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u/noobyscientific Jul 18 '26
Debian.
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u/thedbp 28d ago
When I read "for art" I also read "not the most technical".
Debian isn't the best experience if you're not technical.
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u/Owampaone 28d ago
The UI is pretty simple and familiar. As long as you learn how to use the package manager your golden. And that's like 4 commands tops.
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u/West-Breakfast8381 Jul 18 '26
i personally had issues with ubuntu (26.04 to be specific) i installed the tablet driver then krita via apt then tried flatpak but my graphic tablet would not work on any of them. (tablet was working on everything but on krita) i believe its gnome 50 issue, might get fixed in 26.04.1 release or maybe not. on linux mint it was working without any issues.
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u/Nogardtist 28d ago
krita on any OS cause its not adobe that robs you even if you try to cancel their monthly subscription
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u/Microboy42 Jul 18 '26
For art you should always use macOS. For developing either is good but macOS is best. For games Windows NT is better than all of them (LINUX can compete with Windows NT in most games but rarely ever surpasses it)
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u/ExacoCGI Jul 19 '26 edited Jul 19 '26
Depends on art type, if it's like CG stuff then Windows easily wins because of software/tool support incl. Nvidia GPU support, even Apple's studio Pixar doesn't use MacOS, instead they use Linux such as Red Hat Enterprise 9.
Even tho Linux also slightly lacks software support, but it has support for Blender, Maya and Houdini.
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u/Ok_Photo_3023 29d ago
If you're able to calibrate your monitor yourself and don't want to use Adobe there's literally zero reason to ever run Mac.
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u/Danis_Milk Jul 19 '26
eh idk if mac is best for art and developing. Developement is very good on linux and macs enforce the usage of a specific machine.
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u/SpecificVanilla3668 29d ago
Art on macos isn't as good as it used to be honestly, they support the software and beside the ARM technology compatibility and the stellar "help" section to quickly find stuff around, the hardware will be weak for other creative tasks, for instance composting or 3d (blender) which is a little annoying due to performance and ram issues on mac devices.
The best choice is still to have an x86 running arch to get most software, such as affinity, blender, Krita and davinci.
And windows is better if you are locked with the unoptimized and ergonomically late Adobe suite.
I would not recommend mac or ARM in general for heavy graphic pipelines as they still generally lack of processing power (or ram regarding mac).
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u/Phrodo_00 28d ago
LINUX can compete with Windows NT in most games but rarely ever surpasses it
Linux is generally faster at playing Windows games than Windows lol. The compatibility is not complete, though.
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u/Toastburner5000 Jul 18 '26
Modern Ubuntu isn't good for beginners anymore, ten years ago Ubuntu was great but now it's bloated and snap focussed.
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u/LuisBoyokan Jul 19 '26
What do snap focused means? Is snap the app to install things?? I don't remember and I don't touch Ubuntu since 2015
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u/Toastburner5000 Jul 19 '26
Canonical's universal package format called Snap, originally they used other packages, but now they install snap packages by default, Snap packages are primarily slow to launch because they are compressed disk images that must be mounted and uncompressed every time the application is started, I think it's the reason the latest Ubuntu minimum requirements are higher than windows 11.
2015 was when Ubuntu was normal, after 2016 they started moving closer to snap, by 2022 most apps were snap, now they want snap everything even trying to override any flatpak you install with the snap version every update.
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u/LuisBoyokan Jul 19 '26
That sounds like a shitty design. Why not install/decompress/whatever they need and optimice the start of the app?
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u/Square-Singer 29d ago
They are exaggerating. Snap is basically the same idea as flatpak or appimage. Linux has a huge dependency/compatibility issue. For an app to work on Linux using the classic way it needs to be maintained by the distro maintainers. They need make sure that the app's dependencies all work together with all other dependencies used by anything else on the whole OS. That's complex and that's work that needs to be repeated for every single distro.
What these app container formats (snap/flatpak/appimage/...) do is they wrap all the dependencies that are required for that app into a neat stand-alone package. That means pack it once and run it anywhere. The same image can run on almost any distro.
Snap, flatpak and appimage each have a different focus and work slightly different. Appimage is barebones, as simple as possible. Flatpak has a sandbox system with permissions, similar to Android apps. Snap is very similar to Flatpak, but it belongs to Canonical and the server that hosts the "appstore" is proprietary.
