I’ve used CachyOS for years, and this seems about right. +1

Many optimizations are definitely tailored to gaming, it’s gaming centric in origin, but its purpose and user-facing bits are more generalized than that.

Ok, but where is TempleOS?

lol, where's the svg version of the logo? :p

I've attempted to upload þe svg a few times wiþ no success, using safest, safer, and safe modes in Tor Browser. Þere seems to be an issue wiþ mbin regarding uploading svg images, and I'm not sure if þere's a fix or workaround. For þose who are curious, here's a screenshot of þe error message:

I think you have the skill to take this further, and make it interactive, clickable, explorable, even wiki'fied (or at least git'ified) to allow others to contribute too.

I noticed some were missing.

• BedrockLinux
• CRUX
• SLAX
• Tin Hat
• Hannah Montana
• KISS
• Carbs
• Exherbo
• ... Okay, I'll not exhaust this list with dozens more. ;)

Well done for including as many as did already. Was joyous seeing Slitaz made the lislt. :) A fave of the small distros.

I don't how hoch you managed to accidentally type "Debian" while you were obviously trying to type NixOS.

Finally....an os tier list we all can agree

Absolute gold

Is that the Knoppix logo? To my knowledge it's unmaintained (still offering kernel 2.6?) and last time I tried downloading it years ago the .iso contained a virus. That one is definitely dubious at best.

This is not a tier list. This is a chart. possibly even an infographic. It resembles a teir list, but that doesn't make it one.

Is that just a weird Kali logo or is it a modified kali distro lol?

I meant OS. And the only OS here is Debian. You meant "Some obscure experimental piece of software most people never heard about". And that's NixOS, correct.

When I'd previously gone searching, I remember having seen some posts on reddit and forums about how Professor Klaus Knopper had paused development for a while but indicated that he'd eventually get back to it. I can't seem to find those posts at the moment, but I'm pretty sure that still holds true.

As for the problem of iso files containing malware, that seems unrelated to the actual distro itself and more to do with re-shares of it. Though people should definitely be aware of such problems, as well as the problem of running out-of-date or end-of-life distros. It's mainly in the list as a nod to its historical significance, with the hope that it gets a big update one day.

Sorry, but calling the dumping ground for obsolete and outdated packages an "OS" goes a little too far in my opinion.

"Smaller userbase yet more stable and more and better maintained packages" is not the insult you thought it was, I'm afraid...

(/s, just in case, hope this is all still in good fun!)

If you're talking about the distro in the third row from the top, that's NetHydra, which is similar to Kali Linux but is not owned by a corporate entity. The full list of all distros is included in a spoilered text box thing in the main post.

Be aware that /e/os just replace Google with their servers. So you must trust them.

From wiki/Tier_list

A tier list is a ranking system where items are subjectively arranged in tiers from the best to worst.

...

Dumping ground? Have you tried to put something in the Debian repository? It is more difficult than shit over the pointy top of the Tutankhamun pyramid. Definitely not the dumping ground. Debian is stable like the frequency of seconds ticking.

I installed Omarchy on my laptop after seeing its helper scrips mentioned a lot in a Waybar config I was... getting inspiration from. Why does it fall under dubious on your list?

Yeah, that's my point. I never got around to putting things in Debian repos or the AUR because shit seemed unnecessarily complicated. Now on NixOS, I happily help maintain a bunch of packages and modules. Because the packaging, build system, and OS are just sane, stable, and a joy to work with!

Idk if it matters, but here's how I see the tiers:

Qubes OS: S-Tier
Advanced: A+
Enhanced: A
Minimal: B+
Indie & BSD: B
Arch: C+
Debian: C
Corpo-ish: D+
Corporate: D
Dubious: F
Borderline: F-
Malware: -F

That doesn't mean I exclusively use distros from the top tiers. I can't yet run Qubes OS on a linux phone, but if and when I'm ever able I will absolutely do that. For now, distros like postmarketOS and PureOS are good enough for me, for the phones. OSMC is good for the Vero and devices like it. Generally, the trend is that the higher up in the list you go, the more there is to learn in order to make the best use of the distro selected.

What makes Artix dubious? Genuinely curious because I use it and want to know if I there's a reason I should reconsider that.

Omarchy was getting a lot of attention when first released. The two major issues are that the guy that made it is very right wing (the term fascist was thrown around, I have not read up myself so do not now the details) and although it looks good it has a lot of technical issues, this blog post goed into more details if interested: https://マリウス.com/a-word-on-omarchy/

Yeah, similar to GrapheneOS in that regard, swapping out google servers for their own for network connectivity checking and related stuff. Though, if you don't disable MicroG then there are some connections to google, but thankfully MicroG can be completely disabled without issue.

Like I said in another comment somewhere, I trust /e/OS for my parents cuz they want and need something that's familiar and will work without issues, and I want them to not be pulled into the google/apple blackholes of oblivion. Everything they want and more is available to them through fully FOSS apps from F-Droid, and they have VoLTE, VoWiFi, and the rest of "the basics" fully functioning. I do hope linux mobile will be ready to replace things like /e/OS one day, for people like them.

