Last April (2019) I installed some different distros and compared memory use. That was on the Lubuntu-users mailing list. I recently got a new laptop (details discussed here). I wanted to try installing a number of distros to see how compatible it is with Linux. I thought this was a good time to collect the memory-use info again:
[EDIT: Initially I had some trouble with Linux Lite 4.8 and showed only its VirtualBox details. I got help from the LL forum, and was able to install LL on the laptop. The info has been updated. See the PDF for details about how LL was done. It’s confusing.]
This time I collected mem use on both real & virtual machines. It’s interesting to see how that differs (and how it’s not a consistent difference. For example: Bodhi has no difference. I don’t know how that’s even possible.).
I don’t know how useful this info is. But, I’m finding it fun to “speed date” distros, get a quick impression. I’m kind of wanting to spend some time with Linux Lite. I didn’t include it in the last year’s data because I couldn’t get the ISO to boot. It seemed like the machine accessed the device for a few seconds, then booted the hard drive (no errors about what went wrong booting the USB device. It was like it handed itself off to the hard drive. That happened again on the laptop. But, it booted in the VM this time. So, I was able to see Linux Lite for the first time. I liked it a lot. I should go to their forum and try to work through the boot issue with them.
(Last time I liked MX & Peppermint. I’ve been running MX the past 9 months. I’m on Peppermint now.).
Sorry for bumping that to the top. I edited it with more info about Linux Lite. (Editing bumps the thread to the top. I wish that was an option. It might not warrant attention.).
Since it’s already bumped, I wanted to comment on how odd it is that Lubuntu 19.10 is so much more disproportionately smaller in a virtual box than actual hardware. I.e., if the table were sorted on the virtual box numbers the rank order would be different. I can’t extrapolate which is more important. It seems like the virtual box numbers are more representative of a distro’s size (comparable). But, in actual use… the hardware numbers are the absolute truth. (But, there’s a lot of variation between virtual and hardware numbers. Bodhi’s are almost identical. But, Lubuntu’s have a large percentage difference between real hardware and virtual.
That becomes more of an issue for Lubuntu because I was able to do more with Linux Lite. It ended up ranking just above Lubuntu (in terms of real hardware mem-use). But, comparing mem use in a virtual environment, Lubuntu would be higher.
FWIW: Linux Lite (the official 4.8 downloadable ISO) doesn’t support UEFI. That’s why I could never get it to boot (last April and now). There is an unofficial/test 4.2 with UEFI support. People are installing that, then immediately running the system update which brings it up to 4.8.
So, that’s how Linux Lite snuck above Lubuntu. I say it’s 4.2, but in the end it’s 4.8. It’s just confusing how to get there.
