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--- linux [2026/05/28 20:07] – [Should you buy hardware just for Linux?] particles
+++ linux [2026/05/29 00:18] (current) – [Distros, kernels, and updates] particles
@@ Line 58: / Line 58: @@
     - Everyone swears by Flameshot, but that doesn't record the screen either.
   - Okular is a great alternative to Preview.app, but it doesn't support many of the same PDF editing tricks that Preview.app supports. This largely comes down to Quartz lineage. I secretly suspect that Apple hates paying Adobe for real Acrobat, so they want Preview.app to do as much as possible.
+    - Ignoring editing for a second, Okular is great for browsing PDFs with highlights and selection. It is more reliable than Preview for general document browsing. It has bookmarks! Okular is lovely.
+    - I mostly miss the ability to combine PDF documents with Preview on KDE. Again, esoteric features.
   - You can’t hide windows with KWin. If you use Command + Option + H a lot, this workflow will break.
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 With the erosion of both Spotlight and Windows, I shudder to say that KDE’s default file search experience is now better than both platforms.
+KDE's panel system is fully customizable, and unlike macOS and Windows, offers a wide variety of features for removal or replacement of system components at your leisure. It is possible to fully replicate macOS and Windows experiences in Plasma. As a good example, you can add a "global menu bar" to fully replicate the macOS menu bar in KDE! Not all applications support this, but many do.
 ===== X and Wayland and Xwayland =====
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 These days, you can buy reasonable Linux hardware from vendors like Framework. If you have existing hardware though, it can be difficult to know if it will all work well. To some, the benefits of switching will outweigh the drawbacks.
-==== Distros and kernels ====
+==== Distros, kernels, and updates ====
 Newer hardware needs newer kernels to support it. The problem is that if you get new hardware and you've picked the wrong distro, you will not be able to use that hardware.
-I think the best advice I would give someone today is to use CachyOS or Bazzite. I personally picked CachyOS, but Bazzite is probably the friendlier option for most newcomers. Outside of gaming, Fedora or Debian.
+I think the best advice I would give someone today is to use CachyOS or Bazzite. I personally picked CachyOS, but Bazzite is probably the friendlier option for most newcomers. If you absolutely don't like updated software, use Debian.
+I don’t think anyone should run Linux Mint, or Ubuntu in modern times. If you can stand some command line tinkering, being updated is worth it over a distribution that lags behind the bleeding edge. Distributions like Debian provide an analogous experience to what you get with a major Windows update or a major macOS update.
+The main problem with "classic distributions" -- especially in modern times -- is just a distinct lack of updates. No updates mean no new features and no new bug fixes. Firefox and Chrome get more than one release per year for a reason. If you pick the wrong distribution, you're stuck out-of-date for a long time. This is really suboptimal, not only from a security perspective, but from a general "things aren't full of bugs" perspective.
+**If you pointed a gun at me and told you what to use, use Bazzite or CachyOS**.
+**Do not use Ubuntu, anything that ships with GNOME, Linux Mint, anything that involves colored hats, whatever the hell ZorinOS is, elementaryOS, etc.** If it's not listed, don't use it((At this point, Arch Linux and Gentoo Linux users are asking questions. If you, dear Arch Linux or Gentoo user, want to use these, feel free! Most newcomers should not.)).
+**[[https://マリウス.com/a-word-on-omarchy/|Do not use Omarchy]]. Do not use Omakub((Omakub is made by the same person who made Omarchy and no it's not even his focus right now, so you shouldn't try it.)).**
+=== What's going on over at Fedora's house? ===
+Fedora has some interesting governance issues, like missing updates for GNOME products and a seemingly [[https://lwn.net/Articles/1070006/|broken and incoherent stance on bug reporting to GNOME]], among other things. Bugs are not monitored when reported to Fedora, nor are they reported upstream. The official policy is to not direct users upstream, Fedora doesn't look at those bugs either.
+Seemingly it's fine if you're using KDE, but this fundamental policy/governance issue is worth avoiding if you're picking a new distro from scratch.
+[[https://lwn.net/Articles/1071949/|Friction in Fedora over AI developer desktop initiative]] is also another reason to not pick Fedora, if you care about it.
 ===== Does this not suck? =====