Looking for a new Linux flavor to try? The Manjaro team targets newcomers and pros alike, promising ease-of-use and performance.

For those of you always looking for -- or at least willing to try -- the newest Linux distribution on the scene, a pretty fresh candidate is Manjaro Linux, which recently announced some updates that should be appealing to users who aren't necessarily command-line junkies.

Manjaro is based on Arch, rather than Ubuntu or Debian, which is a version of Linux known for being lightweight, fast, and minimalist in its approach. Arch has been aimed primarily at more intermediate and advanced Linux users in the past, but the Manjaro team has placed an emphasis on the user-friendly aspect of this distro.

First of all, it uses a rolling release development model, meaning that once you've got it installed, regular updates to the core system are rolled-out periodically, and complete re-installations to get the the latest version are not necessary. It also sports a graphical installer to make it easier for newbies:

Available in both 32 and 64 bit versions, Manjaro is suitable for newcomers as well as experienced Linux users. For newcomers, a user-friendly installer is provided, and the system itself is designed to work fully ‘straight out of the box' with features including: Pre-installed desktop environments

Pre-installed graphical applications to easily install software and update your system, and

Pre-installed codecs to play multimedia files

There are a number of different desktop environments available and ready to download, including:

XFCE 32- and 64-bit

Openbox 32- and 64-bit

Minimal Net edition: base installation without a pre-installed display manager, desktop environment, or any desktop software applications

Cinnamon 32- and 64-bit

KDE 32-bit and 64-bit

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