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(cue arrogance) People on HackerNews complaining about Linux Desktop is pretty disappointing. You guys are supposed to be the real enthusiasts... you can make i

(cue arrogance) People on HackerNews complaining about Linux Desktop is pretty disappointing. You guys are supposed to be the real enthusiasts... you can make it work. (cue superiority complex) I've been using Linux Desktop for over 10 years. It's great for literally everything. Gaming admittedly is like 8/10 for compatibility, but I just use a VM with PCIe passthrough to pass in a gpu and to load up a game for windows or use CAD, etc. Seriously, ez. Never had issues with NVIDIA GFX with any of the desktop cards. Laptops... sure they glitch out. Originally Wine, then Proton, now Bazzite make it super easy to game natively. The only issues I ever had with games were from the Kernel level anti-cheats bundled. The anti-cheats just weren't available for Linux, so the games didn't start. Anyone familiar with those knows its not a linux thing, it's a publisher/anti-cheat mechanism thing. Just lazy devs really. (cue opinionated anti-corporate ideology) I like to keep microsoft chained up in a VM where it belongs so can't do it's shady crap. Also with a VM you can do shared folders and clipboard. Super handy actually. Weirdly enough, MacOS in a VM is a huge pita, and doesn't work well.

thayne 9mo ago
> Weirdly enough, MacOS in a VM is a huge pit That isn't weird. It's by design. MacOS is only designed to run on Apple hardware, and a VM, even if the host is Apple hardware isn't really Apple hardware.
scaramanga 9mo ago
I've observed that most "enthusiasts" are really just brand ambassadors. They've been captured by some proprietary software that doesn't run on Linux, and that's the problem of Linux. The day their set of products runs perfectly on Linux is the day Linux will be ready for them.
- weaksauce 9mo ago
  I think that if affinity chooses to make it work well on linux that would be a game changer for a lot of people. daVinci resolve works on linux for video so having a proper photo editor/illustrator tool that is not gimp would open up the option for most people to daily drive it. that's really the missing piece.
- kombine 9mo ago
  > I've observed that most "enthusiasts" are really just brand ambassadors. Well said, and in the tech community that's predominantly Apple. We need to change this.
- mkozlows 9mo ago
  I mean, yes. That's how people work: They don't care about the OS for itself, the OS is a means to run the software they want to run, and it'll be ready when it runs that software. (I'm typing this on my Linux desktop right now... but also have a separate Windows PC for running the games I want to run that don't work on Linux yet. When they work, I'll be thrilled to put Linux on that machine or its successor.)
- knollimar 9mo ago
  Is it fair to call a drafter a brand ambassador? Also, everyone seems to blame developers for anticheat shenanigans, but is invasive anticheat evem possible on linux without trivially being able to circumvent it? I don't think this is a brand issue here
deleted 9mo ago
[deleted]
mrheosuper 9mo ago
>but I just use a VM with PCIe passthrough to pass in a gpu and to load up a game for windows Many games refuse to run in VM, even if that VM is windows one. I bet there is a trick to bypass, but then you are at risk of being banned or can't receive support when needed.
fatata123 9mo ago
[dead]
raincole 9mo ago
> Originally Wine, then Proton, now Bazzite make it super easy to game natively. For many people, this is called "barely working at all." And as I get older I am becoming one of those people so quickly.
- mistercheph 9mo ago
  I agree, this is why I also consider Windows barely working, I had to install 7 then 8 then 10 then 11 what's next? It should just turn on and work stop changing it around and making me install different random crap to get it working.
Cort3z 9mo ago
I have been working professionally on Linux for many years. But about once a year I have to reinstall the os because it craps out for various reasons. The same story goes for most of my team, but for some reason they seem ok with this. My issue with Linux is this: I don’t feel like a consumer, but a janitor. I don’t want this. Yes you can do whatever you want, but I don’t want to do those things. I want to write code and play games, not maintain the intricacies of a running computer. For a server there is no better choice than Linux, but for my desktop/laptop, I find other alternatives better. Perhaps I haven’t found «the right distro», if so let me know, but until Linux is as low maintenance as windows or macos, it will be for those with an interest in doing that maintenance. I realize I have a love-hate relationship with Linux. It is perfect, but flawed.
- kombine 9mo ago
  I've been using Fedora and OpenSUSE Tumbleweed on my laptop and desktop respectively. Both are going around a year, and I haven't had major issues with them.
  - symbogra 9mo ago
    Looking at the logs I installed Fedora 35 on this laptop over 4 years ago when I got it and have upgraded through to 43 with no serious issues aside from some mDNS configuration that I had to fix.
- jimbob45 9mo ago
  I agree that it’s not quite grandma-safe but I’d like to know which distros you’re using that can’t even last a year.
  - sgc 9mo ago
    I had my 80 year old mom on Linux Mint for 15 years, from about 62-78, and she didn't even know it. She tried to show me her Windows with exactly one problem 15 years in, and I was present with the Mint boot screen. Problem at that point was her laptop, not Mint. Grandmas tend to do very simple things, and the OS can just chug along forever without problems.
moffkalast 9mo ago
(cue nitpicking) Can Okular sign a damn pdf with a pfx certificate yet or do I still need a PhD to set that up? MS office has an online version now but it is arguably very ass and Libreoffice is not even worth a mention, using it feels like time travelling twenty years back. Linux would be the desktop of choice years ago if anything from Adobe or Office actually worked on it, the two things that make the world go round. Valve has done their part to develop Proton, but there is no equal push for things people can't do work without.
- sgc 9mo ago
  Try OnlyOffice. It is more polished than Libreoffice and can sign pdfs.
causal 9mo ago
Big fan of Linux. Use various distros daily. That said, tech folk routinely underestimate how much they rely on their own technical skill. Try using Linux for a week without ever opening a terminal. Terminal is a "f this I'm going back to Windows" button for most people.
- Gareth321 9mo ago
  I strongly agree. I’m technical but I hate using the CLI for consumer oriented tasks. I feel strongly that all controls should be in the UI space. Once in a while I install a new distro to see how it’s coming along. I always hit roadblocks and need to use the CLI for something. It’s clear that the developers like the CLI and think it’s no big deal to use it, so users should just conform. That’s not how the real world works. They either meet the users where they are, or Linux remains niche.
  - sagarm 9mo ago
    Eh, I think people are increasingly tired of being pushed to use Microsoft crap even if they don't want to. Hell, you can't even make a local account easily anymore on Windows. It feels actively hostile. I think a lot of people would prefer to deal with the different inconveniences of Linux.
pjmlp 9mo ago
I used to believe, until 2005 thereabouts, then I got tired. Plus I never been that FOSS religious, any system with some POSIX compatibility is good enough for me.
yoyohello13 9mo ago
I remember when I first started reading HN how disappointed I was to see so many comments shitting on Linux and/or FOSS. I was kind of shocked because this is exactly the group that should be evangelizing this stuff. At the end of the day I realized I’m willing to put up with some inconvenience in exchange for freedom, but most people just aren’t. The amount of hate spewed at FOSS is astounding really. People are literally giving you shit for free. Chill out.
howdyhowdy123 9mo ago
Lol. Here have my upvote
rldjbpin 9mo ago
> just use a VM with PCIe passthrough to pass in a gpu and to load up a game for windows or use CAD, etc. Seriously, ez. as pointed out by others and throughout the thread, anti-cheat is very restrictive inside a vm. even cloud streaming fails to support some popular titles from EA and R* due to this. meanwhile, WSL exists, and now provides good gpu passthrough and has a higher success rate with the said permutation.

