Version: 20181111
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-12-08
Votes: 3
|
Super easy to setup wireguard, runs and makes a secure connection with one command. Has support for all the common drivers. Setup is easy, no frills but nothing forgotten. No bloat on install. Community maintains all the packages you'd want in a customizable general-use OS (namely IceCat browser for me). 10/10
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-12-03
Votes: 9
|
Package manager isn't a sloooooow Python script (looking at you, Gentoo), blasts through bootup like greased lightning, has a better selection of current software than Arch or Manjaro have (in their core repos). They even have an optional ports system and alternate musl builds for when you need an even faster system than the already insanely fast glibc standard install.
Install process is insanely fast and simple even in text-only mode and packages and upgrades have installed without a hitch! I haven't had a single broken library yet! If you're sick of cutting your teeth building the entirety of Webengine/Chromium/Firefox every time your browser has an update. Life is too short to wait for your browser to build! You get all of the positives here of a fast Systemd-less system without having to wait on a compiler (unless you still want to).
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-11-27
Votes: 8
|
VOID, had to give it a spin and see what the fuss is all about. Install quite simple with UEFI, rebooted nicely into login. VOID wiki is a must have if not accustomed to VOIDs own CLI commands, there is a Rosetta Stone link for cross-referencing known Debian, Arch to VOID commands. Configured Lxde to Openbox with any errors and removed Lxde, worked well.
Pros: Has Runit for init, systemd-free.
Extensive apps package manager called xbps
Easy on system resources, not bloated
Newest Linux kernel 4.19.3
Extremely stable
Cons: Rolling release
Really do like VOID, no issues ATM, plan on keeping it because it is very unique. Running latest Linux kernel 4.19.3 error free is nice!
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-11-20
Votes: 12
|
VOID is simple, WOOTB and minimalistic! Systemd-free and using runit! What could be better, very fine and robust distribution!
Pros: Looks awesome, minimal install of apps, super fast and light on resources usage.
Cons: Rolling release
Rarely find a distro this exciting to install and use, very happy and appreciate the VOID team for their efforts!
Give it a try!
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Version: current
Rating: 9
Date: 2018-11-20
Votes: 2
|
what a little gem among the linux's disto's, i've being using it for 3 days with mate,
it reminded me of the 90's linux but without the spending of 3 days configuring a file to get the printer working.
install takes only 10min.
fastest linux i've tried so far, the biggest plus is that there is no crap software installed.i've had no downsides so far apart from remembering the / as the mount point when installing.
I'm enjoying playing with void and i will proberely replace my manjaro with void.
well done the Devs..
Hasta luego.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-11-20
Votes: 1
|
I am a usual debian-like user. Having a unix like OS to work with was enough for me. But still I tried void by curiosity. First, the install was clean for me, no errors. Few steps, and incredibly fast in opposition with a lot of other ones. I'd say the major plus is: It's light.
Doesn't use systemd, boots in seconds. xbps (the package manager) never threw an error so far, and is pretty fast. I installed the musl version. And no differences with glibc so far.
A real pleasure to play and work with it.
Might change definitely for it to work.
Really, you should try it out.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-11-18
Votes: 3
|
Everything in Void is not to be avoided.
That being said it's the best distro that me personally managed to install and set from scratch. I don't understand much about systemd and runit but I really like the way my system works - like a feather. It starts way faster than arch for instance. There is a learning curve that I like very much. Wiki is very useful and the support is top on reddit and the IRC channel. Waiting for the forums to go up again and everything will be even better.
Best experience so far and hopefully (if I don't screw it over while tinkering) for the time being. Can't recommend this dostro enough.
Cheers
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-11-18
Votes: 1
|
Installed VOID a few days ago, use Devuan as my mine interest, find VOID with runit is interesting...and I like it! Very fast, stable and consume little resources. Using the terminal to do updates and many various tweaks. There is also a gui for xbps called octoxpbs but it is qt based. Installed anyway on my Openbox configuration and octoxbps works very robustly, also a good way to search for compatible apps similar to synaptic in Debian. Really like what VOID is and what it does and not focused at all on what it doesn't in a negative way.
Rarely do I get excited about a distribution, VOID is simply a step above the rest, not packed with apps or bloated, won't tie your shoes but it does give a great systemd-free runit experience!
Be very happy once the forum is back, discuss the distro and learn some tips from more seasoned users. Have found that most all configs from Debian just work, have a great looking desktop and Openbox works wonderfully.
Take it for spin folks, you won't be sorry!
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-11-17
Votes: 6
|
VOID is undoubtedly a well kept secret, not for everybody and see where a noob would have installing issues. But! The great news is the VOID wiki which has a plethora of tips and well written how to pages. Very fast install without issues, configured Lxde desktop.
Pros: Sound is great despite negative comments below, use Alsa mixer, a on-board sb card, just works on my Asus board.
Learning new commands is not a problem, there is a Rosetta Stone page for VOID commands and their similar counterpart commands of Debian, Arch, etc.
Cannot say enough things about this distro, it is something that is no longer a mystery and glad I took it for a drive. Anybody rate this below an 8 is just trolling!
Best distro I've installed in the last five years!
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-11-15
Votes: 14
|
I've been using Void musl build for the last two years and my system never broke.
Installed from the base image and running awesome wm, my wm of choice.
Everything works! Sound, video, bluetooth, wifi, you name it.
Now, Void is what it is and you do have set-up almost everything yourself. Runit does what it's supposed to do and what you tell it to do. Services are not enabled by default and unnecessary packages are not installed by default.
All these things are, imho, just positive. Yet, I read people complaining in here?!
Void is not for everybody, it doesn't hold your hand. If you don't like it you can always go back to the systemd crap and let it handle all the stuff for you, but please don't bash.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-11-15
Votes: 2
|
Top marks for years of concerted effort to provide alternatives at the system level: runit and musl libraries. The doom of mono-culture avoided here and hooray for that. It means hard work for the providers, for which I will always be grateful.
