Ever read some of the microsoft forums? Just as many people seeking help there - the only difference is we don’t have an over eager paid employee replying with scripted answers which don’t help.
Linux is as simple or as complicated as you want it to be. Most of the mainstream distros “just work” on most hardware. I’ve installed Mint, Rocky, Ubuntu and Debian on laptops and desktops for relatives, including those who aren’t remotely technically gifted. It was as easy/easier as Windows to install, set up and get running. The users are happy - they can use cheaper hardware (and don’t need to upgrade a perfectly good laptop for Windows 11) and are entirely free of software costs and subscriptions. Everything works and things don’t break - just like Windows and Macs. Most people just want their computer to turn on and let them run stuff. All three do that equally as well.
I’ve also installed linux on hardware clusters costing hundreds of thousands of pounds and that definitely wasn’t a simple or quick process, but that’s the nature of the task. Actually, installing the base os was probably the easiest part. Windows just isn’t an option for that.
You ask a fair question - you’re not unique in your viewpoint and that’s probably hampered takeup more than anything else. What makes you a bit better than most is that you actually ask the question and appear to be open to the answers.
I had far more issues on windows than I ever have on mint.
When I had issues on windows, which i would run into multiple times a week, the "fixes" would be hacky, slapped-together nonsense that don't even make sense on paper. I had to change almost every program manually to run as administrator. Installing old games was a nightmare and didn't always work properly, even with compatibility modes. New drivers would break stuff. Trying to learn anything new was a rabbit hole that took countless hours and then I only learned the fix for that one specific use-case, and not anything... overarching. System updates were so intrusive, installing crap I didn't want or removed manually, I disabled them completely. It was slow and boot took forever. Ending system processes via task manager didn't always work and the system would freeze often when something went wrong. Often uninstalling programs was messy and left shit all over in the system registry and files and you would have to defrag and system clean once it started getting bloated.
When my windows install finally broke completely just trying to get shit to work the way I wanted, I bailed.
Transitioning to mint was certainly a learning experience.
Reorganizing your workflow will always be more upfront work, but I found I took to the changes fairly quickly. I found the file structure the most odd, but I became very used to it and very much prefer it over how hard it is to find stuff spread scattershot in windows files. It had a lot of little quality of life things that I really appreciate, mounting and unmounting external drives felt better, way more stuff worked out of the box, old games were not a nightmare to get working because they're had longstanding fixes for years that actually make sense. Solutions, in general, make way more sense to me, and I actually get a sense that I understand why they function. My boot time is very fast and I've never broken my system (I came close once doing something incredibly stupid and very niche, but I just timeshifted back and voila, fixed.)
Fixes or changes for preference tend to "stick" for me, like when I swapped to pipewire myself it's been very smooth sailing. I can pick and choose updates or ignore packages that don't work. There was an issue with kernels for a while that significantly increased my boot times; I just postponed that update for a few versions until one of the newer ones worked. I find I can get down similar rabbit holes to learn some stuff, but it both feels more like "lasting" solutions (and I learn more about how to do other stuff) as well as just more fun. Documentation is a lot better with users who know what they're doing instead of the guesswork "well I dunno but this might have worked for me, I tried 20 fixes so it's probably one of these!" I would run into on windows troubleshooting...
I think my favourite part of linux is a lot of things I wanted solutions to, for years, usually have at least one person out there with a similar issue that wrote a small program that just does it. Does it well. For free. I spent so much time digging for really basic stuff like a sound equalizer that wasn't garbage, bloatware, full of trackers, or ransomware! I don't have to spend hours trying to find a stinkin' RGB controller that isn't awful because the choices available are just better! I don't have to spend weeks comparing and contrasting antivirus-es and hate all of them in the end!
I find mint extremely stable and have no urge to swap nor return to windows. I find it much more stable for my use-case. I really like it, actually, and I appreciate how a lot of it is set up. Been using it daily for 4 years.
