11 ms·

Switching my home computer to Linux has had its problems since I'm an avid gamer, but the more news I read about Windows the less I regret that decision.

by moss2 5y ago

sslayer 5y ago
I ditched in the middle of Windows 7, with absolutely no regrets. Valve has made tremendous inroads in gaming with Proton, along with developers releasing for Linux, there really isn't a good excuse to stay with Microsoft.
- AnIdiotOnTheNet 5y ago
  Sure their is: Windows is a better fit for the things I do with a computer. Edit: I know right? How dare I express a preference for Windows. Downvote me to hell because I don't like using your favored OS.
  - robador 5y ago
    Is Windows the better fit or is it the software that runs on it that doesn't have linux support?
    - AnIdiotOnTheNet 5y ago
      It's the OS. The application distribution model is, in my opinion, significantly better than Linux and it's package management/repo scheme. I don't have to recompile old software to keep using it 2 years later (or 10 for that matter), I can place applications on different disks than the OS resides on, I can keep multiple versions of the same application, etc.
    - hulitu 5y ago
      No and no. Windows is "the better fit" because: 1) AD. 2) corruption (it's a very long story, see Munich for one). 3) anticompetitive behavior. 4) Excel.
    - MomoXenosaga 5y ago
      Is there a difference really? Microsoft spent years and literally billions to get developers on their OS (see Balmer's "developers developers developers" speech in the nineties). Of course some people consider this evil.
  - finalis 5y ago
    I used to think that too before I made the switch to macOS. Yes it was a learning curve initially, but it wasn't unmanageable, and you start to uncover Windows annoyances that you never knew existed because you were used to them and conditioned into thinking they were normal for so long. You'd be surprised how flexible your needs are when you aren't pigeonholing yourself.
    - AnIdiotOnTheNet 5y ago
      I have used other operating systems, including Linux and MacOS. While I am fond of MacOS Application Bundles, I do not like many other things, like single-button mice, limited choice in hardware, and relative lack of gaming.
      - djxfade 5y ago
        Apple's mice haven't been single button since ages ago. Right click works out of the box, and all of their own mice also supports right clicking in various ways
        salamandersauce 5y ago
        Yet they still build the Magic mouse as though it was a single button mouse so it doesn't actually have 2 separate switches, just 1 in the middle. This annoyingly means that clicks don't always click if you're too far from the center. Apple has never actually built a mouse with 2 distinct switches for left and right click. It's like they are too proud or something and "right" click needs to be faked for some reason.
        djxfade 5y ago
        Sure, but to be fair, most laptops these days does the same.
      - vetinari 5y ago
        You know you can connect any USB mice you want, right? Right now, I'm using a Steelseries one with a Mac. All six buttons and the scroll-wheel work fine.
  - l30n4da5 5y ago
    for the most part, HN is pretty squarely in the 'windows bad linux good' camp. It is dumb af since according to a lot of the users on here, linux is gods gift to humanity. doesn't matter that pretty much all software is a dumpster fire, and linux is just another, less hot dumpster fire compared to windows.
    - sneak 5y ago
      This is a false equivalence.
      - l30n4da5 5y ago
        how, exactly?
    - hanselot 5y ago
      At least in Linux the dumpster fire's contents isn't hidden behind a corporate framework of people trying to hide the flames. At least the Linux fire doesn't attempt to take over other trashcans and force you to update your trash without consent. At least the Linux fire doesn't preinstall its fire in my trashcan artifically driving up the price of trashcans in the market. At least in the Linux fire, if you apply yourself and learn enough about your trash, you can choose how much trash and fire is in your trashcan. At least in the Linux fire, the fire tells you that its dangerous, instead of hiding everything behind stripped down excuses of flames from yester-year. At least in the Linux fire I can plan to barbecue something over a section of fire and know that it will consistently burn the same way, instead of spreading everywhere and the trashcan exploding. The irony of course being, that the people who argue for any other fire, have to first answer, why does Windows now feature Linux embedded inside itself?
    - bogwog 5y ago
