https://www.zdnet.com/article/linux-desktop-powers-consider-uniting-for-an-app-store/ /> X Trending * These Experts Are Racing to Protect AI From Hackers. Time is Running Out * Motorola's handy Bluetooth device adds satellite messaging * Linux 6.2: The first mainstream Linux kernel for Apple M1 chips arrives * Sony's new headphones adopt WH-1000XM5 technology at a great price * The perfectly pointless $197 gadget that some people will love * * ZDNET Recommends * Testing RFID blocking cards: Do they work? Do you need one? * This almost-great Raspberry Pi alternative is missing one key feature * This $75 dock turns your Mac Mini into a Mac Studio (sort of) * Samsung's Galaxy S23 Plus is the Goldilocks of Smartphones * * Mobile World Congress 2023 * Best massage chairs * Best iRobot vacuums * Best headphones for sleeping * Best smart treadmills Tech * Gaming * Headphones * Laptops * Mobile Accessories * Networking * PCs * * Printers * Smartphones * Smart Watches * Speakers * Streaming Devices * Streaming Services * * Tablets * TVs * Wearables * * Kitchen & Household * Office Furniture * Office Hardware & Appliances * Smart Home * Smart Lighting * Yard & Outdoors Innovation * Artificial Intelligence * AR + VR * Cloud * Digital Transformation * Energy * * Robotics * Sustainability * Transportation * Work Life * * Accelerate your tech game Paid Content * How the New Space Race Will Drive Innovation * How the metaverse will change the future of work and society * * Managing the Multicloud * The Future of the Internet * The New Rules of Work * The Tech Trends to Watch in 2023 Business * See all Business * Amazon * Apple * Developer * E-Commerce * * Edge Computing * Enterprise Software * Executive * Google * Microsoft * * Professional Development * Social Media * SMB * Windows * * Digital transformation: Trends and insights for success * Software development: Emerging trends and changing roles Security * See all Security * Cyber Threats * Password Manager * Ransomware * VPN * * Cybersecurity: Let's get tactical * Securing the Cloud Advice * Deals * How-to * Product Comparisons * Product Spotlights * Reviews Buying Guides * See all Buying Guides * Best all-in-one computers * Best budget TVs * Best gaming CPUs * Best gaming laptops * Best gaming PCs * * Best headphones * Best iPads * Best iPhones * Best laptops * Best large tablets * Best OLED TVs * * Best robot vacuum mops * Best rugged tablets * Best Samsung phones * Best smart rings * Best smartphones * Best smartwatches * * Best speakers * Best tablets * Best travel VPNs * Best TVs * Best VPNs tomorrow belongs to those who embrace it today * Asia * Australia * Europe * India * United Kingdom * United States * ZDNET France * ZDNET Germany * ZDNET Korea * ZDNET Japan [ ] Go Most Popular * See all Topics * Finance * Education * Health * Special Features * ZDNET In Depth * ZDNET Recommends * Newsletters * Videos * Editorial Guidelines * Trending * These Experts Are Racing to Protect AI From Hackers. Time is Running Out * Motorola's handy Bluetooth device adds satellite messaging * Linux 6.2: The first mainstream Linux kernel for Apple M1 chips arrives * Sony's new headphones adopt WH-1000XM5 technology at a great price * The perfectly pointless $197 gadget that some people will love * ZDNET Recommends * Testing RFID blocking cards: Do they work? Do you need one? * This almost-great Raspberry Pi alternative is missing one key feature * This $75 dock turns your Mac Mini into a Mac Studio (sort of) * Samsung's Galaxy S23 Plus is the Goldilocks of Smartphones * Mobile World Congress 2023 * Best massage chairs * Best iRobot vacuums * Best headphones for sleeping * Best smart treadmills * Tech * Gaming * Headphones * Laptops * Mobile Accessories * Networking * PCs * Printers * Smartphones * Smart Watches * Speakers * Streaming Devices * Streaming Services * Tablets * TVs * Wearables * Kitchen & Household * Office Furniture * Office Hardware & Appliances * Smart Home * Smart Lighting * Yard & Outdoors * Innovation * Artificial Intelligence * AR + VR * Cloud * Digital Transformation * Energy * Robotics * Sustainability * Transportation * Work Life * Accelerate your tech game Paid Content * How the New Space Race Will Drive Innovation * How the metaverse will change the future of work and society * Managing the Multicloud * The Future of the Internet * The New Rules of Work * The Tech Trends to Watch in 2023 * Business * See all Business * Amazon * Apple * Developer * E-Commerce * Edge Computing * Enterprise Software * Executive * Google * Microsoft * Professional Development * Social Media * SMB * Windows * Digital transformation: Trends and insights for success * Software development: Emerging trends and changing roles * Security * See all Security * Cyber Threats * Password Manager * Ransomware * VPN * Cybersecurity: Let's get tactical * Securing the Cloud * Advice * Deals * How-to * Product Comparisons * Product Spotlights * Reviews * Buying Guides * See all Buying Guides * Best all-in-one computers * Best budget TVs * Best gaming CPUs * Best gaming laptops * Best gaming PCs * Best headphones * Best iPads * Best iPhones * Best laptops * Best large tablets * Best OLED TVs * Best robot vacuum mops * Best rugged tablets * Best Samsung phones * Best smart rings * Best smartphones * Best smartwatches * Best speakers * Best tablets * Best travel VPNs * Best TVs * Best VPNs * More * See all Topics * Finance * Education * Health * Special Features * ZDNET In Depth * ZDNET Recommends * Newsletters * Videos * Editorial Guidelines Business Home Business Enterprise Software Linux desktop powers consider uniting for an app store One reason why there are so many Linux desktops is that there's endless disagreement on what makes the best desktop. Now, GNOME, Debian, and KDE are exploring the idea of uniting, using Flatpak to create a Linux desktop app store. steven-vaughan-nichols Written by Steven Vaughan-Nichols, Senior Contributing Editor on March 1, 2023 * * * * * Flatpak logo Flatpak