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Version: current
Rating: 6
Date: 2018-11-14
Votes: 1
|
Just tried this new live version with the xfce desktop. It was quick and very responsive. The one problem that I did not like was that there is no sound. After some digging I found at this url, https://vm1.a-lej-de.m.voidlinux.org/docs/, a void manual that suggest in para 3.6, that sound needs to be installed after the os is installed on your system. If this is correct I believe the Void OS team has made a major oversight. Although not a difficult fix, it is not one that should be necessary. But if their intent is to give the user a choice of what to install, it should be mentioned in the 'download' page just like they do with the user name and password. A 'BE AWARE' note.
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Version: 20181111
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-11-14
Votes: 5
|
Very impressed with the latest release, install Lxde and then configured Openbox to run only with a Wm. Install Oblogout and added to the menu and works perfectly OOTB.
Pros: Installation was very much straightforward, installed with UEFI. Used Openbox configs from another distro and all worked including compton and conky. No problem with installing themes, icons of my choice.
Cons: I'm in a discovery mode ATM, but really think VOID is quite stable, rock solid and lightweight distro. Everything just works so difficult to say anything negative.
Recommend anyone to take VOID for a test drive, enjoy a systemd-free distro with runit!
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Version: current
Rating: 1
Date: 2018-11-14
Votes: 0
|
bad coded work ;( always error code when make a partition und always freeze and very slow.... ;(
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-11-14
Votes: 6
|
Void is my second distro, switched from Xubuntu after a few of my friends recommended it. I didn't know much about Linux when I switched so I disagree with others saying it's comparable to Arch in terms of difficulty, it's just as minimalist, but the install process is much easier. Runit boots much faster than systemd and does most things very well, and XBPS is very fast.
It's important to note that depending on the ISO you get there's going to be no sound, and no NetworkManager either, you have to manually configure wifi using wpa_supplicant. If you do a minimal install there's basically no services installed. Last I checked you have to reinstall your DE if you don't pick a local install. Some of the reviews complain about these issues as if something is not working correctly but they should check if they did in fact have an audio server installed.
The repositories are small compared to like debian and rhel, that's expected, but if you want something packaged you can just open an issue on github and they will usually add it pretty quickly.
I've been using it for about 6 months now. The only issue I had was an update that created a dependency hell that lasted a 2 days and prevented me from updating my system during that time, but it's fixed.
I would recommend Void if you are looking for a minimal distro but not quite comfortable with installing Arch by following the wiki; if you dislike systemd for whatever reason and wanna try a new init system; if you are a fan of the BSD userland; or if you are just interested in void cause you are a nerd who likes niche distros or something
Thanks tala and ren for getting me to install it
|
Version: current
Rating: 2
Date: 2018-11-13
Votes: 0
|
Tested Void linux live current version in the LxQt, Mate, and Xfce desktops.
All failed Audio test by producing a constant thump, thump, thump.
Void Xfce played video but produced no sound.
Void LxQt would not display folders within the PCManFM file mgr.
High hopes dashed for a simple OS using runit.
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-11-05
Votes: 14
|
Great project. Rather similar to Arch.
Pros:
* Init-related advantages:
- No systemd, if you see that as an advantage, although I'm on the fence here.
- Very simple init, which I think is Unix design principle compliant.
- Fast boot
* Choice of C standard libraries (e.g. glibc, musl)
* Bleeding-edge packages
* Rolling release models
* Several available desktop environments
* Fast package manager, means that assuming downloads occur at a reasonable speed package installs and downloads can be quite quick.
* Minimalism means the system is very customizable as you can more efficiently select the list of installed packages.
* So long as your distro has XBPS in its repos (e.g. Arch), or you can successfully manually compile and install it, you can install it without using install media.
Cons:
* A few limitations related to its low popularity and small development team, e.g.:
- Small repositories, so many packages are missing from them. Fortunately, Flatpak is in its repos so you can install a few additional apps with it. You can also install Nix on it using the installer script.
- A few packages get outdated due to its small packaging team. They allow users to add their own package to their repos (after a review process, like you normally see on pull requests), but it means if the user loses interest or gets lazy their contributed package can get severely outdated.
- Relatively few package mirrors; if you don't live near them downloads can be quite slow.
- Outdated install media (at the time of writing it was last updated 7 October 2017!)
* Minimalism comes at the cost of sub-par out-of-the-box hardware compatibility, e.g. some WiFi chips don't work out-of-the-box. If you install it from an existing OS this issue becomes less significant.
* Complicated method of building packages, compared to Arch's.
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-09-18
Votes: 12
|
Void is an awesome system, very fast and stable. Best of all, if you want the latest KDE Plasma but won't use a system with systemD, then Void is the right choice. After install, you just do xbps-install -S kde5 kde5-baseapps and adjust some things like sddm and consolekit or elogind, by basically doing a basic search on google.
Runit (the init) is very fast and simple: in a few seconds you are greeted with the sddm login or lightdm login.
The downside of the distro so far is that mirrors are probably not available too close to your home; only a few in Europe, NA, Oceania and Asia. Therefore, a rather slow update is usual. Still, nothing to push you away from this amazing project. Try it out and see for yourself.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-09-13
Votes: 13
|
Void has become my main distribution at home and office. Runit is not only functional but also beautiful in its simplicity. XBPS does its thing very well without trying to be too smart.
It's like Arch used to be before systemd but more stable and simpler (yes! even simpler). None of my systems broke again after switching to Void. No more systemd nonsense or packages breaking for no reason.
I have to say that Void's concept of "simple" actually permeated to my way of working and organizing myself. This is a distro and aalso a philosophy!
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-08-12
Votes: 14
|
I absolutely love Void Linux, it reminds me of how Arch Linux used to be, but incorporates new things that add valuable functionality while also not including the kitchen sink (unless you want it.) XBPS is very reminiscent of pacman which I also love, but it does do some things differently. It continues on a rolling release. Its speed of startup and package handling is great, and runit is very understandable. I highly recommend Void Linux.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-07-25
Votes: 9
|
I had been using Void for a while and liked it for its simplicity and speed.
