Linux

In my experience of maintaining Arch, it's as simple as:

-Keep your packages up to date -Keep your mirrorlist up to date -install a package called "pacdiff" and run it after every update (certain config files need to be manually replaced/updated after system updates, pacdiff handles this for you. This actually includes your mirrorlist).

Anything else really just boils down to individual issues with packages which could happen on any distro, or really and OS in general. As another user said, if you got Arch installed as a newer Linux user, you're already doing well.

if you're a first timer and already got arch with kde set up you're pretty fucking tech savvy ngl

If you're the type of new user that likes to go balls deep straight away, then Arch is arguably one of the better options thanks to its excellent Wiki. However, please don't blatantly overestimate yourself for the heck of it. Consider checking out ArchWiki's own entries on this matter:

• Why would I not want to use Arch?
• I am a complete GNU/Linux beginner. Should I use Arch?
• System maintenance

i found a tutorial on it with 3 - 4 pages full of text and was a bit overwhelmed

I don't think this attitude is helpful for conquering Arch, but YMMV.

recently i just finished building a new pc. mostly for gaming since my only exposure to linux is steam os and i heard its uses arch with kde plasma so i try to emulate it as close as i can.

FWIW, if you just want to emulate SteamOS, perhaps consider Bazzite instead. It's not based on Arch, but it arguably is the closest to SteamOS (but better). More so than any Arch-based distro*.

Try bazzite if you are willing to learn, otherwise just pick Zorin OS or Linux Mint and you will be fine (You will just have to learn the basics of how linux works, but nothing too complex as arch linux)

Arch has a bit of a steeper learning curve. Ubuntu is probably the most "mainstream", but I prefer Mint (based on Ubuntu) for some user-friendly changes. PopOS (already based on Ubuntu) is also supposed to be a bit more gaming centric if you've got an Nvidia card.

I've got an AMD kit in my main machine and Nvidia/Intel in my laptop and both work fine with most Steam games using Proton.

You're probably better off with Fedora, Mint, or Bazzite to be honest

recently i just finished building a new pc. mostly for gaming since my only exposure to linux is steam os and i heard its uses arch with kde plasma so i try to emulate it as close as i can. however soon i realized how different it is and it requires more setup than i initially thought.

It sounds like you're thinking of Arch + KDE as similar to building a PC, where if you get the same parts you can hook them up for the same experience.

I think their team chose Arch to build their distro off of because it's very customizable and made it easy for them to add their configurations, interface layers, hardware optimizations etc. That doesn't make it the best choice for a beginner unless you want to be thrown into the deep end and spend some time to learn a bunch.

IMO you should look into something like Bazzite or some other atomic Fedora, or OpenSuse, so that you can have a running operating system you can game on. Then you can spend some time learning about Linux with the functioning PC. There are ways to run other Linux distros inside your main one if you want to play with them and learn about them.

Unless you have another machine to use day to day, I find it annoying to be learning with the same machine I need for other things.

Arch Linux's whole claim to fame is Some Assembly Required. Go with something like Mint or Fedora (the latter of which is available with the KDE desktop, source: am typing this on a gaming computer running Fedora KDE) and they're much more complete out of the box.

If your only exposure is steamos bazzite might be easier for you

You're not screwed. Depends on how much you enjoy tinkering and troubleshooting.

My main advice would be to keep your data backed up and completely disconnected from the PC. And make sure your machine is not critical (i.e. for working from home or something). Other than that you do what you want. If you want to dive deep in Arch then that's fine.

One thing to know is that the important part relevant to you is: the desktop environment (KDE) and the Linux distro (Arch) are different things. The far more important thing for you is to have KDE.... the distro underneath just needs to not get in the way.

If you've got Arch up and running then stick with it until it gives you trouble. I naturally ended up distro hopping in the beginning because I would catastrophically break something I couldn't repair and could change distros naturally when reinstalling.

Good options for easy distros with KDE would be:

1. Tuxedo OS (or Kubuntu) - easiest and there's lots of support online.

2. Fredora - rock solid and highly recommend. Although I would recommend OpenSUSE Tumbleweed instead, this got me hooked on Linux and was the least problematic for a bleeding edge updated distro, where I happily used Discover for installing and updating.

3. CachyOS - good option for sticking with Arch.

I don't know exactly what u are talking about steam cause it just sudo pacman -Syu steam and that it .everything else if u have modern nvidia then do sudo pacman -Syu nvidia-dkms if amd setup then u will no need anything else .In the end as for beginner try CachyOS if u the most close experience to vanilla arch .this guys just do some performance tweaks while staying maximum vanilla as possible about arch linux

If you're willing to learn Arch it really isn't that difficult. I wouldn't reccommend it to a noob but seeing as you're already using it why not give it a try? I wouldn't reccommend the Steam flatpak as Valve reccommends against it and it doesn't work as well. Feel free to DM for advice from someone who uses it daily.

cachyos, post install click install gaming packages, in steam goto compotability switch it to proton cachyos, done, there is no struggle, it grabs heroic and lutris too for non steam stuff

First, I would like to give you some major props. Installing Arch, in itself, is a big deal. It is not a beginner-friendly distro. It is a very power-user friendly distro and has an incredible wiki that is helpful, at least to some degree, for many distros.

For a beginner distro, I would recommend Linux Mint for its easy transition and great focus on user experiences or Bazzite if you really want to install and get gaming.

When taking drivers in Linux, most are provided as either kernel modules (integrated into the kernel, so you don't have to worry about installing anything) or packaged for the distro, in which case, once installed via package manager, they'll auto-update whenever you update system packages. They are so much easier to deal with than Windows drivers (for the end user). For example, to use a Wacom drawing tablet, all one has to do is plug it in.

As a completely new user who’s self-described as “not very tech savvy”, Arch is probably a terrible idea, and you should switch distros.

I really like Debian, but something like Linux Mint or Fedora might be wiser for you; all three hold your hand more, which would be very important in your case. Fedora and Debian specifically are designed to work well with KDE, although Fedora will have newer versions.

You certainly seem willing to learn (you got through the Arch install process), and I think you still have a great opportunity to enjoy Linux, but considering you’re calling the terminal emulator “Konsole”, your self-description is probably apt. FYI Konsole is just one application to access the terminal, kind of like how Firefox and Chrome are both web browsers, but you don’t use “Chrome” to refer to web browsers.

I admire your energetic here. I only installed the latest ubuntu (cause of latest gpu driver updates) then I installed steam from software center and it works nothing to do anymore.

Uninstall Arch and install Linux Mint. Give yourself that gift. It'd still be easier than installing Arch Linux, and you'll be way more comfortable most of the time in the long term. It's not that you can't use Arch, but their approach is not beginner-friendly.

You are 90% of the way there.

Just keep your system up to date (update packages weekly maybe) and you will be fine. The system mostly manages itself.

I recommend installing both the current kernel and an LTS kernel. If you ever have a problem with a driver or a filesystem or something after an update, just boot into LTS and you are back up and running.