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{% extends "base.html" %}
{% block content %}
<div class="box">
<h2 class="title">About Arch Linux</h2>
<p>
Arch Linux is a general purpose linux distribution that can be molded to
do just about anything. It is fast, lightweight, flexible, and most of the
parts under the hood are quite simple to understand and tweak, which can
make it a good distro to "learn the ropes" on. We do not provide any
configuration helper utilities (ie, you won't find <i>linuxconf</i> in
here) so you will quickly become very proficient at configuring your system
from the shell commandline.
</p>
<p>
Arch Linux uses i686-optimized packages which gives us improved
performance over some of our i386-optimized cousins. This means that Arch
Linux will only run on a Pentium II processor or higher. We try to stay
fairly bleeding edge, and typically have the latest stable versions of
software.
</p>
<p>
Arch Linux uses the <a href='http://www.archlinux.org/pacman'>Pacman</a>
package manager, which couples a simple binary package format with an
easy-to-use build system, allowing the users to easily manage and customize
their packages, whether they be official Arch packages or the user's own
homegrown ones. The repository system allows users to build and maintain
their own custom package repositories, which encourages community growth and
contribution.
</p>
<p>
Pacman can keep a system up to date by synchronizing package lists with
the master server, making it a breeze for the security-conscious system
administrator to maintain. This server/client model also allows you to
download/install packages with a simple command, complete with all required
dependencies (similar to Debian's apt-get).
</p>
<p>
Arch's official package set is fairly streamlined, but we supplement this
with a larger, more complete "extra" repository that contains a lot of the
stuff that never made it into our core package set. This repository is
constantly growing with the help of packages submitted from our strong
community.
</p>
<p>
Arch Linux does not provide any official support, but you will find a lot
of helpful people on our IRC channel and on our <a
href='http://bbs.archlinux.org'>user forums</a>. Chances are that some other
Archer has had the same problem/question as you and it's already been
answered. Ask around!
</p>
<p>
Arch Linux uses a "rolling release" system which works like this: We have
two versions of our core package set at any given time, <b>Current</b> and
<b>Release</b>. The Current repository always contains the latest and
greatest versions of packages. As soon as a package is updated it is part of
the Current repository, so this is the one to follow if you want to stay very
up to date. The Release repository follows the semi-regular snapshot
releases and does not update until the next snapshot/iso has been released.
For example, the Release repository will point to all packages on the 0.5 ISO
until we release 0.6; then it will point to 0.6 packages until 0.7 is
released. This is useful if you only want to update your system when a new
release is available.
</p>
<p>
So, to sum up: Arch Linux is a workhorse distribution designed to fit the
needs of the competent linux user. We strive to make it both powerful and
easy to manage, making it an ideal distro for servers and workstations. Take
it in any direction you like.
</p>
</div>
<br /><br />
{% endblock %}
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