I finally found an Arch-based Linux distro even newbies can run

9 hours ago 3

StormOS is a well-tuned, user-friendly take on Arch Linux

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ZDNET's key takeaways

StormOS makes Arch Linux more user-friendly and accessible.
Preloaded apps and Zen kernel boost performance out of the box.
Minor drawbacks: RustDesk clutter and Xfce complexity for newbies.

Arch Linux tends to get a bad rap for being too hard to use for anyone who's not spent months or years using Linux. If you've never touched Linux, that rap is pretty spot on, because Arch Linux is one of those distributions where the command line is not nearly as optional as it is on, say, Ubuntu.

There are a few takes on Arch Linux (such as Manjaro Linux and EndeavorOS) that go a long way to alleviate the pain of using one of the more challenging Linux distributions. Another option is StormOS, which is a Linux distribution I'd not heard of until I ran into it by accident. My curiosity was immediately piqued, and I downloaded an ISO and fired up VirtualBox to spin up a virtual machine.

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As soon as the installer fired up, I knew this was going to be a take on Arch that was far more user-friendly. It wasn't until the installation was finished and I logged in for the first time that I realized StormOS not only achieved its goal, but surpassed it.

What makes StormOS such a good Arch option?

There are three features of StormOS that had me hooked right away. The first feature was the updates. A minute or so after I logged in for the first time, I was alerted to updates. I clicked Install, and the update began.

This is how updates on Linux should be: painless and quick.

The package manager GUI is none other than Pamac, but StormOS gives it a theme that makes it look a bit more modern than other Arch-based distributions I've tried. From this easy-to-use GUI, you can install all the Linux apps you need.

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The second feature is that, out of the box, StormOS includes all the software you need to do your thing. You'll find both LibreOffice and OnlyOffice, VLC media player, Chromium, StormOS Browser (aka Icarus Browser), and more.

Finally, StormOS uses the Zen kernel, which is a Linux kernel that's modified for performance and responsiveness. Because of that, StormOS performs really, really well (probably better than most other Arch-based distributions I've tried). It doesn't hurt that StormOS uses the Xfce desktop, which is a lightweight UI, so the combination of the two is pretty special.

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When you put all of this together, StormOS makes for a well-tuned, user-friendly take on Arch Linux.

Surely there are negatives... right?

OK, I confess that when I think about the user-friendly aspect of StormOS, there are at least a couple of things that come to mind.

First, there's an icon on the desktop labeled RustDesk. What is this? Essentially, RustDesk is a self-hosted remote desktop solution that allows you to connect to remote machines, ala TeamViewer. This is one of those apps that new users are going to open and think, "What is this thing I'm looking at?" From my perspective, it would have been better not to include that on the desktop and tuck it away in the Internet or Other menu category.

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Second (and I hate to say this) is that Xfce isn't exactly the best choice for new users. Why? Well, Xfce is highly configurable, so much so that it can be intimidating for those who aren't used to having so many options at their disposal. All you have to do is open the Settings category and you'll see just how many options there are to choose from.

Those two negatives do not take away from the fact that StormOS is still a user-friendly Linux distribution. Even if you've never used Linux before, you can work with StormOS. As long as you don't go poking around too much in that Settings menu, you shouldn't have any problem with this Arch-based distribution.

Who is StormOS best suited for?

I've always been hesitant to say that any Arch-based distribution is suited for those who've never touched Linux. And although I still hold to that opinion, I cannot deny that StormOS could be adopted by someone who's never used Linux and not cause them any problems. As long as that user understands that they aren't working with Windows, they'll be fine.

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These days, most people don't venture beyond a web browser, and a web browser is a web browser, regardless of the OS. They all function pretty much the same, and if you've used Chrome (or Chromium) on Windows, you won't have any problem with Chromium on StormOS.

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If you're interested in StormOS, head over to the official download site, grab an ISO, burn it to a USB drive, boot it on a spare machine, and install. Or, if you are so inclined, test it as a virtual machine. Either way, I think you'll be impressed with what the StormOS developers have created.

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