this post was submitted on 22 Oct 2023
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Linux
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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
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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Try command line?
That's likely an app just not installed by default for GUI
Correct, but new users don't want to need the command line for something as simple as installing packages.
New users probably shouldn't be installing .debs, especially if they don't know about terminal commands. I've seen so many fucked up systems from people treating Linux as Windows, as in installing everything by searching for stuff on their browser, downloading an installer and installing that.
Problem is a lot of closed source software still release their software as .deb or .rpm packages that installs their repos so you can install their software from the software centre.
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I'm telling them that because it is a poor idea. But preferably the system should fix user mistake and behind the scenes just install Discord from repo or flatpak, with option to bypass this behaviour for those who know what they're doing.
Preferably these software vendors would know to guide users towards proper ways of installing stuff, but that's not happening.
In other words, you've seen fucked up systems because people treat their Linux system like literally every non-Linux system they've used.
Which is a Linux problem, not a user problem.
"Oh look, this software isn't available in the selection that Fedora/Ubuntu/Mint/whatever decided I should have. I guess I can't install it despite the fact that there are compatible packages for my distro."
Yeah right. Walled garden horseshit. Linux apologists do anything they can to move goalposts, to the point where using it is fucking impossible if you actually listen to every asshole's personal opinion.
If you can't adapt to the user's behavior YOU are in the wrong. End of fucking story.
And seriously, you're using an app store to illustrate why limiting user choice is good. What the actual fuck are you doing on a Linux sub anyway?
respectful counterpoint: marketshare is important, especially if we want to get more users to use ethical softwares instead of corporate controlled proprietary messes.
that doesn’t mean this particular issue needs to adapt to a Windows-style approach (and in fact it already can with flatpakref files, AppImages, etc.), but dismissing accessibility to people unfamiliar with Linux or dismissing having a goal of increasing Linux usage is harmful to the longevity of desktop Linux in society, and harmful to the goal of competing with the monopolistic, proprietary platforms that currently dominate.
There's distros aimed at newbies. Maybe these distros should ship with a small, quick, idiot-proof tutorial saying (with fancy images too) "hey don't do this, do this instead" "if you need to do this you can do so like this" and some common troubleshooting but you'd still have some folks who refuse to listen and do something that breaks their system. And we as a community should only tell noobs to use one or two distros like Linux Mint, at most a few other options in case someone needs something more specific. But aside from these distros not every distro should aim for larger marketshares, in fact some are probably better left with low marketshares (for desktop users anyways).
Also, it is impossible to have a system that doesn't have problems at some point and users shouldn't expect to not run into issues and they should be willing to at least try and look up a solution, and this doesn't go just for Linux. The closest to an unbreakable system that I can think of is Debian where the only thing someone uses is Firefox to navigate the safe sites, possibly with uBlock Origin on and the browser is in a flatpak or contained in some way. If someone doesn't want to learn at least the basics of how to use a computer and how to try to fix your problems they probably shouldn't be using computers honestly.
Of course there's issues that aren't easy to resolve and that's what forums and IT technicians are for too.
UBUNTU IS A PRODUCT. IT MAKES PROFIT. MARKET SHARE IS HOW THEY MAKE MONEY FOR DEVELOPMENT.
Or did you not even bother reading the fucking headline?
Or were you too busy moving the goalposts to even do that?
Ubuntu maybe, but Linux ain't a product. Most Linux distros aren't there to make a profit, they're there because someone thought they'd be useful. They don't care about markets hare or anything like that.
If you put the faults of Ubuntu on all of Linux then you don't know much about Linux at all.
If Ubuntu does stupid shit, let it fail who cares there's a billions distros to choose that provide a better experience than Ubuntu, and certainly better than Windows and macOS
Goalpost moving fuck.
Not there to make a profit? Then why the fuck do all of the major distros have donation pages, and shops, and foundations, and all of the other things that generate money for a handful of people? Stop fucking acting like mainstream Linux distros are still Slackware equivalent one-man operations. That's horseshit and you fucking know it.
To help for whatever, but they're donations, not selling you anything, not there for profit.
Not every distro, not even every mainstream distro, has this. And not every one of these things is necessarily there to make a profit over being a simple donation.
If you think accepting donation necessarily means wanting to make a profit then you might not be the brightest star in the sky
My man, those repos are vast as shit. The only time you will run into this situation is either if you're using obscure software (that most newbies won't use, and then again if you can't Google a few things you shouldn't be using obscure software) or stuff that isn't supported on linux at all.