I tried Void-Musl a month ago and even though on a trial basis I expected "some things" not to work, I have still not found anything that didn't work.
It is lighter and faster than Void-Glibc ... so since everything I have tried and use works I am going with -musl and hope in the future everyone turns and invests on this wonder.
Compiling itself has become a fun experience with musl.
Go void.org
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-07-21
Votes: 14
|
One of THE lightest Linux Distribution (i386 - idles at 170mb), blazingly fast to boot up, no bloatware / systemd, XBPS is fast and always works, Void Linux has everything one could wish for IMO.
To the developers, please continue 32bit support as many of us still use that architecture.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-07-19
Votes: 2
|
Simple, easy and overall polished. Really nice they have an e17 live image! Boot time is around 5 seconds on this old X230!
Installation is easy and straightforwards, using Runit to enable lightdm was straightforwards, xbps is straightforwards (albeit is pretty time consuming to type everything out) and there's enough packages to make Void an overall lean DIY distro.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-07-08
Votes: 5
|
Coming from arch. Installation is easy. Runit is so simple and fast compared to systemd. Xbps-src is amazing tool for compiling suckless and other software from source. Documentation is harder to find at first since duckduckgo does not include posts from void linux forum, but you can search it there. Non musl version is working well for me.
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Version: current
Rating: 4
Date: 2018-06-25
Votes: 1
|
I see no reason to use this over using Artix/Arch with runit. xbps is slower than pacman, less packages, more breakage and overall just less polished than Arch. It seems to be designed soley to compete with Arch for no reason other than systemd, although the user friendly installer is nice. (Although Artix has the exact same things)
Look at your options.
Artix:
-Has more documentation (archwiki)
-Has a more stable base
-Faster
-Less likely to break
-Has a small dev team like Void but whos work is simply to make packages compatible with runit. Less strain on devs, more stability
-A nice, GUI installer
Void:
-
-
- ...
-It's different?
Seriously, I've tried to find a point in Void for 2 months now, it just seems like a useless distro in every aspect. No offense to the devs, but in my opinion time would be better spent on Artix. And no, I'm not playing favoritism here. I'm often critical of pacman as a whole
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-06-16
Votes: 8
|
Great package manager and init system, boots in about 5 seconds. I have been using it for nearly a year and so far have not had a single problem with it. I use it as my main OS.
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Version: current
Rating: 7
Date: 2018-06-02
Votes: 3
|
Tried to love it. Definitely better than Artix. But....
Its missing a lot of packages on both Musl and glibC.
Musl is rather slow for the whole system, and memory usage is not that much different.
I have to compile printer drivers from source, and other packages.
Why would I use a distro if I have to do that? Its ruins the whole point.
I might as well use any distro at that point, especially one like arch when I can use AUR to do that for me.
Switched to Obarun, which is based on Arch. Uses S6 init system.
Can get full packages from arch and AUR.
No compiling from source EVER.
I still keep Void on my system, just as a backup, but will not use it day to day.
If you only use a limited number of packages already in repo, check it out.
Otherwise, when you need that odd program for some reason, use a distro based on arch for the AUR.
Your sanity and time will thank you.
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Version: current
Rating: 9
Date: 2018-05-28
Votes: 14
|
If you like Slackware (as I do) you will also like Void. It's a lot like Slackware: very hackable (in the good way) but with better package management, more binary packages, and an interesting init system that's very easy to use, once you get the hang of it.
I won't give it a 10, because I'm not too keen on the rolling release mechanism. If updates were separated into security fixes and feature updates, it would be perfect. I could apply only the security fixes and keep my systems feature-stable.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-05-25
Votes: 1
|
Absolutely amazing operating system, using it as my main.
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Version: current
Rating: 9
Date: 2018-05-11
Votes: 9
|
Great distro for more advanced users. It has all the benefits of Gentoo, but you don't have to compile everything, as it has a binary package manager as well as xbps-src. Main downside is the relatively small repositories.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-04-27
Votes: 8
|
Awesome Linux distro. It is moving really fast and you notice this right away from boot, a feat very few other distros can promise, claim and really have. Faster even than my Gentoo and lighting faster than anything systemd related I have tried before. Memory footprint is also small, a detail I value for my laptops where, in some situations, I am limited to 4GB RAM. Decent selection of packages and until now I managed to find anything I need for development and office. Being a rolling distro this may create some problems for some users. Not in my case though.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-04-23
Votes: 2
|
Devuan is cool because it doesn't have systemd, but void linux has an even simpler init system than sysvinit. I would gladly use void solely because of the init system, but you get other perks like a more BSD-like package management system w/ a ports tree.
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Version: current
Rating: 9
Date: 2018-04-20
Votes: 2
|
Void is a great distro if you like Arch but are tired of systemd. In my experience it's also more stable than Arch or Manjaro. If you aren't comfortable being dropped into a terminal after install I'd recommend using one of the images that comes with a desktop environment pre-installed.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-03-19
Votes: 16
|
This is a great distro if you liked how Arch used to be. Good for tinkering. Excellent alternative to systemd. Wide range of packages and a great package manager to go along with it. With a nice little wm, it can be the perfect lightweight distro.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-02-22
Votes: 27
|
What I want in a Linux distro:
1. Stability
2. LXQt
3. Not-systemd init system
It just so happens Void is the best distro for me. Although the initial setup is a little bit time consuming it gives the user greater control over what software they want installed.
Void is a great Linux distro for those who just want everything to werk
(thanks /tech/)
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-02-21
Votes: 10
|
Initially I wanted to switch to a systemd free distribution and found void. And I must say I will stay with it! Rolling release, light/fast, leading edge and totally reliable. There's nothing else I want.
