Linux不是一个统一的操作系统。相反，您可以获得针对各种目的定制的各种发行版或“发行版”。
每个版本的Linux都使用相同的内核。也就是Linux “内核”。但这些Linux版本可能在其他方面有所不同。这包括它们的外观、包含的功能以及预安装的软件包。
以下是我们认为大多数人应该尝试的顶级Linux发行版。(Linux)
[Ubuntu桌面]([Ubuntu Desktop])
Ubuntu Linux可能是最著名的主流Linux版本，它专注于与Windows 10和macOS作为桌面操作系统竞争。如果您正在为这两个市场领导者寻找或多或少的替代品，我们经常推荐Ubuntu作为首选Linux发行版。(Linux)许多人认为它是顶级的Linux发行版。
(Ubuntu)与其他Linux发行版相比， (Linux)Ubuntu还获得了大部分第三方软件支持。如果有商业软件包的Linux版本，您可以确定它至少已经在Ubuntu上进行了测试。
如果您是任何类型的游戏玩家，Ubuntu也可以提供最佳体验。Steam 做了大量工作来提供Linux版本的游戏，或者通过其SteamPlay计划让 Windows 版本在(SteamPlay)Linux上运行。这在其他发行版上并非不可能，但开发集中在Ubuntu上，似乎最不让人头疼的地方。
Ubuntu还拥有任何桌面Linux发行版的一些最佳支持。它得到了一个名为Canonical的专门组织的支持，并且不仅仅依靠社区的善意来保持更新。
薄荷(Mint)
除了Ubuntu之外，Linux Mint可能是您几乎经常听到的名称。虽然它没有像Canonical这样的大型机构的支持，但许多用户发现他们更喜欢Mint体验。Mint对系统资源的占用较少，使其成为旧电脑或上网本级笔记本电脑的不错选择。
它比Ubuntu更简约一些，而且根据你的看法，它更精简。Mint还具有一些功能，使其对初学者来说更安全一些。例如，可以将软件存储库重置为其默认状态。
Mint还包括许多开箱即用的应用程序和功能，必须作为附加功能安装在Ubuntu上。您还可以直接从软件存储库轻松添加专有附加功能，例如编解码器。对于新手用户来说，这是一种更友好的方法。
最后， Cinnamon是(Cinnamon)Mint的主要界面选项之一，它为来自Windows界面的用户提供了更顺畅的过渡。这(Which)就是为什么Mint如此普遍地推荐给那些第一次涉足Linux的人。(Linux)
曼扎罗(Manjaro)
由于Ubuntu的流行和成功，许多较小的发行版都基于Ubuntu的香草版本。另一方面， Manjaro(Manjaro)基于备受推崇的Arch Linux。Arch是围绕完全定制的理念构建的，因此它的安装过程相当复杂，但对于Linux专家来说，它是顶级Linux发行版之一。
Manjaro 继承(Manjaro)了Arch的优点并试图保留它，同时提供一个适合初学者的Linux发行版。(Linux)除了Manjaro自己的存储库之外， Manjaro还具有出色的硬件支持和对(Manjaro)Arch软件存储库的直接访问权限。一旦Manjaro团队可以对其进行测试，Manjaro也会获得更新。(Manjaro)而对于像Ubuntu(Ubuntu)这样的大型发行版，您将不得不等待主要的预定版本。
许多人的印象是Linux始终是免费的，但事实是，将Linux用于专业的、关键任务的目的是要花钱的。您可能不必直接为软件付费，但您需要付费支持。这就是Red Hat Enterprise Linux(Red Hat Enterprise Linux)的许可模式，它通常是运行大型组织服务器的操作系统。
CentOS是Red Hat Enterprise的免费社区衍生产品，因此与专为该商业发行版设计的任何软件包兼容。由于稳定性和可靠性是CentOS的主要目标，您不会在操作系统中找到最新的功能和更新。只有当更新被视为足够无缺陷且不会构成安全风险时，它们 才会过滤到CentOS 。
CentOS的每个版本都有一个持续十年的支持周期，如果您想运行自己的服务器，它是一个很好的选择。但是，那些寻找桌面操作系统的人最好别处寻找。由于CentOS作为桌面操作系统相当薄弱。
尾巴(Tails)
Tails是一个非常特殊的Linux版本，它并不打算充当计算机的主要永久操作系统。相反，Tails是一种便携式操作系统，您可以从外部驱动器启动几乎任何计算机。
“Tails”是The Amnesiac Incognito Live System(The Amnesiac Incognito Live System)的缩写。这告诉你几乎所有你需要知道的事情。尽管如此，需要明确的是，这是一个注重隐私的Linux版本，在记者、活动家和其他想要匿名使用互联网的人中非常受欢迎。
Tails在使用它的任何计算机上都不会留下任何痕迹。一旦你重新启动了机器，就好像你从来没有在那里一样。同样(Likewise)，每次启动Tails时，它都会重置为出厂默认设置。它还集成了Tor浏览器，确保您不仅不会在相关计算机上留下指纹，而且还可以在访问的网站上隐藏您的真实身份。
Tails 并不是一个日常驱动程序，但它是一个Linux发行版，应该是你工具包的一部分。拥有它而不需要它比反过来更好。
Linux 正在发展
尽管Linux在桌面市场中仍占有很小的份额，但多功能的开源操作系统(Open Source OS)却无处可去。我们看到越来越多的开发人员支持以及向云的重大转变。所以桌面Linux的时代可能现在才开始进入它的黄金时代。