      > doesn't matter that pretty much all software is a dumpster fire, and linux is just another, less hot dumpster fire compared to windows. Yeah, but the difference is that Linux is MY dumpster fire, not Microsoft's!
      - 5y ago
  - mmsimanga 5y ago
    I am guessing down votes are not for expressing your opinion but rather for not providing context. Why is Windows better option for you?
    - AnIdiotOnTheNet 5y ago
      Why would it matter? So they could try and change my mind?[0] That I prefer the way Windows works is sufficient reason to continue to use it instead of Linux Desktop. Why is not really relevant. [0] I've played that game a thousand times and it is always an exercise in frustration. No thanks.
      - kempbellt 5y ago
        "Windows good, you can't change my mind!" doesn't add anything of value to the conversation, especially for people who aren't dead-set either way. If you swear by windows, you probably have good reasons. People who like windows would love to hear them. Otherwise, why partake in a conversation that frustrates you at all if you don't want to argue in support of your opinion? +1 for the windows camp: Personally, I haven't found a better alternative for running Adobe programs on good hardware without taking out a loan on my house (mac pros are a no-go). So Windows works best here. Another +1 for the windows camp: Gaming (but SteamOS is starting to compete here). Other than that, I have found that some variant of linux or macOS outperforms windows in every way for my needs (insert obligatory, YMMV), and I am happy to list those out if anyone is interested or needs help deciding which OS suits their needs best.
        AnIdiotOnTheNet 5y ago
        > "Windows good, you can't change my mind!" doesn't add anything of value to the conversation I was making a specific counterpoint to the argument "there really isn't a good excuse to stay with Microsoft". My point needed no elaboration to be valid. > Otherwise, why partake in a conversation that frustrates you at all if you don't want to argue in support of your opinion? Because in my experience said "conversations" always devolve into the same useless arguments, which are entirely irrelevant to the point that people have good reasons they use Windows because anyone else's opinion of their reasons is irrelevant.
  - talentedcoin 5y ago
    Don’t let the haters drag you down. Myself I think Windows is fine (I work in finance). I use Fedora at home as my daily driver but lots of things on Windows are just as easy (or as tricky) to get running as they are anywhere else.
- hnlmorg 5y ago
  I switched to Linux with the release of XP. Later versions of XP (SP2 and 3) were better with their service packs offering new features that really should have been in vanilla XP. But the original release of XP was slower than Windows 2000, uglier than Windows 2000 and required twice as much system resources as Windows 2000 while offering literally nothing in return aside a little more compatibility for gaming. But since all of the Windows games I played already supported Windows 2000 (bar the DOS games but I kept Win95 about for DOS games) there was no benefit in upgrading to XP. So I switched to Linux instead. So it's been nearly 20 years running Linux and honestly I've never once missed Windows. I've never got people who said "I can't run x" because everything I've needed to work has worked or there has been some open source alternative that has worked equally well. And if I really needed a corporate platform there was always OSX. Unfortunately macOS these days is becoming a similar cesspool as Windows. Before long the only good operating systems left will ironically be the free ones.
- pebble 5y ago
  Can you watch youtube videos with hardware acceleration yet?
  - zamadatix 5y ago
    Facetious question but for a genuine response: Firefox yes, your distro's Chromium package yes, but Chrome proper is still refusing to enable it though (they allowed you to toggle it for a bit after 88 the retracted that in 91).
    - pebble 5y ago
      Not being facetious at all. I'm replying to "there really isn't a good excuse to stay with Microsoft." and last I checked browser video acceleration on linux with nvidia was still broken, no matter whose fault that is. I'd love to use linux but It's hard to say everyone should use linux when in 2021 not everyone even has proper video acceleration.
  - a1369209993 5y ago
    Yes. Download them with youtube-dl and use whatever hardware-accelerated video player you like. (Bonus: Youtube can no longer steal them out from under you at the behest of copyright trolls, because they're on your harddrive.)
- naosouumapessoa 5y ago