I loathed windows the entire time I used it, and had been side-eyeing linux for quite a while before committing. I don't know if I'm a "normal" use-case, probably not. Possibly it is best to take my experience as, "if you keep hitting walls often in windows that frustrate the hell out of you, linux might be a decent choice for you, and might "feel easier."" Both have their own quirks and own troubleshooting, I just prefer the ones on mint and they make more sense to me. (And take me far less time.)
Part of Linux culture is customizing your system. Linux allows you to do much more with your computer, but some of these things require tinkering or might cause you to break your setup. If you don’t tinker much things will most likely be stable, but having the ability to tinker is for me a major part of the appeal. What are you hoping to get out of using linux? It’s a good alternative if you wanna make an old computer run more smoothly, if you care about privacy or if you don’t want to have to pay for your operating system, and if any of those are your main reason go for it and it will probably work out smoothly. If you’re interested in linux because it seems “cool” or “fun” you’re probably gonna have to do some tinkering so in that case you should be prepared to edit some files, read some instructions and possibly ask for help online.
My needs aren’t particularly demanding. Web browsing, watching streaming services, accounting software, some low impact games, 3D modeling, and running a video server.
I assembled my machine from $500 worth of parts 12 years ago. In between, I’ve added some RAM, and about 8TB of mirrored disk to store movies for the video server.
Admittedly, I’m starting to be concerned about the age of the disks, and I think I’d like a better processor, but money is tight.
Given the age of the thing, there’s a chance that it’s just going to drop dead one of these days, but it’s been running for years without me having to do anything but install updates for the OS.
Yes you can.
I spend a lot od time fixing things that I broke because I like it and it’s a hobby for me.
I installed Linux Mint Debian Edition on my SO’s laptop last year (old thinkpad t470) and I haven’t had to do anything about it since then. The installation process was easy, I didn’t bother changing the defaults and just clicked “Next” on most of the steps.
Can you share with us the hardware you’ll be using ? In most cases it’ll be easy peasy, but some stuff is known to cause issues that we might be able to identify before you start your journey.
Hehe, you got your answer. You’re lokking at the places where 0.05% of the users are discussing their problems and some others share their crazy customizations that aren’t possible with anything else. And it seems like 95% of users having issues to you.
I’d argue Linux is way more stable than Windows. If that’s your perspective. (Unless you do silly stuff.) But less stable than for example MacOS. It depends on which Linux Distro we’re talking about. I’d say it’s MacOS > Linux > Windows. With the biggest step down from Linux to Windows.
Honestly I’m not too sure, some distros (like debian) are much more stable IMO. We also have immutables distros which are more annoying to work with but hey let’s compare apples to apples here.
You’re right. It’s an oversimplification I made there. I recently tried MacOS in a VM and I talked a bit to people. You usually get a really smooth desktop experience. Apps are sandboxed, there is a fine permission system, they keep their stuff together and don’t spread them across the filesystem. I think(?) the software brings their libraries along? Usually a used Macbook Pro is still fine and runs fast after 6 years. I think MacOS really shines on the desktop.
On Linux it’s a bit more diverse. I mean we have the XDG specification file locations. But there’s also lots of ‘grown’ stuff. We’re still working on the sandboxing. And you get a different experience depending on the distro you’re trying. And I’d prefer Linux on a server every time. It really excels for that use case and on the server we have Linux > everything else. And as a matter of fact I personally also prefer Linux on the desktop. And my Debian is also still running perfectly 6 years after I initially installed it. Had some minor issues with NVidia during the times, but that’s to be expected and it wasn’t that hard to fix. I wouldn’t have had issues had I not mixed in testing and unstable, but there are lots of guides and tutorials around for the common woes. Which makes my argument a full circle.
Linux users would post their problems on various forums, but very rarely post their success story. Linux desktop is actually pretty good at this point. Just pick a distro and try it yourself.
As already stated why would there be a bunch of posts of people bragging about their uptime and stability? Would be pretty boring no? Why are you wanting to make the switch and what are your needs?
