I have said this before and have to repeat this again: if you want to get the best Linux channel for novice just subscribe to the Joe Collins' channel on RUclips. I am so glad that I run into his channel a while ago! Of course I don't agree with everything of what he has to say,without exceptions, but it's just impossible to agree with the 100% anyone would say without an exception or two. But boy, oh boy: his guides are super-useful and they are made well. In addition his language sounds right for an American "ear" too, comparing to the British or Indian English some other good youtubers use. Hats off, Joe!
I'm glad he used the VLC example. In Xubuntu 16.04 my regular VLC install has been crashing my session when I try to play an mp4. However, I removed my regular VLC install, and I installed it as a snap package instead: sudo snap install vlc VLC seems to play mp4 files fine with the VLC snap install.
Joe another great video and like I am all for snaps but is there a graphical interface for the snaps when looking and installing apps because I prefer graphical interface also I use Ubuntu MATE 16.04 so can I continue to use the Software Boutique with snaps or do I need to choose one and use only one package manager?
have your thoughts changed over the years? I hear so many bad things ( huge packages, non open code, blah blah blah) I am new to linux and running ubuntu 20.04.3 and i am not messing with snaps because all the negativity. Ya got a sub and i want to check out more of your vids. ty for your prespective
Snaps are a part of the Ubuntu system even if you don't mess with them... I don't think they're evil as some would have you believe but there are some real performance issues even after years of development. I found them to be fine for small programs but slow to open with big programs and there were still some problems with desktop integration. My attitude today is to leave the parts of the system that are already from snap as they are but I look for .deb files whenever I can.
@@EzeeLinux that is exactly how I have been approaching it. I have only one that is not a sys core. I appreciate it. not evil just not fleshed out properly. Makes sense.
If you are watching this in 2018 or later, "simplescreenrecorder" is available in Debian 9 to Debian 9.5 & probably later repository. I'm running 9.5 at the time of posting this on August 3rd 2018.
Having watched your appimage video - I wonder which system really is "better"... to me appimage seems a little more robust, but then again, I guess updates are better in snap.
I am using Xubuntu 16.04 tonight. I just installed my first snap packages. I can not seem to figure out any way to get them to run. Some of them seem to appear in the menu. One of them, "Wallpapers-Poland-Late-Summer" is listed using the terminal, but I can find anywhere to view the images or apply them to my desktop. Ubuntu-Calculator and the games Bubble-Pop and Connect4 did not seem to open. I could not find FreeCad after installing it. Anyways, I did not have fun tonight.
Awesome< I have Mint 17.3 is there a GUI version of SNAP I can get? Only thing I wish now is Ubuntu.Mint would do a YaST type control panel, I use to have OpenSuSE & loved YaST...
On the very page you're reading in this video, there are instructions that show how you can get this application installed on Fedora without building from source. Take a closer look at the NixOS section. ;-)
Just wondering...I installed Linux Mint 18 yesterday; If it already has VLC installed, what happens if I install the snap package? Would I have two instances of VLC? Would I uninstall the apt version of VLC first and then install the snap package?
I use a program called musescore that can be downloaded as an appimage. It seems to work well on arch and mint and I even tried it in wnidouz. One package that works seemingly everywhere. Is it the same as this snap package?
can you explain in more detail how snap works under the hood? from some of what I have heard snap downloads and packages entire copies of libraries with it which is what windows does and is part of why it is bloated
I am not sure but you do not have to setup guest editions or any of that. You just download a distro then install or run live there is literally nothing else to do. Its so easy to check out distros and it works better more responsive etc..
I think snap is a bit weird... I have found a app named KRUclips - RUclips Media Downloader in the software center and there is nothing displayed like a license or a website. And I did not find anything about this piece of software in the internet with duckduckgo. Does anyone have an idea whose program this is, wether its open source and if it is a good idea to install this?
but i thought it will download app i want like in windows like app.exe. i know apt-get is easier but i have a pc without internet and i want to install apps in it and i can't...
I feel like the biggest barrier to entry for people wanting to switch to Linux is the lack of simplicity in things. In windows you download an EXE and hit install... or if it's zipped you just unzip and click a file. But Linux.. it's jumping through hoop after hoop to do many things that should just be as easy as possible. I hope snappy at least gets to a point where i just run some sort of software and go through and click something and install.
I see the problem currently for a noob, you need to use the terminal...they need a GUI store side for end users, otherwise it doesn't solve the problem for novices who have zero desire to open a terminal never mind use it.
A lot of stuff is in the GUI software repository for distros nowadays. If it isn't, you can probably go the the application website and download the package and run it. Alternatively they'll have a guide on installing the program with terminal commands to copy paste. It can be a learning curve for non software center stuff. It's really not that hard though, since they tell you what to do.