  > there really isn’t a good excuse to stay with Microsoft Except, if you run nvidia optimus laptop and have mixed display DPI. Every few months I try to run Arch on my recent laptop and it’s always a nightmare. I was hyped that 470 driver would fix wayland in nvidia (the only half decent way to fix mixed DPIs on Linux). Lo and behold, It’s still a buggy mess that made me crawl back to windows. Maybe on 570 I will be able to use Linux on this laptop, likely never.
  - ahefner 5y ago
    So don't do that, then.
    - zamadatix 5y ago
      "There's no reason to go to McDonald's instead of Applebee's" "Except if you want to use the drive through" "So don't do that then" Avoiding it personally doesn't alleviate that there is still a reason.
  - Zambyte 5y ago
    > mixed display DPI. I believe Wayland may be better than X with this, but my displays have the same DPI so I haven't tested myself. My displays do have different refresh rates and Wayland handles that better in my experience. NVIDIA has been slow on the Wayland front though, but I think they may have made decent progress with recent driver releases.
  - adrian_b 5y ago
    In recent years I have used only laptops with non-Optimus NVIDIA, and on these I had no problems in Linux with multiple monitors with different resolutions, even if I do not use Wayland. The NVIDIA settings program allows you to configure the monitors at any resolutions and in any geometric arrangement. Some 6-7 years ago, I had a laptop with Optimus NVIDIA and I lost a couple of days until making it work. After that I had no problems, but the external monitor had the same resolution with the laptop display, so I have never tried mixed DPI with Optimus. In any case, after that I have avoided Optimus and there are enough alternatives.
- zamadatix 5y ago
  Valve has made it so Linux is finally back to the point "Linux has games it can run that I can play" but it's still a far cry from reaching "Games that I play I can run on Linux". For some it's not a problem but for those that play games from developers which use kernel level anti-cheat Proton isn't a be-all-end-all that Linux is now ready to migrate to.
- ghastmaster 5y ago
  I was so happy with Linux, I switched my 80+ yo grandmother's computer as well. My father now runs it on his laptop. For the average user who does not game, windows is not recommended by me. Linux has stopped me in my tracks a few times, but I fiddle with things. My grandmother and father haven't had any issues in the years they have had it installed.
sneak 5y ago
I have a computer that runs Windows, exclusively for playing video games, and I have another computer for doing work, that will never run Windows outside of a VM.
ajoseps 5y ago
recently switched off of Windows to using PopOS. Really impressed how everything kinda just worked out the box. I'm very excited to see if Valve's proton will push more people to Linux and in general, improve the desktop experience.
- physicles 5y ago
  PopOS on a Thinkpad is the best Linux experience I’ve ever had, by far. The far-field microphone even works.
kempbellt 5y ago
I set up a LAN box for my parents on a computer that my dad received for free. It came with Windows 10 on it, but wasn't very powerful - company's old hardware. After several...frustrating...hours of trying to talk them through things over the phone to get RDP working, just so I could install Docker to run some containers that didn't even work properly with networking, and having to call/text any time the machine thought it was smarter than me and rebooted because of an update, I finally drove out there, wiped it, and threw linux on it (Ubuntu 20, which serves the purposes I need). The entire installation process took about 15 minutes because I was explaining it to my dad as I installed it. Zero headache since it was plugged in next to the router and powered on weeks ago, and the performance on the running containers makes it feel like a brand new computer compared to trying to run them in Windows. I run a Windows desktop locally for gaming. I've heard good things about SteamOS and have been toying with switching, but I'm put off by the idea of trying to re-flash Windows if it doesn't work. Personally, I'll be happy when I no longer need Windows even for gaming.
- malka 5y ago
  Gaming is my only use case with windows, and I am filled with deep hatred each time I have to boot this OS.
  - doctorsher 5y ago
    I agree completely. I have Windows at home for gaming, and Windows at work (because those are the laptops we get). It's rough. The only thing that makes this bearable is Windows Subsystem for Linux. Side note: if you end up dual booting your gaming PC, please learn from my mistakes and disable Fast Startup before you do. Otherwise you're going to have a bad time.