thayne 9mo ago

> Weirdly enough, MacOS in a VM is a huge pit That isn't weird. It's by design. MacOS is only designed to run on Apple hardware, and a VM, even if the host is Apple hardware isn't really Apple hardware.

scaramanga 9mo ago

I've observed that most "enthusiasts" are really just brand ambassadors. They've been captured by some proprietary software that doesn't run on Linux, and that's the problem of Linux. The day their set of products runs perfectly on Linux is the day Linux will be ready for them.

weaksauce 9mo ago
I think that if affinity chooses to make it work well on linux that would be a game changer for a lot of people. daVinci resolve works on linux for video so having a proper photo editor/illustrator tool that is not gimp would open up the option for most people to daily drive it. that's really the missing piece.
kombine 9mo ago
> I've observed that most "enthusiasts" are really just brand ambassadors. Well said, and in the tech community that's predominantly Apple. We need to change this.
mkozlows 9mo ago
I mean, yes. That's how people work: They don't care about the OS for itself, the OS is a means to run the software they want to run, and it'll be ready when it runs that software. (I'm typing this on my Linux desktop right now... but also have a separate Windows PC for running the games I want to run that don't work on Linux yet. When they work, I'll be thrilled to put Linux on that machine or its successor.)
knollimar 9mo ago
Is it fair to call a drafter a brand ambassador? Also, everyone seems to blame developers for anticheat shenanigans, but is invasive anticheat evem possible on linux without trivially being able to circumvent it? I don't think this is a brand issue here

deleted 9mo ago

[deleted]

mrheosuper 9mo ago

>but I just use a VM with PCIe passthrough to pass in a gpu and to load up a game for windows Many games refuse to run in VM, even if that VM is windows one. I bet there is a trick to bypass, but then you are at risk of being banned or can't receive support when needed.

fatata123 9mo ago

[dead]

raincole 9mo ago

> Originally Wine, then Proton, now Bazzite make it super easy to game natively. For many people, this is called "barely working at all." And as I get older I am becoming one of those people so quickly.

mistercheph 9mo ago
I agree, this is why I also consider Windows barely working, I had to install 7 then 8 then 10 then 11 what's next? It should just turn on and work stop changing it around and making me install different random crap to get it working.

