The Windows 11 problem

While true, how much troubleshooting does windows require? Because as I sometimes use windows, it's not that much less work to get it to do what you want it to do, or solve issues, than linux.

Especially since it feels like windows tries to fight you every step of the way.

Once people get over the initial Windows indoctrination, Linux is simple to use and doesn't require tons of complex troubleshooting like people think. Before the COVID lockdown I tried for the Nth time to get my dad to use Linux. I had it installed and told him to stick with it for a few weeks (he only browses the web and plays solitaire). If he still didn't like it, I'd reenable Windows. Well that few weeks turned into 6 months. Now both he and my mom have been happy Linux users for about 2 years.

When people are talking about Linux Desktop they usually mean GNU/Linux. Chrome OS and Android both use the Linux kernel, but they aren't GNU/Linux like we understand Linux desktop.

GNU/Linux needs a company that will create a Macintosh equivalent. A company that will design quality hardware. Restrict the hardware they support tightly, but highly optimise the drivers in their devices. Selling their equipment with a distro that's well supported with bug testing and user support. Each update being tested on all their devices.

This would allow people to buy their devices without much thought.

I think people in the past thought this could be Ubuntu and Canonical. But their business is server, so there desktop will never get to the place it needs to be.

The steam deck is pushing Linux closer to this place. But I don't think it will be enough.

To add to that, Android is likely the overwhelming market share of Linux-based operating systems in use today. For that matter, an absolute ton of Intel CPUs have Minux installed on them too, but I wouldn't call this "on the desktop", just interesting.

Imagine sounding this elitist because of an operating system you use

Storage is super cheap these days. Just buy an extra hard drive for Windows and boot into that on the rare occasion you truly need to use Windows. Or just use a VM.

I’ve worked as a SWE at Facebook, Google, and LinkedIn, and none of the devs I worked with used Windows. Everyone either used Mac or Linux. It’s just a matter of time before the dev world bleeds out into the consumer world.

Corporations have access to a version of windows that doesn’t have telemetry, advertisements or bloatware. Its called Enterprise Edition.

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I was using Mint for a while but the system got hosed. I plan on modding Starfield, and there was another game I can't recall that wouldn't work on Linux. After I best Starfield I fully expect to wipe my system again and go with a more stable distro of Linux (e.g. Gentoo or something).

I have been playing both of those on proton with little issue, and I'm not positive that the issues I experienced are exclusive to linux.

Windows 10 was the start of the enshittification. Windows 7 was the best version of Windows, by far.

But why is that even necessary

It's not arbitrary. Securing an OS today is a huge challenge and Microsoft wants to leverage this tech to facilitate this. New hardware supports it, a lot of older hardware supports it and they strongly encourage this as the new standard.

Yes it means some people won't update without workarounds but they are setting a standard moving forward and for supported hardware, they were quite aggressive with the upgrade (I had to make sure the TPM was disabled in BIOS on a machine I didn't wish to upgrade early on).

Inb4 "it's your fault" comments

same here. switched back after years of dual booting because on all my DEs over the years I consistently had these issues, not to mention I make music and daws fucking hate Linux / wine. just made sure to debloat it before I used it.

I saw in your other comment that you were using Gnome. A lot of people like it, but Gnome wouldn't be my recommendation.

I use a multi-monitor setup not that different from yours, and KDE handles it swimmingly. I also have an Nvidia card and I'm using X.org. I probably could use Wayland, but I'm in no rush.

If you really want to stay with a GTK desktop, then XFCE is excellent also. Budgie too.

Interesting. Were you running Windows programs with Wine?

Prob a gnome issue, I've never had an issue with scaling on kde, xfce, or i3 with my 4 monitors

Haven't encountered a single game that doesn't work since being on Linux for over a year, though they surely exist, and I've played at least 30. The only things annoying me is that I have to reconnect my steering wheel after I start Dirt Rally 2.0 to have Force Feedback, and that I can't tab out of League of Legends and instead have to minimize it with win+down.

I stream the games I play on Linux. Feel free to check out my channel: https://twitch.tv/SylphWeed

Latest I played through was Horizon: Zero Dawn.

I said that in 1999 which was, coincidentally the year of the Linux desktop (for me).

I say we boycott

Strange about your motherboard. I have an older one and just had to enable it via BIOS. I've heard some support it as an add-on module.

If you have an 8th gen Intel / Ryzen 2000 series or newer.

You need to confirm that you have secure boot enabled. CSM disabled and the TPM features enabled. Depending on which setting is holding you back you may need to reconfigure your existing windows installation to boot again.

I just miss translucent ui :(

If you’re not using Linux at this point you’re just being lazy

I used Linux for over twenty years and stopped about two years ago due to Linux invariably moving to lazy, poor development and design all the way from the kernel up. Rapid kernel development with tons of random new patches and ideas instead of the old way of maintaining a stable kernel and doing random patches and ideas on a separate branch (the odd minor versions vs. the stable even ones, and even the modern "stable" kernels are just the same branch of constantly rapid updated kernels where they just choose one at random and say "this is 'stable' now and we'll keep patching it instead of telling people to install new ones"), systemd being more of a problem than a solution, the push for everything to move to Wayland forcing every single thing that has to do with lower level desktop interfaces, including all of the lightweight window managers, to completely rewrite themselves with tons of bloat that replaces everything X.org did by default as well as Wayland's devs taking a "it works on my computer" approach to bugs and dismissing tons of major issues people have found, pipewire still not being a stable, reliable audio system (Linux has never had one, but using ALSA with the right hardware back in the day where everything would mix via hardware was a decent solution), distros becoming more and more unreliable and buggy (even "stable" and "long term support" ones), distros and developers giving up on native and running bare metal applications and substituting things like flatpak to run things natively with any sort of cross-platform reliability and fucking wine -- essentially a new version of Windows running in Linux, which is an admission of failure to make a successful game platform if I've ever heard one -- to run games, and on and on.

I've been able to use Linux very well until a few years back. I used to be one of its biggest advocates and wouldn't dare run Windows.

No more. People bitch, moan, and complain about Windows 11 so much but for me, it just works. Simply, easily, no problem. Do I wish I still used Linux? Hell, yes. But am I given how bad it's become? Nope. I've even tried going back here and there and quickly ran into the same huge list of problems and aches that were never there before and back to Windows I go.

Sorry, Linux is a pain and it's not about being lazy, it's about wanting to use a decent OS that just works as well as Linux used to.

I linked sources.

Edit: so apparently people try to hide it or why the downvotes?