If you’re fighting a one man war for privicy? Yeah, that’s pretty much a lost cause. (Also, the “all or nothing” approach will leave you with a bitter taste in your mouth. Pick your fights, and accept that you’ll never be able to keep all away from companies selling em, and that sometimes, sacrifices to your privacy have to be made. Complete removal shouldn’t be the goal when it’s just you going at it–it should be the reduction of what they get as much as feasibly possible without inconveniancing the user)
If you spread and bring that war to the collective? That’s where things are gonna change. Slowly, yeah, but they’ll change.
Two things made me leave. Both having to do with Windows.
Microsoft themselves.
My Windows install was just…bad. I’m not sure how else to describe a Windows that frequently crashed and just gave up and Blue Screen. Sure, both probably happen to any normal Windows install (well, the 1st thing. If you get the second, yeah that’s a problem)–but not at the frequency it happened with mine, I’m sure. Besides that, it was slow for no reason (AFAIA, anyways) and doing anything took a while. Yeah, I eventually reinstalled it after some hassle, and after that it was just slow, but then i made the fatal mistake of trying Windows 11 and was like “if this is what I’m eventually ganna have do deal with…no thanks.” Tbf, Microsoft was promting it, so i assumed it was an upgrade to Windows 10, not a wannabe chromebook with some baffling “lets fix what isn’t broken and works great as is” choices.
Well, thinking about it, there was a third reason i ususally neglect to mention:
I had a choice. I like looking at all my available options and choosing what to go with instead of having something chosen for me. I’m a big boy and can make my own choices for myself, thank you (looking right at you there, Bill). As soon as i heard “there’s something else besides this or an Apple Product. And it’s much better than some people like to give it credit for” i researched a bit on the differences, the requirements, and a good place to start, and well, here I am.
As for what I am, IDK. I’m a happy Linux user, but i also get some people are perfectly happy Windows users (or aren’t, but are locked into the ecosystem regardless) and hey, as long as we agree that both OS’s have their quirks, you let me keep my penguins, and I’ll let ya keep your…erm, Windows (does Windows have a mascot? I doubt it, but you never know)
This so much. It’s like, you’d think when you shell out cash to pay for a license (or well, I did anyways. But tbf, most PCs you buy come with a valid license), you’d at least be entitled to do as you will with your copy of the OS (within reason, i mean. Yeah, less than legal stuff, go off Microsoft, but stuff like settings and such?) But, well…Microsoft just loves telling you “you opted out, but what you REALLY meant was to opt in. Source: because we say so” with basic settings, not surprising the do it for an OS…of course they would. My bud said it best at the time: they don’t care how you gain it, they just want everone to be on Windows 10
In my experience, 90% of games work on Linux just by using proton. I’ve even had some of my GoG games that just absolutely did not work on modern Windows just straight up be “install and click play” on Linux via just Wine or by using Proton. The 10% that don’t are multiplayer games with heavy anticheats–which, unfortuenatly are what a lot of people play. Some of them already work (Apex, Dead by Daylight, Halo) some are getting worked on (Genshin–tho there IS a way to play it on Linux, at the risk of a ban, a buncha easy-anticheat games like Hunt: Showdown, etc) and some have just plain said a Linux version is out of the cards (Fortnite, Destiny 2 AFAIK).
Modding games also works fine on Linux, but there’s a bit of a catch: it’s not as simple as installing MO2 and Vortex (you CAN install both via Lutris or Steamtinker, but I’ve personally never gotten either to work like that so i can’t say how well it does or doesn’t), you kinda have to play around and see what works. I was able to mod Skyrim, Oblivion, Fallout New Vegas, and Morrowind exactly as i do on Windows (the former three using Rockerbacon’s Mod Organizer 2 script, the last one manually), Fallout 4 manually (haven’t tried the script since i don’t really play FO4, tho I’m sure it works), Pathfinder WOTR via using it’s mod manager in Proton, using Steam Workshop if a game supports it, and using Mod Managers for Linux when they’re available, like Baldur’s Gate 3’s LAMP. Yeah, it’s a hassle depending on the game. For me, it’s fine because I accepted long ago that there would be some annoyances to Linux, and as long as there isn’t any native mod managers built specifically for Linux and we’re stuck jury rigging mod managers made for Windows, modding will be one of those annoyances. But my tolerance is not everyone’s tolerance and I completely understand if people are put off by this and just stick to Windows for modded games.
As an Arch User who keeps hearing about OpenSUSE being a more stable rolling release…mind going into it a bit more? I’m happy on my system, mind, but idk, could be I’m missing out on something big for not making the jump. If nothing else, I’ll know my options
Took ya that long? As soon as they went “That’s right fuckface.”, it was over lol. I knew whatever was gonna follow would be some unhinged shit…and it was, save for that one nugget of wisdom that was thrown in there about shutting up and using what you wanted (that of course, they wouldn’t follow. If they did this wouldn’t exist in the first place)
Arch + XFCE on my desktop. Have been for a while now, and everytime i try something else, I always come back to it. For my laptop, I’ve been using Gnome + extensions (Arch as well. That way I don’t gotta switch gears and remember two different sets of commands) before i had to take it in for repairs. Was pretty good because of the mousepad gestures IMO.
Strange, last I checked most of the top played games were also Linux compatible. Then again, the most played titles change frequently, so I’ve no doubt at least a couple of non-Linux compatible games make it up there depending on several factors like update/DLC resurrance and such.
Really? I’ve heard the opposite, but maybe their stances have changed and i just didn’t keep up with em or i was misinformed to begin with. Regardless, I have seen a couple of multiplayer games go from broken/not working at all to actually launching and being playable (as an example Naraka: Bladepoint. It also took Dead by Daylight forever to be playable on Linux, but it is now. I believe Apex was the same). Some aren’t perfect yet, but they work instead of stopping at the title screen–if even that. Sure, not all of incompatible games are gonna make it to Linux for one reason or another, but they are being brought in–albiet, i admit It’s slow as hell but hey, s’long as more people get to play what they want on the OS they choose to use at the end of the day–at least from what I’m seeing. Could be very wrong and am willing to admit so if shown otherwise.
Oh, I’m not disputing that a large chunk of gamers play games that aren’t playable on Linux yet (tho i disagree with the claim that the majority of PC gamers play those). I’ve always said “it depends on what you like to play” when it comes to gaming on Linux and I’ll stand by that until/if that stops being the case. My first point still stands tho:
The unplayable ones are a drop in the bucket. That’s a straight up fact. And some, if not most of the unplayables are getting patched to work on Linux sooner or later (save for Fortnite. Why do I pick on that one specifically? 1) I personally dislike it and Epic, but more importantly, 2) Epic’s CEO straight up shot the idea of Linux compatability down…even tho there’s nothing really stopping them from enabling Easy Anticheat on their side and making it work vs say, making something like Battle Eye Anticheat play nice with Linux).
His comments were deleted (as I’m guessing his whole account), but I’m almost morbidly curious about whatever he was claiming to be the cause (I’m gonna wager it was “ThE ELiTe trying to subjegate the masses, man!” for $200?)