Debian Stable (Jessie) vs Testing (Stretch) for desktop.

[xciso]

Hello. This is my first post in this forum.
I have for a few years run a vps server with Debian and that have always worked verry good.
I am from the beginning a windows dekstop guy, but my heart always love open-source.

My first version at of linux was Ubuntu 8.04 or something. Many things have happend since then.
I will now take a big step and quit my windows 7 at my laptop (Dell E4300). (I will still have windows for a while at my head desktop machine).

I have looked at versions like:
Ubuntu Unity
Ubuntu Gnome
Peppermint
Mint
Elementary OS
and some other..

But with all this distros is always something that i dont like.
Ubuntu Unity - I hate that they have go together with Amazon, The software Center is really nice, but I will not see products to buy. I want open-source. But my biggest problem was that i cant change meny button to right side. So bye bye Unity
Ubuntu Gnome - Now we talk.. Gnome is really nice, and i think & hope that I can change it that I want. With Ubuntu Gnome I still can you the great Software Center, but then my mind say.. But this is still Ubuntu, and I dont like what Ubuntu stands for now days.

Peppermint - This is a fast distro that runs verry fast, but I dont think this will fit my needs. I want something more nice. Then we came to next chapter. What happend if Ubuntu will stop or if they decid too do something special. What will happen with Peppermint then?

Mint - My first look at cinnamon say, copy of windows xp. When I take my step from Windows i dont want something "look a like". Mint has become verry big the last year. I dont understand how they could be so big.
Elementary OS - Really nice desktop! This is really nice and everything works out of the box. But as I am more like a tech guy i think this distro is too simple for me. I think this would be a great dist for my girlfriend for example. (people that dont know so much about computers..)

Then today I installed Debian Testing (stretch). For the first time not everything worked. It dosn't found my wifi card. One minute on google and I found a driver for it and i placed it in my usb flash boot.
Started the installation again and now it found my wifi card. The installation was smooth and I set Gnome as my DE.

Now the system boots up. WOW!! This is what I want
I have now decid what I want. Debian is not a fork from some other. Debian is the ground. I'm so verry happy that I now have found my all day distro. I cant say for sure that everything are going smooth to install as it maybe is in Ubuntu. but if I sometimes need too use the terminal is ok.

Much reading here.. Now too my question.
I installed Debian Testing (stretch). Was that bad? Should I use Debian Stable? I have read that if people are new to Linux they should stay to stable. But I also read that many use Testing as all day distro.
Ofcurse I want the newest and most modern, but ofcurse I still want it to be stable. Who wants a unstable machine?

And now when you already read everything. What do you think about this partition. Does this looks ok?
2 drives. 60gb SSD, and 160gb HDD.

SSD
/ - 30gb
/home - 25gb
swap - 2gb
(let the rest 3gb be unalcolated, maybe best for SSD?)

HDD
/mnt/data - 160gb
(will this be a good mountingpoint?)
The HDD drive is in a bay that i can change it to dvd player if I want. So this disk I want to use for music/movies/downloads... But what will happend with the system if I take it out someday when its has that mountingpoint?

Thanks.

[Wheelerof4te]

Please read:
Choosing a Debian distribution
and
Dont Break Debian

You can choose to run Testing, but know that it's not the Desktop version of Debian. There is only one version of Debian and that is Stable.

[dasein]

@OP -> There's a saying here in DebianLand regarding questions like yours: if you have to ask, stick with Stable.

And it's pretty much true; if you don't have the knowledge to choose a Debian release on your own, both confidently and correctly, then you pretty much by definition lack the knowledge to successfully run a development release (Testing or Unstable). In DebianLand, "newest" and "buggiest" go hand-in-hand; you simply cannot have one without the other.

That said, Debian may not be the right distro for you. If you want cutting-edge stuff (and you say clearly that you do), you will probably find Debian "old" and "outdated." In the worst case scenario, you'll try to pull in some ShinyNewShit from a derivative distro, or from a development release, and likely as not end up hosing your system.

[stevepusser]

+1
Or have your cake and eat it too. Set up separate partitions and install both stable and testing, or play with testing in a virtual machine.

As for ElementaryOS being too simple, maybe the GUI as installed may seem that way, but you can do anything
"advanced" in that OS that you can do in Debian, Ubuntu, Mint, CentOS, and so on.

[Bulkley]

+ 2. Stay with Stable.

[spacex]

[quote="stevepusser"]+1
Or have your cake and eat it too. Set up separate partitions and install both stable and testing, or play with testing in a virtual machine.

Fully on board with you. Besides, testing and unstable NEEDS people testing it and reporting back. That's very important. Actually, it's essential.

[Arthos]

I appreciate the enthusiasm, really I do.

If you want shiny new, Arch if you want a Graphical Installer. Manjaro which is an arch derivative.
If you want to spend hours trying to patch your own system with little to no help from the community because they are still figuring it out on themselves. Debian testing or Windows 10
If you want something that just works but is inherintly malware Ubuntu or any Microsoft or Apple operating system (yes I know the amazon fiasco is tied to unity only yet my dislike of Ubuntu and Canonical subsides)
If you want something a little more predictable, reliable and old and set in its ways Debian Stable could be for you.

I'll give it to you straight, for a user to use testing its a great thing, but you would be the one posting the fixes in forums not posting problems. An individual who uses testing doesn't need to tell others they are using testing they are too busy fixing the stable machines. You uhh get where I am going with this?

Jump ship or install Debian Stable its much easier.

[dasein]

...you would be the one posting the fixes in forums not posting problems.

^^This!

@OP -> Here's my suggestion to you: search the posting history of anyone who urges you to run Testing. Count the number of time s/he encourages unsuspecting newbies to run Testing; call this value A. Now compare it to the number of times s/he actually pitches in and helps hapless-newbies-running-Testing solve their inevitable issues; call this value B

If B is, say, twice as large as A, then there is at least a glimmer of real-world hope that the person genuinely has your best interests at heart, and can be counted on to help you when you wind up "in over your head." (Notice that I said "when," not "if.") Otherwise, consider that perhaps the person egging you on is doing so because s/he derives some sort of twisted pleasure from watching others struggle.

[xciso]

Hi. Thanks for all your answers.
The answers are little hard, but that good.

I like when people explain why they say what the do. Not thinks like.. Try Manjaro its best.. Try Lubuntu its best.. or something. Your answers are real great. Thanks
Yesterday I installed debian as i wroted, but now when you guys say stable I will go for stable. Hi. Thanks for all your answers.
The answers are little hard, but that good.

I like when people explain why they say what the do. Not thinks like.. Try Manjaro its best.. Try Lubuntu its best.. or something. Your answers are real great. Thanks
Yesterday I installed debian as i wroted, but now when you guys say stable I will go for stable.

Like Arthos say.. Newbies like me should not use Testing.. Testing should be for the geeks that can found bugs.. And newbies will not know if it is any bugs or if it is my system that is broken.

I will go right away for stable
Thanks..