+ Rolling release
+ Ultra fast boot due to runit
+ Always up to date
+ Feels rock solid/stable and doesn't have much dependency issues.
+ A very fast package manager
+ Allmost all packages required to do the job. Exotic ones may be missing.
+ Super simple service setup
+ lightweight
+ Has an installer
= Packages are all on github. Choose if this is good or bad
- Need to adapt to the package manager
- Not too straightforward when creating an own package
|
Version: current
Rating: 9
Date: 2018-02-21
Votes: 0
|
Does exactly what is set out on the label. Very helpful comments in installer, e.g. EFI boot partition better explained than in many other distros. As noted in DistroWatch's 2017 review, more suited to confirmed users than to novice.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-02-17
Votes: 13
|
Started off in the ubuntu world, then switched to debian and learned to start minimal and install what I wanted. When debian went to systemd I went to devuan, but also started looking around for alternatives. Void was a tough start for me at first, but I have completely fallen in love with this distro for the usual reasons other people list:
Runit init system - Really fast, and really simple. This is what debian SHOULD have chosen instead of systemd. There are a couple features that systemd has which this doesn't support, but could support via third party utilities if someone really wanted. Runit is a small, mature piece of code which does its job very well.
Rolling release so packages are fairly recent, and amazingly I haven't experienced any breakage in the couple years with this installed on about 10 workstations and even more rpi b+ and 3! I have had far less breakage with this than I ever did with debian testing/unstable. Xbps is very fast for a package manager, though the package selection is less than with some other distros. Every once in a while there will be an "shlib" error while trying to update due to packages being built but if you come back in a day everything will just work.
For raspberry pi usage, this OS makes for a very fast pi. Bootup is the fastest I have seen with any linux distro and resource usage is the lowest (minimal install shows about 20MB of ram used).
I will be sticking with void for a long as I can.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-02-16
Votes: 0
|
Finding some of the comments odd about how difficult this distro is. I've been a Windoze user for much of my life (flamesuit on), although I definitely have experience with *NIX systems, using Qubes OS on one of my laptops with important things, and having maintained servers over the years. I probably don't have to mention the reasons why I've wanted to switch to a Linux distro as a daily driver.
After having tried a number of different distros (Debian, Gentoo, Arch), I found myself at home with Void Linux, with some of the major points being its minimalism, no systemd, choice of binary/source, providing musl as an alternative to glibc, and LibreSSL over OpenSSL. Remember, I'm a full-time Windows user (or at least was) and had no issues setting up and even going as far as ricing up the interface with i3-gaps, fake windows 95 lock-screen, the whole nine yards. If you can read a manual, this should all be within any ones capabilities, refer to the void wiki where possible, otherwise use the very complete arch wiki. I've gone as far as having configured the distro exactly as I want it on my T400, and then simply put the distro on a 64gb micro SD card, now I can run it and use it on just about any computer with a usb port!
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Version: current
Rating: 4
Date: 2018-01-27
Votes: 3
|
Void was recommended to me as a minimalistic distribution. Couldn't be further from the truth. I had dozens of small irks with it, but since this is a mini-review, I'll point out the big ones instead:
- installing xorg also forcibly installs wayland. Also, pretty much every program that can be compiled with anything wayland-related is and tries to pull it as well. After taking a look on their forum, I'm not the first person to notice that, and that user was quickly shut down and while the thread appears open, I can't reply to it.
- from what I've seen on IRC and wiki, Void actively recommends using AppImage and/or Flatpak to developers. I hope I don't have to explain why hundreds of copies of the same libraries is neither minimalist nor safe.
- installing from local source(livecd/usb, which is quite outdated) installs what you see in the said livecd/usb, while installing an up to date version from the repos gives you a terminal-only system. While I actually don't mind the terminal and wanted the second option, it would be nice if there was any info about that available before the install
Sure, it boots and runs so I can't give it a 1/10, but it's clear they're just banking on the "escape from systemd" crowd(myself included) to cover up that it's just an OS made to test a package manager and they didn't think many things through and are now falling for the same "Keep It Simple for developers, don't care about Stupid users" pitfall Arch does, which in both cases is for whatever reason interpreted by some people as "minimalistic".
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2018-01-21
Votes: 9
|
Previous Debian/Devuan user. Tried Arch, stuff broke, it didn't just werk like Devuan.
Started getting tired of old software and a slow init system (sysv)
Tried Void, installed LXQt and have absolutely loved it. EVERYTHING works and it's blazingly fast too. Runit is a delight and xbps is, although quirky, very good too.
I'm now running it on my X201 with 4gb of ram and a 320gb ssd and loving it.
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Version: current
Rating: 9
Date: 2018-01-18
Votes: 0
|
This is a distribution that expects you to know how to maintain your machine, little in the way of hand holding...
Installation requires you to actually *read* the instructions :-o oh the humanity...
the package manager is really fast and I've yet to experience any issues with it (wish I could say that about RPM based package managers!!)
runit the init system is lean and fast, but there's little in the way fluff or luxuries but it does the job and with an SSD you're taking a few seconds boot time if that...
reliability has been good, good enough to leave it with unskilled users, which I have done for several years now, with any breakages being trivial if at all in some cases.
If you know what you're doing and you don't like bloat this is defiantly for you. If you are able to administer a system effectively its stable enough to be left with a none technical user, with maintenance many months apart.
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Version: current
Rating: 3
Date: 2018-01-17
Votes: 0
|
Really? Is that what you've got when you remove systemd? A really messy system?
Ok then. I've tested the Xfce version and the installation is so ugly and old that reminds me of 90's era.
Also, you need to read all of its documentation to figure out how to install it, you must use the terminal like it or not. Another problem is that there is no option to set up an automatic install, if you don't know how to make a partition, you are in trouble using Void.
Void is far from being for newcomers, even that some shia/fanatic users say it's easy. I did not even talk about the worst, musl, glibc... Also, their package manager isn't that good, it needs serious enhancement to become "usable".
