Source
Linux currently 29.1%
Sample size according to StatCounter: 24,353,436 page views
I wish there were more focus on the desktop and app gui side of things on Linux
sure using the terminal to install things is very efficient but some people just want an install button and a gui that they don’t have to use more than 2 braincells to figure out why package not found or some obscure error with an app for the next 2 hours with forum pages full of condescending non answers
I’m tired of pandering to people that can’t take the time to learn how to operate a computer. I hate the trend of the last 25 years of making everything “idiot proof”, because it’s not helping people, it’s making them dumber. I remember a time when normal users were expected to set DIP switches on their motherboards and edit autoexec.bat files.
A lot of gen-z doesn’t even know what a hierarchial filesystem is anymore. They just shove all their media into “galleries”, but can’t actually tell you where that file is actually located.
I’m a fan of the Flatpak trend. The latest version of Linux Mint has some interesting additions to how things are presented, as far as “verified” and “not verified”. Basically their app installer program lets you know if a particular Flatpak should be treated with caution, sort of like downloading a random .exe with Windows.
I recently installed Manjaro with KDE Plasma, and I’d like an easier way of getting Flatpaks out of the box with it. Their solution is to install Discover alongside their own app installer. So now I have two different GUI programs to open if I want to research something to install.
I actually disagree with a couple of changes Mint made regarding Flatpaks. Not showing reviews for unverified Flatpaks especially.
I get it, they want to punish unverified Flatpaks to give them a kick up the arse to get verified. But it also means that if something nefarious is going on with the unverified Flatpak, and Mint hasn’t taken it down yet, users can’t see reviews that might alert them to the app being dodgy.
I know of a number of times I’ve went to download an app on android that I’ve heard of only to see recent 1 star reviews saying stuff like “this has been bought by an ad company and filled with data harvesting and ads”, or “this has been bought by a Chinese government-linked company, beware”. I want to see shit like that, verified app or not.
It’s a similar issue to YouTube hiding dislikes making it difficult to quickly see whether a video guide is helpful/legit or not.
There’s also them disabling unverified Flatpaks by default. I can see why, but at the same time it’s perhaps hypocritical considering any software they package also isn’t packaged by the original software creator.
That said, I’m not that fussed about this one considering that if you’re using Mint in the first place, you probably trust Mint/Canonical and their repositories.
The idea with flatpaks are flawed by design as everything can’t be there. I want to install the latest version of these there: kde Plasma, wayland, Nvidia drivers, and the Linux kernel. It will never be available there. Better to go back to the drawing board on how to fix this in a good way.
I can’t vouch for every Linux distro that claims to be user-friendly, but I’ve fully switched to Linux Mint a couple of months ago, and I’ve had no issues. The only times I’ve used the console are when I want to use it.
My biggest worry before fully switching was playing pirated games, or games that I bought outside of Steam, but using Lutris it has been pretty straight forward.
Those are somewhat niche distros, id personally recommend mint, zorin, pop_os! or what have you.
It really depends on what your usecase and tastes are though.
Of all countries Norway might be among the last to switch to Linux.
Rich countries tend to go the apple way.
It might surprise you to learn that Apple is not dominating the market here, neither in phones or laptops.
When I think about it, I only really know one person with a Macbok and at work, Android is probably 2/3. Source: I’m the IT guy ordering phones for everybody.
Statcounter’s graph of iOS market share points to more than half 56% on Norway, so I bet if there is a need for replacing windows in Norway they will swing to apple instead of Linux.
Why do you all want to rule the world? Just let people who like windows enjoy it… Jesus christ.
For a democracy to work it’s people need to act like political consumers. To do so, they need to be informed about the products they consume and their alternatives.
I am wondering, what is enjoyable about Windows/Microsoft?
The slow & buggy UI?
The blue screens due to crappy drivers or bc they fucked something up?
The way they erase any customisability, essentially forcing their users to adapt their vision of how a computer should be operated?
How they are coming up with great ideas such as taking system snapshots and having AI analyze them?
The updates that randomly decide to install and then take an eternity with the end user not being able to use their PC whilst an update is taking place?
The 10.000 different ways of updating software?
How they are blatantly ripping off features whilst marketing them as their own ideas?
The way they are turning it more and more into an advertising platform for their own products?
The $139.00 license fee for everything I just mentioned?
Like, the only enjoyable thing I can think of is software availability but thanks to WINE / Proton this advantage is becoming less and less relevant.
an attempt at an answer:
more linux users = more linux software (and I know this doesn’t mean better linux software)
Or at least attention from the bigger actors e.g., Adobe, Autodesk etc. to make their industry standards available for Linux users
I’d rather Adobe not do that, but to each his own.
More Linux users =>
- more people looking at source code
- more people potentially paying for development of some OSS Linux software
- More developer time for said OSS software => better OSS Linux software
European governments will do this thing where they pass some law that says they have to take bids from local vendors for systems, olafs computer service will put in a bid with some free software system, the government will take them up on it, spend a bunch of money trying to integrate it into their existing systems with varying degrees of success then parlay abandoning it for their majority provider in exchange for avoiding cost increases or some free support/equipment.
I think Germany’s done it twice now.
I think Germany’s done it twice now.
It was Munich and they switched back to Windows after M$ moved their German headquarters to Munich.
The EU requires government acquisitions to be publicly announced so that private companies can make offers that the government then must choose from (not freely, mind you, but following some “objective” metrics).
Even though this might sound great to some, it has the downside of promoting commercial services and vendor lock-in up to the point that even if a free and open source alternative exists, it cannot be used unless there also exists some commercial entity behind it that can sell the software and support for it in accordance with the established metrics.
This might be one of the biggest hurdles in the way for Linux adoption, since anyone can claim to do lots of great stuff with SUPERproprietarySOFTWARETM and then hold critical services, like healthcare mentioned elsewhere, hostage to their failure to deliver on promises and future bad support.
I in general very much support requiring paying for support. I.e. SLAs with consequences for not meeting targets support.
At least for software/hardware running things that can’t afford indefinite unauthorized access or downtime if left in a vulnerable state. (Some stuff actually can IMHO be like that).
I also think governments should have justify renting software insteading buying it if the money is intended to be an investment of any kind.
Even more important, a huge multinational like Microsoft can be forced in court to provide the support they sell under threat of legal action that would cripple their profitability in the region. Olafs computer service will just turn its pockets inside out, flip around the shingle to closed and leave the national drivers license agency in a lurch.
On some level the companies that sell and support systems government relies on have to be treated as nation states themselves in order to maintain normalcy, which both parties “want”.
This cannot be true. The dip in windows is corrolated with the increase in linux. Its just a measurement error
