Linux needs to grow. Stop telling people it’s ‘tech-y’ or acting like you’re more advanced for using it, you are scaring away people. Linux Mint can be used by a senile person perfectly.
Explain shortly the benefits, ‘faster, more secure, easier to use, main choices of professionals and free’. Ask questions that let you know if they need to dual boot, ‘do you use Adobe, anti-cheat games, or Microsoft Office’, ‘how new is your computer’, ‘do you use a Mac’.
And most importantly, offer to help them install.
They don’t understand the concept of distros, just suggest Linux Mint LTS Cinnamon unless they’re curious.
That’s it, spread Linux to as many people as possible. The larger the marketshare, the better support we ALL get. We can fight enshittification. Take the time to spread it but don’t force it on anyone.
AND STOP SCARING PEOPLE AWAY. Linux has no advertising money, it’s up to us.
Offer family members or friends your help or copy and paste the below
how to install linux: 1) copy down your windows product key 2) backup your files to a harddrive 3) install the linux mint cinnamon iso from the linux mint website 4) use etcher (download from its website) to put the iso on a usb flash drive 5) go into bios 6) boot from the usb 7) erase the storage and install 8) press update all in the update manager 9) celebrate. it takes 15 minutes.
edit: LET ME RE-STATE, DO NOT FORCE IT ON ANYONE.
and if someone is at the level of ignorance (not in a derogatory fashion) that they dont know what a file even is genuinely dont bother unless theyre your parents cause youll be tech support for their ‘how do i install the internet’ questions.
Hehe, I think it’s more the Windows people who spread that urban legend. While I completely agree with you, I didn’t learn anything new here 😉
› Tell a person to use linux.
› “Wtf is that”
› Tell 'em how good it is, and you can use almost all of his common sofware and games!
› “Almost?”
› It can’t run some software
› “Can it run (Insert almost anygame with anticheat or adobe software)?”
› no…
/Gets beated up in the parking lot
Such is the life of the linux user.
Why does it need to grow? Seems fine the way it is now.
we are not prioritised by hardware companies or by software companies. makes stuff a lot harder than it has to be. all they care about is marketshare.
There are some hardware companies prioritizing Linux (System 76, Tuxedo, Framework, etc) yet when someone asks for a hardware recommendation around here the answer is always “Lenovo” for some reason. The Linux community needs to do better in this area.
Stop being elitist.
Use linux mint.
Why linux mint?
It’s like ubuntu but no snaps.
What’s ubuntu?
It’s like debian but not as stable. You’ll get more recent apps in ubuntu, test them, and when they are tested companies use the apps in debian.
Ok, What are snaps?
You can install packages with snap, but it’s proprietary.
Ok, that’s bad?
Yes. Foss apps are great and better than proprietary garbage.
Ok, foss good, proprietary garbage.
Why debian and not fedora?
Because all apps are build for it.
So it’s like aur?
No. Aur is made by users for users. Builds on debian are mostly official.
So the package manager is better on debian?
Yes, kind of.
I heard of distrobox. I could use the package manager on any distro.
Yes, but it’s easier at the beginning to stick to one distro and package manager to get used to it.
Why not arch?
It’s too unstable.
Ok, no arch distro. I heard manjaro is good.
No, it holds back packages for no reason.
Ok. What about fedora?
It doesn’t have as many packages.
But it has the copr, aren’t there a lot of apps?
Yes, but it’s like aur, it’s build by users. Debian builds are good, stable and widely used.
Ok. What about nix? I heared it’s the new arch and there are even more packages.
Yes, but It’s not for newbies.
What is an immutable system? I heared that’s the next big thing.
It’s like android an image based operating system where you can’t brick your system by accident with rm -rf /
What’s rm -rf /?
Just test it in a terminal, it’s fun.
How can I play games?
You install steam.
Do I have to configure anything?
Hopefully not
Can I only use linux mint?
No you can use any distro, they are all linux. You can choose whatever you want. Just choose mint.
Why mint?
It has no snaps.
What do I use instead?
Flatpaks
If I use flatpaks, why does the package manager matter so much?
Because not all apps are available as flatpacks, especially command line tools. Snaps has cli but it’s proprietary.
Can’t I just use any distro and use a debian distrobox for those packages I need from debian?
Yes, use linux mint, it’s easy to use.
Do I actually need all those packages? I only use word and steam.
No, probably not.
Why not using ubuntu and install flatpaks?
Because ubuntu sucks.
But isn’t mint based on ubuntu?
Yes, but it has no snaps.
Can’t I just use debian?
Yes, but it doesn’t have the latest packages.
How do I install word?
You can’t. You can use the online version.
That’s a lot to understand. Can’t I just windows? I only open steam anyway.
Yes, but it’s proprietary.
Steam is also proprietary.
Yes, but you xan play games with it on linux.
But if steam is proprietary, and windows is proprietary, and I mainly use steam anyway, does it even matter?
No it doesn’t. If you don’t care and just want anything that runs Steam, don’t bother. Just pick anything, it runs fine on most Linux distributions, Windows and probably Mac. You’re fine with tossing a coin. I’d choose Linux in that case since it’s cheaper.
