I can’t switch to Linux due to software requirements for work. On my personal computer I’m using Xubuntu for well over a decade, I didn’t like the unity window manager of Ubuntu. I heard they changed to something else by now, but I can’t be bothered to switch.
It’s the other way around. In general, you should choose Linux over Windows, and only if you really need it, use Windows. Also, if you need Windows just temporarily for some things, consider running it in a VM inside Linux just for those occasions.
Why - well, to keep it short, Linux’ main weaknesses for common users (difficulty, compatibility) are gradually fading away (they are already almost non-existent these days if you have mainstream hardware and a mainstream desktop distro like Mint, Fedora, Ubuntu) while Windows’ main disadvantages (forced stuff like cloud/AI integrations/ads, complete disregard of user’s privacy, increasing security issues due to outdated stuff being kept in the OS for backwards compatibility reasons, and many more things) keep on increasing at a rapid rate. Microsoft has a big business interest in getting all users locked into their cloud ecosystem, locked into a subscription with ever-increasing monthly fees, and give up control over their own computer and their digital privacy. They want users to pay them with their data AND monthly subscription fees. MS Office, for example, will probably not have a pure locally runnable version after 2029 (or around that year) anymore. This Microsoft train is heading towards that wall. And the speed is increasing. And tons of users are still inside that train. And Windows itself likely won’t be spared either. They want you to pay monthly for M365 and they will get their customers there, eventually.
Furthermore, by supporting Microsoft you’re supporting a very unethical company. They partner with big surveillance companies like Palantir and they are an active participant in the despicable ad-tech-industry (the industry that’s spying on literally everyone and buying/selling/storing tons of intimate user data even though it’s illegal in most countries), they partner with the military, law enforcement and other things. Also, they are a US company, and we all know how US politics is like these days, and this can have a big influence on how “trustworthy” US-based proprietary software will become in the near future. Since 2020, arguably no US-based proprietary software or online service is trustworthy anymore anyway, because of the CLOUD act, which is current law in the US - it means that the US government has access to any customer data stored by a US-based company, regardless of where on Earth they are storing it. This means the often-used claim “my data stored by that US company is safe because it’s in a European-based datacenter!!!11” is false since at least 2020, because MS is forced by US law to grant technical access to customer data to their government. Also, all previous “data transfer privacy agreements” between EU and US like Privacy Shield were all a joke and were dismantled in courts already. So there’s currently zero legal data protection - any data you send to a US company is theirs to do with as they please, essentially. And even if there were any meaningful legal data protections left, those big tech companies might still simply ignore that data protection law and only face minor or no fines at all.
So this is not a baseless claim. Just because I might keep some statements short doesn’t mean that there are no backing arguments. It’s a very good idea to reduce your dependency on Microsoft’s (or in general, US-based) proprietary software and services. For multiple reasons. Digital sovereignty has never been more important than these days. It has always been important but it was maybe too abstract in the past for many common users to realize. They are slowly starting to realize now that dependencies on proprietary software from any rogue regime (and the current US regime also falls into that category now) are not great to have. Plus, there is Microsoft on its own already putting ever-increasing user- and customer-hostile features into their products. It’s like being in an abusive relationship (as the one being abused). It’s just not good for you long-term.
So as a user, you should instead choose software which allows you to retain your digital sovereignty and control over your own computing, and simply not take all that abuse. Linux- or *BSD-based OSes with their open/transparent development models, fork-able/modifiable code bases, permissive licensing and essentially zero unwanted crap like adware, spyware, bloatware etc. offer exactly that. And because mainstream Linux distros have already become so easy to use these days, there are almost no reasons not to start using them.
All your arguments are logically sound and completely miss the main point.
The issue with Linux is not that “it’s getting there” in terms of user friendliness. It’s that it’s not there YET.
On top of that you have the community - just the other day I was searching to solve an issue, found a very similar thread, and the only reply the guy got was “here’s a link to the ArchWiki, welcome to the Linux world, you need to figure this out yourself”.
My 80 year old mother is not figuring out shit, she’s terrified when she has to copy a photo from a USB stick to here Photos folder.
Saying “Linux is fine for the massestoday” is just showing how detached many Linux users are from reality.
ALVR isn’t awful. I needed new hardware and bit the bullet knowing I was likely going to lose VR, but with the hardware upgrade, it’s nicer in the new machine (Bazzite, 7900XT) than the old (Win 10, 2080 Super Max Q). Definitely not a drop in replacement yet though.
of course, the only good VR game is Alyx and once you finish that it’s only tech demos and chat rooms - nothing else really worth the bother of strapping a monitor to your face.
