My Experience with Fedora

One day, I got so fed up with Windows that I decided to try Linux. I mean, I have a huge custom built gaming PC and still Windows is not at all snappy. Windows runs lot of unnecessary background services which are hard to disable. But I know Linux is lightweight.

So, I went and searched for the most shiny thing in Linux land. After spending a lot of time on choosing the right distro, I landed on Fedora, thanks to its promise of cutting edge features with stability.

Spoiler alert: My experience with it wasn’t great.

The Installation: First Impressions

For starters, there are multiple editions of Fedora you can pick from. I chose the KDE spin, burned it onto my drive and started the installation.

First Hurdle: The Partition Manager

The default partition manager shipped by Fedora isn’t intuitive. I could tell on my first use because this wasn’t my first experience with Linux. I had used Ubuntu several years ago and I remember the partition manager, GParted, to be intuitive and simple.

(Spoiler 2: I switched to another distro later and found GParted to be much more user-friendly)

The Keyboard Layout Nightmare

Then comes the issue that really tested my patience.

I wonder which dev at Fedora thought it’s a good idea to have different keyboard layouts for Lockscreen and Desktop Environment. This caused me a great deal of frustration. I don’t even wish to recall how painful this experience was.

The worst part? Fedora kept rejecting my password because my keyboard layout changed to GB despite setting it as US during installation. Moving on…

The Final Straw: Hardware Issues

In the process of solving the keyboard problem, I faced another issue. This was too frustrating and became the final nail in the coffin for me.

Here’s what happened:

• After logging in with safe mode, my keyboard wasn’t working
• I turned to Google, Fedora forums, and Stack Exchange for solutions
• Tried different software like Piper and Solaar to configure my peripherals
• None of them worked

The real problem: My keyboard connected via Logitech Unifying Receiver just refused to work. After hours of reading, I discovered there was a bug in Fedora’s kernel for the Logitech Unifying Receiver’s keyboard driver.

Adding fuel to the fire, my desktop kept flickering because my Fedora install did not have Nvidia GPU drivers. Instead, it just kept running on my integrated GPU.

That’s it, I thought. I am done!

Finding Redemption: Pop!_OS

Resisting the urge to stay on Windows forever, I turned towards Debian-based distros. I had used Linux Mint, Ubuntu, and Peppermint several years ago—they worked fine in the past.

So, I researched the best distro based on Debian and settled with Pop!_OS.

Everything Just Works

When I installed Pop!_OS, I sighed a great relief:

• GParted was there—my favorite partition manager
• Everything just worked out of the box
• I installed my favorite desktop environment, KDE Plasma
• I’m loving this distro

Pro tip: Pop!_OS comes with pre-installed Nvidia/AMD drivers so that you can just concentrate on doing stuff instead of setting up your PC.

The Takeaway

Fedora might work great for some people, but for a Linux beginner with specific hardware (especially Logitech peripherals and Nvidia GPU), it was a frustrating experience. Pop!_OS, on the other hand, has been smooth sailing.

Your mileage may vary, but if you’re new to Linux and want something that “just works,” consider starting with a Debian-based distro.