The main reason I’m asking this question is because I read an article on Reddit, so that’s not the best source of information to consider due to various factors. The issue was a debate between some users who use Bazzite and others who are against it, or at least in their comments said they didn’t like using niche distros, only mainstream Linux distros. They were saying that Bazzite might shut down or disappear, and I got into Linux specifically because of Bazzite, as it’s a distro that simply works and is easy to use. Logically, I’ve been using Bazzite for a while now and have tested other distros, which makes it easier to use any other Linux distro, unlike my first migration from Windows, which was really complicated. But getting back to the topic, some user raised the point or pretext that OGC (Open Global Coding) might be a kind of emergency plan due to the dismissal of someone from the Bazzite team. I really don’t know much about that, as I said, I’m not really familiar with it. I’m not writing in this forum or anything like that. I’m a user who switched from Windows to Bazzite, which simply works and I don’t need to look for anything about the distribution itself. With KDE, it’s practically an improved version of Windows for current usage. The question that led me to use this forum is: when the new kernel is implemented, will the system name change? Because I know that Neofetch shows “F…”, and regarding that, based on what they say about the current status, since Bazzite is open source, wouldn’t there be another developer to replace it?
Since I don’t speak English, I apologize for any typos.
I wouldn’t worry too much. Bazzite is built on top of Fedora Linux, so it is not some fragile one-off distro (in fact, it may not be accurate to call it a “distro” since it really is just Fedora with customization). Fedora is very mainstream and well supported.
If a maintainer leaves, that does not mean the project dies. It is open source, the code is public, and others can continue it if needed. That is normal in open source projects.
A new kernel will not change your system name. If Neofetch shows Fedora, that is expected. Bazzite is Fedora underneath.
Even in a worst case, you could rebase to something like Fedora Kinoite without reinstalling everything. If it works for you, you are in a good spot.
I used Bazzite for 7 months but reverted to Fedora Kinoite a couple weeks ago and this new initiative was a big part of that decision.
As a handheld distro, Bazzite makes a lot of sense, but as a desktop distro it became obsolete as far as I am concerned. Firstly, the whole initiative reminded me of that one xkcd comic. Also, seeing the name ASUS in there was enough to cause strong apprehensions, feels like it’s an attempt by big corporations to bring their bloatware “gaming softwares” to Linux under the pretense of improving gaming support.
I used Bazzite because it was Fedora with gaming related bells and whistles pre-installed, but now it feels like it’s about to get bloated pretty soon. I hope I am wrong, but I’d rather watch from a distance for now.
So first off let’s clarify a couple things for original poster:
The OGC stands for Open Gaming Council NOT Open Global Coding (no relation whatsoever). If you want to learn more about the general direction, here is the website:
Now as for concerns, I think these are the points be made:
Right now Bazzite is on kernel 6.17 when standard Fedora has moved on to the 6.18 LTS kernel. People generally like the sound of being on an LTS kernel .
For me personally this is not a huge problem: as this means we will likely have a more stable environment. The cooperative nature of using a shared kernel means that bugs, issues, testing can be shared amongst the various ‘distros’ instead of all work being done by one team + contributors. Over time if this initiative continues to grow, it can pull other ‘distros’ into it and potentially bring upstreams closer to our ‘orbit’.
However this begs the question of when the ‘gated’ OGC kernel gets updated… in the future what might be expected as a standard interval compared to Fedora update timings. For instance if Fedora 44 releases with kernel 7.0, what kernel will we be on?
I agree that having handheld makers onboard with us is generally a good thing, but the concern is whether or not this will result in adverse changes for desktop users or more focus on handhelds.
Example: recently the change made with systemd settle caused issues with booting for me that were not present before.
Separately, there is a concern with OEM manufacturers, (not naming names because they all do it) adding ‘extra’ software that slows systems down and cannot be removed. For instance I had a windows 11 laptop that insisted on re-downloading and re-installing the manufacturer’s ‘extra’ software no matter what I did to try and remove it.
That is something I think we want avoid. And I think it is something that needs to be discussed…so here is the big question:
Will certain ‘extra’ software be forcefully installed with Bazzite in the future because of partnerships with OEMs?
I will provide a slightly different perspective. I have been using Linux a very long time now. I have seen countless distros come and go while others have continued to thrive. My advice to you is this, “Don’t worry about it, it won’t make a huge difference”. Just continue using the distro and wait and see what happens. If it turns out great, you will be in a good position. If everything falls apart, you have tons of options.
First, you could trivially easily rebase to Aurora or Bluefin with minimal changes to your system. Alternatively, you could rebase to Fedora Atomic although you might need to install some things to make everything work. If none of those things work for you, you could switch to one of the other gaming dsitros out there.
But don’t do that because you fear the tea leaves, do it because you want to or you need to. There is no rush and nothing to be afraid of.
Also just to make a comment. Asus-linux is a community project to help supporting different Asus hardware (handhelds, rog laptops etc). Its not really tied to behemoth hw vendor Asus in any official capacity (atleast wasn’t last i checked).
.