PSA: Linux hits 3% on Steam (Actual usage over 5% of all computers)

[nakedfrog]

Ok granted I just woke up when I started responding but I still can't understand, what does email proton have to do with linux distros since this is a linux distro thread??

That's why my mind can't make the connection.. or this is just a tangent?

In post #31 biostud references migrating off Microsoft365, to filen.io and proton.me. So it's an overall "leaving Microsoft" trail.

 

[UNCjigga]

I still think the biggest knock against Linux getting anywhere close to 20-30% adoption is still the lack of a cohesive desktop OS environment with the polish of something like MacOS. I’m sure there are distributions that are like 95% there, but you still have to navigate issues between a KDE vs. Gnome etc., Xorg vs. Wayland etc. and that makes universal GUI app support across the various compositors/window managers and desktop environments difficult. Things have gotten a lot easier with the app stores and flatpaks etc. but it still isn’t setup for the average lay user with zero terminal experience.

 

[Brainonska511]

I still think the biggest knock against Linux getting anywhere close to 20-30% adoption is still the lack of a cohesive desktop OS environment with the polish of something like MacOS. I’m sure there are distributions that are like 95% there, but you still have to navigate issues between a KDE vs. Gnome etc., Xorg vs. Wayland etc. and that makes universal GUI app support across the various compositors/window managers and desktop environments difficult. Things have gotten a lot easier with the app stores and flatpaks etc. but it still isn’t setup for the average lay user with zero terminal experience.

I always felt it was 2 big things:

1) too much choice in Linux. Which distro? Which environment? Etc...
2) lack of software support for key productivity programs. No Adobe software support, no MS Office (the alternatives or web-based versions are absolute trash)

 

[Indus]

I still think the biggest knock against Linux getting anywhere close to 20-30% adoption is still the lack of a cohesive desktop OS environment with the polish of something like MacOS. I’m sure there are distributions that are like 95% there, but you still have to navigate issues between a KDE vs. Gnome etc., Xorg vs. Wayland etc. and that makes universal GUI app support across the various compositors/window managers and desktop environments difficult. Things have gotten a lot easier with the app stores and flatpaks etc. but it still isn’t setup for the average lay user with zero terminal experience.

And distro/ gui elitism.

My distro is better than yours, my desktop environment is better than yours. It took me a while to accept.. that there is no wrong/ right way.. it's what you're comfy with.

Wife loves stability.. she loves LMDE (debian) and Cinnamon.

I always liked KDE and I narrowed it down to Fedora/ Nobara/ Bazzite and Ultramarine. Even though Bazzite was better for gaming.. it's a very locked down distro to keep all the gaming things working perfectly.. but I had trouble setting up a home network.. that's why I went with Ultramarine. If I wasn't sharing files across computers with my wife at home I'd be happy with Bazzite!

But as long as we're off Microsoft which pays Trump.. I'm happy with whatever Linux I can use.

 

[Indus]

I always felt it was 2 big things:

1) too much choice in Linux. Which distro? Which environment? Etc...
2) lack of software support for key productivity programs. No Adobe software support, no MS Office (the alternatives or web-based versions are absolute trash)

1. Just pick what you like

2. I think there are compatibility with Wine and there's also Microsoft 365. That works in linux from what I read somewhere but I've been using Google docs for a while now.

 

[nakedfrog]

I always felt it was 2 big things:

1) too much choice in Linux. Which distro? Which environment? Etc...
2) lack of software support for key productivity programs. No Adobe software support, no MS Office (the alternatives or web-based versions are absolute trash)

I've been using OpenOffice Writer and Calc (in Windows) for years and can't say I find them to be absolute trash. They actually fill all of my needs quite well. Obviously your use case may be different than mine.

 

[Brainonska511]

1. Just pick what you like

2. I think there are compatibility with Wine and there's also Microsoft 365. That works in linux from what I read somewhere but I've been using Google docs for a while now.

1) yeah, that's the problem. So much choice - how will I know what I'll like a priori? I'm not going to play distro roulette, and I kind of know what I'm doing. It's not an attractive ecosystem for people when there is so much to choose. It's like playing an old style D&D game where you have to spend a ton of time setting up your party and stars before you can even play the game itself.

2) it looks like Wine compatibility for Office is largely broken for Office 365. And again, using it in browser or even worse, Google Docs, is just unacceptable garbage

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

I work enough with a mixed environment that I don't really want to screw around with linux too much once I'm off work. One broken dependency and I'm just going to lose my shit and reinstall windows anyhow, so I'd rather just stay on Win10 until my mobo keels over anyhow.

 

[Indus]

I work enough with a mixed environment that I don't really want to screw around with linux too much once I'm off work. One broken dependency and I'm just going to lose my shit and reinstall windows anyhow, so I'd rather just stay on Win10 until my mobo keels over anyhow.

Go with a REFINED distro that has built in stuff that would normally drive you up the wall since you need to research and it can break.

