Yeah, they're just scared of something new. I've been using Linux on and off since 2014 and let me tell you, it's leagues better than what it was then. It's shocking how easy it was for me to do the full switch.
Comments
Log in with your Bluesky account to leave a comment
my go to recommendation at this point is go dig out an old laptop you weren't using and throw Linux mint on it as a self teaching tool. your main box might need to run an app you can't use on linux and that's fine, but that old laptop? learn on it
This is basically what I tell people. "Don't dual boot, use an old system, preferably a laptop". These days I use Windows less and less. The last time I booted my VM to do something was because I wanted to compile an android app and not add 20-50GBs of God knows what to my Linux install.
And before that was a month prior when I yoinked some DLLs to get Halo MCC working properly in proton as that was the quickest way to find them. It's basically a disposable environment for me at this point.
i think its easier to learn than windows is these days but learning anything new is gonna require *some* effort and most people just explain that effort as linux itself being hard. it's not uniquely hard its just unfamiliar
Honestly, I fully agree. It's quite different but these days it's no harder, just different places to find the troubleshooting steps and different steps to take. My biggest worry was multi monitor on X11 as XFCE is a must for me. That was the last painful part of my switch though lol.
Never heard of niri. I always like to see what's out there. I just built my workflow into XFCE that I'm stuck here and have been stuck here for 7 years haha.
Niri is really cool, it's basically an infinite horizontal screen that you can scroll through. Lots of potential for the visually impared, and also great for those of us with ADHD.
Linux largely suffers from a reputation problem brought on by its core user base, the kind of 1970s computer hobbyist who says “it’s easy if you just crack open the case, install a couple jumpers, and intercept the boot cycle”
Have you used Linux recently? A lot of things can be done graphically on KDE and GNOME. And the stuff in the terminal is as easy of a search away as any Windows problem.
That’s exactly I’m talking about though. “It’s a one-line install with pecl” works fine for you and me, but most people looking for an alternative to windows don’t even know what the terminal *is*
I have never installed via terminal. Graphical installers are actually easier than the one on windows because they don't try to make you get a Hotmail/outlook/whatever.
That used to be a huge problem.
Lately, I'd say installing Ubuntu is easier than installing windows 11.
Even if you have the right hardware.
Last time I tried it asked me to create an account and find some weird drivers
Exactly this. And the way around it is a powershell script which is no different than that 1 line in the terminal to get your 2004 printer working again. Like people will complain but it's really just the same struggles with a different coat of paint.
You can easily open Word and a browser, install things by clicking, and have compatibility for any video game you want out the box for Windows. It's way easier for people than learning how to sudo
Until the smooth cursor animation in word drives you nuts and you spend time digging in menus to disable it, the video games stop working because Windows automatically updated your GPU drivers to a broken version, or you click to install a virus because there's no official way to install things.
all i'm saying is that if you found someone who has never seen a computer before, you would have an easier time teaching them linux than windows. windows is only "easy" because it's what people are used to
Comments
Niri is really cool, it's basically an infinite horizontal screen that you can scroll through. Lots of potential for the visually impared, and also great for those of us with ADHD.
Lately, I'd say installing Ubuntu is easier than installing windows 11.
Even if you have the right hardware.
Last time I tried it asked me to create an account and find some weird drivers
Easily in the top 20 syndromes.