Snaps are not doing so hot: kamikazow.wordpress.com/2017/02/09/adoption-of-flatpak-vs-snap/ Also KDE team seems to lean toward flatpacks but that's undecided yet so everything is possible: www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=KDE-Stuttgart-App-Bundling
That's a bit too conspiratorial IMO. However there is some merit to this. I think that there rpm and pacman distros are completely different families in linux, so they are not so dependent on ubuntu or debian and they are free to choose other way. You can also see users dividing on camps. There is no conspiracy here, just a natural division between differentiated distros - a usual day in open source world. Also, you can look at it in opposite way. Flatpacks exists since YEARS and out of the blue canonical invents snaps? Who is undermining who? I think that unity is not possible. Either you have freedom, choice, differentiation and... division, lack of united front or you can have closed, controlled, unified, boring environment that can be strong if stirred right. Two different worlds and yet they both are needed somehow.
I can't grasp how Joe ends up with something like "There's no stuff left behind, once you remove the snap". Really? YOU DIDN'T MAKE A DIFF OF THE FILESYSTEM BEFORE AND AFTER THE SNAP INSTALL! How could you be that sure? A simple "find" based on recent modified/new files would do the job! It's basic linux administration! Even if you're likely right, the fact that a snap runs in a loop DOESN'T IMPLY/ensure that on your system, ubuntu snap install had not done some housekeeping itself, meaning it might have left traces somewhere...
Yes, this concern could really use a video on it's own. For instance, are there any issues with having too many snaps installed or running concurrently? Seems to be a well thought out technology, but an in-depth analysis of what impacts snaps can have on OS performance would be as beneficial as Joe's video here.
How is it that there are Snap packages for OpenSuse and not Fedora? They both utilize the rpm fomat. Yet you did say the same was true of Debian; How strange. I do think that if it is your goal to recruit Windows users to Linux, you might want to stop using the 'Dreaded Terminal' in your demonstrations. Nothing makes them flee in sheer panic more than that. : -))
You misheard me. Snap is available for Fedora. The Terminal is an integral part of the Linux landscape. If it keeps Window users away than they don't need to be using Linux. Their loss. :)
I tell you.. SNAP is a CRAP. Why?? Because it slows PC. Please. refer my words in 2 -3 years when your PC would not able to open email client without Intel Core i7 and 20 Gb RAM
No, very different. It runs in it's own container and doesn't effect the basic system at all. Exe files usually install themselves into a system. A few run autonomously but only for small programs. :)
But it gives the advantage to make the packages more portables, like exe's. Any software you install don't will break down your dependencies, because it will actually come with they. The negative point is there will be more then one version for each library running on your machine, using more disk space and even RAM memory. [Other negative point is that this will use unsecured folders from normal user as library path. Making it more vulnerable to malwares.] Edit: i don't noticed that each snap app will be inside a isolated squashFS only read... so it's a good security precaution, but i have to learn more about to have 100% of assurance about how reliable it is.
Thumbs up. For newcomers: Nutshell starts at 6:25 and ends at 7:25
You're welcome. Consider that minute to be a 'snap package' of the nutshell.
I have said this before and have to repeat this again: if you want to get the best Linux channel for novice just subscribe to the Joe Collins' channel on RUclips.
I am so glad that I run into his channel a while ago!
Of course I don't agree with everything of what he has to say,without exceptions, but it's just impossible to agree with the 100% anyone would say without an exception or two.
But boy, oh boy: his guides are super-useful and they are made well.
In addition his language sounds right for an American "ear" too, comparing to the British or Indian English some other good youtubers use. Hats off, Joe!
Universal package management is soo cool had no idea this was a thing
I'm glad he used the VLC example. In Xubuntu 16.04 my regular VLC install has been crashing my session when I try to play an mp4. However, I removed my regular VLC install, and I installed it as a snap package instead: sudo snap install vlc
VLC seems to play mp4 files fine with the VLC snap install.
I was wondering about snap packages. Thanks Joe.
Thanks for this informative video, Joe. You always have an awesome and simple way to explain these kinds of technical things.
Thanks so much. I now have a much better understanding of SNAP PACKAGES! Changed my reluctance to enthusiasm!
Thanks for the step by step tutorial. I agree with you about the adobe situation.
Great video Joe! Thanks for sharing.
Beautiful, simply beautiful!
Very useful, thanks (also thanks for the simple screen recorder info, I have a use for that!)
Joe another great video and like I am all for snaps but is there a graphical interface for the snaps when looking and installing apps because I prefer graphical interface also I use Ubuntu MATE 16.04 so can I continue to use the Software Boutique with snaps or do I need to choose one and use only one package manager?
