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Normal people can definitely install an OS. Last weekend I set aside time help a friend install CachyOS. They'd never used a terminal before and wanted some hel

Normal people can definitely install an OS. Last weekend I set aside time help a friend install CachyOS. They'd never used a terminal before and wanted some help. When I called them, they had already set it up and was playing Risk of Rain 2. They started streaming for me on the Discord Flatpak they installed from the app store.

hungryhobbit 8mo ago
Define normal. I would argue at least 75% of the US population has zero interest in learning how to install a new OS, let alone actually do so themselves. I say this as a decades-long Linux user (who has tried to evangelize it many times).
- bigyabai 8mo ago
  > has zero interest in learning Well I can agree with that, but that's not the same thing as being incapable of doing it. Both of my parents could easily install Linux, it's infantilizing to argue that they can't fill out a user wizard and select a drive to wipe.
  - bakugo 8mo ago
    > and select a drive to wipe You are vastly overestimating the percentage of the population that knows what a "drive" is. Not saying that's a good thing, but it's the reality.
    - bigyabai 8mo ago
      You don't have to know. The Calamares installer annotates your partitions and explains what will happen in natural language. If you can order a pizza online, you can install Linux.
      - vanviegen 8mo ago
        Yeah. If ordering a pizza also regularly involves entering BIOS setup to change boot device ordering, change SATA mode from RAID to AHCI and disable secure boot, depending on your distro.
        vladvasiliu 8mo ago
        > change SATA mode from RAID to AHCI This is funny. I have an HP PC that has an option in the BIOS to "prepare for RAID" or some such. I wondered what that was, so I turned it on. I had Linux on it at the time, and nothing happened. I shrugged and just forgot about it. Fast forward a few months later, when I gave this PC to my dad. He installed Windows on it, then started thinking the PC was somehow borked: "the installer sees the drive, installs, reboots, then it fails to boot". I was shocked, that PC worked perfectly. Then I remembered about that setting, told him to untick the box in the BIOS, and he was off to the races.
- sankalpnarula 8mo ago
  I would argue its close to 99% of the population. Technical people like us usually live in a bubble.
  - booi 8mo ago
    No we don't... right guys?!
    - rmunn 8mo ago
      https://xkcd.com/2501/ https://xkcd.com/2501/
      - sankalpnarula 8mo ago
        lmaoo
- 999900000999 8mo ago
  I can't drive stick. This doesn't mean if someone gave me a manual car I wouldn't try to learn. If your around a bunch of car people then it's much easier to over estimate how many people will want to drive stick.
- com2kid 8mo ago
  Gamers are one of the few demographics still buying new Windows PCs. There are now so many discord servers and subreddits filled with people discussing which Linux distro to use. Honestly for your average home consumer, there isn't much need for a Windows PC now days.
lp0_on_fire 8mo ago
I don’t disagree that installing windows/macos and certain Linux distros can be stupid easy but to a layman it’s daunting. In my experience most people who use a computing device may be able to tell me “this is window” or “this is Mac” by virtue of the branding being all over the stuff but for all intents and purposes these things are appliances. In the same way most people except ambitious DIYers don’t rip apart their 500-1000 dollar washing machine to replace a worn belt the call a repair guy. Or in your case, have a buddy who knows how to do it.

hungryhobbit 8mo ago

Define normal. I would argue at least 75% of the US population has zero interest in learning how to install a new OS, let alone actually do so themselves. I say this as a decades-long Linux user (who has tried to evangelize it many times).

bigyabai 8mo ago
> has zero interest in learning Well I can agree with that, but that's not the same thing as being incapable of doing it. Both of my parents could easily install Linux, it's infantilizing to argue that they can't fill out a user wizard and select a drive to wipe.
- bakugo 8mo ago
  > and select a drive to wipe You are vastly overestimating the percentage of the population that knows what a "drive" is. Not saying that's a good thing, but it's the reality.
  - bigyabai 8mo ago
    You don't have to know. The Calamares installer annotates your partitions and explains what will happen in natural language. If you can order a pizza online, you can install Linux.
    - vanviegen 8mo ago
      Yeah. If ordering a pizza also regularly involves entering BIOS setup to change boot device ordering, change SATA mode from RAID to AHCI and disable secure boot, depending on your distro.
      - vladvasiliu 8mo ago
        > change SATA mode from RAID to AHCI This is funny. I have an HP PC that has an option in the BIOS to "prepare for RAID" or some such. I wondered what that was, so I turned it on. I had Linux on it at the time, and nothing happened. I shrugged and just forgot about it. Fast forward a few months later, when I gave this PC to my dad. He installed Windows on it, then started thinking the PC was somehow borked: "the installer sees the drive, installs, reboots, then it fails to boot". I was shocked, that PC worked perfectly. Then I remembered about that setting, told him to untick the box in the BIOS, and he was off to the races.
sankalpnarula 8mo ago
I would argue its close to 99% of the population. Technical people like us usually live in a bubble.
- booi 8mo ago
  No we don't... right guys?!
  - rmunn 8mo ago
    https://xkcd.com/2501/ https://xkcd.com/2501/
    - sankalpnarula 8mo ago
      lmaoo
999900000999 8mo ago
I can't drive stick. This doesn't mean if someone gave me a manual car I wouldn't try to learn. If your around a bunch of car people then it's much easier to over estimate how many people will want to drive stick.
com2kid 8mo ago
Gamers are one of the few demographics still buying new Windows PCs. There are now so many discord servers and subreddits filled with people discussing which Linux distro to use. Honestly for your average home consumer, there isn't much need for a Windows PC now days.

lp0_on_fire 8mo ago

I don’t disagree that installing windows/macos and certain Linux distros can be stupid easy but to a layman it’s daunting. In my experience most people who use a computing device may be able to tell me “this is window” or “this is Mac” by virtue of the branding being all over the stuff but for all intents and purposes these things are appliances. In the same way most people except ambitious DIYers don’t rip apart their 500-1000 dollar washing machine to replace a worn belt the call a repair guy. Or in your case, have a buddy who knows how to do it.