this post was submitted on 12 Mar 2026
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Bloated electron apps are what makes Linux on desktop viable today at all, but you guys aren't ready for that conversation.
Yes, in that the existence of bloated electron apps tends to cause web apps to be properly maintained, as a side effect.
But thankfully, we don't actually have to use the Electron version, to benefit.
Unless it's Teams apparently, that's the last Electron app I want to install.
I can only think of a couple Electron apps I use, and none that are important or frequently used.
Uhhh like what?
Note, I don't know how comprehensive this wiki list is, just quick research
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_software_using_Electron
From those, I'm only currently using a handful.
balenaEtcher, Discord, Synergy, and Obsidian
The viability of linux isn't dependent on them though
Agreed. I wasn't the one that claimed that
It's dependant on being able to run everything anyone could possibly need. "I don't use it, therfore it is not essential" is the kind of approach that's always made it niche.
Of course Adobe is still missing.
My point was that a list of programs doesn't inherently determine whether or not Linux is a viable operating system, its viability varies based on each users workflow.
Spotify, Steam
Balena Etcher is a software crime though.
Steam UI uses chromium embedded framework which saves 50% of the ram and startup time.
What’s wrong with balena etcher?
It’s hundreds of megabytes for something that unetbootin, image writer, and others do in a couple of MBs.
Oh dang, is that the overheard of the software framework it uses? I think that’s what this thread was about but I can’t remember.
Yes, it’s built with electron. It’s a fancy web page and browser packaged as an app.