To use this distro you'll need to read all this wiki (which is not as complete as Arch wiki).
|
Version: current
Rating: 5
Date: 2018-01-12
Votes: 0
|
Like all other minimal distros (Gentoo, arch, slackware (rolling), ect.) it's a headache to maintain. Things break constantly in return for slightly faster boot times.
Xpbs seems more like an experiment than a decent package manager.
Runit is pretty good but lacks some features of systemd in return for some slightly better boot times.
Overall it's yet another headache to deal with. Not good for a new PC but probably good for a netbook from 2010 or so.
I'd recommend Solus for a better rolling release desktop experience
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-12-30
Votes: 3
|
Pro:
- general KISS approach, bloat free
- runit init system, no systemd
- rolling release
- musl C-lib compiled binaries available
- ultra fast and minimalistic package manager
- small packages with as little dependencies as possible
- no surprises, once it works, it works
Cons:
- installation instructions not really helpful, when installing on EFI system with LUKS encrypted root directory, took me two days tinkering
|
Version: current
Rating: 7
Date: 2017-12-22
Votes: 0
|
Pros:
-no systemd
-on top of using no systemd using the BEST init system; openrc!
-rolling release but stable
-decent community
Cons:
-package manager isn't that good. hybrid pkg management seems good on paper but i haven't really found much use for it
-another independent distro, which we DO NOT need in linux anymore
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-12-12
Votes: 8
|
package manager as good as pacman almost as stable as debian much easier to setup than arch or gentoo has never broken on me as is a very nice distro overall recommended to any mid to advanced linux user
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-12-10
Votes: 0
|
decent distro with hybrid package managment ....xpbs need more development but it totally rocks
|
Version: current
Rating: 3
Date: 2017-12-08
Votes: 0
|
I really dislike xpbs, seems like a gimmick more than a real package manager. Hybrid package management? If I wanted to install packages from source I would choose Gentoo.
Other than that, pretty decent. Not the latest packages but still okay.
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-12-03
Votes: 4
|
Easy and quick install
Superfast running and booting
Very ligh and lean
No systemd
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-11-26
Votes: 9
|
Really fast, both booting and launching apps. This is my first non-systemd distro. Really frustating at first due to the lack of documentations. But slowly I can solve the problems one by one. Another con is I can't find some of my favourite packages in the repo. Despite of those, Void is a really great distro. I love Void!!
10/10 of course.
Regards, Addy.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-11-17
Votes: 16
|
This is the only good non-systemd distro around IMO. I use the musl x86_64 distro and I am impressed by how awesome runit and xbps work. They never get in my way, even the Rolling Release system does not break stuff like it randomly does on Arch. Good job, Voiders!
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Version: current
Rating: 9
Date: 2017-11-15
Votes: 1
|
It's very good and has an extremely excellent installation.
Super-smooth and comprehensible init system and xbps packing system!
The only possible gotcha about Void is its occasional less-than-stellar user and hw drivers support.
Used on x86 and RPi3 systems.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-11-14
Votes: 3
|
Very fast, small and actual Distro. Using it unter x86, amd64 and raspberry pi2-3
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-11-02
Votes: 8
|
I have Void installation from the time when they didn't had forum. That's ~3 years.
There were times when I updated once a month(Void rolling release!) and the update was >1GB, never had anything broken. My Void system still works as "pseudo" home server.
The only disadvantages are the lack of some packages and better documentation.
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Version: current
Rating: 9
Date: 2017-10-31
Votes: 0
|
Nimble and straightforward. Information is sometimes a little hard to find. I did not succeed to install it as a virtual machine but installation on two older machines was easy enough. Make your /boot a little bigger than the proposed 128 Mb, which prevents from having to cleaning it up too often.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-10-31
Votes: 2
|
Fast (my system with xfce works with 400mb of RAM) and easy to configure! (and without systemd! xD)
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-10-29
Votes: 0
|
It's not that easy to install, but I like the old school linux style.
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-10-21
Votes: 31
|
My favourite distribution. Void is very light, lean and fast. You'll feel at home using void if you have used Arch or any of the BSD's.
xbps package manager is great, simple and easy to use.
Void's Wiki is lacking in some areas but the developers are doing a great job updating it and they're always adding new things, in time the Wiki will be heavily documented, you can fill in the gaps with Void's forum pages, there you will most likely find answers to any questions or issues you may have.
Installing Void is straight forward, and guided. If you are new to Linux there are videos on YouTube if you need a visual aid, or just use the Wiki.
IMO the XFCE DE is the most complete DE, it has everything you will need to get started, the only things I added was the non-free repo to use Spotify and I had to install pavucontrol to enable pulseaudio to work, with everything I have installed and the tweaks I have made I only use 250mb's RAM on cold boot and anywhere from 250 to 700mb's depending on what I am doing, so it will work well on older hardware.
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-10-12
Votes: 20
|
Prior to switching to Void, my two main distros were Debian and Gentoo. I like having control over the inner intricacies of my system, but also want things to 'just work' when finished. Being pressed for time and unsatisfied with the direction of systemd's role in major distros, I discovered Void,
Pros:
*Stable base system with up to date packages. May use an LTS kernel if desired.
*Excellent community - Forum registration is broken at the moment, but you can email them.
*Low memory footprint
*XBPS is fast and powerful - decent selection of packages. Has a ports system too.
*Runit is simple and intuitive
*Rolling release
*Easy to configure, but not as easy as Debian. Moreso like Arch, but there are still things to be aware of. See Cons.
Cons:
*Not beginner friendly
-Even worse if you are unaccustomed to the challenges that come up when using a non-systemd distro (Dbus, Consolekit, udev, etc.). Lots of things that magically worked in Arch or Debian won't work here.
