Just gonna throw in a recommendation for Nobara as a distro. Based on Fedora, maintained by Glorious egroll who makes great versions of proton. Distro is tuned for gaming but is great for regular use too. Used it for over a year and set my GF up with it as her first Linux desktop.
+1 for Nobara. I never could stand the farting around it took to get Fedora to use codecs and non-free software, so I was a little off-put trying Nobara, but it’s been a pleasure to use. I still miss the AUR but not as much as the last time I left the Arch ecosystem. And it comes out of the box ready to game, with everything you are going to need to have the best experience you’ll find on Linux without having to beat your head against all weird things you have to do to configure properly.
And KDE is a first-class citizen instead of sitting on the backburner waiting for a chance. I liked that change in the last release even though it was working well enough despite being non-default.
As someone who’s only ever used GNOME and has a Nobara install, what would the transition be like and is it worth it to reimage my machine with a KDE N39 install?
You could just add the plasma-full package or the more minimal group and log out, it’ll be a choice in the display manager login screen. I’d go with the Wayland session. If you can’t run Wayland because of GPU issues, you’re probably better off with Gnome.
I’m currently holding an opinion that everyone who can enjoy Linux will eventually try it on their own.
I think, despite what many people say, an average user still has a very rough time using it, and in my opinion you need some level of nerdiness in order to overcome adaptation pains, and such people already use internet in a nerdy way and will try out Linux on their own eventually.
Agreed. Unconditionally recommending Linux to regular people isn’t a good idea. In my opinion it’s fine with all the disclaimers about possible disadvantages and recommend them to inform themselves about it.
Just talking about my experience got them interested enough to at some point try to daily drive Linux on their desktop PC, one of them used PopOS for 2 years on their uni laptop at that point.
At the end of the day it’s all about expectations. Most people are uninterested in computers and want to continue using what they know. Others want to experiment and will learn more themselves after being shown something interesting (through YT, conversations, Steam Deck tutorials, …).
The only reason it’s like that is because devices come preinstalled with Windows. I would love if we had the Linux option that makes the device cost less
I don’t either (despite the fact that I use Arch BTW). The average adult in my country is barely able to use their computer for basic tasks (think Word/Excel, basic internet usage). Having all these people on Linux is a nightmare scenario I don’t want to imagine. I would love nothing more than Linux becoming the norm in the not-so-distant future, but the computer literacy in the general population is just too low right now.
I do both. When someone comes to me regarding their laptop overheating and slowdown issues, I recommend them Linux, right before fixing their Windows. And when someone asks me which one to use, or what to start with, or how to install, I warn them about the difficulties (because one who potentially can use Linux, will ask different questions).
Just wanted to add that i know folks who have no problem using distro like Mint but are extremely non tech. To the point they can’t set up their new TV. In fact it’s safer for them than Windows since they can’t just go clicling yes to all dangerous operations like on Windows.
I thinkbeginner friendly distros are more difficult not for total noobs but for users who are slightly experienced with PCs and want to do medium level operations like installing specific soft outside distro repo .
In that case, it seems to be a good idea to setup a linux installation yourself for the user and not give them sudo (or root password) and then make a service allowing them to use the app store and updating their system without requiring root privileges, but not letting them add a repository.
Microsoft Office and Adobe software are the main anchors to Windows currently. Anyone using them (as is professionally required) is stuck with Windows or MacOS.
I think this depends. People who need basic computer functions can get on very well with linux.
My classmate in highschool had ubuntu on his home pc as long as I remember, because someone preconfigured it for them and it was mainly a browser - schoolwork machine. He gamed on XBox. There was no hassle, it was fine.
My mom on her run down laptop has mint now, because I configured it for her. I haven’t heard any complaints.
E: Also many hospital here run Linux and it is just fine, and trust me, many of the medical staff are barely tech literate enough to register for email themselves.
Linux is a problem for people who come from windows and need more than basics but are not tech savvy enough to get their hands dirty. Then once your comfort level with tinkering goes up again, Linux is once again not a bad recommendation. It really kind of is the bell curve meme.
I’ve already given a similar answer somewhere in this thread, but my point is, yes, it works well for advanced users (stack overflow enjoyers) and total beginners (Where do I click to get to Facebook?), while average users are in the middle, and are simultaneously require more features than beginners, but do not have the means to solve them.
What about when they buy a new printer and need drivers. Or want to install some software they heard about that only works on Windows/Mac? I am a software developer and still struggle to find a use case where Linux would be better than Windows. If it’s not a game that won’t work then it’s an IDE that’s unavailable. There always seems to be something that isn’t fully compatible or doesn’t have a functional equivalent in Linux.
This is why I still have windows on the machines at home. There’s always some niche device, especially for my wife’s crafting, that only supports windows.
But then at work thanks to VMs I use windows and Linux side by side every day.
What about when they buy a new printer and need drivers.
Printers have “just worked” on Linux for longer than Windows has provided drivers through Windows Update. What printer do you have that requires special drivers in Linux?
Canon Pro 9000 mkii. It works but in a basic mode. There is no way to select a color profile or borderless printing. There is no way to clean the nozzles. Our Brother Laser Printer on TrueNas was a huge pain to find drivers for it to get air print to work correctly. I think I spent an entire work day messing with CUPS until I got things working properly.
Linux is a problem for people who come from windows and need more than basics but are not tech savvy enough to get their hands dirty.
Spot-on. For people with minimal to no computer skills in the first place Linux will serve them well.
