On Ma, 09 mar 21, 20:18:52, Cmdte Alpha Tigre Z wrote: > > Sorry, I wasn't very clear there. You are correct that 9 is still > > getting support, especially security updates. However, older versions > > of Debian don't get newer versions of the software. Not all security > > fixes can be backported. So there is a slow, imperceptible gap between > > older versions and newer. You are almost certainly just fine on 9 now, > > and will be until LTS support ends. But 10 will be more secure at some > > point. Right now, it's a judgment call you'll have to make. > > Well, I could try to wait a little with Debian 9 as I did with Windows 7. > > That thing of no software updates is very weird. > Windows 7 is many years old yet I can still use the latest version of > Firefox. > Isn't there a way to update user programs without updating > the operating system itself. I read there was something called backports, > but the warning about instability just terrifies me; > I know more or less how to fix Windows, but not Debian.
You should keep in mind that Debian is used in everything from a Raspberry Pi (equivalent) to super computers. Packages from backports are generally good enough to run even on "important" systems. For systems that are "mission critical"[1] you should do your own testing. Mind the instructions and only install selected packages from backports and you should be fine for a regular desktop. In the specific case of Firefox it seems the stable release (currently Debian 10) gets updated to the latest ESR (so you don't even need backports), while oldstable (currently Debian 9) is stuck at the previous version. [1] whatever that means for you Kind regards, Andrei -- http://wiki.debian.org/FAQsFromDebianUser
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