Renard’s Thoughts On Manjaro

Manjaro is one of those distributions of Linux that I have used off-and-on (I never once regretted my decision to dabble with this Arch Linux-based operating system).

In all honesty, Manjaro has gotten better over the years (This is probably due to the fact that Arch Linux itself has grown more stable over the years).

So far, I have tried all of Manjaro’s official editions as well as most of their community editions and I am proud to admit that the experience was an enjoyable one.

If you are one of those people who are bored to death with using Linux Mint as your daily driver, you can spice things up a bit by installing Manjaro on your computer.

Manjaro Has Its Own Repositories

Yes, my friend, Manjaro has its own software repositories (Now, this is not a surprise to those of us that use Linux because it is common practice for Linux distributions to have their own software repositories).

As a matter of fact, Manjaro has three different sets of software repositories:

1. Stable — This only contains packages that are deemed stable by Manjaro’s development team; those packages were rigorously tested weeks before by the folks who utilize the Testing and the Unstable software repositories (The stable branch of Manjaro is usually free of problematic software).
2. Testing — The software that is contained within this repository is often referred to as, “The second line of defence,” due to the fact, that the software coming down from the Unstable branch is thoroughly tested before it is approved for the Testing software repository.
3. Unstable — This contains bleeding-edge software; its update cycle is approximately three days behind Vanilla Arch Linux (Please note, that the Unstable branch of Manjaro is only recommended for advanced users — those people who possess the skill to repair broken packages).

Hey, there is no need to worry because the default version for download is the Stable branch of Manjaro (Which is perfect for those people who want stability).

I have utilized all three branches in the past.

Since I enjoy living on the edge (and, of course, having acquired the knowledge of fixing broken packages), I utilize the Unstable branch of Manjaro.

If you are a highly knowledgeable Linux user and you would like to switch your branch of Manjaro to the Unstable branch, you can use the following terminal commands:

sudo pacman-mirrors --api --set-branch unstable

The final step is to build your mirrorlist and update your packages; this is done by adding the following command in your terminal:

sudo pacman-mirrors --fasttrack 5 && sudo pacman -Syyu

By the way, if you prefer to use Manjaro’s Testing branch instead, you can use the following command in your terminal:

sudo pacman-mirrors --api --set-branch testing

And once again, build your mirrorlist and update your packages by typing the following command in your terminal:

sudo pacman-mirrors --fasttrack 5 && sudo pacman -Syyu

If you are merely curious and you would like to know which of the three branches of Manjaro that you are on, type in the following command in your terminal:

pacman-mirrors --get-branch

I Love The Arch User Repository

In addition to Manjaro’s own repositories, users can find and download software from the Arch User Repository; which is easily located via the help of Pamac (And, that is something that I truly like).

Ubuntu’s huge software repository is no match for the Arch User Repository (One can literally find almost any piece of software under the Sun via the Arch User Repository).

I would like to state for the record, that the ArchWiki states that whenever we use the Arch User Repository, we are doing it at our own risk.

And, why is that the case?

The official statement is that the PKGBUILDs are completely unofficial and have not been thoroughly vetted.

I would like to take this opportunity to say to you, “I have never received any sort of malware by installing software via the Arch User Repository.”

Therefore, so far, so good!

I Chose To Install Manjaro MATE

For those of you who are unfamiliar with Linux, Manjaro MATE is simply Manjaro with the MATE desktop environment.

Why did I choose the MATE desktop environment?

I chose it because I am a huge fan of the MATE desktop environment (It is one of those desktop environments that is fast and lightweight).

In your case, you can go with any of the editions of Manjaro; whether it be one of the official editions or one of the community editions.

I Am Not Too Keen On Using The ONLYOFFICE Desktop Editors

In past editions of Manjaro, they provided their users (via the installation process) with the option of choosing:

• The ONLYOFFICE Suite.
• LibreOffice for all of your office needs.
• No office productivity software.

However, when I installed Manjaro MATE, I was not given any of the three options.

I was surprised to learn that that the ONLYOFFICE Desktop Editors web app came preinstalled on Manjaro MATE.

Being the cool, calm and collective person that I am, I simply replaced the ONLYOFFICE Desktop Editors web app with the full LibreOffice suite.

Besides, one of the main things about Linux is actually installing the types of software that you want.

Extra Steps Are Required For Gufw To Remain On When Your Computer Boots Up

Gufw also came preinstalled on Manjaro MATE (Gufw is the graphical user interface for Uncomplicated Firewall; which is an easy-to-use Netfilter firewall).

As a matter of fact, Gufw comes preinstalled on lots of other distributions of Linux.

When I first used Manjaro (which was many years ago), I was dumbfounded as to the reason why Gufw never stayed on after it was manually turned on.

I knew for a fact, that it remained activated on distributions of Linux like Debian, Ubuntu and Linux Mint when it was turned on manually; it only came off when it was turned off manually (Therefore, I did not have to enable Gufw each time I turned on my computer).

That same year, I found out how to keep Gufw enabled on Manjaro (And, I am going to teach you how I made that possible).

I used the following commands in my terminal in order to enable it and keep it enabled:

sudo systemctl enable ufw.service

sudo ufw enable

It is a pity that Gufw is not on by default on Manjaro.

Manjaro Has A Wonderful Forum

Manjaro’s forum is a great place to get help when you run into difficulty with any of Manjaro’s editions.

Please note, that the Manjaro forum has strict rules and guidelines; such as:

• Being respectful to those people who possess a different opinion than yours.
• Having empathy and kindness towards other people.
• The giving and receiving of constructive criticism in a graceful manner.
• Focusing on what is best for the entire Manjaro community.
• No trolling of any kind.
• No private or public harassment towards others.

Once you behave yourself on Manjaro’s forum, all will be fine.

Back in August of 2020, Manjaro’s forum went down (Apparently some files went missing and many users were unable to log in; they had to create new accounts).

In my case, I did not bother to create a new account; I opted for severing my ties with Manjaro’s forum.

Manjaro Is Easy To Install On Your Computer

Some of you are probably thinking, “Renard, I do not know how to install Manjaro on my computer.”

Fear not because the article, Install Manjaro Linux by creating Flash Drive on Windows, will show you how simple the process is.

The truth is that installing Manjaro on your computer is not rocket science!

You Can Purchase Hardware That Comes Preinstalled With Manjaro

For those of you who are intimidated by the idea of installing Manjaro on their hardware, you can purchase hardware that comes preinstalled with Manjaro on it; such items can be found on Manjaro’s Hardware page.

Hey, these days, there are lots of people who are purchasing computers and mobile phones that come preinstalled with Linux (You can jump on the bandwagon if you like).

One of the nice things about purchasing computers and mobile phones with Manjaro is that they were tested to work well with those particular types of hardware; which results in a positive user experience.

Who Is Manjaro Best Suited For?

Manjaro is best suited for the person who wants:

• To use their computer for coding.
• To use their computer for music production.
• To use their computer for browsing the world wide web.
• To use their computer for home office tasks.
• To use their computer for gaming.
• To use their computer for multimedia consumption.

I genuinely believe that Manjaro is best suited for almost anyone.

Final Thoughts

Manjaro is certainly worthy of being tried out.

This fantastic distribution of Linux can be used as a Windows or a macOS replacement.

And, the best part of all, is that Manjaro is absolutely free to use!

Advertisement