Debian User Forums

kedaha wrote: ...
Something I've observed on these boards is that the lower the post count the higher the tendency to install sid or testing under the mistaken belief that these are "upgrades."

Sounds legit to me. Just needs a bit of editing to formalize it...throw "inverse relationship" in there to make it all sciency and stuff. Maybe "The tendency to install Debian testing or Sid varies inversely with a newcomer's experience with Debian."

Huh? I have never considered my post count high, even now. But, I have never installed testing or sid. I have always installed stable (or old stable). Something must be wrong with me!

I may have to install testing, so that I can say that I did!

I guess I just like solid and reliable. New and flashy is not that important for me when it comes to computer operating systems.

It seems to me that low post Sid and Testing users get it trouble fairly quickly and whinge about it. Sid and Testing users shouldn't need help. They should know how to troubleshoot and should be able to rescue a machine with CLI.

I wanted to scream a week or two ago when a low poster complained that his Sid server install was having problems.

Debian is very explicit about who should use Sid and Testing. So, why do so many new users bypass Stable? Is there a web site(s) promoting these so-called upgrades?

Bulkley wrote:Debian is very explicit about who should use Sid and Testing. So, why do so many new users bypass Stable?

because reasons:

- shiny new stuff syndrome
- they don't like being told what to do, and will do the opposite on purpose.
- they think they're really good tinkerers. and testing is "almost stable" anyway - until it breaks.

we've all been in that age.

debiman wrote:

Bulkley wrote:Debian is very explicit about who should use Sid and Testing. So, why do so many new users bypass Stable?

2 reasons:
- shiny new stuff syndrome
- they don't like being told what to do, and will do the opposite on purpose. we've all been in that age.

They are too used to being able to install any Shiny New Stuff on Windows, because those programs install their own versions of all their own dependencies, and they haven't learned that Debian uses a different shared library model. Those containerized systems such as AppImage, Snap, Flatpak, or the Electron app model are using the Windows model, with the advantages and disadvantages that go along with it.

At least the newbie sid/testing users give us something to laugh at or mock.

I've been running sid-based siduction or its predecessors for nearly 10 years now and barely dare to ask for help with occasional rare issues. Backups, reading upgrade warnings, and effective startpage-fu are essential.

Just noticed this is post no. 2000 for me! /me shouts everyone a beer.

debiman wrote:- shiny new stuff syndrome
- they don't like being told what to do, and will do the opposite on purpose.
- they think they're really good tinkerers. and testing is "almost stable" anyway - until it breaks.

we've all been in that age.

I got the three...

I have a Franken Debian I like it, I can't use a stable release the applications are too much old, especially the desktop application, I can't wait. You can setup apt dist-upgrade to be less destructive and if it is unable to solve dependencies you can just use apt upgrade until the issue is solved.

Bulkley wrote:So, why do so many new users bypass Stable?

There's heart bypass, gastric bypass. Stable bypass: a brain issue?

alan stone wrote:There's heart bypass, gastric bypass. Stable bypass: a brain issue?

(i'm bored...)

I myself conform to Kedeha's Conjecture — I ran sid in my early days on these boards but now that I actually know something about Debian and how it works, stable is all I use. Or maybe oldstable at a push

The best things come to those who...

I'm in a similar position to HoaS. I ran Testing for several years, but now I use Stable because I want to spend less time managing my system and more time using it.

Interesting.

Kedeha's Conjecture?
Is this what your talking about ?

So I should give unstable a try then? Shiny, shiny new stuff....

Nope, your post count is too high!

I was considering trying it, but my darn post count is way too high. So far, I've only installed Debian Stable.

(Did you notice this thread is about four years old?)

I will admit to installing Testing, but only when it has reached rc3. And yes, it's usually the Shiny New Thing syndrome. Both times I did so was to get the latest version of Kodi available from Debian. So guess I'm guilty.

I guess a lot of "new to debian" users think about debian testing or sid this way: "Debian testing or Sid equals to opensuse tumbleweed or arch linux", until they are hit with the realization they are not the same thing, then the whining and the rants begins!

I've never even consider using other versions than Stable
(I wonder whether it is grammatically correct)