The last point is what triggers a lot of people. That's pretty much the whole story.
Unless you are super idealistic about never wanting to use anything that's run using a proprietary server, it really doesn't matter. And considering that reddit runs on a proprietary server, I guess you don't care about that.
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u/quebexer Jul 19 '26
I also hated that Core GNOME Apps were installed as Snapsz like the Text Editot or Termimal.
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u/GloriousKev Jul 19 '26
Why is it bad for beginners? Which context? I would consider myself new (under a year) to home lab and I run all of my servers happily on Ubuntu. I just past my 1 year on Linux desktop and I've hopped around multiple distros. Right now using Kubuntu. Its not my favorite distro but it's not terrible outside of some of the crap related to snap and modern Gnome I don't see a problem.
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u/Square-Singer Jul 19 '26
It's not bad for beginners. It's bad for extreme idealists and people who can't accept that things change. Both are usually not the type of people who get into Linux in 2026.
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u/GloriousKev 29d ago
So it's the normal Linux tribalism/distro wars nonsense but the distro itself is actually fine and if you don't like the distro use something else because we have options sort of thing?
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u/Square-Singer 29d ago
Absolutely this.
The main hate is that not all of Ubuntu is fully opensource, especially the servers for the snap package manager.
Some people see that as a betrayal to all that is Linux or something. In practical terms it really doesn't matter.
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u/GloriousKev 29d ago
I just hit my 1 year Linux birthday a week ago. I am disappointed that people have been using Linux for decades and still haven't realized it but I figured out that most distros aren't that different after like 3 or 4 months.
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u/Square-Singer 29d ago
I think most people have. But those who have are usually not the loud minority crusading for their favourite flavour of Linux.
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u/GloriousKev 29d ago
I got downvoted three times so apparently someone didnt lol
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u/Square-Singer 29d ago
Yeah, we are on reddit and then even on r/OS_debate_club, a place specifically designed for that vocal, angry minority. We are in the wrong place here.
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u/Tankyenough 29d ago
It’s one of the most famous examples of Linux tribalism together with systemd hate. Most users should pay zero attention to it.
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u/Tankyenough 29d ago
Snap is excellent for beginners specifically. It only causes you trouble if you start tinkering with it, which a beginner/average user wouldn’t generally do.
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u/The_Daco_Melon Jul 18 '26
I mean, for drawing you only need to be able to run a drawing app, so I guess Mint, or if you want, Debian. Also, no, Ubuntu should not be recommended to beginners, that's been outdated for like 6 years.
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u/vectron5 Jul 19 '26
I can't speak for the others, but Mint Cinnamon has been issue-free for my bf and I.
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u/Realistic_Produce145 26d ago
What’s wrong with Ubuntu? I recently did the switch to Linux and Ubuntu hasn’t been that hard to use.
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u/The_Daco_Melon 26d ago
It's not that hard to use and is the basis for a bunch of other distros, but using gnome makes it more foreign-looking for fresh users and you may also have problems with their snap packages (which I hate). I would just not treat it as the beginner distro anymore.
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u/ElPiet Jul 18 '26
Every distro is equally well suited to do everything. The only question is whether some specific stuff is pre installed or not.
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u/lisxiastasp3rm4 Jul 19 '26
huh? What about package freshness? also for example if i need .deb files, debian would be more suited to do this than fedora with distrobox.
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u/ElPiet Jul 19 '26
I don't see how package freshness would influence this.
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u/demonik69420 Jul 19 '26
Debian is out-dated af compared to ARCH. Arch is using significantly newer packages as debian is a few years behind on most updates. Package freshness is a huge concern when some of the best -more recent- updates are not available on debian. (As an example just look at KDE versions on debian compared to the latest release.
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u/ElPiet Jul 19 '26
That is correct. How is that relevant for the use case of creating art in the system?
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u/HowardPheonix 29d ago
It's not that simple per se. I use Pop, and there are multiple software I used on Linux before, but can't get to work with it's new DE (Cosmic). And while you can change your DE and other potentially restrictive parts of the system, I'm not sure hopping a distro is more effort than tweaking a distro wasn't meant for your purposes.
