• Communist@lemmy.frozeninferno.xyzEnglish
      3·
      2 hours ago

      forcing snaps on people (if you apt-get firefox it’ll install the snap even though you didn’t install it with snap), adding ads for it, snap having a proprietary backend, snap being essentially just a fundamentally worse version of flatpak.

      the only advantage i’ve heard for snap is that it’s easier to package for.

      Plus I think the advantages of stable release easy for user distros need to be immutable now, what’s the usecase for a non-immutable, stable, easy to use distro?

      If you didn’t care about ease of use, you wouldn’t want immutable, but if you do, you absolutely do.

      If you don’t care about stability, you might not care about immutable, but if you do, you absolutely do.

      Ubuntu seems like a prime usecase for an immutable distro, but it isn’t for tradition-related reasons rather than it actually being good for users.

  • NeilBrü@lemmy.world
    7·
    7 hours ago

    I use Kubuntu LTS. Went with --minimal-install. No snap to worry about from the get-go.

  • TheImpressiveX@lemm.eeEnglish
    34·
    11 hours ago

    Don’t snap at me, but it would be more apt of you to make a flat pack, or create an app image, or you might get stuck in a tar ball.

  • kronarbob@lemmy.world
    27·
    11 hours ago

    Snaps make sens from the Ubuntu side.

    Only one package to maintain for an application, even if they have different distributions to maintain. If snap is officially supported by the creator of the application, then it’s less work for Canonical. Well, it would have make more sens if flatpak didn’t exist.

    From user side, it makes way less sens :

    • the closed source application shop
    • if snaps are not officially supported, then Canonical try to create one, and they may be not that great …
    • …
    • Snot Flickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
      152·
      11 hours ago

      I’d say snaps are aimed at servers. A big aspect of both Flatpaks and Snaps is the whole sandboxed environment thing.

      I think that’s a major reason Canonical flubbed snaps, is they shoved them down the throats of casual users instead of focusing on using them in server situations where you want things more “locked down.”

      Once again, it does seem silly that they reinvented the wheel, but I mean, that’s actually really common. So common there is an XKCD comic about it. So due to how commonplace such a thing is, it seems weird to attack Canonical so much over it.

      • MajorHavoc@programming.dev
        171·
        5 hours ago

        it seems weird to attack Canonical so much over it.

        I mean, on the technical side, sure. Canonical’s technical choice is just weird. Plenty of fully open app store environments have almost no competition, because self hosting is still hard work.

        But all of the business reasons - for having a closed proprietary sole app server - go against everything that Canonical used to claim they stood for.

        Canonical’s business choice not to open source the snap servers is an open declaration of war against the FOSS community who have previously rallied around them.

        It’s like inviting someone into my basement and locking the door with a key as they get to the bottom step. The action isn’t illegal, but the probable motive is creepy as fuck. (Maybe I just watch too many horror movies. Lol.)

  • 21Cabbage@lemmynsfw.comEnglish
    7·
    9 hours ago

    I mean, my distro’s technically an Ubuntu variant, but I honestly don’t think that’s ever come up in any meaningful way.

  • hperrinEnglish
    10·
    10 hours ago

    I still use Ubuntu server. It’s not nearly as atrocious as Ubuntu desktop.

    • thefartographer@lemm.ee
      9·
      10 hours ago

      I use Ubuntu desktop for my server! What can I say? I installed it one night on my desktop to see how it felt and my experiment turned into an entire fucking server because “already here. More convenient.”

      • grahamja@reddthat.com
        2·
        2 hours ago

        I run 3d printer management software on an old Dell server using desktop ubuntu. Works just fine. I made a second user account that hosts a minecraft server, and a third user account that runs a steam account to host a 7 days to die server. I really wanted to get into administering my own home lab, but I’m just too casual and there is not enough time in the day for me to do all of my hobbies. I can remote in and see a GUI, easy day.

      • folkrav
        4·
        8 hours ago

        A “server” is just a remote computer “serving” you stuff, after all. Although, if you have stuff you would have trouble setting up again from scratch, I’d recommend you look into making at least these parts of your setup repeatable, be it something fancy ala Ansible, or even just a couple of bash scripts to install the correct packages and backing up your configs.

        Once you’re in this mindset and take this approach by default, changing machines becomes a lot less daunting in general. A new personal machine takes me about an hour to setup, preparing the USB included.

        If it’s stuff you don’t care about losing, ignore everything I just said. But if you do care about it, I’d slowly start by giving from the most to least critical parts. There’s no better time to do it than when things are working well haha!

        • Getting6409@lemm.ee
          2·
          6 hours ago

          I wouldn’t take too seriously anyone saying it’s a horrible idea. I mean, I think you could always argue it’s a waste of resources running a GUI for a thing intended to be a server. But headless servers aren’t the end all be all. I’m sure there’s a lot of licensed redhat instances out there running gnome or whatever because reasons.

          Personally I wouldn’t do it unless some hard necessity were there because it’s just another thing that could go wrong, another thing to maintain if you’re capturing your config as code, and mostly because I’m not gonna dedicate a keyboard/monitor for that kind of stuff.

    • ramenshaman@lemmy.world
      3·
      9 hours ago

      I use both, the only other distros I’ve used are Raspberry Pi OS and Raspbian. What am I missing out on? Ubuntu desktop seems fine to me, I’m hoping to transition all my machines to Ubuntu desktop before windows 10 EoL. Unfortunately I still have to keep a windows machine around, there are multiple pieces of software I need for work that are windows only.

      Please don’t kill me I’m just a noob who doesn’t know any better.

      • hperrinEnglish
        1·
        6 hours ago

        Ubuntu is fine if you install Flatpak and replace the Ubuntu Software Center with the Gnome Software Center, but that is not something that is obvious or even easy for a newcomer, so in that regard, it is atrocious.

        • nixcamic@lemmy.world
          2·
          4 hours ago

          I use Ubuntu a lot and can say I’ve never used the Ubuntu software center. I’m old enough that I still accidentally type apt-get instead of apt though.

          • hperrinEnglish
            1·
            3 hours ago

            I think it’s what they renamed the Snap Store to. Or I’m misremembering. But uninstall whatever app store comes on Ubuntu and install the Gnome one.

      • Owl@mander.xyz
        3·
        9 hours ago

        Old software (compared to leading or bleeding edge distros), Canonical (the company owning ubuntu) has many controversies surrounding it, snaps (sandbox packaging mode) are problematic in multiple regards etc…

        Try fedora before switching entirely to ubuntu. It’s still owned by a company (itself owned by IBM), however it is (at least a bit) better than canonical.