So why do you use Linux?

Hey!

I don’t know if there is already a topic about this. But I would love to know your reasons why you use Linux.

I am going to the third class of IT this year. Next year it is my latest year of my study.

I switched to Linux because of some reasons:

  • I enjoy the updating mechanism a lot more. No more random reboots of Windows. Just a simple command and everything is up to date.
  • In my first class I had to do a lot of programming. Installing Python on Windows is bad. You have to go to a website. Download installer, install Python, add it to Enviroment Variables, Disable some path length stuff and it is not as fast for me. Linux is just a simple sudo pacman and that is it.
  • Customization. You have multiple DE, you can customize how you want. I have used all of them. Now rocking Gnome with one extension ‘Tray Icons’.
  • Less resources. Everything just feels so snappy. I have a really good laptop, but it just is better for my needs.

Unpopulair opionion: I don’t use Linux, because I care about privacy. And I am not a open source etelist. I do use it more, since Linux. But i don’t hate proprietary software. I don’t hate Windows, I just like Linux much more.
I still use Google service everyday. Like I know you can use protonmail and Evolution. I just think Google Calendar works best for me.

So I don’t use Linux because of privacy or open source. I just use because Linux works better for me. And I like to learn things about it.

Linux Path
Ubuntu Server (Dedicated server) -> Ubuntu -> Linux Mint -> Pop Os -> Manjaro -> Arch with Archfi -> EndeavourOS

5 Likes

I use it because it works without trying to tell me how to do things or force me into certain ways of doing things. That’s it, end of story.

2 Likes

I use it because I can pull it apart and see how it works.

I use it because if I don’t like something I can remove it.

I use it because if something is broken I can find out why. No “ERROR 0x0982734029874023987lol” messages which mean nothing and have no search results.

I use it because if I want to improve something I can.

10 Likes

I use it because alternatives are crap. :smiley:
Well maybe a little bit because of my tin-foil hat :space_invader:

2 Likes

“Because I’m worth it.”

:lips:

2 Likes

I don’t code. But the main reason I use Linux/switching over to Linux are as follows:

  • Customisation - I love how there are different distros each with their own Desktop environments, themes, packages, forums etc.
    I also like how you can further customise your installs. From the packages you download to the themes on your DE. Windows is no where near as customisable.

  • Less Resources -

I 100% agree.
On the 2x laptops I currently have Linux installed on (EOS & Elementary) they’re much faster. Whereas with Windoze they were extremely slow.

  • Privacy - I don’t trust windows nor Google. Currently migrating away from Google and Microsoft as much as I can, so I prefer using Linux systems for privacy and open source reasons.

  • Curiosity - I like learning and expanding my knowledge and technical skill set - Linux allows me to do that. :wink:

3 Likes

I initially hopped over because I was tired of Windows bs with the telemetry that I can’t disable 100% without breaking the system and to become proficient in an OS that is ubiquitous in the cyber security industry that I was moving into.

I stayed because:

  • I truly enjoy being able to completely customize the look of my DE
  • I’m able to mess around with the guts of my system and easily able to fix anything I screw up with a simple snapshot reversion
  • The package management system is so much more enjoyable than how program installation is handled on Windows
6 Likes

In windows i broke a bunch of glasses everytime i do my thing and that i hate.

Linux is on stability overrated but can do what i wanna do also without reinstalling. And its fun.

Fairly to say xp was my last windows version and i loved 3.11 …

But sinc3 using linux fulltime never looked back

I run both Windows and Linux as VMs on top of UNRAID which is handling it with KVM / QEMU.

Unfortunately the windows sound system really doesn’t like that setup when there’s significant network traffic which meant teaching online using Windows on my setup was a disaster.

I experimented with EOS and discovered it worked perfectly, and thus started my journey.

I prefer the look and feel of KDE, the update / installation approach of yay / pacman, I’m shocked how many of my games I can get to work and that I could get the software that’s necessary for my work running through wine.

Now I only boot to Windows once or twice a week.

Previously I’d experimented with Fedora and even successfully installed Gentoo, but until steam and proton it never stuck.

The pain of my professional IT career.

1 Like

I still have a w10 spare disk around, which I boot from usb, just to update my old satnav.
It runs on linux itself, but refuses to update from a linux computer. :thinking: :rofl:

I would try wine to update lol…

I use it because the Hurd is not yet ready. :joy: (any century now)

But seriously, I use GNU/Linux because I care about freedom. I want to be the owner of my computer, I don’t want my computer to be controlled by some corporation that drips features to me in exchange for monitoring my habits and selling that data to advertising companies (“Please, sir, I’d like another feature, I’ll be a good little consumer!”).

The only way a computer user even has a chance to be free is by using Free software. Linux, for the most part, respects that freedom and the property rights of its users.

Also, using Linux is fun. With some effort, one can actually understand how its components work, and tinker with them. The terminal-centric workflow tends to me much more efficient and productive in most cases, and it’s cool :sunglasses:

Besides, the only two other viable alternatives to Linux are windoze and mac, and they are utter rubbish, full of malware. They do not deserve to be run on metal, but locked away in a VM where their malware disease cannot spread.

3 Likes

At the time, I started using Linux because I was interested in what was new and I liked to learn from those who knew more than I did. Although I’m still learning a lot these days, I use Linux because it runs better on my relatively older devices, is more flexible to configure, and gets questions answered more easily than I do with either Windows or macOs. It is that simple. :slight_smile:

2 Likes

It tastes good and is less fattening.

4 Likes

When I was 15 or so I started trying out Linux as the little I knew about it then was that it was kinda important to be familiar with it if you wanted to get into IT. So, I got a hold of some ancient PC at the time and a copy of RH9 (that amazingly ran on it) and downloaded a couple of guides off the TLDP at a local internet cafe and started familiarizing myself with it.

Since then I have used it on and off on my main systems, but I’ve been using it daily since my early 20s since my servers all run some version of Linux. For the last few years now that support has improved on laptops a fair bit than what I remember it being, I run Linux on my lappy (which is my main computer, my desktop is for work and gaming).

With that long winded backstory out of the way, the reason I use it is mainly because I like the customization available and the ease of which to automate and develop things (I’m a programmer by profession). Also, over time OSS has become more important to me so I try to support it where I can.

This is one of the biggest advantages of Linux over Windows. You can read for years that a Windows package management system is being developed, but so far you have not seen any traces of it.

There is the very Linux-like Chocolatey for Windows.

The situation is similar for me with Windows 10. :slight_smile:

And now an official one by Microsoft called win-get.