Appimage is probably the most similar to a naked .exe in Windows. They are useful for small apps or simple indie games, but I prefer Flatpaks for my everyday big applications.

Agreed, Snaps are like Flatpaks but worse because locked down back end and Canonical’s sketchy nature. Imagine a really delicious pastry that anybody can make and sell, then imagine the same pastry but only one bakery in the world can make and sell it. Which would you prefer? Lol

Essentially yes, if you start using lots if older applications or mixing applications that use many different dependency versions, you will start to use lots of extra disk space because the different apps have to use their own separate dependency trees and so forth.

This doesn’t mean it will be like 2x-3x the size as traditional packages, but from what I’ve seen, it could definitely be 10-20% larger on disk. Not a huge deal for most people, but if you have limited disk space for one reason or another, it could be a problem.

I’m not an expert, but from my understanding, more like android apps.

They aren’t totally isolated like a docker or LXC container would be, but they are generally self-contained.

The Linux Experiment has a really great vid that goes into detail on all common packaging formats in Linux including Flatpaks:

Linux Packaging Formats Explained

Flatpak is a universal application packaging standard for Linux. It allows devs to create a single application that gets bundled with all necessary dependencies including versioning.

These apps run in their own semi-isolated “container” which makes immutable distros possible. (Distros like Fedora Silverblue that are effectively impossible to break by installing or removing critical system files.)

This means that a Linux app doesn’t have to have a .deb version, an .rpm version, or be pre-compiled for any other distros. A user can simply go to Flathub, (the main repository for Flatpak apps), download the flatpak, and install it on their distro of choice.

It’s quickly becoming the most popular way for users to install apps on Linux because it’s so easy and quick. But there are a few downsides like size on disk, first party verification, per-distro optimizations, and the centralization of application sources. That’s why some users aren’t fully endorsing or embracing how popular they are becoming.

It only exists to counter the existing framework. In an ideal world, nobody would honor or respect the idea of “intellectual property” and hence, only fraud would be punished.

You misunderstand me. When I say, “copyright is bullshit” I don’t mean that I don’t like it, or that it doesn’t work. I mean it’s bullshit in the same way that the crystal healing or mushroom cancer therapy is bullshit.

You cannot steal an idea, it’s impossible. So creating laws that punish people for doing things like copying a digital file doesn’t make sense. Copyright supposedly was created to create an incentive for artists and inventors to make cool and enriching stuff.

But what it actually does is protects business savvy people and allows them to game the system, get first mover advantage over all others, and then punish any potential competitors in that space.

As if nobody was creating artwork or inventing useful devices before copyright law came into being.

Just because something is useful doesn’t make it good, atomic bombs are useful, factory farming is useful.

I think the only thing people should be protected from as a creator is fraud. You can copy a person’s works and modify or distribute them in any manner you see fit, as long as it’s clear that you are not the original creator. You cannot claim to be them or to be affiliated with them unless you actually are.

That is what the principle of copyleft is all about. If copyright worked in principle, then you should see millions of individual creators enriched and protected by it.

But you don’t see that, instead, a few giant mega corps and super wealthy tycoons own and control enormous swaths of “intellectual property” and small time creators struggle to make ends meet and are sued into oblivion by the same powerful groups.

Sure it’s great for boosting wealth and GDP, but that boost does not apply to most of the population, it applies to the tiny elite that has now captures enormous segments of the market and fight tooth and nail to keep it that way.

Copyright is structurally flawed, it doesn’t work because it cannot work. It’s fundamentally based on a the nonsensical concept of “intellectual property” which as I said at the beginning, is bullshit.

Copyright is bullshit, so no.

I have been enjoying fish a lot over the last few months, but I generally try to use Bash, it makes cross-*NIX administration that much easier.

Wouldn’t have mattered either way then lol.

“We won’t train AI on artists’ work…this quarter.”

~Adobe probably

Causality issues aside, yes I would. Makes a big difference if I found out I had 40+ years left vs 5 years left.

I said $2,000+ to encompass even more expensive machines/setups.

I never said bodyweight or a kettlebell set could provide exercises for every possible movement or strength vector.

I said that the vast majority of people don’t need anything more than those to build a healthy level of fitness. And given that the average cost of a gym membership in the US is around $50 per month, after a few months, their used kettle bells or simple dumbell set has already paid for itself.

And weights last basically forever unless they are severely damaged, so zero maintenance cost.

Nothing wrong with going more hardcore if that’s your thing, but that’s not at all necessary to build a solid base of strength and general fitness.

Any “quick fix/all-in-one” fitness or nutrition solutions. While there are minute optimizations for elite athletes, 99.99% of the population can adhere to the general consensus of nutrition and health science.

1. Do something that gets your heart rate up for at least 30 minutes a day. Speed walk, bike, row, shoot hoops, jump rope, doesn’t matter, just get your heart pumping hard for at least half an hour a day.
2. Roughly a third of your food should be fresh leafy greens & veggies. A third should be whole grains and unprocessed starches and sugars like sweet potato and fresh fruit. The final third should be a protein. Lean meat like fish or chicken, or if you’re veg/vegan, beans, tofu, seeds, peas, etc.
3. To build strength, general bodyweight exercises combined with stretching is fine for most people. If you wanna get really strong, get a few kettle bells or adjustable dumbells on the used market for $50-$100. You don’t need an expensive fitness club membership or one of those all-in-one $2,000+ fancy machines that mounts on your wall.
4. Don’t drink often, don’t smoke, don’t pound stimulants like caffeine or nicotine.
5. Brush your teeth well.
6. Get 6-8 hours a night of good quality sleep.
7. Keep your brain engaged, read, play music, play games, learn a language, etc.

I’m speaking from experience, because I have fallen for stuff over the years that promised fast results and optimal methods with minimal effort. Fact is, unless you’re training for the Olympics or you have very specific heath conditions, those basic bullet points will cover the vast majority if general health and fitness.

Yeah, IT is in a similar boat. Not as bad, but still where I live, Linux environments are super rare. So if you are going into IT, you are going to be working in Windows environments, and most firms use software that isn’t compatible with Linux.

Stuff like their remote management software, or their inventory management software. Plus, unless you’re the guy in charge of the IT department, almost nobody wants or even knows how to administrate a Linux endpoint.

So they don’t want one of their sys admins to be running around on a Linux machine that they don’t have as much visibility on or understanding of how it works.

I’m lucky that the company I work for is small enough that I am the entire IT department, so I can use whatever OS I want. Debian 12 with Plasma, love it.

But out in the world, you’re going to find a bunch of situations like you are in, where so much of the defaults use Windows and proprietary garbage, you’re stuck running exactly what they are.

Long term, you could start trying to build your own indie studio that is FOSS-based. Maybe years down the line you can make it on your own. Do that full time and make supplemental income as an outside contractor or something. IDK, that also comes with its own set of issues. It’s a shitty tech corpo dystopia all around us.

Fair, yeah that is a solid solution.

Eh, depends I guess. Now days I would just use my Steam Deck and be happy with that.

But back when I went to college, high powered gaming handhelds weren’t a thing.

Different strokes for different folks I suppose.

That’s why I said one of the exceptions was gaming notebooks, something like the smaller Razer Blade laptops.

Absolutely.

Fair point, Pixels aren’t flagship expensive, but they definitely aren’t cheap either.

For sure.