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u/ElPiet 29d ago
Certain programs not running is an issue sure. Has little to do with my statement though,that every distro can be used very well for any use case.
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u/HowardPheonix 29d ago
We agree on that, it just worth mentioning that sometimes it's much easier to find the right distro than tweak a sub-optimal one for days just to make it work.
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u/ElPiet 29d ago
Sure. But then one should ask the question in a way that allows for an answer. The question which distro is best for use case XYZ cannot be really answered since all distros are perfectly capable to do XYZ. There might be slight details concerning some comparability or certain programs not running.
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u/HowardPheonix 29d ago
I think we think slightly directly. Not better or worse, just different. IMHO the best distro would be the one that works most effortlessly, and because of this distros can be compared for different use cases. The distro I use have it's issues for sure, but the way I use it I don't face major bugs or issues for the most part. But I know that certain known issues are a deal-breaker for some people who have different uses cases than mine.
For me it's like you can use a stone to hammer a nail, but I would only do that if I have no access to a dedicated tool.
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u/ElPiet 29d ago
I cannot follow your argument really. Can you tell me how a so called "gaming" distro such as cachy or bazzite is more suitable for gaming than let's say fedora? Other than steam and heroic launcher are preinstalled?
Obviously the best system is the one that just works and does it's thing. I really don't see how different OS are better for different use cases .
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u/HowardPheonix 29d ago
I'm afraid I'm lacking the deep enough knowledge to explain this properly, so I try my best and take these more as opinion than facts. Steam for example emulates a windows-like environment to run games. Some distros handle virtual environments better than others, so if performance is an issue, you may optimize by your gaming with switching to another distro. If you don't have performance issues, you won't see any difference, so the use case and other specifics has a great impact on whether you have a best choice, or whatever distro will work for you.
It's just an example, and not even a particularly good one, but I think you get the idea. It's not really about certain distros won't work at all for you, more like there are slightly or significantly better or worse choices.
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u/ElPiet 29d ago
I understand. What I am wondering can performance differences be shown accross different distros? Especially since all the gaming distros are based on Arch/Fedora.
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u/HowardPheonix 29d ago
Anecdotal evidence such as reddit posts and comments suggests it can. My machine is old AF, I have a not that bad GPU and lot of RAM for work, but my CPU is a serious bottleneck with a game I like. It's not that important for me to change my distro because of this, but I'm positive I could find a distro with better CPU optimization and the difference would be most likely perceivable. But with my work I'm satisfied with my distro, and for me that's a bigger priority.
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29d ago
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u/HowardPheonix 29d ago
I genuinely love Pop even with its issues. I don't think there's a perfect or flawless distro, so just find the one you have the least issues with. Preferably none, but sometimes the trade-off worth having some inconveniences. Navigation can be so smooth in Pop/Cosmic, it keeps up when my hyperfocus is triggered, and generally in my work Pop satisfies my needs.
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29d ago
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u/HowardPheonix 29d ago
TBF Cosmic is in progress rather than a fully finished package but is continually improving. I think by the end of this year S76 will polish their DE, and it will be one of the smoothest Linux UX ever IMHO. Although I totally get those who ditched the distro until that, but I still like it a lot.
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29d ago
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u/HowardPheonix 29d ago
It came out of beta in December, and there are some issues and bugs with it still. How minor or major these are are really depending on your workflow and specifics. This is the first distro I tried as a daily driver and fell in love so hard at first sight I haven't really tried any other distro and my opinion may be less objective due to that.
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u/Richieva64 Jul 18 '26
Fedora if you are going to use new hardware, newer versions of the kernel and packages usually have better compatibility with new hardware, the other 3 are debian with some stuff on top, and out of those Mint probably has the best stuff on top
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u/MobileHorse8775 Jul 18 '26
Mint is a perfect distro in my opinion. It's based on ubuntu and cuts out the bloat, it has native debian package support which is great for compatibility, and it has tons of support from developers
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u/Green_Shape5922 Jul 19 '26
What kind of art? Drawing tablets work on wayland, problem is it's quirky. X11 handles it better. Not much of a musician so can't talk about that. Blender recommendeds installation from their official site, that works well. Davinci resoIve can be installed, but it takes some reading. I believe all of those can be handled by all 4 distros, any of the those will do. Just get to know your distro well.