  - bogwog 5y ago
    Which games do you play that don't work on Linux? Because I switched to it a long time ago and haven't looked back. Proton and Wine are excellent nowadays, and 99% of what I want to play works, with the rest usually just a short `protontricks ...` command away from working. The only stuff that is completely broken is Easy Anticheat and BattleEye, but those will supposedly be working when the new Steam Deck starts shipping.
MeinBlutIstBlau 5y ago
I love Linux, but it's still like a glass house. One simple terminal command out of curiosity will basically force you to reinstall the OS. If you're response to that is "well you should know what you're doing before you run as sudo," all I can say is no. There is no reason why changing a DE, or installing certain software should make it nigh impossible to revert to previous changes short of being an expert or full reinstall. Plus minor quirks with every single one. It gets tedious fast to the point that I just want to develop. I don't want to mess around with why I can't use this piece of software because of some configuration issue related to Linux. I just want it to work. When I'm on Linux, more often then not I'd rather just not have complicated software as I'm used to on Windows or Mac. Linux is where you go when you borderline have to expect something isn't going to work or you'll need to do a reinstall at some point. I've never felt that way about Windows or Mac unless my root drive felt bloated and it was entirely optional.
- danieldk 5y ago
  > I love Linux, but it's still like a glass house. One simple terminal command out of curiosity will basically force you to reinstall the OS. Counterpoints: * Fedora Silverblue provides an immutable base OS with atomic updates/rollbacks. Makes it hard to mess up your system to the point where it doesn't work. * NixOS and Guix provide delarative system configuration with atomic updates/rollbacks. * Even on a 'traditional' distribution, you can use something like btrfs or ZFS snapshots and rollback your changes if you have a tendency to destroy systems ;). That said, Linux is not for everyone and it is completely fine to use macOS or Windows (as I write, I am using macOS on a MacBook).
- mixmastamyk 5y ago
  Shouldn’t change major parts of the os unless you fully understand what you’re doing. Has been true on every os since the beginning. I recommend Ubuntu Mate as something that works well for dev work with a minimum of tweaking needed. Also, I always keep my data files on another partition so OS installs are not a worrisome operation.
- bogwog 5y ago
  > One simple terminal command out of curiosity will basically force you to reinstall the OS. You mean like `sudo rm -rf /`? Would an equivalent command run by an admin on Windows not cause the same types of issues? Sure, there might be some files that can't be deleted while the system is running (like kernel32.dll or whatever it's called), but you'll certainly break a lot of things which you can only reasonably fix by reinstalling Windows. > It gets tedious fast to the point that I just want to develop What type of development do you do? Front end web development? C#/.NET/WPF? Something else? Because life as a developer on unix is much much nicer than it is on Windows for most types of work. If you're not one of those people who is stuck with Visual Studio, you should invest time into learning to work on Linux, Mac, FreeBSD, etc. It'll be better for your job prospects (and sanity) in the long run.
bitwize 5y ago
Whatever runtime Steam bundles with its games will soon grow almost as many irritating warts. Valve is apparently getting anticheat to work, which under Windows involves basically voluntarily installing a kernel-level rootkit so the game publisher can fully monitor your PC. Ultimately the ideal setup will probably involve keeping a Windows machine around for gaming and using Linux for serious work. Or running Windows in a VM with PCI passthrough for the video card.
rubyist5eva 5y ago
I've had the opposite experience - Proton has been getting better and better - even more so if you like to play around with the Glorious Eggroll fork. Then again, I mostly play single player games that don't have anti-cheat. Once Valve gets anticheat working though, which they are actively working on, it's basically game over.
- moss2 5y ago
  Unfortunately my favorite game right now, Vermintide 2, uses Easy Anti Cheat which does not work with Proton. I've had to set up a VM with pass-through to play it.
sp332 5y ago
How do you avoid malware on Linux?

