Firefox snap updates for non-technical users

[Andrew J. Caines]

On 9/1/22 13:23, Ralf Mardorf via ubuntu-users wrote:
> What's the rational behind an LTS with snaps?

At least in the case of web browsers I think it reflects a fundamental
change to to age-old "stable" platform to accommodate the fact that the
modern web browser is itself a platform which must be kept up-to-date on
a very short timescale in order to remain safe and operational.

The vast majority of users of a "stable" OS want it to boot and run
reliably, but also to run various current tools. This has always
presented a conflict for sysadmins who had to work around the platform
provided old version versus more current version from the vendor and/or
third party packager which varies by platform.
Snaps and Flatpaks create a consistent cross-platform option to achieve
this, with vendor-supported ones being especially attractive.

While no sane person wants to deal with an environment (especially with
Internet access) in which all software only ever gets security (but no
other) fixes for years, with some wise choices (e.g. ESR browser
versions) and engineering effort, it remains possible, but costly.

--
-Andrew J. Caines-   Unix Systems Architect   A.J.Caines at halplant.com
   "Machines take me by surprise with great frequency" - Alan Turing