-If you have a wacom tablet device, you may have to write the init script after installing xf86-input-wacom (isdv4-serial-inputattach). Else, X is borked and you have to hard reset. (This applies to every non-systemd distro I've ever tried)
*Documentation needs work
-The LVM on LUKS section had inconsistent information when configuring dracut
*Some major packages are unavailable, including those that don't jive with libressl (i.e. Remmina or Vinagre w/ RDP support).
-I run a Windows 7 virtual machine anyways so this isn't a major issue.
*Rolling back packages is sometimes not possible until a fix comes along. Void users recently running wine will know what I'm talking about. This has already been fixed.
-DO NOT CLEAR YOUR CACHE!!!
Overall, I'm extremely pleased and glad to have Void as my new main distro. If you know your way around Linux or BSD, and are lazy like me, I'd highly recommend this one ;)
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-10-04
Votes: 3
|
Pros:
Light
Nothing is there if I didn't put it myself
No systemd
No obfuscation, all in the clear mainly beacuse of the lack of systemd
The installation is simpler than Arch and faste, you have a prompt in less than 10mins and the initial installation is far cleaner than Arch's (I used Arch, still do in some devices, for almost 8 years)
You just feel in control like Arch pre-systemd.
The fact that you installed a package doesn't mean you want it started at boot time
Really feels like Gentoo without the need of compiling (the Gentoo binary packages usually are very outdated)
Cons:
The command to search a package is different to the one to install so you have to move back the cursor and delete a whole word to install apackage you justs searched for.
No coloring for the package manager output
Both are dumb non important details, that's an indicator of how much I like this distro and are the only cons I can think of.
The documentation (not much of it) could be a Con but is all standard so you can perfectly use Arch's or Gentoo's documentation
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-09-21
Votes: 9
|
I have been running Linux on/off for a few years now and Void is the first one that I found that did not bork my desktop after a few months of operation. I traced all the failures back to SystemD.....
Long story short - Void came up in my research for a non SystemD distro and I've been so pleased with it that it is the only OS that I run. I disagree with previous comments stating that it is not suitable for noobs - I am a noob, once you install OctoXBPS on the system, you can package manage just as easily as with Octopi on Arch.
Also, I recommend using LXDE as I found it to be the most stable and feature complete DE with Void. Just enable Octoxbps-notifier to run on startup and updates will be installed with a GUI as well! After that, just use the system and you're in for a treat with the smoothest, fastest, most elegant OS that is Void.
Pros:
no SystemD
Fast Package Management - GUI is via OctoXBPS and Octoxbps-notifier.
Can build software via source too.
Runit Init - Fast Boot ups
Docker and Flatpak should you need some software that is not available in repos
Con:
Takes some time to setup and you will need to read their wiki ;)
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-09-20
Votes: 0
|
Void Linux is the first distro I ever installed on a computer of my own. I am pretty happy with it, it is simple, fast and lightweight. Didn't have any problems so far.
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-09-19
Votes: 4
|
Doesn't use Systemd 10/10. Great package manager. Runit is very nice.
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-09-17
Votes: 0
|
Great distro!
Minimal, simple, cool init and pkg manager.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-09-15
Votes: 0
|
Great minimal and stable rolling-release. I have no side in the systemd fight, but void has been nothing but a pleasure to setup and maintain.
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-09-15
Votes: 2
|
Absolutely stunning! I have used linx for over 20 years, and this is the most inspiring release i have seen, with "Solus" a near second. It is rocket fast and smotth.
BUT will not suit a newbie, no GUI package management.
A lot of BSD to this one. See "Zen Floater2" review which nails it in a oner...
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-09-15
Votes: 4
|
Void Linux is the best distro I've ever used, and I've been using linux as my primary OS (on my work and personal machines) for 15 years.
Void Linux is the ultimate hacker distribution.
Make no mistake -- this distribution is not for newbies. But if you are willing to take the time to learn (or are already an intermediate or expert), the rewards are huge. Void Linux has numerous advantages over other distros, which makes it something unique and awesome. These include:
- No Systemd ! Void uses runit instead, so it has none of the binary malware bloat which constitutes RedHat and other government contractors attempt to control the linux market. Runit takes a little bit of learning if you want to customize the services your machine runs at startup, but once you get the hang of it you'll never go back.
- Fantastic Package Management System. XBPS is hands-down the best package management system I've ever used. And it makes it pretty easy to make your own packages, and to contribute back to the upstream. It's basically just editing text files , and the system will do the rest for you. I know many folks like .deb package management, and indeed I do too, but give Void and XBPS a try, and I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. Void drops many of the annoying idiosyncrasies in .deb packaging.
- Options for both GLIBC and Musl. I've run both distros, and it's nice to be able to ditch the buggy and slow GLIBC for a better C library. It makes the system more stable. Side note: If it's your first time running void, make sure to pick the GLIBC version for broadest ELF binary compatibility and to be able to run OpenJDK / Oracle Java.
- Small footprint. Void has a much smaller installation footprint than other distros . You can have a full distro with X and most everything you need for 1GB. I've also used it for linux containers as well.
Give it a try , you might be pleasantly surprised!
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-09-09
Votes: 4
|
I like it, low maintenance rolling distro that does not breaks after system updates...
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-09-08
Votes: 3
|
A very good surprise, I left Manjaro and Arch to give a try to Void... I will never go back, I'm so pleased and satisfied : runit is so much faster than systemd, no comparison! Some people talking about the lack of applications but I have found back all my loved apps without any issue... and you can add apps by yourself, that's linux, right?
So, Void Linux is my new favorite Linux system, kudos to Void Linux Team !
|
Version: current
Rating: 9
Date: 2017-09-08
Votes: 0
|
Keeping it simple, for real. Innovations like runit, libressl, musl, etc. make this a uniquely secure and performant binary package distro. The only reason it's a 9 and not a 10 is because of package update lag and missing packages.
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-09-08
Votes: 0
|
My new go-to distro. It's replaced Arch on my three machines
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-09-08
Votes: 0
|
No systemd and bang up to date and with Enlightenment DE I will not be changing from Void. Good community help too. Been using Linux 10+ years and tried a lot of distros.
