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What are the main challenges in Linux adoption for New users, and how can it be addressed?
(lemmy.ml)
this post was submitted on 17 Jul 2023
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Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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New user: I have a problem 😊
Everyone:👍
New user: Nevermind 😮💨
if a new user is using a distro that doesn't use systemd they fell for a meme
Or they hate fridge art like systemd and are on something like PCLinuxOS or Alpine.
That's what I mean though, why would a new user be running alpine as a desktop os?
That would be me: My hardware at the time was crap so I couldn't use the usual mint, ubuntu, etc and I was gonna use debian but I couldn't find the x86 download button, so after a bunch of messing about with distros like puppy and #!++, I settled on alpine for a bit. I now have decent hardware and use fedora.
At this point, my biggest dream is that these 'new user' distros used only Wayland, Pipewire, Systemd and Flatpaks simply to simplify things. Hopefully we're less than 2024 away from NoVideo Wayland support.
Also as soon as XFCE releases their Wayland support, that soon it'll become the most famous DE choice of Mint.
What I am really happy is to see how well supported Pipewire already is. Pipewire has never showed any problem in the new installs for me.
The problem with that is most major distros market themselves as "new user" distros to some extent though. Noob-friendly, out-of-the-box, easy, etc are all distro-marketing buzz-words that mean nothing.
You can't expect them to only use Wayland, Pipewire, Systemd, and Flatpaks because that dream requires every distro to use Wayland, Pipewire, Systemd, and Flatpaks, which will never be reality.
Most distros will probably eventually adopt these tools, but there won't be a sudden shift. It will be gradual.
Well, for Pipewire it's the apps which needs to adjust at this point. Only thing missing currently is the Wayland but it's coming. Making Linux less fragmented (read: confusing), the more new users will give a try.
So ... basically Pop!_OS.
That's what I'm using now, and it's what I'd recommend for most desktop users. I've been using Linux systems on-and-off since before kernel version 1.0: Slackware, then Debian, then Ubuntu, then Mint, then Pop.
(Admittedly, my use cases are pretty simple: a terminal, a browser, Signal, VLC, and Steam.)
Pretty much. Pop is my go-to recommendation for pretty much anyone these days. It's so well polished and just easy.
This PopOs ?
Yes, that pop os. As luck would have it, Linus installed it during a very brief period where the steam package in their repo was broken. This is not a common occurrence, and I have never heard of it happening before or since.
This whole series triggered me so hard. They went out of their way to test it under the worst possible conditions.
Then they follow up with hypocrisy of this shit, after going on and on about UI not being right or hard to use for the end user.
Fridge art. Fuck, they MAYBE have nfsroot working. MAYBE. After a decade of fucking around, when it was available for ages. The number of bags on the side of lennart's piece of crap, just to reinvent the wheels we had before, is absolutely ridiculous.
... break single source of truth for as-built information and current software manifest. This kills validation, which dissolves certainty on consistency, then repeatability. And given the state of the software load exported to management tools is NOT the flatpak source of truth, you now have a false negative on the 'installation' of a flatpak resource when checking it via management.
Oh. That needs to be on the interview questions.
Doing tech support, I encountered this attitude. People like that are nearly impossible to help. "Why can't you just fix it!" The true answer never given is that your problem is probably something stupid you are doing, like trying to make a phone call by physically shoving the phone entirely up your asshole, and until I run through some common problems and ask some questions, I won't be able to tell you to have your significant other get the salad tongs and pull it out of your rear and then go over "dialing."
People mostly need to be willing to gather detailed system info with Inxi and share it.
No. That's the support job to figure out the problem of the user. It is not the user's job to figure out the support problems.
I work in support, so I know what I'm talking about. Unfortunately most computer guys are elitist assholes who can't understand a user doesn't have their knowledge or even the will to understand why this shitty tech is not working.
Free open source software projects you don't pay for don't have paid support. If you talk to a fellow user it IS your job to figure out your problem. if you don't have the will to understand anything you ought to buy a support contract.
I'll have you know I get better reception when it's up my ass!
Why don't you magically have a magic button that magically fixes everything with no effort of my own? That's stupid, I think I will go on social media and repeatedly tell everyone that Linux is bad actually
So you want them to provide answers by using magic? If you seek support for any software, open source or otherwise, you'll need to tell them version, build number etc. Why do you think Linux will be any different?
Because people can already barely provide this level of information for a Windows device. Most of these words look like technobabble to non-tech-enthusiasts
Of course the words will be different. They aren't hard words. And they can be answered very easily. In fact, most forums ask to include an output of something like
inxi -Fazywith every question, thus eliminating the need for all of these things.For more niche problems, people might ask for more specific information. But most of the time, they'll tell you exactly what to run to get that information.
You know what's the Windows alternative for this? Most of the time, nothing. You need to reinstall Windows. Mac is similar, except you need to have it replaced. You actually CAN repair Linux. That's the difference.