For example:

Linux Mint Debian Edition (LMDE) is a refined version of Debian
Linux Mint is a refined version of Ubuntu
Ultramarine Linux is a refined version of Fedora
Cachy OS is a refined version of Arch

And if you love stability and things not crashing/ causing problems.. stay on debian based distros and tell everyone else to fuck off if they tell you something is better.

The wife uses LMDE and no programs just crash/ break.. especially if you use them out of the software manager because those are all vetted!

And STAY THE FUCK AWAY FROM ARCH/ GENTOO..

 

[Zepp]

2) it looks like Wine compatibility for Office is largely broken for Office 365. And again, using it in browser or even worse, Google Docs, is just unacceptable garbage

I suppose you could run a windows VM to use native office

I use a windows VM for a half dozen windows only apps I couldn't get to work with WINE(before I discovered Lutris). now its down to only 2-3.

you can buy a dirt cheap 2nd hand tiny workstation card off ebay like radeon pro w2100 for ~$15 as a dedicated GPU accelerator for the VM

 

[WelshBloke]

I suppose you could run a windows VM to use native office

That's exactly what I do. I only use office stuff for my work anyway so it's nice to have it in a separate VM as I don't have to worry about logging into anything with the wrong account!

 

[Brainonska511]

I suppose you could run a windows VM to use native office

I use a windows VM for a half dozen windows only apps I couldn't get to work with WINE(before I discovered Lutris). now its down to only 2-3.

you can buy a dirt cheap 2nd hand tiny workstation card off ebay like radeon pro w2100 for ~$15 as a dedicated GPU accelerator for the VM

Yes, that becomes a possibility, but that just seems like another hoop to jump through and kind of defeats the purpose of trying to leave Windows behind. Maybe I'm just lazy.

 

[WelshBloke]

Yes, that becomes a possibility, but that just seems like another hoop to jump through and kind of defeats the purpose of trying to leave Windows behind. Maybe I'm just lazy.

Tbh a VM is no more hassle than just running a native app. I guess that it takes up more storage but storage is cheap now.

 

[Indus]

Yes, that becomes a possibility, but that just seems like another hoop to jump through and kind of defeats the purpose of trying to leave Windows behind. Maybe I'm just lazy.

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/01/09/microsoft-contributes-1-million-to-trumps-inauguration-fund.html

Rather than becoming a convention of moaners here, I decided to do something about it!

It required me to not be lazy!

 

[Brainonska511]

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/01/09/microsoft-contributes-1-million-to-trumps-inauguration-fund.html

Rather than becoming a convention of moaners here, I decided to do something about it!

It required me to not be lazy!

It's not a matter of general laziness. It's just that I want certain things to work largely without special configurations and whatnot because I'm done with tinkering at that level. I am devoting my decision making power to other things in my daily life, and I don't want to be doing OS tinkering in my spare time when I could be doing anything else.

 

[WelshBloke]

1) yeah, that's the problem. So much choice - how will I know what I'll like a priori? I'm not going to play distro roulette, and I kind of know what I'm doing. It's not an attractive ecosystem for people when there is so much to choose. It's like playing an old style D&D game where you have to spend a ton of time setting up your party and stars before you can even play the game itself.

Just pick a well supported distro that's based on what suits you.
I picked Zorin, it's Ubuntu based so everything works on it. It's not a cutting edge distro so it doesn't break everything every update. Looks pretty (kinda like how windows should look if it wasn't a cludge of clashing UIs from the ages) and has flatpak support. Also I kinda wanted something not based in the US (not that I don't love you guys but I trust the EUs data privacy laws a lot more at the moment).

2) it looks like Wine compatibility for Office is largely broken for Office 365. And again, using it in browser or even worse, Google Docs, is just unacceptable garbage

It's just Microsoft being Microsoft.

 

[Zepp]

It's not a matter of general laziness. It's just that I want certain things to work largely without special configurations and whatnot because I'm done with tinkering at that level. I have am devoting my decision making power to other things in my daily life, and I don't want to be doing OS tinkering in my spare time when I could be doing anything else.

it's all good. I came to that conclusion 2 years ago when I tried to switch to linux and found myself googling too much how to setup everything exactly how I wanted. I said "nah it aint for me yet"

since then my use case mellowed out to the point that now linux works for everything I want to do pretty much right out of the box.
If you're not at the point where you can't stand using windows and it works for you then there is no real point in switching.

but you should at leas setup a linux VM to periodically try things out and keep up with the penguin side in the mean time

 

[Indus]

it's all good. I came to that conclusion 2 years ago when I tried to switch to linux and found myself googling too much how to setup everything exactly how I wanted. I said "nah it aint for me yet"

since then my use case mellowed out to the point that now linux works for everything I want to do pretty much right out of the box.
If you're not at the point where you can't stand using windows and it works for you then there is no real point in switching.

but you should at leas setup a linux VM to periodically try things out and keep up with the penguin side in the mean time

Yeah that's a good point..

