaho ID Maine ME Mississippi MS Montana MT Nebraska NE Nevada NV New Mexico NM Oklahoma OK Oregon OR Rhode Island RI Utah UT West Virginia WV Wyoming WY