Adminforge also runs a free public ntfy server: https://ntfy.adminforge.de/

Everyone has their preferences. That’s why there isn’t one answer. The problem is almost every distro compares themselves to Windows, and so they all have the same “pros” from that perspective. Personally I have 2 recommendations, and I’ll tell you which ones and why:

1. Zorin: Makes a good mesh of familiarity and ease of use. They maintain a database of different apps and will automatically point you to the most appropriate option. They greatly simplify the process of installing and using WINE. I happen to just like GNOME (looks more modern than KDE), and I like their modified version of it. Comes with a lot of what I consider “obvious” tweaks “out of the box” so you don’t have to figure out how to implement them. Their GNOME is also super outdated though, so some extensions don’t work.

2. Bazzite: If you want a console/PC hybrid, this is probably the best way to get it. If you just want a desktop gaming PC you can get that also. Either way it comes with a lot of gaming utilities pre-installed. Best of all is their “Bazzite Portal” which makes a bunch of common apps and tweaks that are otherwise complicated to install, easy, with the click of a button. There’s also an app for updates that upgrades everything all in one place, with the click of a button, and also will run automatically in the background if your system is idle.

But if you need support I hope you’re comfortable using corporate shithole platforms like Github, Discord, and Reddit, because if you don’t want to, they don’t give a shit.

I dunno about ThinkPads but I got a Yoga Flex Pro from Craigslist and it’s crazy nice…

Right, because they only make money on apps purchased from The App Store.

installing an app Apple hasn’t signed requires the command line, for example

Yeah this is the reason I’ve avoided Macs for so long. I get giving the user a warning but not providing any sort of prompt to override the warning, and hiding it in a terminal command is ridiculous .

There was also one time I tried to simply turn off Bluetooth and it was just like “I’m sorry Dave, I can’t do that”. And I was like WTF, absolutely not .

Just read this which says they are bootloader unlockable

https://www.androidauthority.com/googlebook-bootloader-unlock-magisk-root-3718930/

One doesn’t have anything to do with the other. Fast chargers ARE for road trips. And we can improve them irrespective of L2 chargers. Where are you seeing “messaging” that suggests otherwise?

Its just a different type of suck than other desktop OSs.

When you add to that that Google has tried repeatedly to make an android like experience for tablets and laptops and failed

I mean I haven’t used it but it looks like they’ve done it this time.

I mean ChromeOS is just such an incapable OS in and of itself that anyone who needs to do any serious work wouldn’t be able to use it anyway, and thus wouldn’t spend a bunch of money on one. $500 is still very entry level, and a laptop at that? For gaming? Yeah good luck with that.

The hardware is nothing special. But the only desktop OS that currently works on ARM is MacOS, and good luck getting that to work. Windows on ARM, from my understanding, is trash. Linux doesn’t seem to work on X Elite chips. So you’re probably stuck with Android.

I mean theoretically it could lead to a sort of LineageOS for laptops/desktops, which would be cool. Linux is cool and all but it drives me crazy a lot of times. And to date there doesn’t seem to be much support for serious ARM processors like the ones mentioned in the article. Android is far easier and simpler to use and has a lot more targeted development.

what other OSs I’ll be able to run on it because fuck Google.

Who cares? If you don’t want GoogleBookOS just buy something else.

Because Chromebooks are cheap, nobody spends money on them, so they’re perenially underpowered.

You’ve got that backwards. Chromebooks are supposed to be cheap, which means they’re low power, which means they need a lightweight OS. That’s what ChromeOS is for.

Makes sense to make a clear delineation for the market with different branding, hardware and OS.

This isn’t branching into a different market. It’s a replacement for ChromeOS.. Which means the ChromeOS market segment is just being abandoned entirely.

I run Ghost along with a dozen other services on a N100 Mini PC without issue. All files are stored as .md. And you can disable monetization, as I have.

My only gripe is that they implemented email authentication, which honestly infuriates me maybe more than it should.

And also their half-assed implementation of ActivityPub.

But can you be more specific about what you don’t like so that we can recommend a suitable alternative? Are you just looking for something as lightweight as humanly possible?

entirely within LAN

Wat? LOL

Been using this one for a while.

Yes that is also a huge problem. People are fucking dumb.

Unfortunately there is a lot of societal and professional pressure to use Meta products.

You don’t even have to make a bad decision. Just a completely innocuous one that gets flagged by shitty AI with no human review and no recourse.

You mean the same promise they just made about their brand new “Googlebooks”?