We aren't limiting user's choice. You can do literally everything you want on Linux, just need to know how. You need to know how to do stuff in other OSes too btw, but doesn't mean they will let you do everything.
Those repos are nowhere near vast as shit. It's trivial to find software that isn't one or more of them, and quite often what is there isn't remotely a recent version.
Removing the ability to install .debs is literally limiting user choice and walling things off so the user doesn't hurt themselves, the same shit that every fucking Linux knob has been squealing about Windows and MacOS doing for decades.
This shows to me that you either didn't use Linux a lot or don't understand it.
That is cause you're using a stable release distro. If you wanted up to date packages you wouldn't use something based on Debian stable but either a rolling release or semi-rolling like Fedora. Or Flatpaks, appimages, and the many other options you have. Again, not hard stuff to figure out if you are willing to learn. User's fault.
Nobody is doing that, except maybe Ubuntu, you just need to learn how to do it. And if your distro does it, well wouldn't you know it there 100000 distros more you can choose. Again if you're looking for .debs first of all you're not getting something different than what you're getting on the official repo, and secondly you're almost certainly looking for software that is lesser known or has bad support for Linux. In 2023 almost everything someone needs is in the repos of distros like Mint and Debian. Certainly everything for the type of user that is too lazy to Google anything.
No. That's because the latest version of the software has some incompatibility with the distro that the distro devs can't be arsed to fix. If you're not aware of how often this happens then YOU are the one that clearly doesn't actually use Linux on a daily basis.
Oh look, I can make blind assertions about your lack of knowledge too.
WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU THINK WE ARE TALKING ABOUT YOU ILLITERATE COW-FELLATER?
Yeah, sure, just completely reinstall your entire system because one fucking dev doesn't like having to deal with users installing .deb files. Goddamn Linux apologists are morons sometimes. It's like you've never actually used a computer you HAVE to use. They're just your masturbation tools and nothing more.
So the majority of software, you mean. Have you even fucking been to github.com? Do you think every one of those programs is in a repository? DO YOU FUCKING KNOW HOW ANYTHING WORKS OUTSIDE OF YOUR PRECIOUS WALLED PACKAGE MANAGER GARDEN?
Says you, and who the fuck are you besides nobody?
Again, a cunt blaming the user for a distro removing options. Fuck off.
I see you're angry, but it makes you look bad if you let it out on others. Can't you just discuss this in a civilised manner? I get that you're edgy and think you're smarter than the rest of the people, but you're literally here to complain about a pretty newbie thing to do, so I'd refrain from telling others they're illiterate.
You don't need to reinstall your distribution if you want to install DEB files, you just need to find a way that is not broken. Although I'd really recommend reinstalling another distribution if you're using Ubuntu because they keep doing questionable decisions.
I don't know what to respond to the rest of your angry rant because it doesn't contain substance I would be able to respond to. Looking at your other posts it's probably not worth engaging with you anyway since you're digressing into angry rants 80% of the time. Hope you can prove me wrong.
You are using a stable release distro (like ubuntu) and expecting it to act like a rolling release and then get surprised when it doesn't act like one. Again, if you don't know what you're doing and your tools, it ain't the tool's fault if shit ain't working the way you expect it to.
I have been using Linux on a daily basis for years, from mint to arch, and I can tell you haven't, or more likely haven't looked up how ot works, by how easily resolved the problems you mentioned would be of you just took the time to Google and inform yourself a bit on the tool you want to use.
You're the one here who keeps saying Linux sucks because of an Ubuntu-only problem and then complaining about it when people rightly inform you that you can always choose another option that doesn't have the problem or do things differently to achieve the same result.
Takes 15 minutes or less. And if you don't want to do that you can do something else like flatpaks, learning how to do what you're trying to do with the terminal or another way. You have plenty of choice, you just need to stop baby raging, Google a bit and fox your issue.
I can say the exact same response to you saying the Mint repos are small. I am someone who used mint for about 2 years before switching off of it and know people who have used it for as long as it exists and never had to install programs that weren't some very uncommon/specialized ones from outside the package manager.
The distro removing an option is shitty but if you don't want to switch to a different distro or do the necessary work to fix it then it is your fault when the problem isn't magically fixed. This isn't proprietary shit, you don't have to beg the company overlord to fix it for you (if they want). Open the browser, look for a solution to your problem that you like, and solve the issue.
I think you're mixing up "You shouldn't do this" with "you shouldn't be able to do this". The former is common in Linux, the latter is not. No one is advocating for the latter.
Unless you're Ubuntu, apparently.
