For gaming, sure - proton has gone a really long way toward making most Windows games playable on Linux without too much effort.
For non technical users? Not so much, ChromeOS is putting in more work there.
Linux implies an IT burden that I don’t see most non technical users carrying without someone there to provide IT support. My mom, for example, won’t ever touch Linux because I’m damned well not going to provide on call support for that. ChromeOS though? That’s set and forget enough for the non technical crowd.
I put my mom on Ubuntu with KDE 10 years ago. I had far less problems with her on Linux than I ever did with Vista and 7. It got to the point she was calling me multiple times a week.
I didn’t have to but I did one Ubuntu reinstall in that entire time only because I made /boot the default partition size at installation and years later it filled up constantly. I got sick of going over there to clean it up and it coincided with her getting a new computer.
My mom installed printer drivers, and Cisco VPN software from run packages instead of apt and set up multi- monitors on her own after I taught her how to use the terminal, so it’s possible for the elderly.
Unfortunately that’s a level of technical aptitude that a lot of non technical people don’t have. I’d love it if my mom could manage installing software but she’s the sort of person who gets nervous when things like UI button locations change, she’s not someone who’s going to install their own printer drivers or packages or manage a dist upgrade herself. It would be nice if she would spend the time to learn enough to take care of her own devices but anything more complicated than managing phone updates isn’t likely.
I 100% salute your mom but raw capability isn’t even really the point. Realistically, your average person, let alone older person has absolutely zero interest in needing to touch a terminal. They want to live as close to auto-magic as they possibly can. I hate Apple but the idea that it “just works” is one of their primary selling points, right along side the whole status symbol thing. It’s not a right or wrong, just people being people.
I think PlayStation’s OS is a FreeBSD derivative, Switch is proprietary but uses parts of FreeBSD and Android, and Steam Deck runs straight Linux so maybe it’s more “The decade of the *nix console” rather than “the year of the Linux desktop”?
This could actually happen soon. Outside of office use most casual users in younger generations are using laptops. Desktops are getting to be more niche and associated with computer builders and power users. As Windows gets shittier, Linux gets easier to use and customize, and desktop use shrinks to just enthusiasts, we could very well see Linux on the majority of desktops.
With every update Linux Mint (and every distro) becomes more refined.
There are still gaps; HDR isn’t really there yet, never mind Dolby Vision… but if all you want is a PC that acts right and doesn’t piss you off with ads and upsells… honestly, a default Linux Mint install is at least as good as Windows at this point.
Linux is amazing. It’s hitting peak productivity with support for every driver, and highly optimized systems like Systems, Dbus, Wayland,and Pipewire. It’s actually world class rn, both windows and Mac are jealous of what the core Linux is now. Linux now runs every server, most of the world’s phones, most of the IoT devices, and some gaming stuff
But it’s still a tiny percentage of desktop/laptop, so yeah idk it’s all good
lemmy.ml
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