this post was submitted on 24 Jan 2024
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Linux

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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).

Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.

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I've been dailying the same Mint install since I gave up on Windows a few years ago. When I was choosing a distro, a lot of people were saying that I should start with Mint and "move on to something else" once I got comfortable with the OS.

I'm comfortable now, but I don't really see any reason to move on. What would the benefits be of jumping to something else? Mint has great documentation and an active community that has answers to any questions I've ever had, and I'm reluctant to ditch that. On the other hand, when I scroll through forums, Distro Hopping seems to be such a big part of the "Linux experience."

What am I missing?

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[–] [email protected] 0 points 10 months ago (1 children)

@Fizz @Zoidsberg if you are used to your distro, switching DE is a non problem. The default DE is nothing more than a suggestion

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I still don't understand linux enough to switch my DE. I'd probably miss something in some config file and cause an issue.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

@Fizz in the end you just install it and at the login prompt change you DE with the drop down menu.

"sudo apt install kubuntu-desktop", logout, change gnome to plasma in the drop down and login. That's how you switch from gnome to kde on ununtu. Be aware that this might install some KDE services that might run in the background though.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Wait what! No fucken way it's that easy. That's nuts.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 10 months ago

@Fizz Thankfully it is. Biggest problem might be that the installation of kubuntu-desktop changes the login manager from gdm3 to kdm or that some kde services are running even if you are logging in on gnome. Other then that, you can just install about any DE you like on any distribution, if it is packaged in the corresponding repository