I see. Thanks

thanks for posting such a detailed answer.

about the different debian versions: I don’t know which one I should try first:

I found debian mac 12.5 netinst https://cdimage.debian.org/debian-cd/current/amd64/bt-cd/ and I’m giving it a try.

Shouldn’t that work, I’ll try one of the live cds https://cdimage.debian.org/debian-cd/current-live/amd64/bt-hybrid/

I paste the links to check if I have the right version

Incidentally, the data size difference is so surprising: 0.66 GB (debian mac netinst) against 3.17 GB (debian live). Can I have something in between?

in short, I should install debian gnome or kde

model is a MacBook Pro, Intel Core i5-4278U @ 2.60GHz, model A1502 (EMC 2875), Retina Mid-2014 13" with an embedded SSD

Incidentally, I got the notebook as a present, got rid of mac OS and installed xubuntu 23.10 on it. Some mac OS users mean this company deliberately slows down old computers so users feel compelled to buy something newer. Can it be that’s why this notebook is so slow? I didn’t do anything fancy to install xubuntu, just used the whole space to install from a usb stick so I wonder if some residual software is still present.

this notebook has an embedded SSD.

Some mac OS users mean this company deliberately slows down old computers so users feel compelled to buy something newer. Can it be that’s why this notebook is so slow? I didn’t do anything fancy to install xubuntu, just used the whole space to install from a usb stick so I wonder if some residual software is still present.

yes. This MacBook Pro, Intel Core i5-4278U @ 2.60GHz, model A1502 (EMC 2875), Retina Mid-2014 13" has an embedded apple SSD.

I’m not going to spend any money upgrading any part of this notebook: not much bang for my buck and the model is most probably not supported anymore.

If the Mac has a Retina display

yes, model is a MacBook Pro, Intel Core i5-4278U @ 2.60GHz, model A1502 (EMC 2875), Retina Mid-2014 13"

Incidentally, I got the notebook as a present, got rid of mac OS and installed xubuntu 23.10 on it. Some mac OS users mean this company deliberately slows down old computers so users feel compelled to buy something newer. Can it be that’s why this notebook is so slow? I didn’t do anything fancy to install xubuntu, just used the whole space to install from a usb stick so I wonder if some residual software is still present.

makes sense, but I don’t understand why LMDE is marked as 6 when the newest stable debian is 12.5 (same applies to linux mint and ubuntu, now at 24.4) shouldn’t it be LMDE 12 or 12.5?

However, if you want XFCE, is there a reason you don’t want to use Linux Mint 21.3 with XFCE?

I’m still unsure about the differences: LMDE is based on debian, the OS I now use the most, whereas LM (linux mint) is based on ubuntu. Several posters have argued that LMDE, like debian, is barebones, whereas LM is ideal for an end user with not much idea about linux, but my main issue is speed: I don’t want the notebook to be painfully slow: this is a notebook with an Intel Core i5-4278U @ 2.60GHz (2 cores, 4 threads) with 8 GB RAM and installing and upgrading on xubuntu 23.10 was already really, painfully slow.

I either save on resources using a lightweight DE like xfce or using a barebones OS like LMDE

I also want to future proof it as much as possible, which would mean using the OS/DE that uses less resources.

If you allow me, may I ask you where this interest to FreeBSD stems from?

the wikipedia linux article with the linux development tree

do you think that FreeBSD will be less of a hassle compared to “other more niche linux OSs”?

I have no idea

thanks, I found LMDE

Linux Mint Edge Edition

is Edge a desktop environment or a system that lets you use other DEs later? I’m partial to xfce.

I thought every DE gets the same kernel patches.

It’s unclear why you think that more frequent updates would be an advantage.

kernels: I forgot the command to compare both but ubuntu/canonical releases kernel upgrades more often than debian. To a newbie like me this means ubuntu/canonical reacts to security flaws and fixes stability bugs that get discovered faster than debian. Updated hardware support is also a plus.

is there really a reason to switch?

just considering my options

Ubuntu Touch

does it spam users for subscriptions with ubuntu pro or other services each time the user updates or upgrades, even if done with the terminal?

thanks

thanks, now I know how to play with mpv.

However, each time I close the program, changes I made to those settings are lost. Is this how mpv works?

that command returns

GLX_MESA_copy_sub_buffer, GLX_MESA_query_renderer, GLX_MESA_swap_control, GLX_MESA_copy_sub_buffer, GLX_MESA_query_renderer, GLX_MESA_swap_control, Extended renderer info (GLX_MESA_query_renderer): OpenGL renderer string: Mesa Intel(R) HD Graphics 620 (KBL GT2)

will do, thanks

thanks