7 ms·

Is "Linux on the Desktop next year" still a thing?

by clows 6y ago

dhruvmittal 6y ago
I think we called it a win on "The year of desktop linux" when it was clear that Linux was mainstream enough for Microsoft to tie it up with a bow and offer in their app store. Jokes aside, we're at the point where everyone who wants linux on the desktop can get linux on the desktop without having to struggle. Big, known enterprise-friendly companies like Dell and Lenovo will sell you their flagship and business laptops and desktops running Ubuntu, and it's not uncommon for engineers at the 8000+ not-a-software-company I work at to casually have a Linux machine instead of a Mac or PC. It's not 2010, where you had to be willing to navigate UEFI and "will my broadcom wireless work?" to weed out the casuals from the true-believers.
- marketingPro 6y ago
  It was never hard to run Linux. It was always hard to make Linux perform at the same expectations as Windows. Messing around with chromium versions and netflix's plugin was not fun when you just wanted to watch a show. It's not polished, any distro. But Linux server is GOAT.
  - pessimizer 6y ago
    It's often been hard to run Linux, and the expectations of Windows are very low. When I was being pressured to switch to Linux by peers, it was because of the crappiness and instability of Windows, not any particular merit to Linux (other than not crashing constantly and not having to be restarted after every update.) edit: I have to say that I don't use netflix or play video games.
tim333 6y ago
I haven't seen that for a while. It seemed to drop off a bit with Chromebooks which are kind of desktop linux.
jeltz 6y ago
No, it has not been used seriously for about 5 years. The last time was probably when SteamOS was released.
neogodless 6y ago
Sort of, now that Microsoft announced native GUI support coming to WSL2 next year!
goodcanadian 6y ago
Is "Linux on the Desktop next year" still a thing? I'm really sick of this trope. I have been using Linux on the desktop almost exclusively for 15 years. Yes, I still have to fix weird issues on occasion . . . about as frequently as I have to fix weird issues on my wife's Windows machine.
- shadowgovt 6y ago
  You have, but general adoption of Linux-lineage OS's is focused in the mobile tech space. Desktop adoption is still exceedingly low. Statscounter shows Linux installs about on par with ChromeOS installs [https://gs.statcounter.com/os-market-share/desktop/worldwide https://gs.statcounter.com/os-market-share/desktop/worldwide]. Both are beaten out by the "Unknown" category; there are literally more people running we-can't-tell-what OS than a Linux-derivative OS. I think these days, the roadblock isn't reliability; it's Linux being off-mainstream. Network effect, essentially. Most of the (non-Internet) stuff the average person hears about in tech media and by word-of-mouth is not guaranteed to be available on Linux and is basically always guaranteed to be available on Windows, MacOSX, or both. Linux archs have done a decent job of solving the "Can I see my screen with the latest graphics card" problem but are still behind the curve on the "Can I buy Photoshop off the shelf at Best Buy and run it on my computer" curve.
  - goodcanadian 6y ago
    . . . are still behind the curve on the "Can I buy Photoshop off the shelf at Best Buy and run it on my computer" curve. Or I can use GIMP for free. You are correct that Linux on the desktop is not mainstream and that is largely down to network effects, but I don't understand the next logical step in the argument. How does that make Linux on the desktop "not ready" or "incomplete?" In my opinion (and I recognise that this is just an opinion), Linux has been a superior experience to Windows for a long time. All common problems have several robust solutions. Uncommon problems often also have a good solution (which isn't guaranteed on Windows either, at least not without spending a lot of money). The idea that Linux isn't "Desktop Ready" is a tired trope. Just because people don't, doesn't mean they can't. Linux doesn't have a marketing department (and I wouldn't want it to).
yk 6y ago
That was a thing before everybody used android.
fsflover 6y ago
No, it's the year of Linux on mobile already! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinephone https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinephone https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Librem_5 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Librem_5
mhermher 6y ago
I mean, it clearly isn't. When is the last time you heard that in earnest and not as a joke?

