I disagree that the UI/DE/WM is a good way to evaluate a distro. One could make any distro look and feel like any other.
In my opinion one should look primarily at three factors:
Package manager
Release type
Stability
From there just choose either Debian or Arch and install the UI you want with the DE/WM
Also check hardware support.
Doesn't that solely depend on how new the included kernel is?
You are technically correct (I know) but I would argue that distros that come with a certain DE usually have their experience built into it. Sure you can install gnome in kde neon but don’t expect anything to work, if it does it’s mostly by accident.
This is true for distros that cater to “simple” users that want to install and be productive of course, not for those like Debian or arch which cater to users who want to build their own experience.
I'd say it depends if you are a technical user or not.
Please notice that I spoke about the configuration of the DE/VM, I have learned a lot about DE/VM confug from looking at different distros
I agree on the package manager. I got so used to rpm style from SuSE that I have a hard time with Debian based systems.
@ccdfa
My $0.02 worth. I run Kubuntu (Debian) and Manjaro (Arch) both with KDE Plasma. KDE has done such a great job. I often forget which distro I'm running. It's usually me inadvertently running apt commands on the Manjaro box and saying to myself, oh yeah that's right @stoy@kalvo
How do you like Manjaro? I am on normal arch with kde and I love it. Manjaro's own repos scare me.
@ccdfa
I like it quite a bit. I've been using it for about 2 years; one machine as a every day work station that I use for everything and a laptop with a cracked screen that I use as my Jellyfin server. I have no issues at all with the repos but that is the one area I know the least about. Since you mentioned it, I think I do some learning this week.
I disagree that the UI/DE/WM is a good way to evaluate a distro. One could make any distro look and feel like any other.
In my opinion one should look primarily at three factors:
From there just choose either Debian or Arch and install the UI you want with the DE/WM
Also check hardware support.
Doesn't that solely depend on how new the included kernel is?
You are technically correct (I know) but I would argue that distros that come with a certain DE usually have their experience built into it. Sure you can install gnome in kde neon but don’t expect anything to work, if it does it’s mostly by accident.
This is true for distros that cater to “simple” users that want to install and be productive of course, not for those like Debian or arch which cater to users who want to build their own experience.
I'd say it depends if you are a technical user or not.
Please notice that I spoke about the configuration of the DE/VM, I have learned a lot about DE/VM confug from looking at different distros
I agree on the package manager. I got so used to rpm style from SuSE that I have a hard time with Debian based systems.
@ccdfa
My $0.02 worth. I run Kubuntu (Debian) and Manjaro (Arch) both with KDE Plasma. KDE has done such a great job. I often forget which distro I'm running. It's usually me inadvertently running apt commands on the Manjaro box and saying to myself, oh yeah that's right
@stoy @kalvo
How do you like Manjaro? I am on normal arch with kde and I love it. Manjaro's own repos scare me.
@ccdfa
I like it quite a bit. I've been using it for about 2 years; one machine as a every day work station that I use for everything and a laptop with a cracked screen that I use as my Jellyfin server. I have no issues at all with the repos but that is the one area I know the least about. Since you mentioned it, I think I do some learning this week.
Nice! Good luck!