Great video. Thanks for creating.
have your thoughts changed over the years? I hear so many bad things ( huge packages, non open code, blah blah blah) I am new to linux and running ubuntu 20.04.3 and i am not messing with snaps because all the negativity. Ya got a sub and i want to check out more of your vids. ty for your prespective
Snaps are a part of the Ubuntu system even if you don't mess with them... I don't think they're evil as some would have you believe but there are some real performance issues even after years of development. I found them to be fine for small programs but slow to open with big programs and there were still some problems with desktop integration. My attitude today is to leave the parts of the system that are already from snap as they are but I look for .deb files whenever I can.
@@EzeeLinux that is exactly how I have been approaching it. I have only one that is not a sys core. I appreciate it.
not evil just not fleshed out properly. Makes sense.
If you are watching this in 2018 or later, "simplescreenrecorder" is available in Debian 9 to Debian 9.5 & probably later repository. I'm running 9.5 at the time of posting this on August 3rd 2018.
Very important, but short question:
Do you can download and install .snap files offline?
You can. Snaps work both ways. The idea is to make it easy for developers to distribute software in several ways. :)
Joe Collins Thanks for response!
You can also use 'snap download' to download the snap file to your local directory.
This may just be how I install next cloud on Linux.
So you did snap and Appimage. Doing Flatpak next?
Having watched your appimage video - I wonder which system really is "better"... to me appimage seems a little more robust, but then again, I guess updates are better in snap.
I am using Xubuntu 16.04 tonight. I just installed my first snap packages. I can not seem to figure out any way to get them to run. Some of them seem to appear in the menu. One of them, "Wallpapers-Poland-Late-Summer" is listed using the terminal, but I can find anywhere to view the images or apply them to my desktop. Ubuntu-Calculator and the games Bubble-Pop and Connect4 did not seem to open. I could not find FreeCad after installing it. Anyways, I did not have fun tonight.
I read several articles that pointed out that snap programs are bigger than normal default packages
what has changed, is there more documentation now a year later...thanks.
Awesome< I have Mint 17.3 is there a GUI version of SNAP I can get? Only thing I wish now is Ubuntu.Mint would do a YaST type control panel, I use to have OpenSuSE & loved YaST...
If snap packages are monolithis, wouldn't they take up more hard drive space than regular packages that can share dependencies?
On the very page you're reading in this video, there are instructions that show how you can get this application installed on Fedora without building from source. Take a closer look at the NixOS section. ;-)
Thanks Joe :o)
Is this the same as the Apple OS X DMG system that lets you drop an application into the applications folder and when you click on it it fires up.
Just wondering...I installed Linux Mint 18 yesterday; If it already has VLC installed, what happens if I install the snap package? Would I have two instances of VLC? Would I uninstall the apt version of VLC first and then install the snap package?
I think you'd get two versions. The Snap is the daily build. :)
Thank you, sir. Great videos!
I use a program called musescore that can be downloaded as an appimage. It seems to work well on arch and mint and I even tried it in wnidouz. One package that works seemingly everywhere. Is it the same as this snap package?
thanks a lot ...:)
can you explain in more detail how snap works under the hood? from some of what I have heard snap downloads and packages entire copies of libraries with it which is what windows does and is part of why it is bloated
If that's what it does, I wonder what advantages there are beyond simple static linking. Silo'd config files?
This is exactly my problem
Didn't Canonical reinvent some kind of Docker?
Thanks Joe good video! Try gnome boxes instead of virtual box I think you will find it a lot easier and faster! Its in the repos.
I don't think you can transfer files with Boxes... Can you?
I am not sure but you do not have to setup guest editions or any of that. You just download a distro then install or run live there is literally nothing else to do. Its so easy to check out distros and it works better more responsive etc..
I think snap is a bit weird... I have found a app named KRUclips - RUclips Media Downloader in the software center and there is nothing displayed like a license or a website. And I did not find anything about this piece of software in the internet with duckduckgo. Does anyone have an idea whose program this is, wether its open source and if it is a good idea to install this?
Why not run the application from inside of a docker container?
I dont get the icon for Skrifa even after reboot.vwhat do I do?
Mine doesn't work.
- Download snap "speet-test" from channel "stable" (snap not found)
Will try again tonight
It did download something and failed only afterwards
apart from isolating it from the rest of the system how is it different from installation on windows
Windows needs the dlls Linux needs dependencies. snap is a single file with all stuff it needs in a single bundle
Mount snap "snap-store" (62) (cannot find required base "core18")
but i thought it will download app i want like in windows like app.exe. i know apt-get is easier but i have a pc without internet and i want to install apps in it and i can't...
Hey jo... Could you do a video on how to dwnload brave browser onto linux mint 19. That would be awesome👍
brave-browser.readthedocs.io/en/latest/installing-brave.html#linux
I hope they add Snap to the primary Mint repository and give it a graphical interface...
