Based on Debian, with just the right amount of user-friendly additions is MXLinux. Coming from Ubuntu, installing MX was particularly easy, the small community is very helpful and knowledgeable, and any quirks Debian might pose to a desktop user seem to have been ironed out.
The link to the github repository: https://github.com/MM2-0/Kvaesitso Kvaesitso has been my launcher for the last 6 months and I’ve been very happy with it. Quite a lot of customization options, but with really well thought-out limitations and restrictions. It is available via F-droid.
Joplin is one of the most important apps I use daily on my Android phone. The desktop version for Linux, an Appimage, synchronizes with the shared database used by the Android app. One can use common cloud services or pay a small fee (now about 18 euros/year) for a specific cloud synchronization service (1Gb).
A space explorer, until I was told that you could not be an astronaut if you have had dental cavities. Next in line was being a teacher, as it is one of the jobs that kids are really familiar with. I’m not an astronaut but I do teaching ocasionally, so part of the wish was fulfilled.
E-books most of the time and I’ve been reading on phone screens even before they became smart-ish. I still remember the joy of carrying books in the pocket, even if the screen of the Nokia phone I was using at that time was pretty small and books had to be in a very specific text format.
Paper books are fantastic and cannot be replaced when they are used as manuals. The memory of a printed page with nice graphics and of its relative positioning in a technical or scientific book that is read more than once is not replaceable by an electronic equivalent.
Finally, my sight does not improve over time and e-book custom fonts and size can be very helpful!
It is great to see a community forming for Joplin on Lemmy, even if getting used to the fediverse, lemmy-style, can be rough around the edges. Still, I was able to use both Mastodon and Lemmy on another instance to follow the discussion - that’s truly nice!
Also - a good decision to temporarily close the sub on Reddit, thank you.
If best GUI means configurable and pretty, I have not yet found an alternative that can compete with good old Xfce. It is the only modern desktop environment for which I can still modify the theme of the window decorations to my liking. It is fast and stays out of the way. Using it both on Ubuntu and MX Linux, both based on Debian.
Firefox most of the time, replaced by Chrome on one of my configurations, where Firefox would lead to graphic card freezes from time to time. Edge for Teams at work. Opera once in a while because I am nostalgic of the fantastic Opera mini browser on early versions of Android.
Also, Firefox on Android or Fennec on phones without Google Play.
The size and biased selection of the community, as mentioned in the other comments here are the main factor. Reddit is successful for at least two very different reasons, both depending on having a lot of users.
It has an ‘entertaining’ value through various hilarious or story-telling posts, such as those of the TIFU and AMA ones. Importantly, those depend on interactions and comments and ask for them from the beginning (‘ask me anything’).
It has an ‘educational’ value, mostly supported by specialists, sometimes in very narrow fields. The ELI5 posts are particulary interesting because comments can go a long way towards explaining complex issues in mathematics, physics or biology or illuminating little known areas of human history or behaviour.
Having specialists ready to provide thorough explanations about something, celebrities doing AMAs or people ready to expose their mistakes depend on a critical mass of people having adopted a platform. Lemmy is far from being there but I think it grows, like the community using Mastodon. The situation should slowly improve.
Thank you for the update. Somehow the Messagease FR layout is missing from this release. Would it be possible, please, to include it back in the next one ? Thanks.