DistroWatch is nonsense-metric

Story: Has Unity Knocked Ubuntu Off Its Pedestal?Total Replies: 11
Author Content
hkwint

Jun 23, 2011
6:08 AM EDT 		The article makes an assumption:

"New Linux or Ubuntu users go to Distrowatch, so if Ubuntu is less popular on Distrowatch, it may be less popular among new users".

That assumes new Ubuntu-users know what Linux and a distro is, and there's a website named 'DistroWatch' at which they can find info about lots of distro's.

However, current Windows users, the majority of computer users, might read in a mainstream Windows-centred magazine / website "Ubuntu is an easy to use alternative to Windows, and can be downloaded from Ubuntu.com/download".

Would those new users ever visit Distrowatch? Of course not, why would they! Therefore, for popularity, Distrowatch is an absolute BS metric. It only shows those already visiting Distrowatch and clicking on distro's.

For example, about 'none' of the Gentoo users would be inclined to check out Distrowatch. Gentoo doesn't fit in Distrowatch's format given it has no releases, so Distrowatch pretty much ignores Gentoo. Moreover, there's nothing for a Gentoo user to find over there, except maybe a listing of 'reviews' of Gentoo, but those can be found using Google.

So, what _does_ Distrowatch show then? I think, it's mainly a metric of what 'users dissatisfied with their current distro" are looking at, and those who know what a distribution is, but not sure which one to choose.

Now, if you're distro-hopping or choosing, and you're considering Ubuntu, why look at DistroWatch? There are a gazillion of reviews out there, you almots get smacked to death with them when surfing popular OS websites. Even if you don't want to. And when looking for RedHat or Oracle Enterprise Linux, potential customers would go straight to the companies website instead of DistroWatch. Which probably also goes a bit for OpenSuse.

Now, on the other hand, let's say if I want to read reviews about Salix, Antix, Slitaz or Bodhi or so, then DistroWatch would offer a valuable listing.

Conclusion: If I wanted to know more about a 'not so popular' distribution, I'd turn to DistroWatch. But there's no chance any computer-savvy person has not come across gazillion Natty-reviews. So chances are low I want to know more about Ubuntu given all the hype which almost forced me to read about it. And if I wanted to know more about Ubuntu I'd may as well do a Google-search.
henke54

Jun 23, 2011
6:28 AM EDT 		I am more 'inclined' to agree on this argument :
Susan Linton wrote:Or maybe it's just that everyone recommends Mint nowadays. I know I do. Partially because stupid laws mean that Ubuntu, Fedora, et al can't include codecs for MP3s, videos, etc.
dinotrac

Jun 23, 2011
8:14 AM EDT 		I also reccomend Mint. I've installed it on my wife's workstation, my kids' computer, and my netbook. I've got Ubuntu(mythbuntu, actually) on my workstation and the myth box, and on a Dell Mini 9 that came with it. The Mini 9 will be getting Mint when I get around to it.

I just can't find a good reason to install Ubuntu these days, except for Mythtv.
pmpatrick

Jun 23, 2011
8:53 AM EDT 		I'm not sure what the dip in the Distrowatch page hit rankings mean but I tend to agree with hkwint's observation that it most likely measures the level of dissatisfaction in current Ubuntu users as opposed to rejection by new users. At least, I think that's what he was getting at with his "it's mainly a metric of what 'users dissatisfied with their current distro' are looking at" theory.

As the whole KDE4 saga reveals, radical changes in a mature DE/GUI tend to aggravate the old users, particularly when the new DE/GUI is viewed as not as feature complete as the old. As a result, many old users reject the new offering and go in search of alternatives to their beloved old DE/GUI. In the case of KDE4, there was a sizable backlash and migration to other DE's, mostly Gnome2 and XFCE. I don't think it's unreasonable to expect a similar defection from a sizable percentage of Ubuntu's old guard unhappy with Unity and Gnome3. In fact, one might predict that a main beneficiary of that defection would be Mint which has retained Gnome2 in its current release and is otherwise the most polished pre-Unity Ubuntu like distro out there. The Distorwatch page hit rankings, for whatever they are worth, tend to support this conclusion as Mint has seen a sizable upsurge.
TxtEdMacs

Jun 23, 2011
9:58 AM EDT
Quoting: [...] The Distorwatch page hit rankings [...] tend to support this conclusion[*] as Mint has seen a sizable upsurge.