Switching my home computer to Linux has had its problems since I'm an avid gamer, but the more news I read about Windows the less I regret that decision.

by moss2 5y ago

Switching my home computer to Linux has had its problems since I'm an avid gamer, but the more news I read about Windows the less I regret that decision.

sslayer 5y ago

I ditched in the middle of Windows 7, with absolutely no regrets. Valve has made tremendous inroads in gaming with Proton, along with developers releasing for Linux, there really isn't a good excuse to stay with Microsoft.

AnIdiotOnTheNet 5y ago
Sure their is: Windows is a better fit for the things I do with a computer. Edit: I know right? How dare I express a preference for Windows. Downvote me to hell because I don't like using your favored OS.
- robador 5y ago
  Is Windows the better fit or is it the software that runs on it that doesn't have linux support?
  - AnIdiotOnTheNet 5y ago
    It's the OS. The application distribution model is, in my opinion, significantly better than Linux and it's package management/repo scheme. I don't have to recompile old software to keep using it 2 years later (or 10 for that matter), I can place applications on different disks than the OS resides on, I can keep multiple versions of the same application, etc.
  - hulitu 5y ago
    No and no. Windows is "the better fit" because: 1) AD. 2) corruption (it's a very long story, see Munich for one). 3) anticompetitive behavior. 4) Excel.
  - MomoXenosaga 5y ago
    Is there a difference really? Microsoft spent years and literally billions to get developers on their OS (see Balmer's "developers developers developers" speech in the nineties). Of course some people consider this evil.
- finalis 5y ago
  I used to think that too before I made the switch to macOS. Yes it was a learning curve initially, but it wasn't unmanageable, and you start to uncover Windows annoyances that you never knew existed because you were used to them and conditioned into thinking they were normal for so long. You'd be surprised how flexible your needs are when you aren't pigeonholing yourself.
  - AnIdiotOnTheNet 5y ago
    I have used other operating systems, including Linux and MacOS. While I am fond of MacOS Application Bundles, I do not like many other things, like single-button mice, limited choice in hardware, and relative lack of gaming.
    - djxfade 5y ago
      Apple's mice haven't been single button since ages ago. Right click works out of the box, and all of their own mice also supports right clicking in various ways
      - salamandersauce 5y ago
        Yet they still build the Magic mouse as though it was a single button mouse so it doesn't actually have 2 separate switches, just 1 in the middle. This annoyingly means that clicks don't always click if you're too far from the center. Apple has never actually built a mouse with 2 distinct switches for left and right click. It's like they are too proud or something and "right" click needs to be faked for some reason.
        djxfade 5y ago
        Sure, but to be fair, most laptops these days does the same.
    - vetinari 5y ago
      You know you can connect any USB mice you want, right? Right now, I'm using a Steelseries one with a Mac. All six buttons and the scroll-wheel work fine.
- l30n4da5 5y ago
  for the most part, HN is pretty squarely in the 'windows bad linux good' camp. It is dumb af since according to a lot of the users on here, linux is gods gift to humanity. doesn't matter that pretty much all software is a dumpster fire, and linux is just another, less hot dumpster fire compared to windows.
  - sneak 5y ago
    This is a false equivalence.
    - l30n4da5 5y ago
      how, exactly?
  - hanselot 5y ago
    At least in Linux the dumpster fire's contents isn't hidden behind a corporate framework of people trying to hide the flames. At least the Linux fire doesn't attempt to take over other trashcans and force you to update your trash without consent. At least the Linux fire doesn't preinstall its fire in my trashcan artifically driving up the price of trashcans in the market. At least in the Linux fire, if you apply yourself and learn enough about your trash, you can choose how much trash and fire is in your trashcan. At least in the Linux fire, the fire tells you that its dangerous, instead of hiding everything behind stripped down excuses of flames from yester-year. At least in the Linux fire I can plan to barbecue something over a section of fire and know that it will consistently burn the same way, instead of spreading everywhere and the trashcan exploding. The irony of course being, that the people who argue for any other fire, have to first answer, why does Windows now feature Linux embedded inside itself?
  - bogwog 5y ago
    > doesn't matter that pretty much all software is a dumpster fire, and linux is just another, less hot dumpster fire compared to windows. Yeah, but the difference is that Linux is MY dumpster fire, not Microsoft's!
    - 5y ago
- mmsimanga 5y ago
  I am guessing down votes are not for expressing your opinion but rather for not providing context. Why is Windows better option for you?
  - AnIdiotOnTheNet 5y ago
    Why would it matter? So they could try and change my mind?[0] That I prefer the way Windows works is sufficient reason to continue to use it instead of Linux Desktop. Why is not really relevant. [0] I've played that game a thousand times and it is always an exercise in frustration. No thanks.
    - kempbellt 5y ago
      "Windows good, you can't change my mind!" doesn't add anything of value to the conversation, especially for people who aren't dead-set either way. If you swear by windows, you probably have good reasons. People who like windows would love to hear them. Otherwise, why partake in a conversation that frustrates you at all if you don't want to argue in support of your opinion? +1 for the windows camp: Personally, I haven't found a better alternative for running Adobe programs on good hardware without taking out a loan on my house (mac pros are a no-go). So Windows works best here. Another +1 for the windows camp: Gaming (but SteamOS is starting to compete here). Other than that, I have found that some variant of linux or macOS outperforms windows in every way for my needs (insert obligatory, YMMV), and I am happy to list those out if anyone is interested or needs help deciding which OS suits their needs best.