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-08-18
Votes: 7
|
Very nice and clean Gnu-Linux OS. An interesting Init Software ( runit ), a very good package manager ( xbps ) and a very friendly community.
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-08-13
Votes: 12
|
Simply the best. There's no going back. I run Void with syslinux, musl, wayland and qt. Void is modular, fast and very KISS. Linux is overrun with poor design choices based on irrational fears. Debian-based packages all being way out of date due to 'rigorous testing' is a disgusting flaw. Updates are usually security and bug fixes. This idiotic gnu/gnomey attempt to build a hyper-bloated system where everything is interdependent is unstable and out of date. Void is what Linux should be. efficient and elegant, avoiding that Pottering vomit and other nonsense. At least Manjaro is now rivaling Debian on Distrowatch, that's a step in the right direction. maybe in 15 years everyone will wake up and move toward Void
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-08-13
Votes: 4
|
Void is my favourite distro, no matter what DE you run (I have tested them all) they all run perfectly and none of the DE's are rammed with bloated and useless rubbish unlike nearly ALL the other distros, the trend with Linux atm is to compete with Windows and offer a 'complete' experience, IMO this is not what Linux is about, Void sticks to the tranditional Linux ideology and offers a solid and reliable system, but one you build upon.
I'm currently using the Enlightenment desktop and I love it, It is insanely light on resources and offers a different user experience when compared to the more traditional DE's like XFCE or GNOME etc. Enlightenment is very modular (thats pretty much Void in general) and has a lot of customisation possibilities. On startup I use about 180mb's or RAM and when browsing the web or watching videos I use about 500mb's.
Void is very underrated and should be way more popular. It is what I consider to be a true Linux experience and one without the problematic systemd.
Side note: I noticed some complaints regarding a lack of archive file manager, file-roller is what you are looking for.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-08-05
Votes: 4
|
Voidlinux is the true successor to the original Archlniux. Ever since Judd stopped being the main lead, Arch changed immensely. The systemd takeover was just one part of many other problems, in particular a few arrogant snobbish developers dictating whatever they want to over the people. You can see this in debian and fedora even more so. People lose more and more rights as linux "matures".
I hope that voidlinux will be gaining more tractions. I myself still use slackware mostly because it does not get into my way, in a LFS-like system, but if I were to pick a more traditional distribution these days then it would be voidlinux (my real love is GoboLinux though but it is still way too dormant to gain traction; voidlinux gained a LOT of traction in the last ~1 year).
|
Version: current
Rating: 9
Date: 2017-07-29
Votes: 4
|
Fantastic systemd-free distro with no ties to other distributions.
It took a little research to get running with VMware tools, but otherwise I'm finding this distro trouble-free.
Keep init diversity alive!
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-07-21
Votes: 3
|
I've heard it said that "Void is the new Arch". I don't know if that's true but it ought to be. I recently replaced Arch with Void as the host OS on my main laptop. I've experimented with a lot of distros. This is the one to watch. Runit is simple and fast and sticks to being an init system. I'm building my own apps from the repos with xbps-src. The docs are a little sparse, but what's there is very comprehensible and straightforward. The package repos were missing my preferred xmonad wm. But I managed to get it installed through stack. Be prepared for some do-it-yourself problem solving as you build your system from the ground up. But isn't that what makes it fun?
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-07-13
Votes: 1
|
A very very fast Linux distro. Easy to maintain and no system!!!
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-07-08
Votes: 3
|
This is the fastest, easiest, most respectful Linux distro out there. No systemd. No version numbers. No reinstalling ever. Just goes on improving!!!
Does what you ask. No action when you didn't ask for it.
Whole bunch of software lets you use Void happily as office personal computer.
Good attention to security.
Heartily recommended! Difficult to go back to any other distro after you tasted its simplicity and speed!
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-07-06
Votes: 0
|
Alright alright alright had this on hand for a little while now, finally found the appropriate time to sit down and give a nice review of this nice looking distribution. Installed from a live image onto a ssd. This is the 20170220 ISO Release for musl and probably the smallest ISO I have had from linux yet.
Again the first impression apparent is the fast clean and mean, definitely leaning towards a BSD, moving into lightness however then it lightens to a complete and compact, then switches to a light-medium amount of packages and finishes off that way.
|
Version: current
Rating: 5
Date: 2017-07-04
Votes: 0
|
Soso:
Memory usage Void-mate=480 MB. The same has Ubuntu-mate 16.04 on my machine (i686 2GB RAM)
Boot up speed is fast, similar to Ubuntu-mate.
Bad: Libreoffice is in repo, but has wrong name, and after correction, starts and exits.
Which means DIY: to build and package from source, which I do not like to do with libreoffice (too big).
This wil happen with this type of distro, for you to choose if you want to go that way.
Bad: XFCE version looks ugly.
Bad: zip, xz: not recognized. Neet to install xz-utils. Not in repo. DIY or wait.
Bad: wiki is almost empty. forum no structure already.
Strange: void-mate live has firefox-esr (an extended-support-release with minimal updates. On a rolling distro?)
Good:
Packagemanger is fast, feels like pacman on Arch.
Mate Desktop is very clean, smooth animations and composition, even on my machine.
runit is simple.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-07-01
Votes: 2
|
Void is a pleasure to use. runit is lightning fast and dead simple to configure. XBPS is intuitive and powerful. LibreSSL as a default is a huge advantage. Lean, mean, and clean.
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-07-01
Votes: 1
|
Very flexible distribution - has both glibc and musl builds for x86 as well as arm and others.
It's also very sensible overall, and supports zfs well.
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-06-26
Votes: 1
|
By far - the best Linux distro, runit is brilliant, ISO's are small and contain no bloat or any other useless tools. Void lets me choose what I want by using local or remote repos. xbps works. Void is rolling release (IMO its how all Linux distros should be).