A proper conversation would be like this:
What shall I use?
Depends… What do you want to do with your computer?
Play games with Steam.
Alright, then use XY. Wanna know more?
No.
Fine.
Thanks for the laugh 😀
How do I install word? https://yt.artemislena.eu/watch?v=LH-6tp-KBuQ
Headline: “Person new to and overly excited about Thing, starts telling other more experienced people about how to approach and think about Thing”
This is the attitude the OP is talking about.
Being snobbish helps noone, we’ve all been noobs at some point.
Linux is the most widely deployed OS on the planet. I’m not sure OP is actually talking about aside from desktop usage. It’s in your headphones, home appliances, routers, competing OS’s, datacenters that run the world…what do you imagine is missed?
:(
I’ve been using Linux for 30 years now, certified to teach it and everything… Here’s your problem:
“Stop telling people it’s ‘tech-y’”
Compared to Windows or MacOS, yes, it is very techy.
“offer to help them install.” - If they need your help to install it they absolutely have no business running Linux.
“They don’t understand the concept of distros” - If they have no understanding of distros, they have no business running Linux.
Think of it like this… if they can’t wrap their head around a distro, what’s going to happen when you try explaining a package manager?
I get the evangelism, but Linux simply is not for everyone, that’s why Apple invented iPads.
Compared to Windows or MacOS, yes, it is very techy.
Distros that have so much graphics like ubuntu and their linux mint isn’t (much) :)
there’s a guy even claimed “Linux is almost identical to Windows”. That guy is a “masturbing monkey” that cannot care about anything other than privacy.
but Linux simply is not for everyone
correct. I think Torvalds would agree.
Many people have no concept of a computer, offer them running linux is destroying their business and render them jobless
And these guys are so hilarious: switching to linux but want to use windows app with wine !
Switching to linux only to decorate the desktop and neofetch!
They want to switch but never want to learn what a kernel is.
Switching to linux and claim about “free”, “open source” but they hide their proprietary games
I’ve been using Linux for 30 years now, certified to teach it and everything
I’m curious what have you learn and certified to teach? I want to learn all of them :)
I don’t know that you can learn “all of them”, there are new ones popping up all the time.
I started with Unix in 1988 because I wanted to play on the Internet and back then you either learned Unix or you didn’t go.
Unix is interesting because when Bell labs came up with it, they were told “Look, you can have a monopoly in the telecommunications industry, or you can have a monopoly in the computer industry, PICK ONE.”
So they picked the telecom industry, but at the same time they went “Hey, here’s this computer OS, see what you all can do with it!”
So you ended up with Unix System V, HP-UX, Irix, BSD Unix, and so on and so on. They were all Unix but all also a little bit different.
Roll forward to the early 90s and Linus Torvalds going “Hey! Imma make my own Unix!” and then THAT splintered into all the Linux variants we have today.
When the early days of Linux happened, my reaction was “Well, I already learned Unix, how hard could this be?” :)
The problem was, there was no easy way to collect everything you needed for an install, so I waited until someone put out a CD with all the files I needed, I think that was 1993? 1994? Something like that.
Anyway, my first was Slackware. Since then, I can’t tell you how many I’ve used. Different situations call for different things. I was a Redhat admin for awhile. I installed YellowDog on a PS3 for fun. MacOS X is not Linux, but it’s underpinnings are based on BSD Unix so it’s kind of a kissing cousin. Apple does a lot of goofy shit, but it’s not insurrmountable if you know Unix.
My certifications were done around 2000/2001 through a company called SAIR and I’m not even sure they exist anymore. They got absorbed into Thomson Learning in 2002.
It was a great experience though. Wouldn’t trade it for anything. I made some good money administering Avaya Definity and Intuity phone systems running Unix.
I don’t know that you can learn “all of them”, there are new ones popping up all the time.
The core remains the same. And if I’m not stupid, everything I learned in Linux (yeah, kernel things) can be easily adapted to OpenBSD which I’m using.
My dad always urge me to learn things “around assembly” (binary math, how the kernel operate). I wanted to know how to get started with these :)
The core is the same, the shells are each a little different. I remember juggling 3 different installs and having to keep a cheat sheet to keep them all straight. :)
Do you know how can I get started with things around the kernel?
So when it comes to kernel modifications, I’m old school…
“If it’s not broken, don’t fix it.” :)
https://www.redhat.com/en/blog/balancing-if-it-aint-broke-dont-fix-it-vs-release-early-and-often
Unless there’s some VERY specific need, some security hole that needs patching, some critical flaw that is failing, in general, DO NOT mess with the kernel.
That being said, there are tons of good guides you can find just by googling “linux kernel modifications”, but also specific guides for your installations. RedHat makes it dead simple to do stuff like this.
But before you do it:
-
Make sure you have a specific need you’re addressing.
-
Make sure you have all the necessary backups you require.
-
Have a roll back process in case something goes wrong.
-
Have a diagnostic testing plan.
