Linux looking better by the minute.
I hope this will make some Windows users stop and seriously consider Linux. Let’s say you are a Windows power user who will try to fight this and all the other shit and try to unscrew their OS well why not just spent this energy on getting really familiar with Linux and becoming a cool Linux power user?
And of course the switch is way easier for people who just use their computer to browse the internet, watch videos and play some games… just go on youtube and see what this Linux thing looks like and how easy it is to use.
Windows VMs are absolutely horrible and I advise anyone reading this to not try them. They use so much memory and have all the issues of Windows (because they are literally Windows). At that point, you might as well just run Windows instead of running a bunch of mini-Windows that each hog up like 2gb of ram each and update randomly on you.
The problem is, there are almost no computers with Linux preinstalled, and Linux doesn’t have a good enough “app” ecosystem. There’s Flatpak and Snap, but those probably aren’t entirely ideal yet. And even programs with Linux versions don’t have a download link on their websites like people are used to, which is frustrating. Linux distros also don’t have good enough onboarding. They need tutorials or something that guide people through first time use.
there are almost no computers with Linux preinstalled
This is the only issue with Linux adoption. Most people are not aware that there are viable alternatives to Windows or that their computer can even run anything other than Windows. If computers came with Linux preinstalled, Linux usage would rise accordingly. Native (proprietary, closed-source) application support for Linux would rise also to meet this new demand (overwhelming majority of open-source apps support Linux already).
Linux doesn’t have a good enough “app” ecosystem.
Linux has an amazing app ecosystem. The overwhelming majority of open-source apps support Linux natively. Many proprietary (closed-sourced) apps support Linux natively too, most of the rest being compatible with Wine (a program that allows you to run most Windows programs on Linux). In fact, many of the apps you use on a daily basis are actually open-source and support Linux natively. Most others have comparable or even superior open-source alternatives available on Linux.
There’s Flatpak and Snap, but those probably aren’t entirely ideal yet.
Flatpak and Snap are simply not needed. All Linux distributions already come with a package manager which solves the problems of dependency management (which mind you, Windows does nothing to solve, causing this infamous phenomenon called ‘DLL hell’).
Your package manager does things such as:
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automatic (hands-free) installation of applications
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automatic (hands-free) updating of applications
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automatically notifying you if your applications are outdated
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automatic (hands-free) uninstalling of applications
Flatpak and Snap are solutions in search of a problem that doesn’t exist.
And even programs with Linux versions don’t have a download link on their websites like people are used to, which is frustrating.
Linux distributions come with package managers, which allow you to search and install programs without ever going onto random websites, downloading random executables, and running said random executables with admin privileges.
The fact that Windows users are forced to even do such a thing is an absolute travesty for security, even creating an entire industry around “anti-virus” software that is supposed to stop users from accidentally running malware.
To have programs maintained by trusted persons completely sidesteps the problem of getting malware bundled into your random applications off the internet.
Linux distros also don’t have good enough onboarding. They need tutorials or something that guide people through first time use.
There are a million different tutorials on getting onto Linux. They are even featured on mainstream tech sites and such. It is impossible to miss them.
Flatpak and Snap are simply not needed. All Linux distributions already come with a package manager which solves the problems of dependency management (which mind you, Windows does nothing to solve, causing this infamous phenomenon called ‘DLL hell’).
You realize every package in a distro’s package manager is maintained and tested by the developers of that distro right? You can’t just make an app and have it work with any Linux distro, with any package manager, that’s now how that’s designed. All package manager packages work with specific dependency versions and specific versions of libc. Which is why flatpak and snap exist, so you can bundle your own dependencies. And package managers actually can have DLL hell (if you use a 3rd party repository) unlike Windows programs, because Windows programs simply bundle all their libraries (like a Flatpak/Snap app). With most package managers, you can usually only have one version of a package installed, which mostly works because it’s all maintained by the same people. Linus Torvalds himself has pointed this stuff out. Nobody is going to develop, maintain, and do customer support for software for 20 different Linux distros, and no distro maintainer is going to be able to publish every single program to their central repository.
The fact that Windows users are forced to even do such a thing is an absolute travesty for security, even creating an entire industry around “anti-virus” software that is supposed to stop users from accidentally running malware.
Except in the age of the web browser, going to a website and downloading software is one of the easiest ways to get software. And if software is signed, then it’s unlikely to have malware, and if it is sandboxed like Flatpak/Snap, then it’s less likely that the malware can do anything.
Linux distributions come with package managers, which allow you to search and install programs without ever going onto random websites, downloading random executables, and running said random executables with admin privileges.
Flatpak also has Flathub (which has actual, up to date software, like Firefox and Steam), and there’s a similar service for Snap.
Of the 3 main things I use my computer for which is web browsing, cad, and gaming Linux only does 1 of the 3. the game I play most doesn’t run on Linux and will ban people who use workarounds like proton or wine. The cad programs I need only have windows versions available. For all the good things Linux has , it can not do what I need. Until software makers make everything for Linux, windows still won’t be replaced
