but I can offer some de-googling friendly additions which I developed/contributed to :)

Thank you so much for your work !!! It made things so much easier for me when I started degoogling !!

I use a “degoogled” ROM with microG. And I use android auto “without” the play store.

By using the following tuto and without root, I’m able to use android auto without having its dependencies installed ( play store, maps, google tts…)

https://community.e.foundation/t/how-to-run-android-auto-without-google-apps/64578.

It’s not an open source alternative to android auto, but it limits greatly the interaction with google. I have comaps and osmand from fdroid that works in the android auto app this way.

If you have google apps on your phone, maybe you can uninstall or deactivate the dependencies for AA, and follow the tuto, there is a chance that it works.

The signature and the random updates issues can be solved (partially) by using the izzyondroid repo. A lot of the applications on fdroid are on it. It compiles from sources, doesn’t change signatures, and fetch updates on a daily basis.

It doesn’t solve all the issues, but it can help

Murena ? as the murena foundation that develop /e/OS ? If yes, their OS is based on LineageOS microG edition with a great ad/tracker blocker and an app store that is kind of a fusion between the aurora store and fdroid (without the ability to add repositories unfortunately, in the version I used at least).

So you can install whatever apps you want with it(Except maybe android auto, I guess). I had my banking app and it worked well (until it detected I was root).

I used it with my oneplus 7, It had some big trouble these last months as their servers were outdated and they needed to update their whole infrastructure. Now, everything seems to be back to normal.

I can not say for their phones (murena 1 and 2), but their OS is solid to me.

What I love the most from bazzite team, is their work with distrobox . Install the distribution you love, follow their tutorial, boom, you get access to the AUR, and it has a minimal impact on your system.

Bazzite felt great to me, but too slow on my computer to enjoy it, so I hopped. But still, I love what they do.

7 months distro hopping sober here ! All thanks to CachyOS.

The installation is seamless thanks to calamares, there are some graphic tools that can help for beginners on arch. Their kernel might be one of the most optimised one to have a smooth experience while gaming. I do not play ressources hungry games, so I can not really tell.

After setting snapshots, I decided to experience it totally blind folded, just to see how long I can last on it. I update the system around 2 times a week, never read any changelog, just like any of the other distro I used… And for now, I’ve never had any trouble.

My system seems to be way smoother and more responsive than with fedora or tumbleweed.

I use my computer mostly for steam, heroic, librewolf and LibreOffice.

Vanilla gnome isn’t for me so I used to install some extensions when I used it.

After a few hopping, I stopped using Gnome, because I find that painful to :

• install the extension app (the one that allow you to download and manage the extensions, and that is usually not the one installed, it might have changed, as I stopped using Gnome for a year or even more)
• install the extensions I want
• configure the extensions

On KDE, I just have to set it as I need it.

If you do not change distributions everyday, then it’s not a big issue I guess.

But it might be troublesome for beginners trying distributions that have vanilla-close gnome to know that extensions exist. My needs are not complicated, so I only used extensions that allow me to have a dock on both of my screens, and to have the minimize button.

What an horror ! What are you gonna do ? Use your working system ? That’s sad…

Linux has been the biggest rabbit hole I’ve been in. There are too many distribution for me to choose one without testing as much as I can. It made me change what I wanted/needed. I went from “I don’t want to use CLI at all” to “man, GUI is too slow for that”.

I tried many Debian children and grand children distributions, Fedora based ones (Nobara, atomics bases,…), Opensuse, NixOS, Solus, arch based distributions…

Now, I’m on cachyOS, that seems to be the good balance I need (for now), between GUI/already configured and “I can do it the way I want”.

One year after starting using Linux, I’ve switched from a 3060ti to a 6700xt, just because it made hopping easier.

If you exclude me not being able to settle down on a distro, Linux is a funny experience to me. My needs are not that big, as I just play some games, have a light need of an office suite. I can do anything I used to to in windows, but without Microsoft and his friends looking above my shoulder.

