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While Arch Linux is not the most widely used distribution, it has a solid reputation as a lightweight distribution that is geared towards simplicity. In other words, Arch Linux makes few assumptions about users and what they want, leaving decisions about what to install and how to configure up to each user. As a result of this philosophy, Arch accurately has a reputation as an expert's distribution, although its extensive documentation makes installation less difficult than it might appear. In fact, users of other distributions also can usually find the information they need in the ArchWiki.

Arch Linux is probably the best-known distribution that uses a rolling release. Rather than issuing general releases in which all packages are upgraded at once, Arch releases each package when it is ready. Usually, packages come directly from their upstream projects with little or no modification to make them fit into Arch.

Arch Linux may not be for everyone. However, for those who want to know more about Linux as an operating system, installing Arch is one of the best ways to learn.

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