I've used one Linux desktop or the other for decades now. But, I'm a Unix and Linux expert. For most people who just want a desktop and its applications to just work -- thank you very much -- the hundreds of different Linux desktops and dozens of ways to accomplish similar goals are more annoying than enticing. One such problem is how you can find, install, and be certain any given program will work on your desktop. Now, leaders from the GNOME Foundation and KDE Foundation, along with Debian Linux, are considering solving that by building an app store on top of Flatpak, a universal Linux software deployment and package management program. Also: 8 things you can do with Linux that you can't do with MacOS or Windows This idea of replacing traditional but not very friendly ways of delivering Linux desktop apps, such as DEB and RPM package management systems, has been around for a while. Besides being easier to use, Flatpak and its rivals, such as Appimage and Snaps, can also run on any Linux distribution. All the programs do this by containerizing applications with all their necessary libraries and associated files. See also * How to install Ubuntu Linux (It's easy!) * How to run a Windows app on Linux with Wine * How to get started with Git on Linux * How to kill a process in Linux This isn't the first time such an idea has been tried. For example, Linspire (Lindows) pioneered the "Click'n'Run" app store in the mid-2000s. More recently, Elementary OS has been experimenting with a "pay what you can" app store. But because it is specific to a handful or a single Linux distro, it was never that attractive to users or developers. Now, as laid out in former Google chairman Eric Schmidt's Plaintext Group, the proposal is to "Promote diversity and sustainability in the Linux desktop community by adding payments, donations, and subscriptions to the Flathub app store." Behind this idea are several Linux desktop leaders, such as GNOME president Robert McQueen; former GNOME executive director and Debian project leader Neil McGovern; and KDE president Aleix Pol. Flatpak, unlike the earlier store attempts, works on essentially all Linux distros. This makes it much more interesting. Also: The best Linux distros for beginners Why Flakpak, instead of its chief rival, Snaps? They explained, "Flathub is a vendor-neutral service for Linux application developers to build and publish their applications directly to their end users. A healthy application ecosystem is essential for the success of the open-source software desktop, so end-users can trust and control their data and development platforms on the device in front of them." Canonical, Ubuntu and Snaps' parent company, isn't in the least bit fond of Flatpak, which originally sprang from Canonical rival Red Hat . Indeed, Canonical recently decided that neither Ubuntu, nor its variants, such as Kubuntu, Lubuntu, and Ubuntu Studio, will support Flatpak. You'll still be able to add Flatpak to any of these distributions. You just won't have Flatpak built-in to the Ubuntu family. On the other hand, the Flatpak store supporters state, "Our largest 'competitor' in the Linux app store space is Canonical's Snap Store, which (aside from any debates as to the relative technical merits of Flatpaks versus Snaps) sits under the control of one corporate entity rather than a community-controlled nonprofit, requiring copyright assignments for contributions to both Snap and the Store, and effectively making it very hard or unappealing to run your own stores." Alas, where would desktop Linux be without fusses over what software is the one true and right software? Probably a lot more successful than it is now. Also: The best Linux distros for programming Either approach makes it much easier for a software distributor to not only bundle their programs for any customer but to be able to sell them to people or businesses. Be that as it may, while the proposal for a paid Flathub app store remains just an idea, it's still one that may garner support. If this plan can generate enough support, and then the revenue, to cover its costs, it may create the first popular universal Linux app store. Then, who knows, maybe the Linux desktop will finally become broadly popular. Stranger things have happened. Linux The HP Dev One Linux laptop is seen here. The best Linux laptops for consumers and developers Asahi Linux with Apple GPU drivers. Linux 6.2: The first mainstream Linux kernel for Apple M1 chips arrives Linux Mint 20.2 with Cinnamon The best distros for beginners Linux Mint 21.1 Linux Mint 21.1: The better-than-ever Linux desktop Linux penguin outline on keys What are hidden files in Linux and how do you create them? * The HP Dev One Linux laptop is seen here. The best Linux laptops for consumers and developers * Asahi Linux with Apple GPU drivers. Linux 6.2: The first mainstream Linux kernel for Apple M1 chips arrives * Linux Mint 20.2 with Cinnamon The best distros for beginners * Linux Mint 21.1 Linux Mint 21.1: The better-than-ever Linux desktop * Linux penguin outline on keys What are hidden files in Linux and how do you create them? Editorial standards Show Comments Log In to Comment Community Guidelines Related The default Ubuntu 22.04.2 desktop. Ubuntu 22.04.2 is as predictable as an operating system can be... and that's a good thing Woman working on a laptop at a table SparkyLinux is a no-frills Linux distribution anyone can use The word linux on wooden cubes 8 things you can do with Linux that you can't do with MacOS or Windows Footer background image ZDNET we equip you to harness the power of disruptive innovation, at work and at home. * Topics * Galleries * Videos * Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information * about ZDNET * Meet The Team * Sitemap * Reprint Policy * Join | Log In * Newsletters * Site Assistance * Licensing * * * * * * (c) 2023 ZDNET, A Red Ventures company. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Cookie Settings | Advertise | Terms of Use