Do you really not understand that most people don’t want to use custom i3 configs?
I have machines where I run Alpine with sway customized. I have had machines where I've run without a DE at all. I've customized things that weren't meant to be, and not customized things that were.
But if I want something where I can walk up to any somewhat modern machine (currently typing this on an old Alienware running pop), and install an OS that gives me an i3-like environment with no extra work? Pop is fantastic. There are things that I would do differently. But they're minor and being able to just go is worth a lot.
And then cosmic was even worse by changing the behavior of the super key completely.
Both of these things broke my workflow for things i never asked for.
I like pop and their polish compared to ubuntu [0]. I really hate it when software breaks my workflow.
Are you sure you had to break things for them instead of only hijacking it when tiling is enabled?
And that still doesn't address hijacking the super key completely with cosmic.
Sorry but imo these things have been handled really poorly.