this post was submitted on 19 Mar 2025
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So long as you need a terminal to do anything on a Linux machine it's not gonna get any mainstream appeal, most people can barely install a app on windows where they just have to click next a few times. Also if the laptop you buy comes pre-installed with windows what would motivate a regular joe to go out of his way to install Linux on it and risk messing things up by making a mistake. Also people don't want to replace their windows only software and gaming is another reason to stick to windows for now. I'd rather use Linux, but I'll wait till Steam has made most games compatible with Linux, and Nvidia and Amd give proper driver support for linux
Dude tbh I had to install chrome on a friends laptop last week (not because he couldn't, just because we needed it and I happened to be the one on the keys), and I legit couldn't do it for a sec. I had to go to google, google "google chrome," get the DL page, dl, run installer, etc.
I literally said "goddammit why can't I just type 'flatpak install google chrome' in the terminal?!" (Would have gone with apt/dnf, but I wouldn't know his sudo password, though he could have just entered it had it been needed).
I can barely install an app on windows (anymore), and I think linux is actually easier as long as you don't have to compile from source. Less likely to get Gogle-Chorme.exe too..
Yeah when are comfortable typing commands it's obviously much easier to just pull up the terminal and do that and since dependencies are shared between applications in Linux it prevents your drive from becoming bloated and it's so much easier to update everything using a few commands, but most people are not comfortable typing even basic words let alone commands, every time I've seen my manager who apparently used to be a programmer once, struggle to type a sentence making spelling mistakes in ever word, I'm glad he doesn't code anymore, cause most of the time when he runs a command he makes some mistake and screws things up and then I have to fix it.
Hell still sometimes I'll type "flatpack" instead and it'll just say "hey dumbass that's not a thing," but even then I just go "lol whoops" and fix it, no problem!
Like sure learning the commands is an adjustment but once you learn a couple I still think Linux ends up being easier for simple stuff like that installing/updating, etc.
Being able to boot to a flash drive to make sure it will work?
The average Joe - "what's a Bootable flash drive?"
So then it's not the risk scaring them away, it's their inability to even install Linux in the first place.
Yes
I use terminal on linux less than I use regedit to fix bugs and performance issues "the os for casual people" shouldn't have. Ever tried switching mouse scroll wheel direction on a japanese trackball? That is an user-experience of all time, while on kde for example it's a checkbox.
KDE software center servers programs from reliable, safe, trusted sources so you don't need terminal. Only reason a casual user would need terminal is to get nvidia drivers, which is less work than windows ones considering the aforemoentioned software center automatically updates them without extra useless bloatware and forced sign in to an account, unlike on windows.
That's one of the main things we're talking about, actually.
This year, t's my Windows PC that constantly makes me reach for PowerShell to fix annoyances, while my Linux PC just has a quick toggle for whatever convenient UI feature I want.
You donβt understand. The average Windows user has no clue what a CLI even is and has certainly never edited the registry. If something isnβt working they learn to live with it or call a tech savvy friend.
Edit: Windows is like an iPhone. They work for their usersβ use cases out of the box. They are for people that want to just do stuff, not tinker with technology. I never have to mess with the settings on my Windows boxes once I have them configured the way I want. Like, ever.
Oh I understand. I'm the person who reaches for a terminal for my Windows user relatives, when they ask nicely.
Lately though, they just live with it, or they go learn some CLI if they care enough, because Windows throws them all kinds (variety) of crap that Linux doesn't have trouble with anymore.
(Edit: The frequency of Windows issue is fine. But the variety of Windows corner cases makes casual "I've seen that" friend support not work as much anymore for me. I used to be able to help my friends more when Windows was a lot worse, ironically.)
Yeah. Same here. For both my Windows and Linux boxes. Though if I'm comparing, my Windows box is the only one that demands technical support every so often.
And that's genuinely a big change. Us tinkerers are using threads like this one to come to terms with it.
And we realized we should sort of quietly wave the "all clear" for folks who wanted to switch but couldn't.
Then we give ourselves permission to go back to pretending Windows users are happy and don't need our help, for another couple of years.
Well you're in luck - because Linux has reached the point where you don't need the terminal for any kind of standard activity. You can easily install and uninstall stuff, and change various desktop UI stuff, and run all sorts of apps - all without ever touching the terminal.
Sounds good, if my old laptop that my parents use gets to dated for windows I'll put Linux on it
Steam has made most games compatible, nvidia has a proper driver, and amd drivers are built in and you don't need to do anything at all. Honestly at this point, Linux is easier to install apps and keep apps updated than Windows. You are 100% right about what already comes on the laptop, and that's why they do it. Its called monopolizing.
That sounds good maybe in a couple of years I'll when I get a new laptop I'll put Linux on my old one to turn it into a home server and backup computer
Some games like Elden ring were even more performant for me on Linux than windows because of shader caching with proton