Ubuntu doesn't hinder you installing DEB packages, it just hinders you to do so if you're an idiot.
Flatpaks
I like finally seeing someone sane in a Linux sub. Am I dreaming? I love Linux but I hate how unapologetically elitist and blind the fanbase is regarding the egregious user-unfriendliness.
"But it works for me!!" - Yeah, Bob, you just spent 25 hours troubleshooting your network drivers and recompiling their kernel module.
"Just choose the distro you want!!!" - Yeah, Alice, you just spent 5 hours researching the various distributions available.
"I never had any problems!!" - Yeah, Kaitleiynn, you have the exact hardware configuration and OS combo that works perfectly.
Hahah not a Linux problem at all
No, it's a user problem on both OS's. Installing random shit from untrustworthy sources is a much more likely source of infection that a zero-day, network-based exploit, etc
Not every OS allows you to simply click on a random installer/eventually (maybe enter a password) and get owned. IOS on phones doesn't. Android requires you enable untrusted sources.
It sounds like not including a GUI app by default to click-install random packages (outside the package manager) is the extra step for various Linux distros. That's not a problem, that's a good idea.
So github is untrustworthy now.
And again you're arguing in favor of walled gardens. Fucking hypocritical imbeciles. Anything to keep your precious fucking OS free from criticism, right?
Github is untrustworthy, anyone can put anything on there. It is up to the end user to determine if a project is safe to use or not.
The default repos for Debain on the other hand are filled only with software that has been checked by at least one competent person, making them inherently safe.
But I thought the open nature of open source meant it was safe because someone has checked all code everywhere!
This shit has become tedious.
No kidding. Open source software is safe because it can come from a trusted source that can be checked by others. Not every open source project is checked but the default repos of Debian, for example, are checked and can be trusted.
All closed source software, on the other hand, is untrustworthy because it can never be checked. This goes for the iOS and Android ecosystems as well. Despite their walled gardens the software is not open and can not be checked, which is why malicious software keeps making it's way onto phones.
Have you ever heard of malicious code in the Debian repos?
I think I heard so a few times, yes. Depends on what you define as "malicious" and which of the repos you'd call Debian repos. Is Debian only stable or is it unstable and testing or contrib or non-free aswell?
It always was tedious to use computers, people just get a lot of stuff abstracted away by millions of hours of manpower.
Was it ever trustworthy? What made you think that?
No it is not a system issue. User made an assumption and got a slap as this is not windows.
Something that worked last week now does not work.
System issue. Suck less shit at systems and maybe people in general would give a shit about Linux.
You act like problems don't happen on windows and macOS. But they do happen, and they're harder to fix than on linux most of the time.
Then again, with immutable distros, Debian, Linux Mint, and others, most of the time if something doesn't work it is because the user did something to break their system and in those cases put effort into it.
If you are a user that only uses the computer to browse the web, maybe play some games on steam, then you're unlikely to encounter any issues provided you chose the right distro (Mint would be my recommendation but I hear Fedora Silverblue works nicely). If you're the kind of user to tinker a lot then you're likely not a noob and you have no excuse for not looking up what you're doing.
If you aren't willing to learn at least the basics of how to do the stuff you want to do then probably you shouldn't do that stuff, not blame the system for doing what you told it to do.
"Provided you choose the right distro."
Yeah. Windows or MacOS if you actually want to do shit.
EDIT
Just wanted to mention, I've never had an issue with Windows or MacOS that wasn't directly caused by my own personal fuckery. Somehow though, I've had multiple Linux distro installs decide to hose themselves because they didn't update through the precious fucking package manager properly. You know, the thing that everyone is now shitting on users for not using?
The most fun one was whenever a Debian update decided that the right thing to do was move my primary drive into a subfolder in /etc. Yeah. That fucking happened.
So you're complaining that your system breaks because you're trying to use it as something that it isn't, without looking up what you're doing, and somehow that's not your fault?
If you try to use a fork as an outlet cleaner don't complain that the outlet sucks when you're getting electrocuted.
Well it was the users who had a problem with their systems being messed up
Yes, by the shit-tier decisions of the distro developers.
You mean their decision to allow GUI installs of debs or what do you mean? The problem was the easy install and since they can't control what is installed, the people I mentioned just installed whatever random shit not even made for the distro in question. It was a mess.
Thats also possible with appstream. But unless the repos go and people just install flatpaks, stuff like this will happen.
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Add a GUI desktop entry for that, assign .deb file mimetype to it, bam. A usable experience.
Or just install gdebi.