There might be a very simple explanation for why the masses have yet to adopt Linux as their desktop operating system and it's one the open-source community won't like.

I’m curious to hear thoughts on this. I agree for the most part, I just wish people would see the benefit of choice and be brave enough to try it out.

  • Hamartiogonic@sopuli.xyz
    4·
    10 months ago

    Somewhere between 2000 and 2015 pretty much everyone had a computer, because you needed it for doing all the computer stuff. Nowadays you can do so much on a mobile device that there’s no urgent need to even own a proper computer any more unless you need to do something very specific.

    Professionals and hobbyists will continue to need computers in the future, but Joe Average won’t. You can pay your bills using a phone and watch movies on a tablet. Joe doesn’t have a 3D printer, write ISO images on USB sticks, try to recover data from old hard disks, flash LineageOS on an old Android phone, or SSH into a raspberry pi. If he still has an old laptgop tucked away in a drawer, it’s probably been sitting there for years because he hasn’t really needed it for anything.

    • Dalë@feddit.ukEnglish
      3·
      10 months ago

      So true, outside of work I haven’t used a pc/laptop in over 4 years.

      I have an android phone and tablet and they serve the majority of my needs perfectly.

      That said I’m about to get one of my daughter’s old MacBook airs which is beyond OS updates and am going to put Linux on it to tinker with some things I can’t do on android. Still not sure which OS to go with but am fifty fifty between Ubuntu and Pop_OS.

      • Hamartiogonic@sopuli.xyz
        2·
        10 months ago

        Flip a coin and pick one of them. If you face some strange problems and later find out it’s because of the distro, it’s time to do some distrihopping. Before that, it’s important to get started with something.