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One point that caught my eye is: "Linux enthusiasts perpetually claim that this year is the year that Linux will finally make headway into the desktop for the

One point that caught my eye is: "Linux enthusiasts perpetually claim that this year is the year that Linux will finally make headway into the desktop for the everyday user — but it never has and never will." I guess the author has a (much coveted) crystal ball.

metalliqaz 9y ago
Oh stop it. Is anyone seriously expecting Linux to take over the desktop anymore? Ubuntu is embedded in Windows now for cripes sakes! Be happy with the world's servers and cell phones.
- aplummer 9y ago
  Difference between "never will" emphasised and "likely never will"
  - metalliqaz 9y ago
    I'm afraid I'm not able to discern your meaning from that little snippet, but... I am willing to go on record now as saying "never will". It hasn't happened yet and the desktop is already dying. The mobile space is the juggernaut now and through Android, Linux is the biggest player.
    - aqsalose 9y ago
      >the desktop is already dying. I once heard a joke that the Year of the Linux Desktop will be when the Linux users are the only desktop users left.
    - flukus 9y ago
      In what way is the desktop dying?
- yellowapple 9y ago
  The closest thing to a "Year of the Linux Desktop" is the growing popularity of ChromeOS. Nowhere near rivaling Windows, sure, but not entirely obscure either, and certainly not with a "steep learning curve" (come on MakeUseOf; it ain't 2005 anymore, you can cool it with the tired "Linux is hard to use" crap).
  - freehunter 9y ago
    The Linux systems that get brought up in these arguments have a lot of non-default helper programs that obfuscate the underlying OS and remove really any reason to be using Linux in the first place other than it's free and it runs on everything. I mean, yeah Android is nice. And it technically runs Linux. But so does my wifi router... just because I plugged it in and logged into the web interface doesn't mean I can, with a straight face, claim that I am a Linux user. Does having a laptop that boots straight into a browser without showing anything lower level than that really count as Linux? Does it really make me a Linux user?
    - bittermang 9y ago
      > Does having a laptop that boots straight into a browser without showing anything lower level than that really count as Linux? Does it really make me a Linux user? That's the attitude that keeps Year of the Linux [whatever] from happening. Just because you haven't recompiled your kernel to get some odd library working doesn't mean you're not a Linux user. The idea of a true Linux user is a fallacy in league with there being no true Scotsmen.
      - squeaky-clean 9y ago
        > That's the attitude that keeps Year of the Linux [whatever] from happening. I don't think it's the attitude stopping it. I think it's that ChromeOS has a 0.82% market share and other Linux distros have a 1.66% market share, while Windows and Mac make up 95% http://gs.statcounter.com/os-market-share/desktop/ http://gs.statcounter.com/os-market-share/desktop/
      - freehunter 9y ago

metalliqaz 9y ago

Oh stop it. Is anyone seriously expecting Linux to take over the desktop anymore? Ubuntu is embedded in Windows now for cripes sakes! Be happy with the world's servers and cell phones.

aplummer 9y ago
Difference between "never will" emphasised and "likely never will"
- metalliqaz 9y ago
  I'm afraid I'm not able to discern your meaning from that little snippet, but... I am willing to go on record now as saying "never will". It hasn't happened yet and the desktop is already dying. The mobile space is the juggernaut now and through Android, Linux is the biggest player.
  - aqsalose 9y ago
    >the desktop is already dying. I once heard a joke that the Year of the Linux Desktop will be when the Linux users are the only desktop users left.
  - flukus 9y ago
    In what way is the desktop dying?
yellowapple 9y ago
The closest thing to a "Year of the Linux Desktop" is the growing popularity of ChromeOS. Nowhere near rivaling Windows, sure, but not entirely obscure either, and certainly not with a "steep learning curve" (come on MakeUseOf; it ain't 2005 anymore, you can cool it with the tired "Linux is hard to use" crap).
- freehunter 9y ago
  The Linux systems that get brought up in these arguments have a lot of non-default helper programs that obfuscate the underlying OS and remove really any reason to be using Linux in the first place other than it's free and it runs on everything. I mean, yeah Android is nice. And it technically runs Linux. But so does my wifi router... just because I plugged it in and logged into the web interface doesn't mean I can, with a straight face, claim that I am a Linux user. Does having a laptop that boots straight into a browser without showing anything lower level than that really count as Linux? Does it really make me a Linux user?
  - bittermang 9y ago
    > Does having a laptop that boots straight into a browser without showing anything lower level than that really count as Linux? Does it really make me a Linux user? That's the attitude that keeps Year of the Linux [whatever] from happening. Just because you haven't recompiled your kernel to get some odd library working doesn't mean you're not a Linux user. The idea of a true Linux user is a fallacy in league with there being no true Scotsmen.
    - squeaky-clean 9y ago
      > That's the attitude that keeps Year of the Linux [whatever] from happening. I don't think it's the attitude stopping it. I think it's that ChromeOS has a 0.82% market share and other Linux distros have a 1.66% market share, while Windows and Mac make up 95% http://gs.statcounter.com/os-market-share/desktop/ http://gs.statcounter.com/os-market-share/desktop/
    - freehunter 9y ago