Cort3z 9mo ago

I have been working professionally on Linux for many years. But about once a year I have to reinstall the os because it craps out for various reasons. The same story goes for most of my team, but for some reason they seem ok with this. My issue with Linux is this: I don’t feel like a consumer, but a janitor. I don’t want this. Yes you can do whatever you want, but I don’t want to do those things. I want to write code and play games, not maintain the intricacies of a running computer. For a server there is no better choice than Linux, but for my desktop/laptop, I find other alternatives better. Perhaps I haven’t found «the right distro», if so let me know, but until Linux is as low maintenance as windows or macos, it will be for those with an interest in doing that maintenance. I realize I have a love-hate relationship with Linux. It is perfect, but flawed.

kombine 9mo ago
I've been using Fedora and OpenSUSE Tumbleweed on my laptop and desktop respectively. Both are going around a year, and I haven't had major issues with them.
- symbogra 9mo ago
  Looking at the logs I installed Fedora 35 on this laptop over 4 years ago when I got it and have upgraded through to 43 with no serious issues aside from some mDNS configuration that I had to fix.
jimbob45 9mo ago
I agree that it’s not quite grandma-safe but I’d like to know which distros you’re using that can’t even last a year.
- sgc 9mo ago
  I had my 80 year old mom on Linux Mint for 15 years, from about 62-78, and she didn't even know it. She tried to show me her Windows with exactly one problem 15 years in, and I was present with the Mint boot screen. Problem at that point was her laptop, not Mint. Grandmas tend to do very simple things, and the OS can just chug along forever without problems.

moffkalast 9mo ago

(cue nitpicking) Can Okular sign a damn pdf with a pfx certificate yet or do I still need a PhD to set that up? MS office has an online version now but it is arguably very ass and Libreoffice is not even worth a mention, using it feels like time travelling twenty years back. Linux would be the desktop of choice years ago if anything from Adobe or Office actually worked on it, the two things that make the world go round. Valve has done their part to develop Proton, but there is no equal push for things people can't do work without.

sgc 9mo ago
Try OnlyOffice. It is more polished than Libreoffice and can sign pdfs.

causal 9mo ago

Big fan of Linux. Use various distros daily. That said, tech folk routinely underestimate how much they rely on their own technical skill. Try using Linux for a week without ever opening a terminal. Terminal is a "f this I'm going back to Windows" button for most people.

Gareth321 9mo ago
I strongly agree. I’m technical but I hate using the CLI for consumer oriented tasks. I feel strongly that all controls should be in the UI space. Once in a while I install a new distro to see how it’s coming along. I always hit roadblocks and need to use the CLI for something. It’s clear that the developers like the CLI and think it’s no big deal to use it, so users should just conform. That’s not how the real world works. They either meet the users where they are, or Linux remains niche.
- sagarm 9mo ago
  Eh, I think people are increasingly tired of being pushed to use Microsoft crap even if they don't want to. Hell, you can't even make a local account easily anymore on Windows. It feels actively hostile. I think a lot of people would prefer to deal with the different inconveniences of Linux.

pjmlp 9mo ago

I used to believe, until 2005 thereabouts, then I got tired. Plus I never been that FOSS religious, any system with some POSIX compatibility is good enough for me.

yoyohello13 9mo ago

I remember when I first started reading HN how disappointed I was to see so many comments shitting on Linux and/or FOSS. I was kind of shocked because this is exactly the group that should be evangelizing this stuff. At the end of the day I realized I’m willing to put up with some inconvenience in exchange for freedom, but most people just aren’t. The amount of hate spewed at FOSS is astounding really. People are literally giving you shit for free. Chill out.

howdyhowdy123 9mo ago

Lol. Here have my upvote

rldjbpin 9mo ago

> just use a VM with PCIe passthrough to pass in a gpu and to load up a game for windows or use CAD, etc. Seriously, ez. as pointed out by others and throughout the thread, anti-cheat is very restrictive inside a vm. even cloud streaming fails to support some popular titles from EA and R* due to this. meanwhile, WSL exists, and now provides good gpu passthrough and has a higher success rate with the said permutation.