After using Debian full-time for three years, I've decided to explore other Linux distributions. This decision is purely driven by my desire to learn more, not because I’m dissatisfied with Debian. On the contrary, Debian has been a reliable and trustworthy companion for the past three years. During my time on Debian, I used two desktop environments—Cinnamon and Xfce. I've been using Xfce for the last 18 months, and I love its simplicity and stability. However, choosing a conservative (and slowly evolving) desktop environment like Xfce requires some compromises. For example, while Thunar, the default file manager, is functional, it lacks some features found in other file managers and can be somewhat unreliable, depending on the use case. In my experience, I had some issues when my Synology NAS was shut down while my Linux machine was still running. There was a simple solution to the problem, but it took me a couple of years to figure it out.

Although I appreciate Xfce’s simplicity, its spartan appearance often made me feel like a second-class citizen in the Linux world. Combined with Debian Testing, it created a familiar and cozy setup, which I enjoyed. Still, I wanted to broaden my horizons and try out more up-to-date software, so I decided to give EndeavourOS, a distribution based on Arch, a try. EndeavourOS sticks closely to Arch’s philosophy, meaning it doesn’t come with unnecessary applications pre-installed. Instead, it gives the user the freedom to install only the tools they need. This approach works well for me since I don't have to spend time debloating the distro by uninstalling unwanted applications. This is a common issue with many Debian-based distros, and when combined with the reconfiguration of the distro and desktop environment (especially Xfce), it can be quite time-consuming (no pun intended).

At one point in the last five years of using Linux, I mentioned that I would probably never try Arch. As a rolling-release distribution—where updates are continuously delivered without installing new versions—I was hesitant due to concerns about potential instability. However, I’m happy to report that, after one week of using EndeavourOS, it’s been fairly stable, and I haven’t encountered any issues so far. Additionally, sound functionality works very well. I haven’t had any problems with my microphone (Tempest 512) or headphones. I attribute this to the excellent sound settings in Cinnamon, as I had issues with Xfce’s sound settings, which couldn’t save my configuration. In contrast, Cinnamon in EndeavourOS handles this without any problems. Sound was one of the areas that bothered me in Xfce, so I hope the Xfce team strengthens this aspect in their next update.

Sound setting in Cinnamon. It works flawlessly.

Another area where I had issues with Debian and Xfce was file management. Thunar is otherwise a straightforward file manager that gets the job done, but I encountered a problem when my Synology NAS would shut down. Thunar would often freeze, forcing me to restart my computer.

Now, in EndeavourOS, I’m using Cinnamon, the desktop environment I have the most experience with in the Linux world, having first used it with Linux Mint in 2019. One of the strongest points of Cinnamon is its file manager, Nemo. It’s well-organized, not overly stuffed with features, yet more advanced than Xfce’s Thunar. For my use case, Nemo seems to handle things better. Specifically, it’s solved the issue I had with Thunar freezing when losing connection to my Synology NAS, a problem I wrote about here. So far, Nemo has handled this situation flawlessly.

Nemo file manager

Furthermore, I want to talk about pacman, the package manager for Arch. Initially, I missed (and still do) APT, Debian’s package manager. I’ve always been used to it, and it’s worked flawlessly for me over the years. APT is versatile and can handle many different operations, such as autocleaning and autoremoving old packages and their dependencies. In EndeavourOS, however, I’m using pacman, and while it’s been easy to use, I do miss APT’s flexibility. For now, I mostly use sudo pacman -Syu to refresh repositories and update installed applications, sudo pacman -S name to install an application, and sudo pacman -R name to uninstall an application. It’s very fast, which is a nice feature. I’m trying to avoid using the AUR (Arch User Repository) as much as possible, since I believe it’s one of the main causes of instability in Arch. What I learned to appreciate are flatpaks, which is a utility for software deployment for Linux. Currently, I use following flatpaks: Bitwarden, Brave, GPU Screen Recorder, Foliate, Steam, Shortwave, Obsidian, Lutris, Parabolic, and Signal.

Using pacman and flatpak in the terminal.

I may eventually return to Debian, as I will always miss it when I’m not using it as a daily driver. However, I must admit that I have no issues with my current EndeavourOS installation. It’s stable, and everything works as expected, including Steam and games. So, at the moment, everything is running smoothly. I’m aware that Arch is a rolling-release distribution, meaning updates to the system and packages are frequent and extensive, which could contribute to instability. Time will tell if that becomes an issue on my system.

I’ve always been against the Arch philosophy and rolling-release distributions in general, but I’ve installed it on my main machine mainly out of curiosity and a desire to learn. And frankly, it is a nice feeling you know you're running bleeding-age software, everything's up-to-date. The whole thing is quite new to seems, since I've been used to an other software update philosophy.

I suppose my new installation of this Linux distribution is a proof that one should never say never. So, for now, I’ll continue my Linux adventure with EndeavourOS after Debian, because it just works.

Over and out.

My new EndeavourOS with Cinnamon desktop. Active apps: Terminal, Nemo file manager, and the music player Audacious.

Update Dec 17, 2024: I am back in Debian after one week. I just missed the best Linux distro and its package manager.