3/Other Operating
Systems and
Linux Distributions
The stock Raspberry Pi OS is great for gen-
eral-purpose computing, but sometimes
you may want to tailor the Pi to a specific
purpose, like making it a standalone me-
dia center or a guitar effects pedal. The Li-
nux ecosystem is rich in software for every
imaginable application. A number of folks
have spent the time to bundle all the right
software together so you don’t have to do it.
This chapter will highlight just a few of the
more specialized Linux distributions and
other operating systems to get you started.
When talking about “Linux distributions,” we’re usually talking
about three things together:
• The Linux kernel and drivers
• Preinstalled software for a particular ...