I used to use Ubuntu before unity and switched to Debian 👑 in 2012. I still have to use Ubuntu for work and I just get on with it. It could be worse… I could have to use windows.
Anyway my main gripes with Ubuntu are snaps and how they keep swapping packages in apt to be installed as snaps .
I dont hate it, its a tool and in most cases I can use it and there is no problem if not there are other options.
Also they contribute loads to the Linux ecosystem so im happy to support them as I see it as a win/win . The sales are great too I spend like 50 ducats a year and get like 9 or 10 great games for that.
I don’t agree with avoiding stable distros. In the case of Debian for example stable gets priority on security patches. Just subscribe to the security mailing list and have auto updates on.
Also download any disto or bleeding edge container and scan it and you’ll have vulnerabilities in some library. The ecosystem is always moving. The question is how exposed are you.
Use a firewall, secure your browser and whitelist sites you trust to run JS. Stick to repos. Scan downloaded files via virus total or open In a vm. Dont install what you dont need.
You are far more likely to get compromised in a site breach than to get hacked. The browser is the main attack vector that you need to secure.
Also dont run servers if you dont know what you are doing. Use a non networked VM to practice.
Dont blindly paste commands and be sure to read the source before you compile and run some random program.
One option is a live CD or a VM and in this case you can restore the state after each session. In both cases only your IP, timestamps, browser details and everything you interacted with on the site is stored by Facebook. But no new hardware or cookies will be stored on your device as it is wiped each time.
I made the swich a year or two ago. It is much better I find. I leave it running in a tmux session on my server . with btop on one pane and switch to another with a split view to do work. It allows me to take a quick glance at any time while not taking the focus from what I was working on.