Looking to switch distros
Looking to switch distros
Hi, sorry if this isn't the right place for this question. I've been using Linux Mint Cinnamon for about 9 months now and have also been experimenting with an Ubuntu GNOME Wayland session for the past month or so. I don't really like distro-hopping, but using X11 isn't cutting it for me. After giving GNOME an honest shot, I don't think it's for me. However, Wayland has been stellar. I would prefer to keep using LM Cinnamon, but I have a dual monitor setup that use different refresh rates which has been causing issues.
I'm interested in Arch, but I'm slightly concerned about the frequent comments regarding things breaking during updates. Also, is maintaining an Arch install heavy on time consumption? I'm not opposed to reading the wiki and spending time here and there to keep things working. However, I'm a bit hesitant if I were to run into an issue that may be more complicated than I may be prepared for. That said, generally I do like the higher skill ceiling options, if that makes sense in this context.
Tumbleweed seems more beginner friendly from what I've read so far. While I do generally enjoy challenges, having a smoother day-to-day experience does certainly have it's own appeal.
I would primarily be doing some gaming (this would be a mix of more recent AAA titles along with less demanding ones) and programming, along with the usual stuff you'd expect on a desktop setup. I have a Ryzen 5 3600 processor, an AMD 6650 XT GPU, and 16 gb RAM if that information helps. Thanks in advance; if this isn't the right place, I'll delete the post.
Update: I have installed EndeavourOS and things have been smooth so far. The installer was very straightforward, and setup was extremely quick. I have started reinstalling various programs which were part of my original workflow with very minimal issues. The issues primarily came from adjusting to pacman syntax. I also have a series of notes regarding what I have installed and how. Cheers, and thanks for your input, everyone. I will be sticking with Gnome for the time being.
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I've been running EndeavourOS (Arch-based with really good defaults and a very helpful community) as my daily driver for two years, and honestly I feel the "Arch isn't stable" trope to be way overblown, based on my experience. I personally had more issues with Fedora and OpenSUSE Tumbleweed than I have with EndeavourOS so far.
Also, if Wayland is a priority then I would suggest sticking with Gnome. KDE has come a long with their Wayland support but it's still pretty buggy in comparison.
P. S. If you do fancy trying the KDE route anyway, I would disagree with the other commenter and say that Debian is not an optimal distro for KDE. This is mainly due to the fact that KDE development greatly benefits from quick updates via a rolling distro, and Debian is pretty much the antithesis of that.
Wayland is indeed a priority, I appreciate the insight. Your reply has given me some useful food for thought. I was also interested in Endeavour as well, but I may try toughing it out with Gnome a bit longer and keep looking into this.
I'm assuming your problems with Gnome are due to the UI? Have you tried adding extensions like Arc Menu and Dash to Panel to achieve a more cinnamon-like experience?
Actually, the UI is alright in it's default state. Those extensions do look interesting though. I generally like using the super key to search for some programs, while opening others with the CLI. I also liked switching between active applications through this interface + arrow keys as well. Though I did have an issue with trying to navigate between programs if the program I wanted was on the other monitor. I also struggled with alt+tabbing between multiple windows of Firefox, for example. Though now that I think about it, that could potentially be resolved with utilizing workspaces better. I had issues with notifications, particularly Thunderbird and Rhythmbox. The notifications would take priority as the active window, and temporarily disable the input for whatever I was working on prior to its appearance. I tried enabling Do Not Disturb mode, disabling notifications for specific programs, and killing xfce4-notifyd through the CLI. Killing xfce-notifyd sort of helped, but would cause a weird notification that still messed with my active window. Currently, If I want to continue working or playing whatever I was using before, I have to alt+f4 the notification, which is rather cumbersome when I get an email or the song changes. Perhaps the solution is to set another shortcut to close the active window. That said, it's rather unfortunate, because LM Cinnamon seemed to handle these notifications in the same way, while being less obtrusive.
With the first few points, I feel like these are probably things that will either get easier as you adjust to the Gnome workflow, or can be remedied by extensions. I recommend installing the unofficial Extension Manager app my Matt Jakemen, which comes with a built-in search. Makes finding extensions very convenient.
The issues with the notifications sounds a bit weird. They shouldn't be taking focus away from the app you're working on. I use Thunderbird all the time and it never does that to me. Also,
xfce-notifyd? What is that running on Gnome?Yeah, that's understandable, which is why I'm not currently opposed to staying with Gnome for the time being. However, Cinnamon also had the option to tile windows horizontally, as well as sectioning the screen into 1/4ths. It's not the most necessary feature, but I do miss it when I'm not on the Cinnamon session. The Extension Manager app sounds useful, though I've been steering clear of them due to the complaints I've read regarding their tendency to break. I'll look into it, thanks.
I had a feeling that
xfce-notifydwas something not native to Gnome. To be honest, I don't remember installing the Gnome Wayland session, but noticed it at the login screen awhile back. I logged into it using the same login that I use for my LM Cinnamon session; I've heard this is not ideal, and this issue is probably one of the reasons why. For the record, I've also previously tried installing a LM xfce session, so that is perhaps the cause for its appearance. This conversation has me wondering if there's a proper way to reduce any goofy stuff I may have done because of experimenting with DEs. I don't mind looking into it myself, but would also appreciate any insight as you seem familiar with Gnome.I logged into it using the same login that I use for my LM Cinnamon session; I've heard this is not ideal, and this issue is probably one of the reasons why.
Ah yeah, this will be why. Installing different DEs as the same user is pretty much guaranteed to create conflicts and generally should be avoided. It's always best to create a new user account for each different DE you want to try out so that it doesn't screw anything up.
P. S. Gnome includes a Wayland session by default, so you don't have to install it separately like you do with KDE.
Installing different DEs as the same user is pretty much guaranteed to create conflicts and generally should be avoided. It’s always best to create a new user account for each different DE you want to try out so that it doesn’t screw anything up.
This has been a good first-hand experience. I'll keep this in mind moving forward.