      - AnIdiotOnTheNet 5y ago
        > "Windows good, you can't change my mind!" doesn't add anything of value to the conversation I was making a specific counterpoint to the argument "there really isn't a good excuse to stay with Microsoft". My point needed no elaboration to be valid. > Otherwise, why partake in a conversation that frustrates you at all if you don't want to argue in support of your opinion? Because in my experience said "conversations" always devolve into the same useless arguments, which are entirely irrelevant to the point that people have good reasons they use Windows because anyone else's opinion of their reasons is irrelevant.
- talentedcoin 5y ago
  Don’t let the haters drag you down. Myself I think Windows is fine (I work in finance). I use Fedora at home as my daily driver but lots of things on Windows are just as easy (or as tricky) to get running as they are anywhere else.
hnlmorg 5y ago
I switched to Linux with the release of XP. Later versions of XP (SP2 and 3) were better with their service packs offering new features that really should have been in vanilla XP. But the original release of XP was slower than Windows 2000, uglier than Windows 2000 and required twice as much system resources as Windows 2000 while offering literally nothing in return aside a little more compatibility for gaming. But since all of the Windows games I played already supported Windows 2000 (bar the DOS games but I kept Win95 about for DOS games) there was no benefit in upgrading to XP. So I switched to Linux instead. So it's been nearly 20 years running Linux and honestly I've never once missed Windows. I've never got people who said "I can't run x" because everything I've needed to work has worked or there has been some open source alternative that has worked equally well. And if I really needed a corporate platform there was always OSX. Unfortunately macOS these days is becoming a similar cesspool as Windows. Before long the only good operating systems left will ironically be the free ones.
pebble 5y ago
Can you watch youtube videos with hardware acceleration yet?
- zamadatix 5y ago
  Facetious question but for a genuine response: Firefox yes, your distro's Chromium package yes, but Chrome proper is still refusing to enable it though (they allowed you to toggle it for a bit after 88 the retracted that in 91).
  - pebble 5y ago
    Not being facetious at all. I'm replying to "there really isn't a good excuse to stay with Microsoft." and last I checked browser video acceleration on linux with nvidia was still broken, no matter whose fault that is. I'd love to use linux but It's hard to say everyone should use linux when in 2021 not everyone even has proper video acceleration.
- a1369209993 5y ago
  Yes. Download them with youtube-dl and use whatever hardware-accelerated video player you like. (Bonus: Youtube can no longer steal them out from under you at the behest of copyright trolls, because they're on your harddrive.)
naosouumapessoa 5y ago
> there really isn’t a good excuse to stay with Microsoft Except, if you run nvidia optimus laptop and have mixed display DPI. Every few months I try to run Arch on my recent laptop and it’s always a nightmare. I was hyped that 470 driver would fix wayland in nvidia (the only half decent way to fix mixed DPIs on Linux). Lo and behold, It’s still a buggy mess that made me crawl back to windows. Maybe on 570 I will be able to use Linux on this laptop, likely never.
- ahefner 5y ago
  So don't do that, then.
  - zamadatix 5y ago
    "There's no reason to go to McDonald's instead of Applebee's" "Except if you want to use the drive through" "So don't do that then" Avoiding it personally doesn't alleviate that there is still a reason.
- Zambyte 5y ago
  > mixed display DPI. I believe Wayland may be better than X with this, but my displays have the same DPI so I haven't tested myself. My displays do have different refresh rates and Wayland handles that better in my experience. NVIDIA has been slow on the Wayland front though, but I think they may have made decent progress with recent driver releases.
- adrian_b 5y ago
  In recent years I have used only laptops with non-Optimus NVIDIA, and on these I had no problems in Linux with multiple monitors with different resolutions, even if I do not use Wayland. The NVIDIA settings program allows you to configure the monitors at any resolutions and in any geometric arrangement. Some 6-7 years ago, I had a laptop with Optimus NVIDIA and I lost a couple of days until making it work. After that I had no problems, but the external monitor had the same resolution with the laptop display, so I have never tried mixed DPI with Optimus. In any case, after that I have avoided Optimus and there are enough alternatives.
zamadatix 5y ago
Valve has made it so Linux is finally back to the point "Linux has games it can run that I can play" but it's still a far cry from reaching "Games that I play I can run on Linux". For some it's not a problem but for those that play games from developers which use kernel level anti-cheat Proton isn't a be-all-end-all that Linux is now ready to migrate to.
ghastmaster 5y ago
I was so happy with Linux, I switched my 80+ yo grandmother's computer as well. My father now runs it on his laptop. For the average user who does not game, windows is not recommended by me. Linux has stopped me in my tracks a few times, but I fiddle with things. My grandmother and father haven't had any issues in the years they have had it installed.

