5 ms·
This article, like so many I’ve seen in the past, seems to almost take the theory that people would be happy to switch if just a few things were fixed about Lin
by MBCook 3y ago
This article, like so many I’ve seen in the past, seems to almost take the theory that people would be happy to switch if just a few things were fixed about Linux.
No one cares but nerds. Normal people just want to get work done.
Nothing in this article explains how they could do that better with Linux. How it would save them time. How it would be easier. It’s entirely focused on how they could replace things they do today with a (possibly worse) equivalent program.
Windows is “free“ to people because it comes with the computer. Unless the software is exclusive to the Mac it’s available on Windows. Most OSS included.
People switch to Mac because it works better with their iPhone. Or because they want to use Logic Pro. Or they want to develop for the iPhone.
People switch to Windows because it has way way more software than anything else. It’s where all gaming outside of consoles is. The hardware is cheaper than a Mac and there are way more options.
Linux has less software people want. Far far fewer hardware options (I mean pre-built machines sold at normal stores). If Linux meant you could save $500 on a computer it might be interesting. But when you can buy a full windows laptop for $250 bucks you’re gonna have a hard time making that argument. The only benefits people tend to tout are intangibles like freedom and control, in exchange for giving up everything you’re used to and fewer software choices.
It’s like arguing that you’re selling the greenest car. That’s nice. And some people will appreciate that. But a lot of people won’t care at all. And if that’s the only argument you have you’re not gonna sell a lot of them.
You need an article on why Linux will make your life so much easier and you just haven’t heard about it before. Proprietary software is not the number one thing holding people back. The number one thing holding people back is they’ve never been given a reason that appeals to them for why they should consider switching.
- dist-epoch 3y ago> The only benefits people tend to tout are intangibles like freedom and control Which most users don't even understand: "What do you mean I don't have freedom if I use Mac/Windows? So what if you can change the source code, I'm not a programmer"
- 1ark 3y agoNeed to frame it correctly, monetary and safety, for example. "You have to buy a new PC when Microsoft decides to not update your Windows anymore and make the new version incompatible with your current PC. If you don't, your PC will be vulnerable to criminal hackers. With freedom and control you control the schedule, otherwise Microsoft does."
- MBCook 3y agoNormal people don’t care. That’s why there are still people running 7 or 8 and MS has been trying to convince them for a decade to upgrade, even giving 10 and 11 away. “If you give up everything you were used to and learn something completely new that may not be quite as good for you as what you have and no one you know can help you with then in five years you might not be forced to do the thing you weren’t going to do anyway!” is not a winning argument. You have to argue things that help them, NOW. If arguments about what’s better in the future worked everyone would have much much bigger savings accounts.
- cykros 3y agoThe one place they do seem to care a little is on Chromebooks, but perhaps that's because Google has been utterly shameless in many cases, turning those into paperweights after only 1-2 years. When it doesn't even last through the 4 years of high school they're issued for, it's starting to become bothersome.
- MBCook 3y agoIf it beaks too fast that sticks in people memory. “I just bought this! What a piece of crap. I’m going back to Dell”. That will kill sales. I had no idea chromebooks were like that.
- nolist_policy 3y agoChromebooks receive 8 years of updates, 10 years for models released after 2021.
- SAI_Peregrinus 3y agoYep. People want to accomplish tasks. They want to do that with workflows they already know, or that are easy to learn. If they can't accomplish the same tasks with Linux, then Linux isn't usable. The one Linux feature I miss on other OSes isn't even a Linux feature, it's NixOS's declarative configuration. Nothing to do with the Linux kernel or the GNU userspace CLI tools or glibc, just the ability to manage a system and user(s) with a version-controlled configuration.
- cykros 3y agoAt one point perhaps people thought that the cost factor would weigh in, but given how many people buy Macbooks to use google docs and watch cat videos, I think it's safe to say that thriftiness is a lost value.
- red-iron-pine 3y agolifestyle branding and class-based marketing takes over. my in-laws never use their tech for anything outside of basic word docs or web browsing, but they're fancy so they need to have a Macbook. Same reason they have a Lexus but rarely take trips outside of basic runs into town. And say what you will about marketing, they're all reliable gear. Something to be said for "buy once, cry once", and then not thinking about it again.