As already mentioned, Ubuntu/PopOS/Kubuntu/Mint are maybe the four most identical distros in the entire ecosystem. But your point really does hold true even with less-identical distros.
Currently, I have an Ubuntu Server, an Arch PC, and an old laptop “test machine” running Fedora. These are totally different limbs of the Linux family tree, but things pretty much work the same in all of them. The main difference is the package manager: Apt vs Pacman vs DNF. But like, they’re all doing basically the same thing under the hood: checking your installed software against some repository to see if anything needs an update. The actual workflow is pretty much the same with any of them.
After that it’s pretty much just a question of downloading the desktop environment and software you like. Or finding a distro that comes pre-installed with what you want. To make a gaming analogy: linux distros are like Dark Souls classes: starting stats and equipment, but the starting point doesn’t lock you into your you build in the future.
The “primary” distros would be Arch, Debian, Fedora, and NixOS.
Anything that grew out of those (with NixOS being to young for that yet, I think), is going to run basically identically, and since they all grow from the same kernel, at a fundamental level they also behave similarly.
Like, if you switch from macOS to Windows, you see fundamental differences in how things operate. If you switch from Fedora to Arch, you need to learn the new package manager syntax, but the rest is still Linux.
I’m simplifying, but I think you know what I mean.
As already mentioned, Ubuntu/PopOS/Kubuntu/Mint are maybe the four most identical distros in the entire ecosystem. But your point really does hold true even with less-identical distros.
Currently, I have an Ubuntu Server, an Arch PC, and an old laptop “test machine” running Fedora. These are totally different limbs of the Linux family tree, but things pretty much work the same in all of them. The main difference is the package manager: Apt vs Pacman vs DNF. But like, they’re all doing basically the same thing under the hood: checking your installed software against some repository to see if anything needs an update. The actual workflow is pretty much the same with any of them.
After that it’s pretty much just a question of downloading the desktop environment and software you like. Or finding a distro that comes pre-installed with what you want. To make a gaming analogy: linux distros are like Dark Souls classes: starting stats and equipment, but the starting point doesn’t lock you into your you build in the future.
NixOS is a different beast for sure.
Yes, that was exactly the point I was making.
The “primary” distros would be Arch, Debian, Fedora, and NixOS.
Anything that grew out of those (with NixOS being to young for that yet, I think), is going to run basically identically, and since they all grow from the same kernel, at a fundamental level they also behave similarly.
Like, if you switch from macOS to Windows, you see fundamental differences in how things operate. If you switch from Fedora to Arch, you need to learn the new package manager syntax, but the rest is still Linux.
I’m simplifying, but I think you know what I mean.