I guess there is an option to activate to read DRM content (it exists on librewolf, not sure if it is there on Firefox too). it is activated ?

KDE : it’s the only DE where I can have 2 identical panels (app pined+ full system tray) on each of my 2 screens without installing extensions.

KDE can do what I want without having to look for extensions. Breeze theme is good enough for me, I don’t need to look for something else. So far it’s the best out of the box experience I had.

I prefer Gnome look, but I distr’hop too often to have the courage to setup the desktop every time.

That’s great !

R and T should have a different android base, so, It would be safer to wipe everything while upgrading.

They advert for a support between 8 and 10 years (at least 5 major version of Android, and security patches after that). I don’t know their politic about the availability of the repair parts, but if it’s for the same amount of time, I’ll be happy.

I changed the battery and the usb port of my OP7 last year… the oneplus site didn’t sell them anymore, I had to go on aliexpress to have both … That’s quite frustrating for a device that is 5 years old…

It has a confidentiality notation system based on exodus privacy. It makes it more visible than on the aurora store. It has the possibility to install app from fdroid, well, at least from the main repo as it is not possible to add more.

There is a high chance that they forked the aurora store, as, most (if not all) of their app are based on open source app. (but if so… why did they remove the option to uninstall app…).

Their app “maps” is just magic earth with an other name and icon.

edit : phrasing

I like /e/OS, but the app lounge bothers me a lot. There is no uninstall button and it is not possible to add Fdroid repos… So I have Fdroid installed in addition to it.

I do not see an added value as if I had the aurora store installed + Fdroid.

IMO, the best addition of e/OS compared to lineage is clearly the tracker /ad blocker app.

Which version and phone are you on ? I’m on “t” version on a Oneplus 7 et I have none of these issues.

I first installed the “s” version and got annoying bugs, then switched to the “t” one and everything was OK. I now all the version aren’t available on every devices, I hope you can switch on a more stable one.

That’s why Fairphone choose a QCM6490 for the fairphone 5. It’s far from being the best, but it has longer term support than mainstream oriented SOC.

Since the SOC will probably be enough for most of users, it’s not a bad option I guess.

GNOME with dash to panel. It allow you to clone it I guess. dash to dock allow you to copy the dock, so only the applications, not the systray.

KDE allows you to create panels on every screen, with the systray. You’ll have to replicate them manually (pin the applications or whatever you put on your first panel).

Others DE I tried had flaws for that :

Cinnamon cannot have all the systray on the second panel.

Budgie doesn’t allow you to have a panel on the second screen (but you can clone the panel on the same screen).

Mint is far better, I usually recommand it. But Ubuntu is still more popular.

I didn’t use Manjaro in many years, so I can’t judge it. The biggest problem I see with Manjaro is that it has access to AUR.

Manjaro has its own repos, and they take more time to release packages than Arch, which can be a good thing stability wise. But if you have applications from AUR installed then you might have conflicts with the dependencies needed and the dependencies used by the system.

As I said, I didn’t use Manjaro in a while, so I don’t know if it still a problem. If it is, then it’s a shame that the biggest advantage of Arch, the AUR, become that much a risk for the system.

I’ve seen a video where the guy installed steam on Ubuntu 24.04. Of course it was the snap. The guy usually tests distro to see of it’s easy to game on it. If the drivers are easy to install, etc…

He usually launches steam, then tests Valheim, Overwatch, Tomb Raider and cyberpunk.

Overwatch didn’t launch, cyberpunk neither. Valheim reported that a service didn’t launch. Tomb raider was OK.

Then he uninstalled the steam snap and installed the .deb one. Everything worked.

Enforcing packages is already something that people don’t appreciate on Linux, enforcing packages that don’t work is surprisingly hated.

Ubuntu is supposed to be a distro for beginners, how am I supposed to recommand a distro when I have no confidence the applications will work ?