For context: I habe a PC with an 8gb SSD and I somehow need to get an app on there that only has a flatpak release
I actually like flatpak. The only issues I have are with GTK apps which I try not to use anymore.
this post was submitted on 29 Mar 2025
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Just build from source
what kind of app only bundles a flatpak? Surely there's manual install instructions?
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I only use flatpack when I need the most up to date version of a software for whatever reason.
I absolutely hate all this container shit, for my uses. That said, they make sense when you need to sandbox applications for whatever reason, but most of those uses seem like they would be better served with VMs.
You hate people who spend hundreds of ours of their free time developing software, who then release that software for free, under no obligation to you or anyone else, and your reasoning is because they provide it in a packaging solution you don't find ideal?
Maybe fuck off and write your own software.
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Skelly is rapidly approaching your location.
tl;dr: some applications (like Bottles) are designed to run only in sandboxed environments. Flatpak is a robust way to ensure that an application has the correct dependencies and conditions for proper functionality.
Hope you don't find out about Snaps
Flatpak seems to be the best choice for consistency and to have it working straight out of the box. I think Linux currently needs this because we're getting a lot less tech-savvy Linux users nowadays. Don't get me wrong; package managers should still be used, but how are we going to get people to change if they run into package conflicts or accidentally uninstall a wrong package?
And universal compatability. One repo, for all distros. That's a big plus too!
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It is also nice to have independent packages. Consistent user experience means a lot.
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Yes absolutely true, but also no.
https://gitlab.com/TheEvilSkeleton/flatpak-dedup-checker
For me it is 32GB of data with deduplication, and only like 25GB with BTRFS compression.
So while still way too much, not really a problem if you have a reasonable 50mbits+ internet connection and a 200GB+ SSD
There should still be waay more force. There should only be one runtime (FDO) and KDE and GNOME being extensions to that. Not sure if these perfectly dedupe though
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Buy a thumbdrive lol
Or a SSD
Maybe even a MicroSD
its barely legible but isnt that still less than a gb? where you you even get an 8gb ssd? why would you use one outside of some specialized embedded application that shouldn't even have a desktop interface? and even then why not something lighter than kde or gnome
where you you even get an 8gb ssd
I bought a Fujitsu thin client for 30β¬, and I decided to spend the 5β¬ extra to get one with a drive (making it 30β¬ total.
why would you use one outside of some specialized embedded application that shouldn't even have a desktop interface?
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I have way too much free time
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I have no money
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Originally it should only have been a minimal void Linux install so it can connect to my local server via RDP. But I just realised that that futro s920 with 4 1,5ghz cores is actually way faster and more reliable than my 4th gen Intel i5 will ever be
and even then why not something lighter than kde or gnome
I ssh'd into the PC. It runs xfce4, and it is just made to display shortwave (an Internet radio player) in full screen on a cashier terminal screen that I ripped from the terminal assembly. I just needed the cheapest thing to run shortwave on so my father has an Internet radio, since the other 2 options were
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buy a big ass Antenna for his normal radio, or
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buy a used Internet radio for 200β¬ (this way it only cost about 90β¬), wait until its Server is shut down, and then somehow with a mix of wireshark, dns logging, and pure luck somehow locally rerout the domain that the radio tries to connects to, figure out what kind of json file I need to host on my local server in order to make it refresh it's database of Radios, and maintain these IPs forever.
also, please note, the image is in no way connected to this project, it just reminded me of it
Maybe get the cheapest micro sd card or usb drive you can find and install it on there? You could probably double your storage size for a couple of euros!
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If it's only available as a flatpak I don't need it. π€·
Its your call
However, Flatpak is growing in popularity so chances are that's going to be more and more the norm. Same thing with Wayland.
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Then just unpack said flatpak, there are tools for that.
did you see those little < in front of the download sizes? org.kde.KStyle.Adwaita, org.kdePlatform.Locale, org.kde.Platform and com.ktechpit.torrhunt won't be fully downloaded as those are possibly already installed and can be reused, so in the best case you only download org.freedesktop.Platform.GL.nvidia-570-86-16 fully.
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Oh lmao, I decided to look into this. https://github.com/flathub/com.ktechpit.torrhunt/blob/master/com.ktechpit.torrhunt.yaml
Looks like it just downloads the .snap package (directly from Canonical's website) and extracts it. It's also, of course, completely closed source so who knows what it's doing when it's running.
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I hate it when people want to hate on something, yet get the platform or alternatively the proposition wrong. Because you will release stuff as a Flatpak and possibly on Flathub.
Personally I do like the ideas behind Snap/Flatpak. I think the sandboxing is a huge deal and will improve security going forward.
In a world where space is usually the cheapest and most available hardware on a PC, I tend to agree. That being said, it's the kind of solution that comes from engineers who put the onus on the hardware to make up for their shitty software. Engineers like me.
Yeah. Someone has to put in the work for packaging an application if you want it as a .deb/.rpm etc. package and deal with any bugs that might come up, and it's not going to be me (speaking as a user, not a developer).
That said, I also painted myself into a corner when it comes to harddrive space. LUKS can be complicated, man ...
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Lots of people seem to like it. I also use it for like 2 or 3 desktop apps, but it's alao littering my filesystem with gigabytes of runtimes. And I believe I can salely remove Skype now...
Gigabytes?
I have a bunch of apps installed and it is only a little over a gigabyte.
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Who likes having their hard drive space wasted?
The benefits easily outweighs the cost of some extra space use. We're not talking about a lot here, after all, with dedupping, shared runtimes and what have you.
No one does, but people like it when you install an application and it just works. It makes it easier to install applications regardless of which distro youβre on as well.
I like flatpaks when they come from the developer. They are often more stable, up-to-date and complete than those from OS repositories.
What I don't like about them is when I have to fight the permissions. They're often too tight and make integration with the rest of the OS too hard.
Here's a rarely known secret of the Linux world. Almost no software in a Linux system came from the developer.
Every single distro, package manager or repository is handled by people who did not develop the software being packaged. The few exceptions are the software who distributes their own .deb/.rpm, appimage, flatpak or their own repository. But the bulk of tools, utilities and apps were handled by the people managing the distribution or the distro main repository. No sane developer has the team or the time to config, compile, package, and test their software to every single Linux distro that exists. Hence why Dev distributed versions are usually targeted to single channels and to specific distros and versions. Packages compatibility is a literal hell.
Shoulda just used nix B)
Nix is very interesting, but a completely new rope to shoot yourself in the foot. A new hell is still new though.
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Technically it's empty space that's being wasted, if you fill it up it's being useful!
Idk, probably all the people who downvoted OP and the majority of people here on Lemmy I met in discussions about Flatpak & Co. And If I look at the average size of a modern Windows installation, I'd say at least 70% of desktop users to begin with.
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