I'm already using NixOS on my private laptop (sticking with macOS for work), but Nix on other OS's keeps tempting me. We're working on an application that needs

I'm already using NixOS on my private laptop (sticking with macOS for work), but Nix on other OS's keeps tempting me. We're working on an application that needs to pull a whole bunch of "weird" dependencies, from all over the place: a specific version of Python, PyPI, apt/homebrew, binary-only proprietary software, etc. So far the answer has always been Docker and a specific release of Debian/Ubuntu, but keeping the code running on the host OS is always desirable, because there are occasionally features that need to work with host hardware, like audio. My problem with Nix is, just like Rust, while it provides a very high ROI, the barrier to entry seems very steep; and unlike Rust, the documentation still leaves a lot to wish for. I'd go all-in on it right now, but I'm (rightfully, I guess?) scared of Nix-unique problems that will take 10x the effort to address than the mess that we're currently dealing with.