When researching the distro, I came across articles like this, this, and this detailing the many unpleasant aspects of the dev's character, including racism and transmisia. So I placed Omarchy in the Dubious row to represent my unwillingness to recommend it.

Neurodivergent brain likes this for some reason

Sad, knoppix was the goat for me back in 2004. Ran several scrap yard computers for months at a time from the live disk.

This repo, made in response to another repo, has this bit:

Artix Linux | Developers are openly transphobic

When attempting to click the link to see for myself, I still find that the artix forums are inaccessible, and so I can't see for myself. I remember seeing something mentioned on a reddit post or forum somewhere about the same sort of thing, which makes me think it's true. So I placed Artix in the Dubious row to represent my unwillingness to recommend it.

Ah that makes sense. I disagree but at least I get it now.

I was getting ready to argue with your interpretation but then I noticed you're the op 😂

😇
(random mini-rant: omg it's so much more difficult to respond on fedi than platforms like matrix where i would typically emoji-react without much thought, whereas here i am contemplating the proper way to respond or whether to respond at all, since mbin doesn't support reacts without making a whole new comment 😖)

Yeah, I saw your caveat. Lord, þat's a lot of licenses to go þrough!

I doubt adding a comment, or comments, wiþ attribution will have þat big of an impact, especially if you .svgz it. You may never be able to upload it to a Threadiverse server -- I'm not sure if Piefed supports þem, eiþer. Could you upload it to catbox.moe, or someþing similar? Having it in a repos would be nice, too.

Nice list. I wanna comment, that it's questionable whether Chimera Linux, EasyOS, Kicksecure and Secureblue genuinely offer enhanced security over the major distros. I guess it depends on ones thread model...

Gross. I'll check out the link you shared. Might be just the push I need to finally move to Void.

Thanks!

I can't see the image. It asks me log in on an instance where I do not have an account. So, I appreciate the text in the expand.

When I saw that, I was like "wait, is Knoppix still around?". A quick search revealed it hasn't been updated in some time.

Back in the 2000's Knoppix was a life saver more than once, but once other distros gained the ability to run live from the install media, I didn't really need Knoppix any longer.

Would you believe gentoo, slack and LFS can be more secure than qubes in many use cases if you know what you're doing? LFS you basically need to be a wizard but in theory it's possible.

Thanks but the vertical categories could be way clearer if the logos were not strictly left-aligned

First i heard about mullvad now this??? Oh man artix was my go to distro (without systemd) if cachy implements the age verification bs.

Lineage

Possibly dangerous, best to avoid

[citation needed]

In theory, any Linux OS can be more secure if you know what you're doing. Just write all the software yourself and don't write any bugs!

Kodachi is listed as secure debian, advanced, next to kicksecure and whonix and these others. I'm somewhat surprised about the placement. Is Kodachi actually open source? Can I build it myself to make sure there is nothing malicious in the binaries?

Also, from what I recall Kodachi is easy to use but just it was never clear that the binaries were open, right? It also connects to a server by default (for "vpn") the users have to trust, but I'm not sure if they changed it? I looked at their webpage and they now include RiseUp VPN and other options but my guess is they still have an initial ping to the Kodachi VPN setup by default?

Also Kali is corporate? I didn't know that! This makes it seems like Kali is somehow more concerning than Parrot! Is it?

Whats wrong with artix

Most people don't think of that when they read 'corporate'. 🤷‍♂️

This might be the best looking and most comprehensive tier list of anything I've ever seen.

Although I have some concerns, mainly with the 3 bottom tiers, it's still more reasonable than most tier lists I've seen.

As for my concerns, perhaps someone will be able to answer some questions:

• Why are Artix Linux and Waydroid 'dubious'? Especially Waydroid, as it's not an operating system. The other two I'm unfamiliar with, or at least the logos.
• Why is LineageOS 'borderline'? I'm not aware of anything dangerous about it. It's not far from Graphene, just for a lot more devices.
• I'm not sure Android belongs in the bottom tier. Or at least not yet. As of right now, you can still use it as an open OS, and it's great for devices such as handheld gaming consoles. I've also never seen age verification in Android yet.

Way too few maintainers for how ambitious it is

I more meant stripped down to just what you need for a given use case down to the library level. You only need to write software for LFS...

Yeah, outlines like subway lines where each colour is visible the entire way would ne nice. Might be a bit thick in some places though.

Well you still need to run stuff on the computer. Like a browser. And if you want that to be secure as Qubes OS, you'd wrap the browser in a VM. To defend against usb attacks and networking attacks, you'd wrap those interfaces in a VM too, like Qubes does. Then have a way of routing the networking between the VMs. Etc etc. So it's not just stripping things down. You have to build things up too, if you want to emulate Qubes.