Your preferred Linux distribution for 2013?

due to:
- stability
- superior package management
- ubuntu going the wrong way

There are, in my opinion, three major reasons for Gentoo:

1. You can customize the programs, and remove dependencies for features you don't need. For example, my Gentoo removes wifi-geolocation support from Firefox.

2. It's easy to adapt virtually everything using configuration files and (though you don't need it) editing of well documented Python scripts.

3. "Hardened Gentoo" is the most secure Linux distribution I've ever seen, and I've looked at every single one I have been able to find. Only OpenBSD has a chance of beating it.

Compiling is not the reason you choose Gentoo, since the performance benefits are negligible. However, if you do wish to compile something for whatever reason, Gentoo does makes it easier.

I really like Fedora. Been using it since FC (and Red Hat before that). I vastly prefer KDE to anything else on the market, and Fedora have good KDE support.

I find systemd and all its *ctl tools like journalctl f'cking awesome, and superior to the old init and syslog tools.

Fedora isn't a "hip and cool" distro, but I like Red Hats unwavering FOSS stance, their intense involvement in core Linux technology like the kernel, and I like Fedoras mixture of brand new technology with solid system stability and security patches.

Surprised Mageia is so low on the poll, especially considering it has been consistently near the top on distrowatch for years.

Well, whatever. I use several distros (work workstation, servers, embedded, laptop, tablet, home server, home workstation, etc), but the one on my main home workstation machine is Mageia, and I think I like it the best. Seems like the best compromise between power, stability, completeness, ease of use, and support.

It is nice having choices.

CentOS, for exactly the same reasons, minus the cost.