Leas about needs, more about taking back control of mt personal electronics
That makes you a good candidate; it means you are motivated. Expect to learn new things. Expect that sometimes you are going to blame something on Linux when it’s really your own ignorance. Expect that sometimes, it might be the fault of Linux, or might be the fault of the distro you chose, etc.
Some very fundamental things work differently. Go to a forum or community that is specific to the distro you choose and ask them about the proper way to install software and “package management.” Understanding that one topic, and the nuance of how your chosen distro expects you to manage software, will stave off a great many of the problems you are likely to have as a noobie.
If considering this a learning experience sounds good to you, you will succeed. Don’t try to “learn Linux” - try to learn what you need to in order to achieve individual tasks on your system, or solve minor annoyances. Doing that will pull in a lot of context. Linux forums are great, but forums specific to the distro you choose will almost always be superior during the learning phase.
In this very thread I see comments from folks who likely expected it to work just like Windows with different trappings. Don’t expect that, because it’s not what you are going to get. Consider it an adventure.
Source: Tried Linux and gave up in 1999. Tried Linux and gave up in 2004. Tried Linux and stuck with it in 2007. Have not touched Windows except when paid to do so since then, and each and every year since then has made it clearer and clearer what a good decision that was.
I support Windows for my job, and have done so for over twenty years. I find Linux easier to use in every way, and more reliable, and I don’t have to force it to respect my authority as the owner of the system it runs on.
Not using Windows except for work, I use Linux mostly because of Microsoft’s design decisions. I guess depending on your use case, Windows can be a perfectly fine OS. Personally, I think their behavior is unprofessional (trying to force Microsoft accounts on users, ads in the start menu, integration of AI into the system which means transmitting data to their servers etc) so I’m willing to accept tradeoffs for systems which do not come with these downsides.
There are a lot of help posts on the MS and other windows forums too. Computers and OSes will always have issues because of complexity and incompatibilities between hardware and software. No matter if you install Windows, Linux, or MacOS. The machines that are least buggy because each manufacturer is doing extensive tests, are the mobile OSes, iOS and (most) Android. It’s not as possible to do the same on a desktop OS. So cut your losses, and install Linux Mint, which is I believe it’s the best for newbies.
You're going to see a lot of issues on Linux boards because people go to then for help. I've been running Linux since 2020 and though there have been hiccups, its been remarkably reliable. Having said that, when there ARE issues, it can take some digging to find answers.
Is it not stable
Moreso than Win 11, in my experience. I use Win 11 at work and I've needed a system wipe twice. Once because networking just... stopped... and once because appx apps decided not to load.
Ongoing issues
Plugging PopOS as a good "set and forget" distro that is easy to grasp. The workflow is very MacOS and the tweaks they've made make for a friendlier interface v Ubuntu, IMO.
PopOS or Mint are the way to go for users who dont want to fiddle with their computer. Stick to the default package manager and let it do the work for you and problems will be rare.
From my experience having used Linux for years: Here is the full list of problems I encountered that I’d say are not the result of me tinkering:
Nvidia driver is fucked up
A hard drive also used by Windows won’t mount
The software app can’t update my system
2nd monitor won’t work correctly (pretty much solved nowadays)
Those are fairly common issues afaik, and they are caused by using a slightly more complex setup (dual-booting Windows, extra repos in the package manager) and notoriously troublesome Nvidia hardware. For all but the last there is a one-line command you can run to fix it, and it took maybe 2 min to find it on my phone.
Apart from these issues it’s been rock solid, so I’d say you’re good as long as you avoid those known causes for problems (No Nvidia, no Windows, no extra repos), or you are able to find solutions to the most common problems and run simple commands on the terminal.
Yes. Install Linux Mint and be done. Just works. A lot of “problems” people have are because they enjoy tinkering and that will sometimes break stuff. Leave it alone and it’ll be very stable.
Look, programs always have issues, always have bugs. The best model on linux dostro is “rolling release”, which is explicit about constantly fixing the issues.
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