But there is a Flatpak in Mint with graphical interface.
Kinda the same shit :-)
when will ubuntu and/or linux be game ready.
It is now. steam has over 2000 games for linux and you can get drm free games from humble or gog
when/if Vulkan gets widely adopted
Ah yes minecraft server......the most important of all snap packages.
plz can you do a video about APPIMAGE. i find it very useful
Done. Video is up. Thank you for turning me on to this! :)
Sounds like the future.
Isn't there any simpler way?
Something more intuitive?
It is what it is...They're still working on it. :) :)
I feel like the biggest barrier to entry for people wanting to switch to Linux is the lack of simplicity in things.
In windows you download an EXE and hit install... or if it's zipped you just unzip and click a file.
But Linux.. it's jumping through hoop after hoop to do many things that should just be as easy as possible.
I hope snappy at least gets to a point where i just run some sort of software and go through and click something and install.
will this turn Linux into bloatware like what people call Windows?
Why not just have the dev use something like make or cmake? I see how the new user might be intimidated by it
That's what they do, but make and cmake doesn't install dependencies
I see the problem currently for a noob, you need to use the terminal...they need a GUI store side for end users, otherwise it doesn't solve the problem for novices who have zero desire to open a terminal never mind use it.
A lot of stuff is in the GUI software repository for distros nowadays. If it isn't, you can probably go the the application website and download the package and run it. Alternatively they'll have a guide on installing the program with terminal commands to copy paste.
It can be a learning curve for non software center stuff. It's really not that hard though, since they tell you what to do.
guess the wheel needed reinventing....again...smh
xref: xkcd #927
Snaps are not doing so hot:
kamikazow.wordpress.com/2017/02/09/adoption-of-flatpak-vs-snap/
Also KDE team seems to lean toward flatpacks but that's undecided yet so everything is possible:
www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=KDE-Stuttgart-App-Bundling
That's a bit too conspiratorial IMO. However there is some merit to this. I think that there rpm and pacman distros are completely different families in linux, so they are not so dependent on ubuntu or debian and they are free to choose other way. You can also see users dividing on camps. There is no conspiracy here, just a natural division between differentiated distros - a usual day in open source world.
Also, you can look at it in opposite way. Flatpacks exists since YEARS and out of the blue canonical invents snaps? Who is undermining who?
I think that unity is not possible. Either you have freedom, choice, differentiation and... division, lack of united front or you can have closed, controlled, unified, boring environment that can be strong if stirred right. Two different worlds and yet they both are needed somehow.
I can't grasp how Joe ends up with something like "There's no stuff left behind, once you remove the snap".
Really? YOU DIDN'T MAKE A DIFF OF THE FILESYSTEM BEFORE AND AFTER THE SNAP INSTALL!
How could you be that sure? A simple "find" based on recent modified/new files would do the job! It's basic linux administration!
Even if you're likely right, the fact that a snap runs in a loop DOESN'T IMPLY/ensure that on your system, ubuntu snap install had not done some housekeeping itself, meaning it might have left traces somewhere...
Yes, this concern could really use a video on it's own. For instance, are there any issues with having too many snaps installed or running concurrently? Seems to be a well thought out technology, but an in-depth analysis of what impacts snaps can have on OS performance would be as beneficial as Joe's video here.
So it's something like windows exe files
No .appimages is like .exe files.
How is it that there are Snap packages for OpenSuse and not Fedora? They both utilize the rpm fomat. Yet you did say the same was true of Debian; How strange. I do think that if it is your goal to recruit Windows users to Linux, you might want to stop using the 'Dreaded Terminal' in your demonstrations. Nothing makes them flee in sheer panic more than that. : -))
You misheard me. Snap is available for Fedora. The Terminal is an integral part of the Linux landscape. If it keeps Window users away than they don't need to be using Linux. Their loss. :)
You're right I agree
snap can download 2 things at once. Amazing!!! *sarcasm not included*
I tell you.. SNAP is a CRAP. Why?? Because it slows PC. Please. refer my words in 2 -3 years when your PC would not able to open email client without Intel Core i7 and 20 Gb RAM
speed-test work on computer :P
so, a snap is basically the equivalent of an .exe ????
No, very different. It runs in it's own container and doesn't effect the basic system at all. Exe files usually install themselves into a system. A few run autonomously but only for small programs. :)
But it gives the advantage to make the packages more portables, like exe's. Any software you install don't will break down your dependencies, because it will actually come with they.
The negative point is there will be more then one version for each library running on your machine, using more disk space and even RAM memory.
[Other negative point is that this will use unsecured folders from normal user as library path. Making it more vulnerable to malwares.]
Edit: i don't noticed that each snap app will be inside a isolated squashFS only read... so it's a good security precaution, but i have to learn more about to have 100% of assurance about how reliable it is.