They are on that website, not just only the activator. They are better than retail isos because they come without bloat. I use iot LTSC permactivated with HWID on all my PCs and VMs
Linux would still be a good option. The driver isn’t as simple as AMD but not nearly as complicated as you would think. Unless you’re a Destiny 2, Fortnite, or League player you wouldn’t have any issues gaming either.
Already fiddling around enough with tge stuff I do with my PC which I installed Win11 on and I am in the EU meaning less BS than the US version (no forced upgrades, no ads (as described by US citizens) and so on).
I use Debian on my server as it’s a tool. Same for my pc. And I have a steamdeck.
And every tool has it’s worth no matter if it’s made from shitty chinesium or baller titanium.
I like the way Windows handles most things and I prefer it over having to fiddle with the way every Linux distro does it’s own thing (and I will never use Ubuntu).
Sooo, I’m in the same boat. Only, I sold my GPU expecting to get an upgrade and then didn’t for a long while - which is when I decided to make the switch to Linux, just to see how things go.
Now I added the GPU and - with issues - managed to get gaming going. It’s fine, I think. Played Hogwarts Legacy yesterday for a couple of hours. Got a 7800x3d and RX 9070 XT, with everything on Ultra (including Ray Tracing) and upscaling disabled, my GPU would be sitting between 80 and 100% utilisation, but FPS was very comfortable (don’t have a counter so don’t know exactly how many, but it was smooth).
HOWEVER, after a couple of hours my main monitor turned off and the other one turned… green. I think the graphics driver crashed? Not sure, honestly. Anyway, after a reboot everything was fine. Overall, I had a nice four hour-long session yesterday.
I guess what I’m saying is - give it a go! KDE is beautiful (do recommend Garuda Linux just for the design choices, but they also have A TONNE of “I’m a noob, help” features pre-configured), gaming is fine, you might enjoy it. And if you don’t, just switch back to Windows.
Is there an easy way to port all my stuff to Linux? I would not have made the switch in the past, but all the good will I attributed to Microsoft is pretty much gone. I’ve heard Mint is petty easy to hop onto?
I honestly think mint is an outdated suggestion for beginners, I think immutability is extremely important for someone who is just starting out, as well as starting on KDE since it’s by far the most developed DE that isn’t gnome and their… design decisions are unfortunate for people coming from windows.
I don’t think we should be recommending mint to beginners anymore, if mint makes an immutable, up to date KDE distro, that’ll change, but until then, I think bazzite is objectively a better starting place for beginners.
The mere fact that it generates a new system for you on update and lets you switch between and rollback automatically is enough for me to say it’s better, but it also has more up to date software, and tons of guides (fedora is one of the most popular distros, and bazzite is essentially identical except with some QoL upgrades).
How common is the story of “I was new to linux and completely broke it”? that’s not a good user experience for someone who’s just starting, it’s intimidating, scary, and I just don’t think it’s the best in the modern era. There’s something to be said about learning from these mistakes, but bazzite essentially makes these mistakes impossible.
Furthermore because of the way bazzite works, package management is completely graphical and requires essentially no intervention on the users part, flathub and immutability pair excellently for this reason.
Cinnamon (the default mint environment) doesn’t and won’t support HDR, the security/performance improvements from wayland, mixed refresh rate displays, mixed DPI displays, fractional scaling, and many other things for a very very long time if at all. I don’t understand the usecase for cinnamon tbh, xfce is great if you need performance but don’t want to make major sacrifices, lmde is great if you need A LOT of performance, cinnamon isn’t particularly performant and just a strictly worse version of kde in my eyes from the perspective of a beginner, anyway.
I have 15 years of linux experience and am willing to infinitely troubleshoot if you add me on matrix.
Thank you for you detailed response! I think something like Bazzite would be more up my alley based on what you said. Something that is hard to mess up is something I’d be more comfortable with for sure.
I appreciate your offer for troubleshooting help as well!
Welcome to the other side, make sure to enjoy and use actual documentation of your software instead of random Q&A answered by ‘Community Moderators’ on Windows forums :)
I think I’ve seen a video showcasing this tactic. Dude with a Syringe just running around, picking up his teammates as soon as they downed. It was great :D
I have an ad hoc media server on 10. If it’s super working, you can bet I will replace it with something other than Microsoft. Unless work requires it, everything I use is Linux, Android, or Apple based. I don’t hate Windows, I just like everything else more.
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