sneak 5y ago

I have a computer that runs Windows, exclusively for playing video games, and I have another computer for doing work, that will never run Windows outside of a VM.

ajoseps 5y ago

recently switched off of Windows to using PopOS. Really impressed how everything kinda just worked out the box. I'm very excited to see if Valve's proton will push more people to Linux and in general, improve the desktop experience.

physicles 5y ago
PopOS on a Thinkpad is the best Linux experience I’ve ever had, by far. The far-field microphone even works.

kempbellt 5y ago

I set up a LAN box for my parents on a computer that my dad received for free. It came with Windows 10 on it, but wasn't very powerful - company's old hardware. After several...frustrating...hours of trying to talk them through things over the phone to get RDP working, just so I could install Docker to run some containers that didn't even work properly with networking, and having to call/text any time the machine thought it was smarter than me and rebooted because of an update, I finally drove out there, wiped it, and threw linux on it (Ubuntu 20, which serves the purposes I need). The entire installation process took about 15 minutes because I was explaining it to my dad as I installed it. Zero headache since it was plugged in next to the router and powered on weeks ago, and the performance on the running containers makes it feel like a brand new computer compared to trying to run them in Windows. I run a Windows desktop locally for gaming. I've heard good things about SteamOS and have been toying with switching, but I'm put off by the idea of trying to re-flash Windows if it doesn't work. Personally, I'll be happy when I no longer need Windows even for gaming.

malka 5y ago
Gaming is my only use case with windows, and I am filled with deep hatred each time I have to boot this OS.
- doctorsher 5y ago
  I agree completely. I have Windows at home for gaming, and Windows at work (because those are the laptops we get). It's rough. The only thing that makes this bearable is Windows Subsystem for Linux. Side note: if you end up dual booting your gaming PC, please learn from my mistakes and disable Fast Startup before you do. Otherwise you're going to have a bad time.
- bogwog 5y ago
  Which games do you play that don't work on Linux? Because I switched to it a long time ago and haven't looked back. Proton and Wine are excellent nowadays, and 99% of what I want to play works, with the rest usually just a short `protontricks ...` command away from working. The only stuff that is completely broken is Easy Anticheat and BattleEye, but those will supposedly be working when the new Steam Deck starts shipping.

