@Bubby was right. And 16 still is that good. From what I've read on the boards, 17 wasn't bad. Compared to 16 It had its problems, but they could be overcome by tinkering. But for many 18 has been nothing but frustration. Sure - many folks out there are using Zorin 18 right now, having had no problems at all. I have been one of them. But I'm also not an enthusiast with newer or high-end hardware, or ambitious use-cases, etc. Those folks have been hitting brick walls.
Anyway, after reading about the lighter footprint and greater speed of Z16, I decided to try it for myself, and so installed it on my secondary box and replicated everything there that I've been doing on the Z18 workhorse. Having done so successfully, I installed Z16.3 on the workhorse. Just finished last night. Loving it! I had to make a few adjustments to due to the most recent Gnome shell for 16 being 3.38. But all was doable. Not really worried about lack of support either. Security pretty much is as security does. Still I'm going install a hardware firewall - a Mikrotick hEX 5-port - to bar the front door.
I am happy to read a post from a new Zorin OS 16.3 user, who didn't fall for the hype of OS 18. As I think you know, I still am on Zorin OS 16.3, because its the best, and not a complete mess. To clarify, I do basic computing, internet, photo/video editing, and gaming.
As such, I need an OS that is stable, so I stayed on OS 16. In regards to security, I am protected by a hardware level firewall, which exceeds any security that an OS could provide, on the software level anyways. The best security, is to moderate yourself on the internet.
Had it not been for your steady promotion of Z16.3 in contrast to subsequent editions (particularly 18), I would not have known to take a closer look and then decided to make the switch. Thank you @StarTreker. Also for your earlier advice as to the advisability of installing a hardware firewall. Mine arrives tomorrow.
well 18 beta worked awsome...18 does work well for me but only after i did a small kernel update then put that kernel on hold as not to let it update any farther not saying the one i use will work for all tho 6.17 was most of the causes for troubles in 18 thats my opinion tho 6.18.15-3-liquorix-amd64 is the one i got to in the chain that the system felt stable and has been also i dropped the nvidia card for an amd 6600 XT now wayland works perfect this is how ....with my system...i got OS 18 Pro stable
Update: Hardened the new firewall in every way possible! It feels good to be running secure. I also installed Pop Shell* as a Gnome extension. Auto-tiling is a super nice workflow feature for large screen & multiple screen setups.. With some curating, the Zorin Keyboard Shortcuts and Pop Shell shortcuts cooperate well.
*The version that works with Zorin 16/Gnome 3.38 is a sort of Pop Shell "Lite", without the of the management/adjustment overhead - (I don't miss it).
this is basically the process I used, though I hadn't visited this article. Looks like a good one. Since I am on Zorin 16, based on ubuntu 20.04, I chose the master-focal branch. There were also some issues I had to deal with since Zorin 16's last Gnome version was 3.38. ...a matter of searching out the older dependencies, dealing with changes in some steps, names of folders, apps, the usual things that change over time. Nothing that Google Gemini and I could figure out. It took awhile, and at one point I had to make use of a time shift backup. But very doable and I love the result.
