TL;DR: see title
Linux has many issues, but in comparison with other operating systems the only one that actually makes it a worse option is certain apps and games not working. Sure some distros suck, but you can just use the good ones. Sure drivers can be a pain, but plenty of distros do them for you. Yeah you’ll have some issues with Bluetooth or wifi or something like that sometimes, but no more often than on windows (mac too probably but I’ve never used Mac so idk).
Maybe you hate how windows is set up, maybe you hate how some de is set up, just use one that you like. Dont like gnome? Well despite many distros using it, it is not the only option. Try kde, try cinnamon (I hate it but it would be unfair to ignore it), try cosmic when it comes out or popshell in the meantime. Don’t want to lose your current os and be stuck here? Use a VM or dual boot.
All that works fine, it just takes a second to set things up how you want them to be and then you can just use your computer. With a “beginner” distro (I’d recommend pop os, tuxedo os, or mint) cli should be optional in everything you’d actually be doing. The only thing that is a genuine problem with Linux as a whole is that a lot of apps and games just aren’t compatible, be they a less popular app who’s users rely on it or a really popular game that refuses to enable Linux compatibility in EAC.
I know that projects like wine (and proton) are around and are making a lot of progress here, but this problem still remains the only one that an average user with a distro intended for normal use will be expected to deal with. What do y’all think?
Edit: fixed(?) spacing, hopefully it’s easier to read now
Edit 2: wanted to add that as far as I’ve seen, most of the time people have like one app that doesn’t work or doesn’t work properly while everything else works fine, and they are either unable or unwilling to switch.
The only thing that is a genuine problem with Linux as a whole is that a lot of apps and games just aren’t compatible, be they a less popular app who’s users rely on it or a really popular game that refuses to enable Linux compatibility in EAC.
To that I say: then pick a different program or way of doing things. I used to use a Mac over 15 years ago, and part of that experience is not being able to use certain programs that you can use on Windows and finding alternatives. Many companies have multiple versions, nowadays, but that wasn’t always the case, and it’s not uncommon to find programs that only work on one OS.
If your favorite game doesn’t work on Linux, there’s ways to solve that problem (e.g. dual boot, GPU passthrough to a VM), but 80% of games in ProtonDB are currently gold-rated or better without those measures. Many people miss the functionality of certain programs, so people create ones that do similar or even better things (Remmina is so much better than Remote Desktop Connection), or they can utilize web versions.
I get that there are occasions where you just can’t make something work, but I would say that for the majority of users, their “unsolvable needs” stem from credulity where they can’t imagine any other way than using “Program.exe.”
It’s up to us to help new users find those new ways to do things.
Slightly off topic but after years of using CorelDraw it’s so hard to pick up inkscape.
I use Linux on my home laptop now and try to use FOSS software on work laptop (it’s still Windows 10), and I try to stay with Inkscape as much as possible, but some things are just muscle memory at this point and some workflows can’t be replicated with Inkscape.
It’s not hard to change software, it’s hard to chage habits and workflows.
Other than that, Inkscape is great software, only missing a few features I wish were there, and having many more features that CorelDraw doesn’t have.
I agree.
For people like us, we just adapt. Mainstream users don’t, and the most popular software is currently unsupported:
Apps
- Adobe
- Autodesk
- Microsoft Office
- QuickBooks, Quicken, TurboTax
- FL studio
- Ableton Live
- Solidworks
- Final draft
- SketchUp
Games
- Fortnite
- FIFA
- Apex
- Valorant
- LOL
- Madden
- GTA
- Valorant
- Rainbow Six Siege
- Destiny 2
- Roblox
Fair enough. FYI I have played Apex and Rainbow on Linux before, without issue. As for Riot games: LOL → Dota, Valorant (shows up twice in your list) → CS2. It’s true that a tun of big-budget software is purposely made unavailable to the Linux community, and I’ll always forgive someone who can’t switch because of these wretched companies, but do note that I was a Valorant player before I 100% gave up Windows. I sucked it up and stopped playing. Worth it.
Yeah but the thing about being unsupported is that they can pull the plug anytime, like it happened with Apex.
I also let go things from my Windows past, namely the Adobe suite which I depended on for work. I freaking love Inkscape now more than Illustrator.
But normal users won’t suck anything up.
In the professional space:
Add Altium, KNX, pspice, LTSpice (luckily works in wine), and for us electronics/electric guys lol.
Linux is a 3rd class citizen in ANSYS simulation tools. Slow updates, old UI, etc… On Linux. Pretty much only used as a simulation node for kicking on sims from windows since Linux machines can be >1TB RAM + 144± core powerhouses where windows sucks on those type of machines.
Pretty much all architecture software
Many ERP systems desktop apps
Not to mention a lot of companies use active directory for access control + sharepoint
Web apps suck, but have been very helpful in Linux compatibility in the enterprise space since the devs only have to care about 1 set of production builds.
At my work, software guys and mechatronics PLC focused guys get away with Ubuntu (saleae is great), but for electronics and mechanicals it is not even worth it to dual boot.
hey fl studio runs fairly well in wine, ive done full projects with some third party plugins and it was usuable, only issue was lowered performance andvitall’s graphics were flickering
A lot of these apps CAN run to different degrees, but the process to get it done isn’t straightforward enough for normal users who expect to download it from the app store or the official web page and just click the installer, on top of that… there’s the possibility that it could stop working anytime, since it is officially unsupported. If people depend on the app, they won’t change the app, they just won’t switch to Linux.
yeeeaaa, technically it should be as easy as installing wine and then just running exes, but wine doesnt install some fonts/dependencies by default (which is the whole reason lutris/bottles/proton exists) and may not have all the necesary api calls for some apps, pain in the arse, can we just get user friendly wine plzzz
Linux is the best it’s ever been but it’s still too complicated for normal people. Most people don’t even know what a VM or a driver is. I would disagree that drivers are no more of an issue on Linux than Windows. You can plug upwards of 99% of devices into Windows and they’ll just work. Barely and vendors provide support for Linux, not that that’s the fault of anyone really. I can understand why vendors don’t want to commit resources and Linux can’t have built in support for everything.
I haven’t had any device that wasn’t recognized by Linux in 15 years. Do you have examples of hardware that “normal people” use and does not work?
Idk I don’t miss anything. We got good software too, some of which is Linux specific or simply works best there. Get a PS5 and call it a day
I’m at the point where I still miss some Windows functionality but at the same time I’ve been on Linux for half a year now and can say with absolute certainty that there are now things that I would miss from Linux if I switched back to Windows.
So both OS can now irritate me equally in different ways.
