this post was submitted on 29 Jun 2025
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Steam Deck

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To be clear, this question is for general PC use, and not only gaming.

Desktop mode on my Deck has easily become my favorite PC experience in a very long long time, and I use it more docked as a PC than for gaming. I've used Windows and Apple my entire life before now, so I have zero experience with Linux, other than the Steam Deck, but the OS is incrediby friendly to newcomers, and I'd say it's essentially a modern and polished version of Windows 95.

So what would you recommend as a similar experience for desktop?

Edit: I should probably add that I'm an artist and designer, and play around with Blender and 3D modeling stuff, and maybe even some game dev at some point. So Adobe support, and GPU Blender support would be superfantastic.

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[–] sonalder@lemmy.ml 5 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Adobe and Linux isn't a thing unfortunately

[–] SkaveRat@discuss.tchncs.de 1 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Except substance painter and designer, weirdly enough

And not via adobes suite, but via steam

It's the only way to get an official Linux version of those tools

[–] sonalder@lemmy.ml 1 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Are these tools being bought buy Adobe more recently ? That could be an explaination why, but that's good to know thanks for sharing.

[–] SkaveRat@discuss.tchncs.de 1 points 5 days ago (1 children)

A couple years ago from allegorithmic. But a Linux version was never around

[–] sonalder@lemmy.ml 1 points 5 days ago (1 children)
[–] SkaveRat@discuss.tchncs.de 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Nope. Native Linux. And wine/proton didn't work very well before

[–] sonalder@lemmy.ml 1 points 5 days ago

Oh woaw that is... interesting

[–] fjordo@feddit.uk 6 points 6 days ago

Since desktop mode is basically just KDE but without the ability to install software packages you could try Fedora.

They do a version just like desktop mode that has you install everything through the store, or you can get the regular variety to get a bit more flexibility.

Personally I'd steer clear of anything special as your first Linux install. Go with standard Fedora, then you can experiment and branch out if you're interested, but you don't have to if you like what you've got.

[–] mrcleanup@lemmy.world 2 points 5 days ago

If you haven't looked at Garuda yet, it's the system I switched to after Bazzite. It's Arch based and user friendly.

[–] Etterra@discuss.online 2 points 5 days ago

I used to work with a guy who would wear what liked like a band touring tee shirt, but the "band" was "Grants March to the Sea" and the locations were every town he razed to the ground.

[–] BuboScandiacus@mander.xyz 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)
[–] AdrianTheFrog@lemmy.world 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)

I agree, really anything with KDE Plasma will feel basically the same because the Steam Deck's desktop is basically stock kde.

[–] BuboScandiacus@mander.xyz 1 points 5 days ago

really anything with KDE Plasma

Op might like the stability broihght by immutability

[–] oftheair@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (1 children)
[–] BuboScandiacus@mander.xyz 1 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Ehhhhh

No. Absolutely not like Steam OS it's made for gaming, yes, but that's it for the similarities.

[–] Unboxious@ani.social 1 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Well I'm not aware of any Arch-based immutable distro besides SteamOS so it's kinda hard to give a perfect answer.

[–] BuboScandiacus@mander.xyz 1 points 5 days ago

It doesn't have to be arch based, really

If it's immutable it practically doesn't matter

The immutability is the key here

[–] NewNewAugustEast@lemmy.zip 1 points 5 days ago

Fedora, specifically KDE version. It will feel like the steamdeck desktop (because it is) will get quick updates and is painless to manage.

The first bug I have seen in two years is the screen lock bug just recently. But I imagine it will get sorted soon and isn't a showstopper.

[–] RampantParanoia2365@lemmy.world 2 points 6 days ago (2 children)

Alright, y'all, I really appreciate all the feedback, I believe I understand the gist of most of it. Bazzite is sounding really nice, I just have one big concern: Can I put Adobe on it, so I can dropkick Windows out of my life? I did find this.

[–] jayandp@sh.itjust.works 2 points 6 days ago (1 children)

I did find this

I would definitely recommend trying WinApps first, which that guide seems to be for. Never tried to get it running on Bazzite/SilverBlue/Universal Blue though, so can't help you there.

[–] RampantParanoia2365@lemmy.world 1 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Is this an alternative to Wine?

[–] jayandp@sh.itjust.works 3 points 6 days ago (1 children)

No. If something runs in Wine, still use that. WinApp is basically a Windows VM combined with some other tools to allow Windows apps on the VM to run more seamlessly and native feeling. It makes picky apps like the Adobe and Microsoft suites happy since it's using full Windows to run them, but this means there's more overhead than running an app through Wine or natively.

[–] RampantParanoia2365@lemmy.world 1 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 children)

Man, this has been the most helpful and informative internet post I've ever made in my entire life, lol. Thank you.

So it is an alternative in that it's a different way towards the same goal, but it's not a replacement, right?

[–] jayandp@sh.itjust.works 1 points 5 days ago

Correct, it's less efficient than Wine, but more compatible. Adobe and Microsoft software still has issues in Wine, so a VM is the best option for them.

To explain some terms in over simplified ways:

VM = Virtual Machine = Making a virtual sandboxed computer that runs full Windows inside it.

Wine = Wine Is Not an Emulator = A translation layer that converts Windows Program Commands into Linux Program Commands.

Wine has to be crafted for every needed Windows command, in order to translate the command into something Linux can understand. So if a program is using a Windows command Wine hasn't seen before, it'll fail.

VMs instead run an entire OS, in this case Windows, so that we don't have to craft every command, as Windows handles the program like normal, and then the VM provides Windows with virtual hardware to work with instead. Naturally, making pretend hardware and running an entire OS inside another OS eats up more resources, so VMs are worse than Wine in that regard.

[–] ExtraMedicated@lemmy.world -1 points 6 days ago

I've been liking MX Linux.

[–] million@lemmy.world 47 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (15 children)

Desktop mode on the Steam Deck is using KDE Plasma. You can use that on the vast majority of Linux distros.

Here is a few the spring to mind:

  • Bazzite - A good place to start, their project goal is to basically be SteamOS like experience you can put on any machine.
  • Fedora Workstation with KDE - Bazzite is based off of this project, it's a more general experiance, lots of people enjoy it.
  • Kubuntu - Ubuntu is very popular distro, this is their KDE version.
  • OpenSuse Tumbleweed - For folks who want the most up to date software possible.
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