Void seems to be aimed at more experienced users, I am not so experienced and have found things to be a little confusing BUT there is much support from Voids wiki and community, so far things work perfectly for me.
10/10 I would recommend for semi noobs or expereinced users.
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Version: current
Rating: 9
Date: 2017-06-22
Votes: 1
|
I installed the LXQt DE and was blown away by how fast runit is and how well it works, this is how all init systems should work IMO. The desktop environment is well polished and has no bloat what so ever. Void is for someone who has time to compile software and unfortunately I don't. I wish I had more time to use Void properly.
If you have the time and are an advanced Linux or BSD user, I'd strongly recommend Void.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-06-17
Votes: 4
|
I switched from Arch because I can't stand systemd and wanted a leading edge rolling release distro. It's stable and thanks to a proper init (runit) system it has the fastest boot up time I've ever seen so far. The packet manager xbps is also a lot faster compared to others. The only downsides so far is the syntax of that packet manager and the lack of an AUR. The repository isn't the biggest and from time to time that's noticeable. It's however not that hard to make own packages and with a little time investment this distro is pure gold.
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-06-05
Votes: 0
|
Amazing Distro, using it since years on arm, i686 and x86_64.
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-06-02
Votes: 2
|
Amazing Distro. The installer can be improved but you that is offset by how fast and minimal void is. I never had any breakage and it amazes me everytime with its rollout speed. Simply Amazing.
|
Version: current
Rating: 9
Date: 2017-05-31
Votes: 1
|
Using it for eight monts. Very good distro. Compared to Slackware, my previous distro, it also tries to keep things simple, but have binary packages. One has perhaps to install some packages that "should" be installed (like system logs). Very supportive community.
|
Version: current
Rating: 7
Date: 2017-05-30
Votes: 1
|
Using x86_64 glibc for 2+ years. Package administration is the weak link in void. Packages are immediately pushed from their build server to the mirrors as they are built. When critical libs are updated they are available on the mirror before all the packages that link to them are available for updating. This can leave the system in an inconsistent state if you sync/update during this time. They should hold the packages from the mirrors until they are all rebuilt.
|
Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-05-29
Votes: 3
|
i started with Debian, ran Arch for a couple of years, then started testing Void. this is, by far, my favorite Linux Distro. the package manager is excellent. there is a graphical package manager, Octopackage, available in the repos, comparable to Ocotpi (AUR) or Octopackage (FreeBSD), though i find it unnecessary. the init system is the fastest i've used, though i am curious to experiment with S6, which is available in the repos. the only caveats i have, 1) some packages use capital letters in the name (Thunar, ImageMagick, FBReader), so if you use xbps, you might not find them. the web package search is not case-sensitive, so it's a good idea to check the website first, before you give up and install from source. 2) the repos can be a little slim for some. i find that most of my favorite packages are readily available, but some might miss some of their favorites. that said, a GIT request will likely see your favorite package introduced to the repos pdq.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-05-29
Votes: 1
|
I was running Debian for almost 20 years, but when they switched to systemd, I had no simple control on the system anymore. Any boot problem was asking for a lot of research in huge logs. Also, the system boot time was really slower. So, I looked for an alternate init and found runit. runit drove me to VoidLinux.
The installation on a ARM board (Orange PI2) was really easy. I found all the software I used to use.
I tried a musl installation, but, then, I could not use programs of other distros (yes, some programs are lacking, especially for ARM).
So, happy with Void, last year, I installed it in all my other machines (PCs desktop/portable, 32 and 64 bits). My wife was happy too with it, despite she had to adapt a bit to alternate applications.
I recommand this great and simple distribution, especially to owners of ARM boards (armv7 + neon).
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-05-29
Votes: 0
|
I used LMDE for five years before I changed end of last year to VOID. I use VOID on a daily base on a business laptop as host for several Virtualbox clients.
The system runs rock solid although I had some problems at the beginning by setting up my printer (BROTHER). The GUI for XBPS package manager called "OctoXBPS" includes a notifier which reminds of updates for installed packages.
|
Version: current
Rating: 8
Date: 2017-05-29
Votes: 0
|
Minimal, fast, rolling release, no systemD, excellent package manager (xbps) ...
|
Version: current
Rating: 2
Date: 2017-05-18
Votes: 0
|
Tried both versions of Void-live 20179220, with musl and without. Both failed to launch the terminal which is a major no-no in the Unix/Linux world.
Both have some good points. Very fast, elegant desktop and no systemd.
|
Version: current
Rating: 9
Date: 2017-05-13
Votes: 0
|
If it weren't for the botched up installer this would be a clear 10/10 distro.
It's lean, it's fast and I'm amazed how fast the thing boots.
|
Version: current
Rating: 9
Date: 2017-05-08
Votes: 6
|
Void works like a charm, can't go back. I've used Arch for many years, since 2012, but I sometimes regret it looking at what it has become now, with many changes being done in the past mostly because of developers convienience (like systemd), let alone the whole philosophy bs. Back IT: xbps is a really nice piece of a software, flatpak is also available if needed. xbps-src can be used to build from source via templates, very similiar to Arch PKGBUILDs in the AUR/ABS. Pretty bleeding edge, packages are up to date and the binaries available are over 6'000, not a lot but enough I'd say. Runit is a great init system that does what it's supposed to do, system logging can be enabled by installing one of your choice between a few options. The wiki contains the core stuff, for the rest the gentoo and arch wiki should suffice. Unfortunately there seems to be lack of manpower and funding, hopefully soon things will improve on this front.
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Version: current
Rating: 10
Date: 2017-05-06
Votes: 2
|
I had been a debian user for almost 20 years. I'm very thankful to debian for all the good experience -- they used to strive to give the user freedom of choice. But lately they've change and they don't seem to respect diversity anymore.
Enter the void. I tried it last year, and I was hooked. I've already replaced all of my boxes with void linux and I'm not looking back.
The engineering is amazing, and its great simplicity is one of the strong points.
A great distribution for technical users.
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