Despite this claim ease of use is something Slackware is just not known for. Even with improvements in Slackware 13.0 I still don't think there is anything easy about this distro for anyone other than advanced, experienced users who are extremely comfortable on the command line and with editing configuration files by hand.

Slackware Linux is still going strong. The Slackware Linux Project released Slackware 13.1 on May 24th.This is just a little by shy of the 17th anniversary of Slackware 1.0 and not quite a year after Slackware 13.0. Delve back into yesteryear with me; you're in for a treat.

After my positive experience of Debian it was time to move on and this time I chose Slackware 12 to try out. I didn't know anything about Slackware going into it and I certainly didn't know what I was getting myself into, "fools rush in" as they say. I certainly did. Slackware was an effort to say the least, I spent a couple of days with it. So, here's what happened on my Slackware adventure...

At a time when new and buggy features cloud basic computer functions, it's refreshing to see a new release of a distro like Slackware that stays true to its core philosophy. Slackware has an unfair reputation of being a distro only for experienced users. Granted it doesn't sport many graphical configuration tools, but it balances that with stability and speed.

Slackware Linux is the oldest surviving Linux distribution, and still one of the most popular. Last week's release of version 12.0 is a milestone for the Slackware team, as it marks Slackware's first use of a default 2.6.x kernel.

I’ve already reviewed some distros based off of Slackware such as Zenwalk and Slax. Along the way I’ve come to learn about some of the appeal of Slackware and why people would base distributions off of it. However, it does have a reputation as a very hard distro to install.

We all know that Slackware means stability and security. But Slackware has never been a distribution for the weak and elderly. It has always been regarded as one of the more geeky and difficult distros, alongside Gentoo. Until now. Well, Gentoo got Sabayon and Slackware got Wolvix.

Well folks, it's that time to announce a new stable Slackware release again. So, without further ado, announcing Slackware version 12.1!

If you want an easy-to-use Linux distribution that doesn't make you work too hard, Slackware might not be for you. On the other hand, if you want a distro that's quick to set up, and know how to configure it by hand (or aren't afraid of learning to), you might fall in love with Slackware. It's definitely an interesting way to learn how to use Linux.