Let me get this straight, Ok? Are you saying that the surge of the old guard from Ubuntu made them into displaced persons that are now on Distorwatch seeking something better?

Perfectly logical, makes sense to me.

YBT

* That is, those dissatisfied with their present distribution, but savvy Linux users seeking new realms.
ComputerBob

Jun 23, 2011
10:33 AM EDT 		Distrowatch metrics mean absolutely nothing, other than saying how many people visit Distrowatch.
JaseP

Jun 23, 2011
11:05 AM EDT 		Regardless of what DistroWatch's metric is measuring, it is simply quantifying something most of us have been observing for months. Ubuntu's (& Gnome's) development teams are out of touch with the wants/desires of the user base. They seem to forcing their particular vision of how the desktop should be used without any deference to the opinion of the user base. It's as if we are children, they are the parent, and they are telling us to sit at the table and try the Brussels sprouts, despite us telling them we have and we don't like them. Unfortunately, for all involved, we users are not children, the developers are not parents who know better, and an UI is not vegetables that will make us strong & healthy. DistroWatch's metric is nothing more than an indicator, which you can use to make any conclusion you wish.

I predict that we will see Ubuntu users leaving in droves, spin-off distros growing exponentially, tools for interface changes galore & competing distros taking a bigger mind-share (since market share is difficult/impossible to measure in Linux circles). I for one would love to see what, if any, usability studies had been done before these radical changes were made (Ubuntu Unity & Gnome alike). I bet there were NONE.
TxtEdMacs

Jun 23, 2011
11:32 AM EDT 		CB,

The last thing we need on this thread is another rational comment. This story's jump off point is weakly based, so what? Do you desire an empty queue of LXer stories? Get with program, if all the debris deposi ... I mean stories. If those shown here were fact based items with real content there would be either little to read or we would have to have to work to understand complex issues. We are here to deride the indefensible. Don't make us exert our minds, please.

Now sin no more,

YBT
tracyanne

Jun 23, 2011
6:10 PM EDT 		I've visited Distrowatch only a couple of times in the last 3 years, and never downloaded anything from there in that time, and in the last 10 years only downloaded something from there twice. I'm sure I'm not the only Linux users who doesn't bother with distrowatch, also I'm pretty sure that most new Ubuntu/Linux Mint users never go there, and certainly no one I've recommended check out Linux do, because I send them to Ubuntu and Linux Mint these days, and in the past used to send people to Mandriva.
JaseP

Jun 24, 2011
9:22 AM EDT 		It's a nice catalogue of distros,... Other than that, it's usefulness is limited. I visit it as much as I visit the Linux.com website,... & that is rarely.
dinotrac

Jun 24, 2011
11:56 AM EDT 		I was actually surprised and impressed to learn that distrowatch still exists. Going there was yet another pleasant surprise: My site (dinotrac.com) is not the only antique web site out there! distrowatch, too, seems stuck in a last millenium time-warp.

Let's hear it for the woefully out of step! One of these days we'll be cool.,
Steven_Rosenber

Jun 24, 2011
1:03 PM EDT 		I remain a huge fan of Distrowatch. It's an excellent news source and resource for what happened when going back pretty darn far.

To put the Distrowatch rankings in perspective, I prefer to say "searches/queries/click for these distros are more/less popular among Distrowatch readers."

I'm not hung up on which distros are more or less popular, but I do think the Distrowatch rankings have at least some meaning.

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