(7) Synaptic provides a good description of what software is, better then the software store would, and it would be difficult to find such information via the Terminal method.
(8) Synaptic has its own software update method built in, so you don't have to rely on your built in OS updater if you don't want to.
(9) Synaptic also allows you to manually install downloaded packages.
(10) Synaptic requires your password to use it, which keeps it safe from unwanted kids in your family messing up your software installations lol.
For GUI, I would vote Synaptic.
But as you included Terminal in the options, that is the honest vote since I use terminal for about 92% of all installations.
Synaptic can come in handy for some removals, though. Such as removing an installed desktop environment where you can search "mate" or "lxde" and find all the packages that were installed along with it and remove them all in One Go.
Hey, thats what this pole and thread is all about, honesty! Thats what I want, because I am trying to gauge what most people use, which if you think about it, that is great info for the Zorin brother's as well. So they can see where to keep focusing on.
While this is currently a very small sample size of only 7-votes, it does however show, so far, that Terminal is winning out, as the leader in package manager operations.
I sure wish the voter who voted OTHER would have posted here, cause I would sure like to know which package manager they were using. I agree with what you said about Synaptic, its excellent for stuff like that!
Synaptic absolutely is great. But.... would you say it is something a person freshly new to Linux would quickly have a handle on?
I think we can all agree that gnome-software is the pits. But... It is very easy for a new Linux user to quickly manage.
I consider it a Stepping Stone toward Synaptic or Terminal. It will keep the running as they learn.
EDIT:
A point, by the way... A particular aspect of Terminal is that it can also include the package manager "Aptitude."
Aptitude is a very good, utilitarian and well fleshed out package manager that runs from CLI.
I also agree that Software Store is like a stepping stone. One thing I will do however, is if I am trying to help a user out, and they need software that isn't already installed with Zorin, I will often have them download from the Software Store.
Of if we already have them in terminal anyways, and I want to get their screenfetch. I will say...
sudo apt install screenfetch
But if a Windows user has been using Linux for awhile now, and would like to use a more powerful package manager, learning Synaptic would be a really good idea, cause Software Store is only good for the most basic of stuff.
Terminal is very powerful, as long as you know the commands, or Google the commands like I often do. Cause believe it or not, I been on Linux for 6+ years, and I still aint no terminal wiz lol. But I like the Terminal for what I am able to do with it.
This is why when were providing support, I always love those screenfetch, or inxi, or uname -a commands, lshw, those are excellent. My problem though is I am always forgetting commands, so I gotta Google lol.
Join the club. Linus Torvalds says he does too, sometimes. No one has every command memorized. But it is also true that the more you use them, the more you remember.
I picked Software Store, and here's why...
Easier. You pick what you want to install and it picks all the need required dependencies/files automatically, I just have to hit OK.
Synaptic (which I have used to download packages and it works, no issues - ttf-mscorefonts just recently when software store gave me issues) can give too many other options, some which you may not need. Others, you may need but not know you need. So you could be installing some things you don't need nor want. Or not enough. Maybe I'm incorrect with my assessment, lack of experience with Synaptic, but if given the choice, the easier method is always preferred.
I vote Synaptic also. As I have posted before I tried to use Linux OSs in the past and at that time almost anything you wanted to do required a lot of knowledge about installing and compiling packages etc. I installed Zorin 15 about 6 months ago and learned how easy it was to use the software installer and updater. Then I installed Zorin 16 on my laptop and also learned about Synaptic. Synaptic just lets you do so much more that you can't do with the regular software updater that comes with Zorin. As an example I recently decided to try Vivaldi as my browser. I found some things I didn't like about it and wanted to remove it. It didn't even show that I had installed it when I tried to use the software manager to uninstall Vivaldi. Synaptic made it easy to remove Vivaldi. I don't mind using terminal to do things but I don't know enough Linux commands to use it efficiently. Is there a place to go to find the more common commands you can or should use.
I just spent a few minutes looking over what you have done. Thanks so much for taking the time to do all that. Tomorrow when I get back to my desktop which has a printer I am going to print out those handy commands. Thanks again, Carroll
Aravisian, on behalf of so many users, both old & new, many who may forget to say a simple thing, as well as myself. I'd like to say "Thank You". This will be so helpful to so many. Especially for all the noobs ln search of answers, who will greatly benefit. Again, including myself....lol Well Done....
I voted Synaptic but I also wrote a script to install a certain set of programs via command line, instead of typing them in reinstall after reinstall. And since I change my mind enough, I have to edit the script every time. Now I'm working on a script that will edit scripts.
