[neogodless]

As a relative Linux newbie, who's running Ubuntu 20.04 LTS on two laptops at home, would there be any advantages to Debian 10.4 over Ubuntu 20.04?

(I assume at least some of that answer would depend on my use cases and hardware, but if you have general insights to the differences, some of us might find that useful!)

[markosaric]

Ubuntu is based on Debian so things such as the way to install applications and the variety of applications available are very similar especially when compared to Fedora, Arch and others which use different package managers.

Main difference you might notice on Debian 10.4 vs Ubuntu 20.04 is that the default Gnome on Debian is a couple of versions behind. Debian only updates security patches rather than new releases between main Debian version releases (10.4 is more like a security update rather than a major new release). You would have to run Debian Testing or Debian Unstable/Sid in order to get the same Gnome version (3.36) as on Ubuntu 20.04.

Other than that there are no Snaps enabled/installed by default (you can install/enable them yourself if you choose to do so) and Debian Gnome is the way the Gnome developers intended it without any extra extensions and customization done (Ubuntu comes with several extensions and other customization enabled by default). You can install these manually yourself if you choose to do so.

Do remember to pick the non-free (as in it includes non-free firmware) ISO from Debian's website as chances are your WiFi won't work if you go with the official free software only ISO.

If you go with the NetInst ISO you can install minimal Gnome which comes without any additional software (untick everything on the last step, log in when the install is finished and then install gnome-core using apt install gnome-core).

[tannhaeuser]

I can't stand gnome3 on Ubuntu. It's just dysfunctional and slow in so many ways. I could expand on that, but lets just say I had installed 19.10 in Feb for testing, and when I occasionally switched back to using my old notebook (with 16.10 and Unity), which I had to to search files since 19.10 doesn't find anything, I was shocked how much faster and usable it is. And while Ubuntu offers other flavours (Lubuntu, Xubuntu, etc.), once you leave the mainstream setup, you can as well use something else altogether since you're loosing the network effect and QA through crowd-testing that Ubuntu has anyway. Mandatorily updating Snap packages on 20.04 were the last straw for me, as I'm having no use for such a setup; as developer working with multiple customers and customer data, and often times from remote and not-so-well connected spots, I absolutely need to be in control of what SW is on my system so I decided I'll go back to using Debian proper (Devuan, specifically, so I can also get rid of SystemD).

[thekyle]

Well the packages in Ubuntu are newer than those in Debian 10. Ubuntu also makes some usability upgrades to GNOME that Debian doesn't out of the box.

One nice thing about Debian is they don't try to push snaps on you. Nowadays you can also use Flatpak get get more up to date apps on it.

[wtracy]

That's about right.

Debian's packages are generally older and more thoroughly tested. Debian also didn't customize things as much as Ubuntu does, so the software you get is much closer to what the "upstream" projects originally released.

Debian is famous both for having extended support for all releases, and for obsessive attention to seamless upgrade-in-place support. Some people will keep a single Debian install running for a decade, upgrading as they go without ever reinstalling.

Ubuntu is fantastic if you want a user-friendly desktop system out of the box. Debian is really nice for systems that you want to run with minimal maintenance for years at a time.

[abdullahkhalids]

I moved away from Ubuntu to Debian, four ideological reasons, roughly a decade ago, when Ubuntu started to do crazy UI changes, and included ads in the OS (I don't know if this is still the case).

Debian on xfce4 also works fast on my old laptop (and my new laptop).

[rjeli]

No ads in your MOTD

[fomine3]

Ubuntu motd advertises that Ubuntu 20.04 LTS has released, on my Ubuntu 20.04 LTS machine! It's funny.

[neogodless]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motd_(Unix)

Never heard of MOTD before. I'll keep an eye out for it since I haven't encountered it yet (as a newb!)

Presumably getting ads is pretty annoying!

[ColanR]

It is, and it's one of the more annoying MOTDs I've encountered. You won't see it unless you get rid of the login manager and login at the terminal. Or, use the server edition.

[jlgaddis]

> You won't see it unless you get rid of the login manager and login at the terminal. Or, use the server edition.

And even though you don't see it, it's still there -- on every Ubuntu install (by default) -- phoning home to Canonical (every 12 hours, if memory serves).

(Some users may not mind, of course, but they certainly don't go out of their way to let you know about it beforehand, which is my major issue with it.)

[neogodless]

I had no idea this was a thing. Thanks for the details. Do you happen to have a link handy for more information? If not, I'll see what I can find scouring the internet!

[jlgaddis]

Here's an HN thread [0] from a few years ago regarding "advertising" in the MOTD, specifically, and Ubuntu's "dynamic" MOTD, generally. (I'm not sure if all of the hardware/system details were being sent back then, though.)

The relevant "snippets" responsible for this behavior live in their own directory, /etc/update-motd.d/, if memory serves. That may not be exactly right -- perhaps unsuprisingly, I don't have an Ubuntu box handy -- but it should at least be close enough to help you find the actual directory.

---

[0]: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14662088

[canada_dry]

Debian is my go to dist for older equipment e.g. I have Kodi running on a 15yo laptop w Debian 9.

[Koshkin]

Not really.