Ubuntu vs EndeavorOS for Steam

[BuzzGUN]

Hey all, I'm replacing Windows with Linux on my kids' machine, and I'm torn between two alternatives:
1. Ubuntu is my traditional desktop OS, and it has generally worked well with Steam, but it's slow to put out new Mesa drivers, and Snap has issues.
2. EndeavorOS seems like a convenient way to run Arch Linux (install from scratch is a learning experience, but not very practical), and you gain access to the rolling release model for things like Mesa drivers and kernel updates. Also, the new SteamOS is Arch-based, so I figure this gets me closer to the platform that Valve is testing on.

Does anyone have experiences or opinions one way or another?

[Der tüddelige Fußgänger]

I wouldn't say that snaps are an "issue"

One thing to keep in mind of course is that Ubuntu is a stable release distro, while Endeavour is basically just arch with an installer.
As openSUSE describes the difference for their rolling and stable distro
rolling: "For Developers, openSUSE Contributors, Gamers and Linux/FOSS Enthusiasts"
stable: "For Sysadmins, Enterprise Developers, and ‘Regular’ Desktop Users"

So just think which category you fit in the most
Do you want to make sure everything is stable and never causes issues, or do you want to go the risk of your machine breaking at some point (which didn't happen on the 2 months i used Arch) or at least parts breaking, while having the best gaming performance, due to up to date kernels and drivers.

I personally am fine with rolling release distros like Arch for example, since i just use my PC for gaming, trying out linux stuff and some homework with libreoffice.

I don't want to speak out my recommendation for you, since that is something you'll have to decide for yourself

[Reverse Module]

Endeavour all the way. Ubuntu is a mess and Gnome is VERY unitnuitive for a new user used to Windows, especially if they're young.

Honesly though, look into Nobara, it's Fedora for gamers by Glorious Eggroll (the guy that makes ProtonGE). I think this strikes the perfect balance between the two.

[UK9999]

Probably if the previous LTS release. I tried using the latest one and for me snaps really were an issue. Most of them didn't work properly.

[BuzzGUN]

Originally posted by The Xenoblade guy:

I don't want to speak out my recommendation for you, since that is something you'll have to decide for yourself

I appreciate the nuanced response. I'm a hobbyist who doesn't mind some instability/troubleshooting. To muddy the waters, I can also bring Ubuntu up to more modern Mesa/kernel with PPAs. But, I'm kind of tired of Gnome, and my particular problem with Snap is the recent Firefox loading/performance issues (see Phoronix).

[WarnerCK]

If you're comfortable with Ubuntu but want something that isn't Gnome, why not go for Kubuntu or one of the other flavours?

https://ubuntu.com/desktop/flavours

[Analogue Guy In a D1g1tal W0rld]

If it's for your child why haven't you tried getting pop os LTS, basic settings from my point even daily updates ... firefox can be removed but best to install another before removing firefox.
Here are some of the best apps I've used for getting my accounts on linux.
Lutris - Heroic Games Launcher - Epic Asset Manager - Steam
theses are for account's like GOG - Origin - Ubisoft - Epic
HHD's are best formatted for ext 4 - ext 4 now can read NTFS - Simple Drag and drop old backed up folders.
use proton eggroll is on the Lutris app. I found steam games are getting more linux based after releasing.

Best of luck.

[BuzzGUN]

I've thought about other Ubuntu/Mint flavors, but I'm just not sure that Canonical is driving innovation anymore.

Another thought: I could wait until Valve releases Steam OS 3.0 for public consumption.

[halifax]

Manjaro KDE or Manjaro Xfce are probably good bets. Rolling release Arch, but a little more testing/delays than EndeavourOS. And Manjaro pretty much has its act together, as far as casual user experience goes, just like Ubuntu.

Endeavour might also have its act together for good casual user experience, but I haven't tried it.

"Casual user" here being something we can probably both agree on: there are Linux things that need to be learned/known, but you're not needing to go full Linux sys admin just to get a DE up. :-)

[Der tüddelige Fußgänger]

Originally posted by BuzzGUN:

Originally posted by The Xenoblade guy:

I don't want to speak out my recommendation for you, since that is something you'll have to decide for yourself

I appreciate the nuanced response. I'm a hobbyist who doesn't mind some instability/troubleshooting. To muddy the waters, I can also bring Ubuntu up to more modern Mesa/kernel with PPAs. But, I'm kind of tired of Gnome, and my particular problem with Snap is the recent Firefox loading/performance issues (see Phoronix).

keep in mind that you're not limited to just using GNOME.
You can also try Kubuntu, Xubuntu or even Ubuntu cinnamon edition (which is not mint).
They're all the same under the hood, yet come with different desktop environments.
So if you want a more traditional windows-like desktop. Try out Kubuntu or the Ubuntu cinnamon spin, because cinnamon is also very close to windows.

Endeavour also has all desktops available in the repos. But due to Endeavours rolling release, you'll get more up to date versions.
If you stick to Ubuntu LTS, you'll be stuck with kde 5.24 for the next 2 years, while endeavour gets whatever the latest and greatest version is maybe a few days after it has released

[ajgringo619]

EndeavourOS is rock-solid with Steam. I use the linux-zen kernel with Proton v6.3, every game I've tried, including non-Steam games like D2R and D3, work great.

With that being said, my previous distro was Linux Mint, with the same hardware. It was also rock-solid with Steam.

[index]

I have to agree with OP, snaps are an issue, really bloated, boot time was longer on my pc because of them.

[Der tüddelige Fußgänger]

Originally posted by 󠀡:

I have to agree with OP, snaps are an issue, really bloated, boot time was longer on my pc because of them.

I mean, what do you define as bloat?
stock Ubuntu uses a full desktop environment, which comes with dozens of apps preinstalled.
It uses systemd, which is also an init system
It has an automated installer. Kinda bloated since you can just do it the Arch-way
It comes with the GNU coreutils. Kinda bloat given that Busybox is more lightweight
It comes with firefox, kinda bloat. You could just use w3m or some emacs browser.

[Der tüddelige Fußgänger]

Originally posted by Xenophobe:

I've only been on linux as my pc OS for a year now. I can't help but wonder, why is arch based vs debian/ubuntu based always such a ... family feud?

I am not even on Linux for a full yeah but i have a lot of freetime to get into that whole rabbit hole :P

Arch has the advantage that you'll never have any major updates and get the latest stuff like new Kernels or desktop environment updates shortly after they've released.
Debian/Ubuntu is stable release and thus more tested/stable. Some people say that you can use the Debian sid/unstable or Ubuntu rolling Rhino (the Ubuntu testing branch)
Yet those aren't rolling release distros. They are merely the testing field for a stable-release distro.

[Zyro]

Originally posted by Xenophobe:

I've only been on linux as my pc OS for a year now. I can't help but wonder, why is arch based vs debian/ubuntu based always such a ... family feud?

Because the other ones are evil! ;)

[Zyro]

Originally posted by Xenophobe:

for a primary system used for daily tasks and as an entertainment system (gaming in my case), it sounds like a stable debian/ubuntu based distro is the better option to avoid any potential instability issues.

There used to be a good reason the last years to want newer stuff for AMD GPU users: The driver was developing fast. I'm not sure this is still this important nowadays (being an Nvidia user myself).