On notifications if Google play services is not installed unless the app let’s you configure another server to use in place notifications won’t work that use Google Play services installed on the back end.

If sandboxed Google play services is installed, assure it has the neccisiary permission to run in the background (unrestricted battery and network) access. Not just the individual apps, but the google apps specifically as Graphene installs thegoogle stuff with standard permissions.

Same goes for apps that run in the background. If you expect them to be running in the background to auto update or perform another function then it needs to be permitted in the battery settings. Background updates may also rely on Google Play services.

Edit: to clarify I haven’t experienced any issues myself that weren’t directly related to my decision to not use sandboxes google play services (no push notifications) despite daily driving for years. It’s a particularly old and reliable project in the privacy space, and while I’m sorry you experienced issues that doesn’t make it an unstable project not ready as a daily driver (any more that somebody having issues with Windows/Linux makes those unstable and not ready to be daily driven).

Gemini? The protocol equivalent to the cyber Amish?

Oh, Google stuff. Meh

Sorry, but it is tech-y. Not out of reach by anybody who is interested in learning, but ask the average person to self sign their drivers (required for any Nvidea card if you want to game and don’t turn on legacy bios). Or maybe you want the latest version of Spotify on Mint and therefore need to add flathub using the terminal. With help or research, sure, not hard concepts to grasp. Without help though, it’d probably be a dealbrealer.

And once you’ce done both of those I’d consider you ‘tech-y’

1. Not Snap
2. Not Snap
3. Not Snap
4. Not Snap

Nuff said

Fire up a VM to scratch that itch or change up your desktop environment if you feel like it.

Unless you have a specific need that can’t be met on your distro you’re probably not missing much other than “ooh shiny” and some fun tinkering with something new.

If it’s KDE that’s causing issues you should just be able to install a second desktop environment and try that out.

Otherwise, Debian stable is good. Can also testing or unstable if you want newer packages. Debian “just works” if you’re not on day 1 hardware, don’t have Nvidia graphics, and can troubleshoot the occasional issue that any Linux distro will bring.

I think the issue could be that it’s forcing the companies to include it, even if the company can include alternatives as well or when user can just ignore it. Not a lawyer, but back when Apple was in the courts I heard social media lawyers saying that Google actually had a worse prospect because when you force your competitors (other non-google phone makers that use Android forks) to bundle G Play/Services it can be considered “tying”. Then if a company just uses the GPL code without following the contractual rules like that they can’t advertise Android and it it could hurt their market share.

I use Joplin for notes, though if you want daily notes specifically “Diary” might also be a good choice.

nor is the Play Store promoted over their native app stores on those devices

Google actually forces it’s installation if you want to use the android trademark. It’d probably be pretty hard to market “MotorolaOS”

They force anybody using the android trademark to include Google Play/Services, not a lawyer but I think that’s “tying” when they force you to use one thing with something else.

And juries are unpredictable.