Why don't more people use Linux?

Discussion
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I have never played a computer game ! Except for using solitaire to teach mouse skills in the form of click plus drag and drop a long time ago when mice were new toys. Now not really needed to teach.

The unique thing about linux is the number of desktop versions even down to menu position… If you look at a mac it’s icons are bottom middle like window 11 is now. Linux can be the same but generally is not. Bottom left or top left.

Once you are on the internet or inside a word process you don’t really know what you are using. All the same but some colour difference

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I’ve used the carp out of batch files. PowerShell not as much. It’s decades more recent. You can always count on the batch files working the same across versions, but not so much with PowerShell. It’s more powerful, but harder to configure if you ask me. Some of that is just that I’m not as familiar with it.

These days I’d rather use Python that PowerShell. It also has some installation and configuration issues. It’s cross platform, but things aren’t super simple to use cross platform.

I’ve sure grown accustomed to using bash shells. I probably spend 80% or more of my time in one. Almost every time I try to clear my screen or get a directory listing in DOS I end up using the bash equivalent.

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That’s a good reason for lots of folks. I don’t have a strong anti-Microsoft bias, but I understand it. I feel that way about Google and more so Apple. ABA: Anything But Apple.

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Paul Allen. I don’t think of Steve Ballmer except when I see a couple famous quotes. You know the ones I’m sure.

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Why use Linux? As an average user, with no appreciable programming skill or knowledge, my evaluation criteria are simple:

*cost–the lower the better, free is best
*function–it does what I want it to do and security is available
*attitude–if a system appeals to peer success (Apple) or mass approval (Microsoft), it’s a loser for me
*safety–I don’t want prying eyes in my computer (Google/Chromebook)

I don’t care about the needs of software professionals. OSS applications work just fine for me. Give me bare metal and an OSS browser that doesn’t peek in my bedroom or doctor’s office and I’ll be happy. Let me look under the hood, fix the hardware with my own hands, and allow my knowledge to expand. Then I’ll be happy.

Linux is perfect for me.

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I always forget paul allen, dont know why, I met steve ballmer many years back when he was a speaker at a conference. Big character think thats why I remember him.

Again last century I went to work for apple and it gave me great pleasure to work with steve Wozniak due to his technical ability and knowledge

Funny how in life, some have a profound effect and leave lasting memories, where others can be just a passing moment.

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To me the Microsoft/Apple equivalents are Gates/Jobs and Allen/Wozniak. It just seemed to me like their roles were similar for each company. The public face and the technical wizard. Although I’ve always heard Gates was a very capable technical guy too. Not sure on the Jobs side.

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Well said Bill. I think that describes most of us when in non-professional mode.

On function:
Occasinally some users with a Windows background have trouble finding the equivalent Linux tool(s) for a task. There is always a way, but patience tends to run out or they will not modify work methods, and they put Linux on the shelf.
The answer is definitely not to make Linux do things the same way Windows does. People have to accept that Linux is different and be more flexible in their approach.
How do we get people to think outside of the Windows square?

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“Medical evidence of chronic alcoholism was found during the autopsy”. Source : Gary Kildall - Wikipedia
Kildall was not a drinker. His alcoholism took place because of the crime Bill Gates committed. At that time there was no law for copyright infringement. But, if there would be any such law, nobody would be able to convict Bill Gates because he never leaves any footprint which can lead to him. He steals code and change every instance which can possibly show who the original developer was and this he does for open source software also. But as I mentioned earlier, Bill Gates may got away with his crime but this stain will remain with Bill Gates and Microsoft forever.

“According to the coroner’s report, Kildall’s fatal injury may have taken place “as a result of foul play,” and the case was referred to the Monterey Police Department.” Source : Gary Kildall - Wikipedia
I can’t say what was behind Gary Kildall’s death but this was also could be the ‘handywork’ of Bill Gates because in corporate world, remains a big shadow under the limelight.

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Yeah, I agree. But many third class products are also being sold as ‘The Best Product’ because of marketing. I can give you a couple of examples. In India, I never saw an ad of MRF tyres. But globally MRF makes one of the best tyres. LG cell phones which the experts say that they made something which were ahead of their time… way ahead. But I have never seen any aggressive marketing by LG like Samsung, Motorola and other brands. But those products speak for themselves. Nowadays, Microsoft is paying ‘influencers’, Microsoft fanboys, influencing forums like XDA DEVELOPERS to make awesome reviews on Windows 11 and to push it but everybody knows what Windows 11 has become. On the other hand, I am seeing a surge on Linux reviewers which I have never seen before and GNU/Linux is not paying for this, I believe. But, in my ooinion, if GNU/Linux can overcome its problems, the FOSS developers who built their apps for Linux, would be more sincere, at least few of them which will make the difference. Blender is the perfect example of how a Free Open Source Software can attract corporate sponsors. Mozilla is another example. Here is a video I found on YouTube which perfectly described what Linux lacks and what to do: https://youtu.be/nHQv4blla7g?si=2wxA60J_kMvRn-GV. The solutions described in this video are solid and if those can be followed by the app makers, Linux will be a successful OS and nobody will ask for Windows. Number of compatible apps and hardware drivers made Windows ‘essential’. If that can be done for Linux, Windows and Mac OS will be used only by their fanboys.

