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Cake day: June 18th, 2023

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  • Calling people stupid and lazy in nicer words is still calling people stupid and lazy.

    I think that’s a bit unfair here. What I’m saying is that expectations often seems to be that “Linux should be effortless, but it isn’t, so Linux sucks”, and then we quickly talk past each other on which aspects we are referring to. Let me make up three categories:

    For users transitioning to Linux from Windows, and …

    1. … it shouldn’t be an effort, but unfortunately sometimes is frustrating or annoying
    • Hardware control, e.g. drivers. More often than not it works with less effort than on Windows, except for very new hardware, and hardware that actually requires specific software (RGB led patterns, Gaming mouse profiles, all that stuff)
    • NVidia drivers can be a pain
    • When dual booting and Windows manages to fuck up something in Linux, and it looks like Linux is the culprit. (E.g. restart the computer from Windows, but it doesn’t release claim on hardware, which doesn’t let Linux claim it, so stuff like the WiFi adapter might not work.)
    • Specific software not available, like Adobe, Autodesk, etc.
    1. .… is something you can get someone else to do for you, but it’s just how things are, unrelated to Windows -> Linux or the other way around.
    • Installing the OS – downloading ISO, burning a bootable USB, BIOS, etc…
    1. … it’s expected that you figure out / learn, and if unwilling, Linux isn’t for you
    • Using the OS, which at the very least, cursory knowledge of the software/package manager, and roughly how this works.
    • Familiarizing yourself with KDE / Gnome, etc.

    So, I assume people who just thought I was calling people lazy and dumb thought I meant categories 1. and 2. I just mean category 3. If you expect everything to be the same as Windows, and the effort required to understand the differences is too much, then only Windows will fit your needs. The impression I get is a general unwillingness to “figure stuff out”. Not knowing shit is fine, complaining and not wanting to put in the effort to know stuff… how is that not being lazy?

    It was intended as kind advice without any the implied judgement of calling people dumb or lazy. If you don’t want to have to figure stuff out related to the third category, Linux will likely not be a good experience, or even a productive or good change. If you move to another country, you should make the effort to learn the culture. It’s not a good look to complain that things are different.

    If I were to try to suggest “a point” with all of this: Don’t suggest to people that Linux is effortless for Windows users. Linux is immensely better, in almost every way (though mind examples in first category). But, it requires learning the basics of how shit works. It’s not hard… the information is well put together and available.