Popular Linux Distros That'll Get You A Job

Did you know that there are 309 Linux Distributions, as of today, being monitored by distrowatch.com and they do not even claim to track nearly all the flavors out there?

According to distrowatch, "A Linux distribution is like a religion. If you've ever tried to suggest to another person that his or her choice of a distro might not be the best, then you know what I mean."

There are so many flavors/distributions because, anyone with a little time on their hands can create a distribution.This is a problem or not, depending on where you are coming from. Are you looking to tinker on your computer in your basement or are you going to look for a job as a Linux Administrator/Linux Developer? If you are looking for a Linux job then you better know the in-demand distros.

There are a lot of very good articles going into the technical merits, features of each distribution and that is not the point of this analysis. (see How to choose the best Linux distro for you, 5 Ways to Decide on a Linux Distribution etc). This analysis is to find which Linux distribution/s are being adopted in the corporate world and if you are looking at Linux as a job/career, what would you make.

Linux Flavors included in this analysis: BSD, centOS, Debian, Fedora, Gentoo, RedHat, Suse, Ubuntu.

Methodology: Use OdinJobs the largest technology job search engine to look at the demand and median salary for each of these over 2008 and 2009.

On the right, an average job demand was looked up for 2008 & 2009 for each of the distribution analyzed. More than 80% of the demand is for RedHat, BSD and Suse. (Aside point: The name Mandriva, what was originally Mandrake has not caught on. There was not a single position that used the new term. Mandrake however was still used and had an average demand of about 10 jobs a month). RedHat at 3000, is more than double that of BSD (800), and Suse (550). centOs(200), Debian(300), Fedora(225), and Ubunt(175) were the center of the pack. Gentoo (60) finished last.

(If you have a favorite Linux distribution and want to check its demand, go to Market Statistics and type in your distribution.)

Here is a monthly demand for RedHat for 2008 - 2009


Generated By: OdinJobs - IT Jobs and Technology Job Search Engine

The important thing to note here, is that demand for RedHat after falling big time in Nov & Dec of 2008 has come back in Feb 2009 to the 2008 levels and is doing a little better this year compared to last year. This pattern is being seen across most of IT.

So, how does the top 3 most popular Linux distributions compare in median salary offered.

Salary Comparison for a Linux Administrator


Generated By: OdinJobs - IT Jobs and Technology Job Search Engine

Salary Comparison for a Linux Developer


Generated By: OdinJobs - IT Jobs and Technology Job Search Engine

A linux administrator is a linux administrator, there is no difference if you are managing RedHat, Suse or BSD. However, a Suse developer gets a premium compared to a RedHat or BSD developer. Why, any ideas?

Conclusion

All the different distributions are great, it gives a geek complete freedom to hack and experiment, but if you want a job in the corporate world, you would fare better if you are familiar with RedHat, Suse or BSD, more RedHat than the others and if you are a developer Suse provides the best bang for earning big bucks.

See the latest opportunities for Linux: Linux Jobs

Invite Your Comments

Comments:

Their is a big problem with this article, BSD is not linux. BSD is a kernel derived from system 5 created at Berkley. Linux was created by Linus T.

If you are going to Use BSD type kernels then you also need to Include Apple OSX.

Please do not make articles unless you know what you are talking about!!

Posted by Jeff Price on June 25, 2009 at 02:45 PM CDT #

Another thing, ubuntu and debian are the same thing, redhat, centos and fedora are the same thing.

Posted by Jeff Price on June 25, 2009 at 02:47 PM CDT #

I threw in BSD to compare the popular OS with the Linux distibutions, did not include OSX as the demand did not warrant it.

Even though Ubuntu is based on Debian "Sid", its comes with some of its own proprietary software (Rosetta, Launchpad etc) that warrants its inclusion along with debian.

Redhat, centOS, Fedora are all the same but with key differences for the corporate enterprise, where paid support, release cycle time and features play a part in adoption and hence the comparison..

This is not a technical comparison, but a comparison of what the companies are asking, if they ask for centOS and you have Fedora in your resume that goes to a gatekeeper, do you think he/she will know they are the same, what do you think are your chances of an interview with a technical person.

Posted by Naveen Bala on June 25, 2009 at 05:46 PM CDT #

Interesting. Thanks.

One of the reasons I use CentOS (besides the fact that it suits me) is that it's Red Hat and, if I ever have to make my living with Linux (I'm currently a phone tech) this one would provide the most opportunities.

A comment to Jeff: While it's true that Red Hat and CentOS are the same (and Fedora might be what Red Hat will be in a year or two) I think the point is what terms employers use. After reading this, I think that I would say something about all three distributions in my resume -- if I had the necessary training. I was surprised at CentOS's name recognition.

Posted by Ron Blizzard on June 28, 2009 at 06:56 PM CDT #