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You have just expressed my heart’s contents. :heart: from India.

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Conspiracy Theory

Cannot believe everything you read.

Dont think bill gates would do that, yes he bought companies cheap , asset stripped them and dumped them but anything else … no.

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Bill, can I add one to your list
*customizable – linux is more customizable than Windows or MacOS. I like to be able to set up things to suit my work pattern. In that sense, everyone’s Linux install is different.

It is a great summary.

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In my understanding of Linux, it is down to the user to maintain it, where as with like the Author of the Blog post said Commercial or proprietary systems have everything there for you. Linux though has come along way over the years, to make it easy to install and use. The problem I feel is people do not do their research first, before making the leap. No matter how clued up they think they are, there is always something that goes wrong, during the initial install, or just afterwards.

When I started my Linux Journey, did not know about the help out there, just shoved in at the deep end. Not knowing any Terminal commands, but then again another thing is no one reads instructions, so can remember failing and breaking Lucid Lynx so many times, till I figured out that I should not of done the thing that broke it in the first place.

Before Linux I was starting out in Windows XP and to be honest had no frigging idea about that either. What stops people coming to Linux? Is it the fact that the rumour train of it being so hard to use, you have to use the Terminal to do anything. The Terminal is the brain of the Linux Distro, it is what was used to get the software installed, plus scripts and all other shenanigans.

Linux was originally for hobbyists, for people in the community who wanted something different, away from proprietary systems, a challenge to use some alternative software, to the proprietary software they were already using, a easier, more free and open experience. Another thing that people do not ask themselves is,
What do I need a computer for? What am I going to do on it?
What Linux Distro do I go for? How do I get help when I need it?
Should I just stick to a Proprietary system? How powerful should my computer hardware be? Will Linux even support my hardware choice? It’s with these questions that needs research from the users perspective. So out comes the phone and he or she starts googling, but ends up with loads of articles written by AI that just keep repeating the same things over and over again. So they shorten their search down to find a website that can help and they come across It’s FOSS they read a few articles and their journey into the world of Linux begins.

It isn’t as straight forward as that though. I don’t think it is because people do not want to learn, it is the mentality of actually having to put the effort in, in the first place. The mindset, that they don’t have to do anything in Windows, it is just there for them and software just works out of the bag. Software is a big issue though, when Photoshop, Adobe products in general are not available in Linux. There are alternatives, but sometimes like DaVinci Resolve will only cater for more up to date drivers here in Linux. The world is starting to change though. I am seeing more and more comments on YouTube saying that they are going to fully move to Linux. I have just made that transition. All of my hardware is running Cachy OS. This being my main machine and my other one with the same specs is my gaming machine, which has Cachy OS on it too. Again it being Arch, must keep it maintained and if anything goes wrong, be able to fix it myself and not rely on anyone else to help me.

This is another misconception of Linux, their are communities out there who love to help, no matter how stupid the question. Then it goes that the Linux Community is full of hatred and they all say ah just google it. I know one thing that I am so glad I persevered through retrying and all the fails of getting things to work in Lucid Lynx all those years ago, as I would not be here now writing this epic reply.

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Thanks, a lot of us missed that. Maintenance is important. There is more to it than running the occasional update.

Windows used to be like that too… at least you had to hand start updates. Has it become automatic now?

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This has been quite the interesting thread. Brought back old memories of my first use of computers in the workplace.

I remember being sent to an IBM-PC school (8-hr course) for one day in order to use the “new” computers for an oil company with a legal “trust” department that I would be using “word processing” (don’t ask me what I used) to create & modify these 500 page documents. I would also be sending out massive letters via mail merge (still via US Mail) to the shareholders.

Then I remember having an onsite tech support (one man) as I worked for a commercial property management company and learned a lot from him as I made mistakes, lost unsaved work, etc. One of the rules of thumb back then, "anytime you are where you do not want to be-- “escape” LOL.