I went through a lot of it's not there for me YET on fedora.. (as you know of my adventures with bazzite/ nobara etc)

But I also saw my wife use Debian as a daily driver and it created 0 problems in 4 years.. so at the very least Debian is rock solid and is meant to be that way.

So I'll always recommend Debian as a dependable distro that exists for users who want zero headaches!

 

[WelshBloke]

it's all good. I came to that conclusion 2 years ago when I tried to switch to linux and found myself googling too much how to setup everything exactly how I wanted. I said "nah it aint for me yet"

since then my use case mellowed out to the point that now linux works for everything I want to do pretty much right out of the box.
If you're not at the point where you can't stand using windows and it works for you then there is no real point in switching.

but you should at leas setup a linux VM to periodically try things out and keep up with the penguin side in the mean time

My biggest Linux learning curve was to learn to stop fiddling with it! It's fun to start with but you will break everything eventually! Once it's working I start ignoring that it's a different OS and just use it. It's fairly liberating tbh.

(I say this as someone that's about to blow away a windows storage space of 4 ssds and convert them to a Linux fakeraid array so I fully expect me to break something fundamental in my install soon!)

 

[Indus]

My biggest Linux learning curve was to learn to stop fiddling with it! It's fun to start with but you will break everything eventually!

You sure you're not talking about Routers..

Everytime they push a software upgrade.. they break something or the other.

 

[[DHT]Osiris]

Go with a REFINED distro that has built in stuff that would normally drive you up the wall since you need to research and it can break.

For example:

Linux Mint Debian Edition (LMDE) is a refined version of Debian
Linux Mint is a refined version of Ubuntu
Ultramarine Linux is a refined version of Fedora
Cachy OS is a refined version of Arch

And if you love stability and things not crashing/ causing problems.. stay on debian based distros and tell everyone else to fuck off if they tell you something is better.

The wife uses LMDE and no programs just crash/ break.. especially if you use them out of the software manager because those are all vetted!

And STAY THE FUCK AWAY FROM ARCH/ GENTOO..

View attachment 128376

Many claim to be mature, stable distros, then inevitably something dumb happens and they adopt the next systemd.

 

[manly]

Ahh the irony of OP citing Dunning-Kruger when he kept saying what does ProtonMail have to do with Steam.

I still think the biggest knock against Linux getting anywhere close to 20-30% adoption is still the lack of a cohesive desktop OS environment with the polish of something like MacOS. I’m sure there are distributions that are like 95% there, but you still have to navigate issues between a KDE vs. Gnome etc., Xorg vs. Wayland etc. and that makes universal GUI app support across the various compositors/window managers and desktop environments difficult. Things have gotten a lot easier with the app stores and flatpaks etc. but it still isn’t setup for the average lay user with zero terminal experience.

This is a bit unfair because for almost all consumers, macOS and Windows are installed by the OEM. FWIW it took macOS about two decades to approach 20% PC share in select large markets (but not globally), so that's a pretty high bar for the third wheel. (Note that Android runs on top of the Linux kernel and it's basically a turnkey solution for consumers.)

As for polish, macOS is widely considered as the UX experts. I don't know that you need to match a multi-trillion dollar company's results. You just have to come "close enough" and avoid a lot of the BS being peddled by Microsoft.

What's notable here is that after countless "Year of the Linux Desktop" jokes, there is clear momentum over the past few years.

I've been using OpenOffice Writer and Calc (in Windows) for years and can't say I find them to be absolute trash. They actually fill all of my needs quite well. Obviously your use case may be different than mine.

By the 80/20 rule, Google Docs and LibreOffice are perfectly adequate for a large majority of consumers.

 

[lxskllr]

I've been using OpenOffice Writer and Calc (in Windows) for years and can't say I find them to be absolute trash. They actually fill all of my needs quite well. Obviously your use case may be different than mine.

If you're using literal OpenOffice, you should seriously consider going to libreoffice. OpenOffice is a dead project, and it's malfeasance on their part to even pretend they're viable. Their download links should point to libreoffice, and if someone wants their antiques for some reason, they can troll an archive for the download.

 

[WelshBloke]

Many claim to be mature, stable distros, then inevitably something dumb happens and they adopt the next systemd.

*Points at Windows11, waves hands around and makes incoherent noises*

 

[nakedfrog]

If you're using literal OpenOffice, you should seriously consider going to libreoffice. OpenOffice is a dead project, and it's malfeasance on their part to even pretend they're viable. Their download links should point to libreoffice, and if someone wants their antiques for some reason, they can troll an archive for the download.

It's a mix, the laptop I'm currently on has OpenOffice because it still works fine, one of my others has LibreOffice on it. I think another laptop has OpenOffice because I still have an installer for it on my network and that was less effort than getting a fresh download.