如果在查看了这些顶级Linux发行版之后，您仍然对从Windows切换到Linux 犹豫不决(Linux)，请查看放弃Windows 转而使用 Linux 的5 大理由(5 Great Reasons to Ditch Windows for Linux)。或者，如果您已经在Linux上销售，但担心有哪些软件可用，请查看The 20 Best Linux Apps Ever。如果您因为想成为一个很酷的H4XX0R而考虑使用(H4XX0R)Linux，那么请将自己重定向到9 个最佳 Linux 发行版 For Hacking(9 Best Linux Distros For Hacking)。如果您只是想玩游戏，那么您的下一站应该是什么是最好的 Linux 游戏发行版？(What Is The Best Linux Distro For Gaming?)
最后，如果您仍然担心Linux对您来说太复杂，请查看An Introduction to Linux for Beginners和A Beginner's Ubuntu Linux Guide。Linux不可怕！一旦你接受了它古怪的文化和哲学，你肯定会（至少）扩展你作为计算机用户的视野。
The 5 Top Linux Distros You Should Be Using
Lіnux isn’t one unified operating system. Іnstead, you can get various distributions or “distros” customized for various purposes.
Every version of Linux uses the same core. That is, the Linux “kernel”. But these Linux versions can differ in every other respect. That includes what they look like, what features are included and which software packages come preinstalled.
The following are the top Linux distros we think most people should try.
[Ubuntu Desktop]
Possibly the best-known mainstream version of Linux, Ubuntu Linux is laser-focused on competing with Windows 10 and macOS as desktop operating systems. We often recommend Ubuntu as the go-to Linux distro to try if you’re looking for a more-or-less drop-in replacement for those two market leaders. Many people consider it to be the top Linux distro.
Ubuntu also gets most of the third-party software support compared to other Linux distros. If there’s a Linux version of a commercial software package, you can be sure it will at least have been tested with Ubuntu.
If you’re any sort of gamer, Ubuntu also offers the best experience. Steam has done a lot of work to offer Linux versions of games, or make Windows versions work on Linux through its SteamPlay initiative. This isn’t impossible to do on other distros, but the development has centered on Ubuntu and it seems the least headaches are found there.
Ubuntu also has some of the best support of any desktop Linux distro. It’s backed by a dedicated organization named Canonical and doesn’t rely solely on the kindness of the community to remain updated.
Apart from Ubuntu, Linux Mint might be a name you hear almost as often. While it doesn’t have the support of a large institution like Canonical, many users find they prefer the Mint experience. Mint is lighter on system resources, making it a good choice for older computers or netbook-class laptops.
