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Microsoft Windows and Apple MacOS are both malware and spyware. They slow down over time, they prevent me from configuring my computer system the way that I want to, and they report back to an uncountably large number of different people all about the activities that are undertaken on them. As such, Linux and BSD are the only viable options for me. Right now I'm rolling with Debian, since it gives me a lot of freedom to build my system from the ground up, they way I want. Below is a list of programs that I use on my computer.
1. Consistency - if the software works today, it should continue to work in perpetuity.
2. Completion - Solid, non-updating software.
3. Freedom (as in speech not beer) - obviously.
4. Proper Software Packaging - use APT/PACMAN/AUR or offer to let me compile from source. None of this Snap/Flatpak/AppImage/Docker nonsense.
I used Arch Linux for a few years and got quite a bit of mileage out of it. But ultimately, it was irritating to have to update so very often. After years of lost time spent updating Arch Linux, I switched to Debian 12. Honestly, I feel like this has been a fantastic switch. APT has the vast majority of the software packages that I use built in, and I am not at all afraid of installing the outstanding pieces of software from source. Plus updates are small and rare. Perfect!
What programs have I explicitly installed on my system?
base - Minimal Set of Programs for an Arch Linux System
base-devel - Basic Tools to Build Arch Linux Packages
bluetuith - TUI Bluetooth Manager
bluez-utils - Utilities for Bluetooth
brightnessctl - CLI to Control Device Brightness
bspswallow - Window Swallowing for BSPWM
checkbashisms - Script to Check Shell Scripts for Bashisms
dosfstools - Tool for Creating FAT Filesystems
ebgaramond-otf - Garamond Font for Documents
exfat-utils - Tools for Working with FAT Filesystems
fbset - Tools for Modifying the Framebuffer
ffmpeg - CLI for Video Manipulation
fontconfig - Tools for Working with Fonts
fontforge - Tools for Editing Fonts
fpm - Fortran Package Manager Similar to Rust's Cargo
gcc-fortran - GNU Fortran Compiler
git - Source Control Management System
git-delta - Improved Git Pager
gmnitohtml - Tool to Convert GMI Files to HTML
gnuplot - CLI Plotting Utility
grap - groff Plotting Preprocessor
groff - Document Creation Tool
groffhl-git - Code Highlighting Tool for groff
hors - CLI for Querying Stackoverflow
imagemagick - CLI for Image Manipulation
lcov - Code Coverage Report Generator
linux-firmware - Linux Firmware Modules
man-pages - Linux Manual Pages
mutt-wizard - Minimal Email System Wizard
networkmanager - Internet Access Utility
ntfs-3g - Tools for Working with NTFS Filesystems
pam-gnupg - Tool that Unlocks GPG Keys on Login
pamixer - CLI Pulseaudio Mixer
papis - Scientific Article Organization Tool
pavucontrol - GUI Pulseaudio Volume Controller
pulseaudio - Sound Server System
pulseaudio-bluetooth - Bluetooth Module for Pulseaudio
pulsemixer - TUI Pulseaudio Mixer
python-adblock - Brave's Adblock Library
python-weasyprint - PDF Creation Tool
rsync - CLI for Incremental File Transfers
sagemath - Computer Algebra System
sagemath-doc - Documentation for Sagemath
sdcv - CLI Dictionary/Thesaurus
sent - Simple Plaintext Presentation Tool
the_silver_searcher - Tool for Searching Code
ttf-anonymouspro-nerd - Coding Font
ttf-fantasque-sans-mono - Coding Font
ueberzug - Tool for Previewing Images on the Commandline
unclutter - Utility that Hides the Mouse Cursor
urlview-xdg-git - Tool for Extracting URLs from Text
xcompmgr - Compositing Manager
xdotool - Fake Keyboard/Mouse Input
xf86-video-intel - Intel Graphics Driver
xorg-server - The Graphical X Server
xorg-xdpyinfo - Display Information Utility for X
xorg-xinit - X Server Initialization Tool
xorg-xrandr - Monitor Management for X
xorg-xset - User Preference Utility for X
xorg-xsetroot - Tool to Manage Root Window in X
xorg-xwininfo - Query Tool for X Windows
xwallpaper - Wallpaper Setting Utility
zathura-pdf-poppler - PDF Plugin for Zathura