MeinBlutIstBlau 5y ago

I love Linux, but it's still like a glass house. One simple terminal command out of curiosity will basically force you to reinstall the OS. If you're response to that is "well you should know what you're doing before you run as sudo," all I can say is no. There is no reason why changing a DE, or installing certain software should make it nigh impossible to revert to previous changes short of being an expert or full reinstall. Plus minor quirks with every single one. It gets tedious fast to the point that I just want to develop. I don't want to mess around with why I can't use this piece of software because of some configuration issue related to Linux. I just want it to work. When I'm on Linux, more often then not I'd rather just not have complicated software as I'm used to on Windows or Mac. Linux is where you go when you borderline have to expect something isn't going to work or you'll need to do a reinstall at some point. I've never felt that way about Windows or Mac unless my root drive felt bloated and it was entirely optional.

danieldk 5y ago
> I love Linux, but it's still like a glass house. One simple terminal command out of curiosity will basically force you to reinstall the OS. Counterpoints: * Fedora Silverblue provides an immutable base OS with atomic updates/rollbacks. Makes it hard to mess up your system to the point where it doesn't work. * NixOS and Guix provide delarative system configuration with atomic updates/rollbacks. * Even on a 'traditional' distribution, you can use something like btrfs or ZFS snapshots and rollback your changes if you have a tendency to destroy systems ;). That said, Linux is not for everyone and it is completely fine to use macOS or Windows (as I write, I am using macOS on a MacBook).
mixmastamyk 5y ago
Shouldn’t change major parts of the os unless you fully understand what you’re doing. Has been true on every os since the beginning. I recommend Ubuntu Mate as something that works well for dev work with a minimum of tweaking needed. Also, I always keep my data files on another partition so OS installs are not a worrisome operation.
bogwog 5y ago
> One simple terminal command out of curiosity will basically force you to reinstall the OS. You mean like `sudo rm -rf /`? Would an equivalent command run by an admin on Windows not cause the same types of issues? Sure, there might be some files that can't be deleted while the system is running (like kernel32.dll or whatever it's called), but you'll certainly break a lot of things which you can only reasonably fix by reinstalling Windows. > It gets tedious fast to the point that I just want to develop What type of development do you do? Front end web development? C#/.NET/WPF? Something else? Because life as a developer on unix is much much nicer than it is on Windows for most types of work. If you're not one of those people who is stuck with Visual Studio, you should invest time into learning to work on Linux, Mac, FreeBSD, etc. It'll be better for your job prospects (and sanity) in the long run.

bitwize 5y ago

Whatever runtime Steam bundles with its games will soon grow almost as many irritating warts. Valve is apparently getting anticheat to work, which under Windows involves basically voluntarily installing a kernel-level rootkit so the game publisher can fully monitor your PC. Ultimately the ideal setup will probably involve keeping a Windows machine around for gaming and using Linux for serious work. Or running Windows in a VM with PCI passthrough for the video card.

rubyist5eva 5y ago

I've had the opposite experience - Proton has been getting better and better - even more so if you like to play around with the Glorious Eggroll fork. Then again, I mostly play single player games that don't have anti-cheat. Once Valve gets anticheat working though, which they are actively working on, it's basically game over.

moss2 5y ago
Unfortunately my favorite game right now, Vermintide 2, uses Easy Anti Cheat which does not work with Proton. I've had to set up a VM with pass-through to play it.

sp332 5y ago

How do you avoid malware on Linux?