Why I prefer a rolling Linux distribution

I use NixOS as the Linux distribution on my laptop and home server, and specifically the unstable channel.

This is the "rolling" version of NixOS that is continuously updated with the newest and latest packages, compared to the stable releases like 24.11 and 25.05 that are released twice a year.

I don't necessarily do this to get the latest packages.

I do it to keep on top of configuration changes.

I run "nix flake update" usually once a week to download the latest updates.

If there are breaking changes or notices since I last updated, I can address them and do it iteratively rather than waiting to do them every six months.

Similar to application deployments, I update early and often.

One of the great things about NixOS is, if there is an application that breaks on the unstable branch, I can pin it to the stable release until it works again.

This means I get the benefits of both the rolling and stable approaches.

If you want to see my NixOS configuration, it's publicly available on my Forgejo instance.