Right now I am using Ubuntu GNOME and Windows 8 dual boot on the same hard drive. But my Gnome desktop is laggy and I do not like it very much. Because of that, I am thinking about switching to a KDE desktop. I searched a bit and I found Chakra, and I like it very much. The problem is that it is a rolling release, which means it is not as stable as a LTS version. Could that be a problem for dual boot?I assume the risks of using one, but I don't want to also damage my windows install if something breaks. Is it even possible for that to happen?
Rolling Release Dual Boot
linux;dual boot;rolling release
Not really, no. While LTS releases are indeed more stable, that does not mean that rolling releases are inherently unstable. It just means that they might have updates that break something more often. It will still be rare though. More importantly, it is very hard for a problem in Linux to affect your Windows install. Yes, it is possible, but no, it is no more likely with a rolling release than with an LTR one. To affect your Windows install your Linux will have to somehow write to the Windows partition and there is no reason why it should. The systems are completely separate and, unless you do something like format the Windows drive by mistake, they will remain so.Another point worth making is that there is absolutely no reason to change distributions if you just want to change your desktop environment (DE). You can install KDE on your current OS, no need to change OSs just to get a facelift!While in recent years DEs have gotten more complex and intrusive, you can still switch between them. On Ubuntu, just runsudo apt-get install kde-desktopYou might loose some branding, your system will suddenly believe it is Kubuntu but there shouldn't be any serious issues. The worst that might happen is that a few applications won't look quite right. For example, I have Cinnamon and XFCE4 installed on my machine and they can coexist quite happily.The bottom line is 1) no, a rolling distribution is no danger to your Windows and 2) changing OS to change desktop environments is like buying a new car because you need to change your headlights.