Is "Linux on the Desktop next year" still a thing?

by clows 6y ago

Is "Linux on the Desktop next year" still a thing?

I think we called it a win on "The year of desktop linux" when it was clear that Linux was mainstream enough for Microsoft to tie it up with a bow and offer in their app store. Jokes aside, we're at the point where everyone who wants linux on the desktop can get linux on the desktop without having to struggle. Big, known enterprise-friendly companies like Dell and Lenovo will sell you their flagship and business laptops and desktops running Ubuntu, and it's not uncommon for engineers at the 8000+ not-a-software-company I work at to casually have a Linux machine instead of a Mac or PC. It's not 2010, where you had to be willing to navigate UEFI and "will my broadcom wireless work?" to weed out the casuals from the true-believers.

marketingPro 6y ago
It was never hard to run Linux. It was always hard to make Linux perform at the same expectations as Windows. Messing around with chromium versions and netflix's plugin was not fun when you just wanted to watch a show. It's not polished, any distro. But Linux server is GOAT.
- pessimizer 6y ago
  It's often been hard to run Linux, and the expectations of Windows are very low. When I was being pressured to switch to Linux by peers, it was because of the crappiness and instability of Windows, not any particular merit to Linux (other than not crashing constantly and not having to be restarted after every update.) edit: I have to say that I don't use netflix or play video games.

tim333 6y ago

I haven't seen that for a while. It seemed to drop off a bit with Chromebooks which are kind of desktop linux.

jeltz 6y ago

No, it has not been used seriously for about 5 years. The last time was probably when SteamOS was released.

neogodless 6y ago

Sort of, now that Microsoft announced native GUI support coming to WSL2 next year!

goodcanadian 6y ago

Is "Linux on the Desktop next year" still a thing? I'm really sick of this trope. I have been using Linux on the desktop almost exclusively for 15 years. Yes, I still have to fix weird issues on occasion . . . about as frequently as I have to fix weird issues on my wife's Windows machine.

shadowgovt 6y ago
You have, but general adoption of Linux-lineage OS's is focused in the mobile tech space. Desktop adoption is still exceedingly low. Statscounter shows Linux installs about on par with ChromeOS installs [https://gs.statcounter.com/os-market-share/desktop/worldwide https://gs.statcounter.com/os-market-share/desktop/worldwide]. Both are beaten out by the "Unknown" category; there are literally more people running we-can't-tell-what OS than a Linux-derivative OS. I think these days, the roadblock isn't reliability; it's Linux being off-mainstream. Network effect, essentially. Most of the (non-Internet) stuff the average person hears about in tech media and by word-of-mouth is not guaranteed to be available on Linux and is basically always guaranteed to be available on Windows, MacOSX, or both. Linux archs have done a decent job of solving the "Can I see my screen with the latest graphics card" problem but are still behind the curve on the "Can I buy Photoshop off the shelf at Best Buy and run it on my computer" curve.
- goodcanadian 6y ago
  . . . are still behind the curve on the "Can I buy Photoshop off the shelf at Best Buy and run it on my computer" curve. Or I can use GIMP for free. You are correct that Linux on the desktop is not mainstream and that is largely down to network effects, but I don't understand the next logical step in the argument. How does that make Linux on the desktop "not ready" or "incomplete?" In my opinion (and I recognise that this is just an opinion), Linux has been a superior experience to Windows for a long time. All common problems have several robust solutions. Uncommon problems often also have a good solution (which isn't guaranteed on Windows either, at least not without spending a lot of money). The idea that Linux isn't "Desktop Ready" is a tired trope. Just because people don't, doesn't mean they can't. Linux doesn't have a marketing department (and I wouldn't want it to).

yk 6y ago

That was a thing before everybody used android.

fsflover 6y ago

No, it's the year of Linux on mobile already! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinephone https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinephone https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Librem_5 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Librem_5

mhermher 6y ago

I mean, it clearly isn't. When is the last time you heard that in earnest and not as a joke?