DEBIAN 12: more relevant than ever as a Linux desktop
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#Debian #Linux #bookworm
00:00 Intro
00:38 Sponsor: Check out TuxCare’s newsletter for news about Linux security
01:24 Debian 12 Stable
02:17 Not completely FOSS anymore
04:24 Desktops: not that outdated
09:16 Apps and packages
11:14 Who it’s NOT for
13:02 Debian 12 is a great desktop
14:33 Sponsor: Get a PC that runs Linux perfectly
15:25 Support the channel
KDE Plasma 5.27 video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onPUaAKoGIM
GNOME 43 video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wefK40cjz9s
GNOME 44 video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HZIHvACggs
So, to begin with, Debian 12 moves away from its pure “FOSS” roots. Debian 12 now enables the non-free firmware repo by default IF Debian detects you’ll need it on your computer. Just know it’s possible to disable this during the boot process.
Debian 12 actually splits non free software into 2 different repos: non-free, which is for packages and apps that don’t conform to Debian’s guidelines on free and open source software, and non free firmware, which is the same thing, but specifically for drivers and firmware.
Debian isn’t generally known for shipping the very latest and greatest desktop environments, but Debian 12 isn’t far off. For Plasma users, you get the very latest, KDE 5.27, with all its bug fixes and updates, which means you’re not missing out on anything.
If you were using Debian 11, you were using KDE 5.20, so you’re jumping a full 7 versions ahead, which means your experience will be drastically better, whatever your use case.
If you’re a GNOME user, you’ll get GNOME 43, which isn’t the latest, but GNOME 44 wasn’t a huge update by any means. If you were using Debian 11, you were on GNOME 3.38, which means you’ll get a whole 4 new versions worth of features, support, performance improvements.
Of course, Debian 12 also updates virtually every single package and app they ship. You get the LTS kernel version 6.1, and you get the Mesa drivers 22.3, and the nvidia drivers 525.
All in all, 67% of packages were updated from Debian 11, and the repos now include 11000 new packages as well, for a total of more than 64 000.
Of course, Debian 12 isn’t a desktop for everyone. If your use case is “I like using the very latest thing”, then obviously, it’s not for you. If you want the most beginner friendly distro, while Debian isn’t a bad choice; it’s also not the easiest. If you want to game on Linux, Debian will also not be your first choice.
In the past, I would never have recommended Debian Stable as a desktop for most users. It was too old, too outdated, the older applications in its repos were just not a great experience, and Flatpak wasn’t super well supported. Older desktop environments were also lackluster, as each new release brought some crucial improvements that you really couldn’t do without.
With the maturity of formats like Flatpak, snaps or AppImages, you don’t have to care about what versions of apps are in your repos. If you need something newer, you can get it, without adding a third party repo that might mess up your system’s dependencies and shared libraries.
And desktop environments on Linux are now very mature, which means using a 6 month to 2 year old desktop isn’t a dealbreaker anymore.
And of course, Debian stable won’t be for everyone. Tinkerers, enthusiasts, hobbyists, and people who like to game won’t find what they want in Debian 12. But for anyone who just wants a computer that works reliably, day after day, without failed updates or stuff that randomly breaks, Debian 12 is an obvious choice. In terms of combining stability, software availability, and now, hardware support, nothing comes close.