-
I don’t think anyone who isn’t already curious about Linux should install Linux. And I sure as hell am not going to try to convince anyone and be blamed for not being able to use adobe products.
I was just about to install Linux mint (once I free up space on my drive, that is)
get the edge version if youre running new hardware and use the update manager the second you first boot
Im installing it next to my current install of windows, but I’m going to make a new partition
I never heard of the edge version
Just tell em, “What if I told you theres an OS with no annoying ads popping on your screen 24/7?” – “Yeah? Is that a modified Wi–” – “Nope. Linux”. And bam. :^)
I’ve “refreshed” a couple coworker’s old PCs with Linux Mint XFCE. It’s actually gone pretty well.
“All I do is browse the net.”
Okay, I’ll put the browser right on the desktop, so you don’t have to search for it. Be patient, it’s an older computer. But at least this works, unlike Windows.
And I haven’t really heard too much from them. Internet works. Basic needs fulfilled.
I feel like someone who knows a bit more could be more of a pain. But for very basic computing needs like paying your bills and surfing IG, it can go well.
Stop being elitist about Linux, the amount of times I’ve had to explain that none of my software runs great on Linux just to have to hear how with trouble shooting it will. My work depends on the use of my software, it’s collaborative. If I have to trouble shoot every time adobe or Ableton updates it’s a bad use of my time and is actively taking time away from projects. Only I use VSTs for music production, they all work perfectly in windows and MacOS. Linux? Hit or miss.
Maybe I’m convinced. Now I gotta find the right one, set it up. Get all my software working, learn a new UI, hope that it doesn’t break collaboration. All in all, not worth the little I would save.
Your time is quite valuable, but there’s a reallllly good chance you’re underestimating the cost of your process in windows:
The OS is cheap. Even buying a key at full price, it’s like ~$100 ballpark. But the software you use costs money, and if it’s business grade, it’s an “As A Service” subscription plan. And any plugins (including VSTs) aren’t free if you want good quality ones. And support plans cost money. And upgrades cost money. And getting new hardware because the newest version of the OS doesn’t supoort anything older than 5 years costs money. And you still end up spending your valuable time on troubleshooting, whether it’s you or waiting on a tech to do it, because problems and errors still occur.
Seriously, keep a spreadsheet of how much time you spend on getting your programs and hardware to work the way you want, even if it’s the time you have to spend waiting for someone else to do the fixing for you. Your time is valuable, and you don’t deserve someone pulling the wool over your eyes to rent you something you should own.
I’m not saying Linux is a better fit for you, nor that you’re in the wrong for not wanting to hop on the hypetrain. Just that it’s not as cut and dry as it seems, the cost isn’t as low as you think, and the whole “Just Works” narrative in any tech is a myth.
People can make their own choices. I have 6-7 Linux machines, and asked my brother to install it too. He hated the experience. He bought a Mac at the end, and he’s very happy with it. Some people just don’t want Linux. They don’t care about its philosophy, or that it’s free. They want an ecosystem, and a status symbol.
I agree with this but we also need the average user to become tech literate.
There’s little reason to introduce linux to someone who doesn’t understand basic concepts like “I can save this file in this folder and find it there in the future instead of putting everything on the desktop” and doesn’t even want to learn.
This goes for everything not just Linux. Maybe instead of dumbing everything down completely (not saying things shouldn’t be made simple enough but there’s a point where you need to get people to get up their asses and actually learn something) maybe we should be teaching people the basics at school, in my IT class back in HS they taught about buses, drivers, some other shit even I can’t remember, and then immediately jumped to how to use excel specifically. None of the information in the first part was at all useful to anyone in that class (none of us was even studying IT, we were mixed classes to become chemical and architecture (?) technicians) and in fact promptly forgotten as soon as IT lessons ended, if not earlier. What would have been useful is the basics of how to use it and how the part users actually interact with works.
Then, once the population is tech literate enough to not panic as soon as they see a sudden popup and mindlessly click “ok” without reading, that’s when Linux (and honestly Windows and Mac too because the OS is irrelevant if the user is a moron) will be truly ready for everyone
Build an automatic Linux mint installer that can handle most typical configurations and migrate data and apps from windows (with wine)
Get some oldish windows exploits together.
Build a worm that replaced vulnerable windows systems with mint
???
Profit (3 free meals a day and TV for the rest of your life)
fucking genius
I’m a Linux user and fan for a lot of years now. Software engineer by profession.
It’s not ready for widespread adoption to the less tech-savvy masses.
It misses some functionality that is really hard to get right but is absolutely expected to get right. For example: graceful suspend and wakeups. It happens so often even to me that I close my Linux laptop for the day, next morning open it up to a bunch of warnings and error messages about Bluetooth adapters or whatever the device of the day that wants to malfunction is that prevents a sound S2 sleep.
I don’t get freaked out about it. But grandma sure would. And yet my 10 year old MacBook Pro gets it right every single fucking time; completely flawlessly. This is the bar of usability that Linux has to achieve for widespread adoption as a true, polished, personal computing experience.