The one who well struggle the most ironically are Windows “Power users” and other intermediate/advanced users who don’t have the equivalent skill already in Linux or time/willingness to learn Linux systems.
That’s exactly where I feel I’m at. I’m no tech expert but I’m the guy family calls to help with computer stuff and I know enough to realize I don’t like the direction Windows is going. I’ve gone as far as to install Linux on a single device I use but now I just use that device less cause I can’t be bothered to figure it out when I’ve already got other machines that I’ve got working just the way I like.
Feel like I’ve come to a wall that yeah, I could overcome and climb, but this side of the wall is still livable and I’m not even sure the other side will be much better.
Either that, or they use specific tools that they can’t or won’t replace and which don’t work on Linux. Usually it’s creative or engineering software. There are usually good, Linux compatible, open source alternatives, but they’re not the same as industry standard tools that they need to know how to use and be 100% compatible with. Windows or MacOS is your only safe bet there.
If you’re a mere hobbyist and interested in learning new tools it’s an entirely different answer. You can try out the windows versions of the alternative software first, then try switching to Linux down the line when see the greener grass.
It doesn’t seem to be the case with distros like Mint. I even know folks who have Mint but they have no clue about tech or computers at all. As users they can hardly tell difference. And It’s actually easier on them because it doesn’t get all messy as Windows does for non tech folks, so there is almost no maintenance needed. I very much recommended it for granparents and such, so you don’t have to go fixing their Windows PC each visit because they downloaded tons of random danger ware by not understanding what they do.
Yeah, that’s the thing. Two categories of users can properly enjoy Linux (in my opinion):
Technically advanced users who can figure out a lot on their own
Technically illiterate users (“Show me where to click to get to Facebook”)
While average users are the ones to suffer. They are technically picky enough to require more advanced features than “click to open Google”, but not nerdy enough to spend hours reading stack overflow to make something they need work.
Most average users will be actively displeased that their settings menu is now different and confusing, office tools have slightly different UI, and some specialized software is missing.
Average user does not spend hours learning GIMP, they blame Linux for not having Photoshop and quit. Sad but true
“Granny” has evolved. In 1985 granny at the tender age of 60 was born when 65% of households didn’t have electricity and she came of age when the height of sophistication was the typewriter.
In 2010 granny saw computers become a thing when she was 40 become usable by 55 and pervasive at work by the time she retired.
In 2024 granny saw computers become a thing right when she became an adult. Her kids had them. She used them. By the time she was 46 they were literally everywhere and unavoidable
By 2034 granny saw computers become a thing when she was a kid and they were everywhere by her early adulthood.
This isn’t an argument against GUIs which are in fact useful but lets not pretend everyone is an idiot either. Honestly I don’t find googles GUI for managing android apps even slightly usable as far as finding software either. I always end up searching on an actual search engine, finding the exact app I need and then installing it. Android with its mega millions of users doesn’t have a better ux than apt.
okay Judge Dredd. Because you make the difference to the Linux world. piss off back to whatever OS you were using before you “discovered Linux” 6 months ago.
It’s funny - some of my first Linux experiences was to try out compiz-fusion back when it was new about 20 years ago. Wobbly windows is the key feature that I fell in love with Linux over. Or rather a compositor that provided great control over the desktop experience that made it fun, and people like you were angry back then that nobody needs eye candy. Nowadays, composite graphics are standard in Windows, Mac, Gnome and KDE.
I’m glad that the community overall has grown up, and that most distros focus on being usable by every user, not just power users
Hard to make a real recommendation without knowing your budget and general likes/dislikes. Like screen size, weight, clamshell vs convertible, integrated graphics vs dedicated GPU. I know you said gaming but integrated is great for indie and retro gaming and can handle some.modern stuff but a dgpu is needed if you’re playing AAA titles and care about graphics and framerate, etc.
For everyone who says Linux runs on anything, that’s mostly true but specific hardware components are still problematic. Most fingerprint scanners won’t work if the laptop comes with Windows and you’re installing yourself, the same for any unique hardware feature.
I have the Thinkpad x1 yoga gen 7 and everything works including the OR camera for facial recognition and the fingerprint scanner.
A couple mentions in here of Linux Mint, I also recommend it having tried out a few distros before landing here. Especially if you go with an external GPU laptop, which might be a good choice for gaming needs, then Linux Mint has been really good about solving all of the annoying driver problems that could come up.
I have a Dell G15 Ryzen (AMD with nvidia GPU), it’s been pretty good but there’s always a trade-off between bulkiness and gaming needs. It’s just a little awkward to lug around to coffee shops, but it’s certainly got enough processing power for me.
System76 was a contender too, I think I just went with whichever was on sale!
I have never had an issue on Linux mint that was not me fucking with the comabd line doing things it warned me I should not, or that wasn’t outright a hardware failure
I don’t bother with PiHole because DNS-based ad blocking quite frankly sucks and is only getting worse.
I’m still waiting for someone like AdGuard to release a MITM proxy that does something similar to uBlock Origin and strips ads directly from the network traffic
But until then, browser extensions are good enough for most usecases (Firefox user so the adblocking ones work on mobile as well)
Bad track record with their privacy invasion via their Amazon shenanigans (which Richard Stallman called the Ubuntu Spyware), the shilling of Ubuntu One cloud and now Ubuntu Pro subscriptions that are reminiscent of Microsoft’s shilling of Microsoft accounts and OneDrive, Snap telemetry…
Fair enough. I guess it depends how you look at it. I was thinking in terms of UX, in which case it’d be Mint Cinnamon or anything running KDE Plasma that’d be the Windows of the Linux world.
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