It’s a little more minimalist than Ubuntu and, depending on how you look at it, more streamlined as a result. Mint also has a few features that make it a little safer for beginners. For example, the software repositories can be reset back to their default states.
Mint also includes a number of applications and features out of the box that have to be installed as additional extras on Ubuntu. You can also easily add proprietary additions such as codecs directly from the software repositories. This is a friendlier approach for novice users.
Finally Cinnamon, which is one of the main interface options for Mint, offers a smoother transition for users coming from the Windows interface. Which is why Mint is so commonly recommended for those dipping their toes in Linux for the first time.
Thanks to how popular and successful Ubuntu has been, many smaller distros are based on the vanilla version of Ubuntu. Manjaro, on the other hand, is based on the well respected Arch Linux. Arch is built around the idea of total customization, so it has a pretty involved installation process, but for Linux gurus it’s one of the top Linux distros.
Manjaro takes what’s good about Arch and tries to keep it while offering a Linux distro that’s good for beginners. Manjaro also has excellent hardware support and direct access to the Arch software repository, in addition to Manjaro’s own repository. Manjaro also gets updates as soon as the Manjaro team can test them. Whereas you’ll have to wait for the major scheduled releases when it comes to big distros like Ubuntu.
Many people are under the impression that Linux is always free, but the truth is that running Linux for professional, mission-critical purposes costs money. You may not have to pay for the software directly, but you need paid support. That’s the licence model of Red Hat Enterprise Linux, which is often the operating system running the servers of large organizations.
CentOS is the free community spinoff of Red Hat Enterprise and is therefore compatible with any software packages designed specifically for that commercial distro. Since stability and reliability are the main goals of CentOS, you won’t find the latest features and updates in the operating system. Updates only filter down to CentOS when they are seen as sufficiently bug-free and don’t pose security risks.
Each release of CentOS has a support cycle lasting ten years, which makes it an excellent choice if you want to run your own server. However, those looking for a desktop operating system are best off looking elsewhere. Since CentOS is rather weak as a desktop OS.
Tails is a very special version of Linux that isn’t meant to act as the main, permanent operating system of a computer. Instead, Tails is a portable operating system that you can boot just about any computer into from an external drive.
“Tails” is an acronym which is short for The Amnesiac Incognito Live System. That tells you pretty much everything you need to know. Still, to be clear, this is a privacy focused version of Linux that’s very popular among journalists, activists and other people who want to make use of the internet anonymously.
Tails leaves no traces on whichever computer it’s used on. Once you’ve rebooted the machine, it’s like you were never there. Likewise, every time you boot up Tails, it’s reset to its factory default settings. It also integrates the Tor browser, ensuring that not only do you not leave fingerprints on the computer in question, but you also hide your true identity from the sites you visit.
Tails is not meant to be a daily driver, but it’s a Linux distro that should be part of your toolkit. It’s better to have it and not need it than the reverse.
Linux Is Going Places
While Linux still has a tiny share of the desktop market to call its own, the versatile Open Source OS isn’t going anywhere. We’re seeing more and more support from developers and big shifts to the cloud. So the era of desktop Linux may only now start to enter its golden age.
If, after reviewing these top Linux distros, you’re still on the fence about switching from Windows to Linux, check out 5 Great Reasons to Ditch Windows for Linux. Alternatively, if you’re already sold on Linux but are worried about what software is available, have a look at The 20 Best Linux Apps Ever. If you’re considering Linux because you want to be a cool H4XX0R, then redirect yourself to the 9 Best Linux Distros For Hacking. If you just want to play games, then your next stop should be What Is The Best Linux Distro For Gaming?
Finally, if you still worry that Linux is just too complicated for you, take a look at An Introduction to Linux for Beginners and A Beginner’s Ubuntu Linux Guide. Linux is not to be feared! Once you embrace its quirky culture and philosophy, you’re sure to (at the very least) expand your horizons as a computer user.