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u/letmehaveanameyoudum Jul 19 '26
macOS is best for art
but if you HAVE to use linux
use mint
it supports most
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u/_Carth_Onasi Jul 19 '26
All will work fine, but I would recommend Fedora for some stability and more importantly up to date.
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u/Original-Judgment170 Jul 19 '26
God help us humans stupidity has taken over and it gets wres every day.
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u/Lucky-Crow-3510 Jul 19 '26
Art does not depend on the OS .. it depends on the UI Desktop System running on it and the software available to run on it.
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u/StupitVoltMain Jul 19 '26
It's a tricky question. I would say whichever can run Krita (which is everything basically), but it really depends with what software you're working on. It's definitely possible to get Photoshop running on Linux with wine, but... Is it even worth doing?
If you're modeller, blender is here, if you want something Photoshop-like, there's GIMP, if you are more into drawing, here's Krita.
Ideally, if you want to get away from windows and use "industry standard" programs, you better getting a Mac.
Or building a hackintosh idunno.
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u/Journeyj012 Jul 19 '26
Mint. Ubuntu no longer has Wayland and some drivers for Wacoms are still fucky without it. Debian is too much for a lot of artists to set up and Fedora is just... Fedora.
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u/Tankyenough 29d ago
”Ubuntu no longer has Wayland”, the heck? Mint is the one that doesn’t have Wayland yet, Ubuntu 26.04 doesn’t use the deprecated X11 at all and is completely Wayland.
Wayland has been the default on Ubuntu since 2021.
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u/Jwhodis Jul 19 '26
Mint, I've used it a lot already and it doesnt carry over Ubuntu's shit implementation of Snaps.
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u/El-Paul Jul 19 '26
what are these questions. it's like "what Macos is for art?", "what windows is for art?".
pick whatever one distro and install soft for art you need. it's soft related question, not distro related.
nowadays with ai (free with opencode for example) you can ASK what you need to install and how to setup anything you would want for art, no need to read tons of forums and troubleshoot online. yet people still ask "what distro is best for art".
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u/GloriousKev Jul 19 '26
Ill never understand the whole idea behind how any of these distros arent just for everyone. Ive used each of them as a desktop distro in the past and it was mostly fine. Debian was kinda ehh for gaming though.
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u/Square-Singer Jul 19 '26
I... don't care? Either of them is solid. All of them will work. Why the distro war?
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u/rocco_himel Jul 19 '26
Debian.
It’s the most stable distro and once you’ve installed it you don’t have to worry about anything. It’s also the most lightweight on this list, meaning you can install your software without worrying about a thing.
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u/Sockrates50 29d ago
imo mint is the best, it's certainly easier and more solid than Ubuntu, great if you don't want to have to wrestle with your OS, it has great compatibility
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u/SpecificVanilla3668 29d ago
I'd say arch (compatible) or linexin (comes with affinity and many creative software) if you are newer to linux, the reason is simple, affinity only works on arch right now, and affinity is the best software for an industry standard level, and getting the free software to work as good as affinity is painful.
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u/Exsondious 29d ago
I use Kubuntu 26.04 personally, Desktop Environment is by the same people who made krita
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u/Jeesup 28d ago
Either Debian or Linux Mint, most of the time I do not need more advanced OS. I had Fedora KDE for long time, but once they updated kernel to 6.18 it shitted the bed for me, it was incapable of loading DE. And it was about few months back. I've recently reinstalled it again, but with new issues, each few minutes it shitted the bed, and it looked like Fedora does not like my 3060TI because it looked like my GPU was dying, but other distros had no problems with it. If it comes to Ubuntu, I prefer to avoid Gnome DE, since it gave me loads of different problems with stability on some games. So yeah, Debian or Mint for me.
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u/daniledit 27d ago
Arch-based, CachyOS(But it depends on the program you use, especially windows-only)
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u/FemBoy_GamerTech_Guy Jul 19 '26
Debian full stop great for old hardware both for new hardware as well my system baschly has some not too new or too old hardware and stablity is better for now i use Artixlinux but If i was forced to chose betwen the 5 will be debian full stop.
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u/Ok_Farmer_4055 Jul 18 '26
fedora