I love Debian. What can I say. I use or have used dozens of operating systems for desktops, laptops, palmtops and servers since 1984. Debian trumps them all. I do add my own tweaks here and there - but hey - it lets me do it without a fight.

I do use Ubuntu on desktops recently. However, where would Ubuntu be without Debian? Non-existant.

Why? What makes Debian my favorite?

1. It is stable. The most stable OS I have used in both server and desktop production environments - ever.

2. I can bend it to my will easily enough. I have not had an OS need that I could not fill with Debian.

3. Software. Lots and lots of software is available. Most of it for free!

4. Support. People love to argue about TCO for linux being high because support costs (support and training) are high. Let me tell you something. The online Debian community has NEVER failed to solve a single problem for me within 24 hours. That's right. NEVER. The only costs I've incurred are the donations I've chosen to make. I once spent 24 hours on the phone with Microsoft Premium Tech Support to fix an Exchange problem that NEVER did get resolved. I worked through three tech support shift changes straight. How much did that cost? A lot more than free!!! In the end, their final recommendation (after a few more weeks on and off) was to buy several more servers and OS/Exchange licenses. Ha!!!

5. Licensing Simplicity. It gets so damn tiring keeping track of some licenses and fees for other server OS. Licenses for the server, licenses for each connection, licenses for clients, mandatory certifications, blah blah blah. (You can license an app to help you keep track of all that, though - for a hefty fee). Debian is simple. Want to install it on another server? No license fee. Want to install it on another desktop? No license fee. Want to allow another hundred clients to connect to it remotely? No license fee. Simple.

6. It runs on anything. I have Debian running on a Mac Quadra 660AV, PowerMac6500, Silicon Graphix Indigo, Mac Cube, iBook, Alpha Multia, Nokia N800, countless Intel and AMD based x86/x86-64 CPUs, Xen, VMware and VirtualBox hosts, Sun Sparc, Routerboard, etc. Thats 680X0, PPC, X86, Sparc, MIPS, Alpha, ARM CPUS. Very cool.

Gandalf is the epitome of leadership. He leads, coaches, directs, facilitates or whatever you want to call it with thought, tact and respect. Most of my bosses lead more like Saruman. I wish I could get some trees to throw rocks at them!