Later, I went to work at a huge telecomm company where I had no clue what a “switch” was (this is what they built/installed for corporate telephone systems) and was presented with 2 computers side by side: an IBM PC for email (I don’t think it was called that then, it was an internal system of mail for the company) and a Mac (small computer) in order to do the work of creating/editing schematics, etc. I could not even tell you what OS it was running, but it was “in color” (display) where as the PC looked like a terminal screen.

Fast forward to my work at an engineering satellite office where there was NO tech support onsite, but we had an IT department in another state that I could call and get help. And do you think they would pay a local company to come and replace a failed hard drive? Nope. They told me I was the onsite tech (ROFL) and they walked me through opening up the desktop PCs and “fixing” what ever hardware had failed. That was my first intro into thinking I might be able to do things I never thought I could before.

In 2018, my husband bought me the latest/greatest hardware desktop with Windows 10. By this point, I had begun reading/learning about Linux. Just like back at that engineering firm, I was scared of “breaking” my computer, but kept reading about Linux almost daily.

Then a Windows update killed my bluetooth in my brand new pc. I was, at this point, sick and tired of the current issue in a lot of Windows pc (100% disk usage was reported by Windows so computer slowed to a crawl) where I had actually called into MS tech support and after lengthy discussion with tech, he admitted there was no way to fix it as there were too many computers w/varying hardware using their OS and having same issue. I had specifically gotten this “new” pc because of this issue on previous laptop. He said even his own computer at home was suffering from it.

So after waking up to find no bluetooth and unable to get it back, but seeing a lot of discussion of the update doing the same to other users, I decided to take the leap. I mean, what was the worst that could happen? I use a W10 flash drive and reinstall, right?

I installed Kubuntu and from there, have never gone back to Windows. My Linux journey has led me to better understand the relationship between hardware and the OS, doing more than just .bat in powershell, but using the CLI to accomplish tasks and to try more and more Linux distros to get a grasp on how they operate differently and how one might better suit my needs for the pc installed on.

I homeschooled my children with the #1 mindset: Never Stop Learning and I instilled a ‘love’ for learning in them.

I have since converted all of their computers to the Linux of their choice, as well as my Mom’s pc.

As has been stated over and over again, most users do not know there is any other option. But I have never been one to be dictated to and always search for options to something that is just not working for me. And the more I learned about the Linux OS and the freedom I have to configure my OS with the apps and processes I need to run my computers “my way” and as I need them to run, the more sure I was that I made the right decision in switching to Linux.

Sheila

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That is exactly what I meant by “customizable”.
Linux is not just one OS… it is more like a toolbox to build your special OS.

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Exactly.
As a child my favourit (almost the ony) toy way LEGO.
It’s just small useless colorful bricks, but which then build up a house, a car or a ship, or whatever… It’s just how they are put together.

With Linux I feel similar, just the bricks are different. Instead those colorful bricks I play with small code snippets I “borrow”, different packages, programs, scripts, DE’s, suites…
The result is something that is just the way I like it.

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That could be one of the reasons more people don’t use Linux. It’s much easier to just choose Windows and concentrate on the rest of the hardware choices for memory, disk, screen size, etc. There are too many choices for some people.

It may not even matter much which choice you make. I have my own preferences that drifts a bit, but I could be happy running Ubuntu, Pop!_OS, Elementary, Fedora, Manjaro, etc.

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Couldn’t agree. We generally keep a blind eye for those whom we admire. This also happened with Bill Gates. FYI, Bill Gates is not the man he seems to be. Like we all know Melinda French Gates has divorced Bill Gates and has stepped down from Bill Gates and Melinda Gates Foundation. Why? Please search internet or YouTube. I could post here a link but it is off topic. Now, why I brought up this topic in the first place when it is off-topic? Only just to give an example that what we think about big personalities, are not what it is in reality. Everything is not a conspiracy theory. If Snowden would not leak those confidential files, many would believe that those were conspiracy theories. If SAG-AFTRA would not organise that protest, many would believe whatever they were hearing about the big studios were conspiracy theories. If USA would not sue Google, many would believe those were conspiracy theories. History has shown us that many so called ‘CONSPIRACY THEORIES’ were proved to be actually true. But particularly in this case regarding stealing Kildall’s codes, Bill Gates was lucky that he got away and this particular tactics he applied afterwards by forming GITHUB in more refined manner so that nobody will be able to do anything legally. What Adobe revealed in its T&Cs, Microsoft has been doing those for decades which is accessing and stealing others’ creative property and alter them as they please and use them for their profit. This need to be stopped. What I am saying today, may be in future, USA or any other country will sue Microsoft for it.