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  • Number of Linux Distributions

    From Bobbie Sellers@[email protected] to comp.os.linux.misc on Sun Apr 19 22:53:57 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.os.linux.misc

    Hi Denizens,

    I have seen post that over estimate the number of Linux Distribution mentioning
    thousands. But the total including abandoned distributions is less than
    1200.

    Here are the facts as published by Distrowatch.com in their weekly
    newsletter.

    DistroWatch database summary

    Number of all distributions in the database: 1,187
    Number of active distributions in the database: 467
    Number of dormant distributions: 40
    Number of discontinued distributions: 678
    Number of distributions on the waiting list: 165
    Number of distributions waiting for evaluation: 129

    So the total number of distributions which may be active
    is around 700. Some of these are not functional on any hardware
    the reviewer, on the newsletter, has shown frequently to be functional.

    bliss- Dell Precision 7730- PCLOS 2026.04- Linux 6.12.82 pclos1- KDE
    Plasma 6.6.4
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  • From rbowman@[email protected] to comp.os.linux.misc on Mon Apr 20 07:39:57 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.os.linux.misc

    On Sun, 19 Apr 2026 22:53:57 -0700, Bobbie Sellers wrote:

    So the total number of distributions which may be active
    is around 700. Some of these are not functional on any hardware the reviewer, on the newsletter, has shown frequently to be functional.

    When you get down to the 456th most popular distro it's pretty
    specialized.

    https://live.osgeo.org/en/overview/overview.html#desktop-gis

    I do have some, but not all, of the packages installed. There is a lot I wouldn't find useful like Mapserver. I've used it in the past but it's
    dated.

    It is sort of like Kali, Debian with the hacking tools bundled in. As I scrolled down the list I was surprised to see distros like Xbuntu far
    down, but distrowatch never claimed to have a handle on the actual usage.
    Like the TIOBE index it's more about web searches and so forth.
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  • From TJ@[email protected] to comp.os.linux.misc on Mon Apr 20 09:06:48 2026
    From Newsgroup: comp.os.linux.misc

    On 2026-04-20 03:39, rbowman wrote:
    On Sun, 19 Apr 2026 22:53:57 -0700, Bobbie Sellers wrote:

    So the total number of distributions which may be active
    is around 700. Some of these are not functional on any hardware the
    reviewer, on the newsletter, has shown frequently to be functional.

    When you get down to the 456th most popular distro it's pretty
    specialized.

    https://live.osgeo.org/en/overview/overview.html#desktop-gis

    I do have some, but not all, of the packages installed. There is a lot I wouldn't find useful like Mapserver. I've used it in the past but it's
    dated.

    It is sort of like Kali, Debian with the hacking tools bundled in. As I scrolled down the list I was surprised to see distros like Xbuntu far
    down, but distrowatch never claimed to have a handle on the actual usage. Like the TIOBE index it's more about web searches and so forth.

    I am the Leader of the Mageia Linux Quality Assurance Team. Testing of
    the Mageia 10 RC began just today, so if we aren't listed as still
    active we certainly should be.

    As for our ranking compared to other distros, it's a low priority for
    us. We are a community of volunteers, just trying to produce the best
    distro we can.

    We don't track our users, or even the number of downloads of our install media. And since there is no limit to the number of installs that can be created with any of the individual media, our users could number a
    billion - or a few hundred. We don't know, and and we are OK with that.

    TJ
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