this post was submitted on 24 Mar 2024
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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Not sure who gave you that advice but if you're on a normal distro (ie, non-immutable), then you should always prefer your distro's packages - unless you have a specific reason to use the Flatpak version (like getting access to a more recent version of an app; or to use sandboxing features). Due to it's sandbox, Flatpak doesn't play well with apps that need to change core system settings (like VPNs) and other low-level access. You can fix them to a certain extent using flatseal by giving the right permissions, but even then some things are impossible to fix - take for example, password managers - you won't be able to get browser integration working if your password manager is a Flatpak app (again, because of the sandbox). Stuff like theme integration can also be a pain to get sorted.
Finally, distro-specific packages occupy less space, and tend to be more optimised and just generally work better. So stick to distro packages where possible.