Debian GNU/Linux vs Android

Debian offers stable and testing CD images specifically built for GNOME (the default), KDE Plasma Workspaces, Xfce and LXDE. Less common window managers such as Enlightenment, Openbox, Fluxbox, GNUstep, IceWM, Window Maker and others can also be installed.

Debian runs standard Gnome, XFCE, KDE - it doesn't use its own special desktop environment or debian specific modifications or customisations, which means that users benefit from the work of the whole Linux community, Debian developers can focus on the distribution itself, and any support for your desktop environment on other distributions should work on Debian as well.

Debian has the widest choice of hardware platforms, including:
amd64, armel, armhf, i386, ia64, kfreebsd-i386, kfreebsd-amd64, mips, mipsel, powerpc, sparc, s390, s390x, source, multi-arch.

Debian has a Stable branch, where packages are thoroughly tested before release. Furthermore Debian is know to be the definition of stable when it comes to production systems.

Once installed you can almost forget about it and start to use your desktop for your daily tasks.

Debian is one of the oldest and most popular distros out there. Debian's popularity means that you will always be able to find a solution for your problem just by searching on Google, or if by chance nobody has had the problem you are having it's very easy to ask the community and quickly get a solution.

Because of its popularity, Debian has a lot of applications available which range from productivity programs to business software, games and development tools. It comes with over 55.500 packages (software that is precompiled and ready to be installed on a local machine) -- all of them for free.

Known for being consistent in maintaining a highly secure system. Several other popular distros use Debian as a base or core for their own Linux OS, the security being one of the main factors why it's so commonly used.

Every Debian Release can either use a Rolling or Release based model.

The developer works very well so the the code is one of the best written out there.

You can either use aptitude, apt or apt-build to install software from the Debian package archives.

As Debian is the base for SteamOS and because Ubuntu is based on it, it's almost certain that all Linux games will run properly and require no hacks like creating symbolic links because of some hardcoded paths.

The Debian project is one of the biggest open source projects with over 5000 active contributors.

You don't have to disable SecureBoot if you use it, which is useful for LiveUSB or dualboot setups.

Guaranteed commitment to adherence to values, principles, priorities, requirements and guidelines by the Debian project.

Unlike other distributions that just extract their Live image, Debian offers a real traditional and modular installer to customize the installation.

Debian is one of the few distros that let the user choose if he wants a free system or not.

Depending how it is configured debconf does the most of the hard work for you and only asks you with configuration /file conflicts.

Almost any software that is available for Linux provides a Debian package.

Debian supports almost any Kernel maintained CPU instructions set. It has also a few non Linux Ports.

It is possible to rebuild the entire system and optimize it for your hardware (of course, it is not as detailed as Gentoo's USE flags).

The most Linux distros have one or two stages before a release, but Debian has five before a new stable version is released (experimental > unstable > testing > code-freeze/bug hunting > stable).

The Debian installer can still be launched as text/curses-like installer which is more compatible and keyboard-friendly than the graphical version.

Debs are normal ar and tar archives with shell scripting and additional gz, bz, lzma or xz compression.

Debian releases live install images for CDs, DVDs and USB thumb drives, for the i386 and amd64 architectures, and with a choice of desktop environments. These Debian Live images allow the user to boot from a removable media and run Debian without affecting the contents of their computer.

Debian stable does not update a lot and instead provides stability and well tested softwares. You don't get distracted by every shiny new stuff that comes out, and focus on what matters: productivity and reliability of your system.

Stable gets backported software from here.

If you haven't used Linux for a long time, say 5-10 years, it's a great distro in which you can quickly get in the boat again. You don't have to worry about falling back. Everything is in its place.

But has quite a few bugs from 2016-2017, apparently for long term.

There are about 18000 released devices that run on Android. This means that a user familiar with Android can have a large variety of devices from which they can choose.

Android gives users the ability to define which apps perform which action. For example, if an Android device has several browsers installed, the user can choose a default one which will start every time a link is for example opened from another app.

The AOSP (Android Open Source Project) is the software stack for the Android OS. It is led by the open handset alliance which includes firms like Google, Acer, NXP, Motorola and many others.

The fact that Android is an open source software has led to many custom Android variants. It also is a big assurance of Android's safety in terms of privacy.

For those that already use Google's services, like Google Maps and GMail, Android offers tighter integration with those services than any of the alternatives, and saves users the need to create extra accounts.

One of the massive benefits of Android being open-sourced are all the modifications you can make to the phone to customise pretty much anything. Some of the cooler things you can do are:

• Replace the entire operating system with a custom ROM.
• Replace the keyboard.
• Change the home screen launcher.
• Change the lock screen.

Android phones can cost little as $100.

Desktop widgets provide quick access to the information you need quickly and access the most. These are available out of the box, and can be developed by anyone. Widgets on the lockscreen have been removed since the Lollipop update, but is available on 3rd party lockscreens such as AC Display and KK Locker.

Google Now is an intelligent personal assistant available within the Google Search mobile application for the Android and iOS operating systems. It's software that makes your life more convenient by giving you all the information you need at any moment.

Built in text to speech is provided by TalkBack for people with low or no vision. Enhancements for people with hearing disabilities are available as are other aids.

Android 5.0.+ supports screen recording via a new api.
Android 4.4 KitKat supports screen recording accessible via an ADB command on unrooted devices.

Can customize the home screens with widgets (not just a grid of apps like iOS).

Since Android is written by a worldwide community of developers it is very unlikly that backdoorss exist for any local governments.

Android does frequent updates to keep users secure.

You can root your phone to get full access.

You can sideload apps.

It is fully working without the play store or the Google play services.

Since Android is open source and developed worldwide, anyone can read the code and there are no government forced backdoors.

You can use external displays with MHL, HDMI, DP or miracast. It supports external storage devices like microSD cards or USB OTG devices. You can also use almost any kind of USB or Bluetooth input devices like keyboards, mice or game controllers.

Since Android 10 you can use gestures to control the OS.

There are major versions of android however the most important components are modular and get frequently updated.

You can do anything you want with YOUR phone.