[WIP] How To Tell If You Can Switch To Linux (Software Alternatives)

Lounge EndeavourOS pub
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This is a work in progress. Current word count on my device is at 7,581 words…

Yes, it got longer instead of shorter. To see just the changes, click the “Edit History” button. The changes will be highlighted automatically by the forum software.

Note: For now, it will remain as one article, but it will be properly split into sections using Markdown’s “Details/Summary” syntax.

I’m uploading it here to get some feedback on what I may need to mention to the people it is directed at. In this case, it is directed at people I know who, as computer users, fall into gamers, creators, and generalists.

I’ve already sent them some graphics with way less reading, but I think a full article may be of use as well. So, I’ll be adding a lot of privacy-related things to this list, like stuff about ActivityPub, specific alternative (open source) apps, websites with this information, etc.

If it helps others too, well great! But it is specifically for people I know personally or professionally, so it will be specific to my country/region in some ways.

Please ignore/mute the topic if you don’t care to see when it updates.

I’m open to suggestions. If anything said looks naive, please point it out, both with facts and your opinion. :wink:

You may also share it with others not on this forum whom you think may be able to provide some quick feedback on ways to improve it. I would actually be willing to open up another thread to make a “crowd-sourced” version that others can edit. This may possibly reduce the amount of effort I need to put into this. :weary:

How To Tell If You Can Switch To Linux

Before getting into it, after reading this section, please skip to the sections that apply to you for lighter reading. If all the sections apply to you, then I’m sorry. :melting_face:

Please skip to the “Software Alternatives” section if you really wish I didn’t send you this article file or link. Sorry, not sorry. :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

The following people can switch to Linux in a week or less:

  • Those who barely use their personal computer for anything
  • Those who use their home computers for personal activities only; no work
  • Those who mostly use their personal computer for web browsing
  • Those who mostly use their personal computer for making notes and general organisation
  • Those who stopped using their personal computer because it’s become so slow with Windows
  • Those who use a pirated copy of Windows… Like really?
  • Those who only use Windows because it’s what came with their personal computer

The following people have the most compelling reason to continue using Windows or Mac:

  • Your personal computer is used for working with software that must be used for your job at a company in which you are an employee and have no say in decisions, and that software is not available on Linux

The following people will need some extra special convincing to stop using Windows or Mac:

  • Windows users who use the same proprietary software they use at work professionally for their personal projects at home
  • Windows users who are currently in school and need to use a school-mandated app for their assignments (like Maya or MS Office)
    • You should talk to your parents about alternatives and how to go about removing this mandate through lobbying - gathering votes, helping people learn that alternatives exist, etc. As a benefit, this shows leadership and may help with your future opportunities. :wink:
    • Something to think about: Why should your taxes, or even personal expenses, be used to make a company you have no shares in get richer?
  • Windows user who think that using Linux means you need to know how to code
    • Hate to break it to you, but I’m an artist, graphic design and writer! Oh, and a self-proclaimed “theoretical solutionist”. I couldn’t code to save my life.
  • Windows user who think Linux is so different that it’s going to be too complicated
  • Windows users who don’t like trying new things unless it is forced upon them
  • Windows users who only want to use what’s popular
    • Slavery used to be popular. When your government can see everything you do due to a lack of privacy, you won’t want to do or say anything against your government. In other words, that mentality could bring back another form of slavery. Cut that out of your mindset.
  • All Mac users :skull:

The following people will probably need more than a week to switch and at varying amounts of time:

  • Those who have already started working on projects (professional projects) using a particular app that is not available on Linux
  • Those who have been given legitimate licenses by a company they work for/with for a particular app that is not available on Linux
  • Those who work in industries where using a particular app at work is required, and they are part of a team who are all on-call and need to use the same app. Again, this only applies if the app isn’t available on Linux.
  • Gamers who have spent cash on games that are incompatible with Linux. This is niche, as many games not made for Linux actually work on Linux anyway. Your mileage may vary depending on the game, type of game, your hardware, and even your choice of Linux OS. There are some Linux OSes (we call them “distros” - short for “distributions”) that are made for gamers.

Everyone listed above has one thing in common: they can all slowly start switching their personal lives over now and do not have to wait until some indefinite date in the future that many people like to call “one day”, or its twin “someday”.

Your job is not your life. You are not required to use Windows or Mac in your personal life. For most people, using Linux would be no different from using Windows or Mac simply because most people are not tech-savvy, and most people live the computer aspect of their lives in a web browser.

This is also true for many Linux users. Web browsers work on all platforms and don’t care which OS you are using… unless they do, in which case you should uninstall it. Looking at you Safari… :eyes:

Like the note for gamers above, there are Linux OSes/Distros that are made for pretty much every niche, and of course, there are the generalist Linux OSes/Distros as well. Using Brave’s search engine, you could ask it to list Linux OSes/Distros based on your niche, but I’ve been using Linux on and off since 2010 and full-time since 2021, so no need to go searching for what to use.

Here are the ones I recommend:

Gamers (Steam, Itch.io, etc.) >>> What are some good Linux OSes/Distros for gamers?

  • Garuda
  • Nobara
  • Steam OS
  • Any Arch Linux-based OS >>> (However, anything based on Arch, like Endeavour OS below, is not for most people.)

If you choose Garuda, or anything based on Arch Linux, then it’s probably a good idea to follow the guide for gamers here: Linux gaming [Guide]

Generalists (Web browsing, taking notes, etc.) >>> What are some good Linux OSes/Distros for everyday users?

  • Linux Mint
  • MX Linux
  • Fedora
  • Endeavour OS >>> (Not for new-to-Linux or non-tech-savvy users. So, not for most people.)

Creators (Graphic design, Writing, Drawing, 3D, etc.) >>> What are some good Linux OSes/Distros for creators?

  • Ubuntu Studio
  • Any official Ubuntu version + Ubuntu Studio Tools
  • Any Arch Linux-based OS >>> (However, anything based on Arch Linux, like Endeavour OS, is not for most people. Read the note below.)

Linux OSes/Distros based on Arch Linux are the most versatile option, as these are usually DIY OSes/Distros that can be customised to your liking. And you get access to the AUR, which gives you access to many more apps.

However, Arch-based OSes/Distros require users who are a bit more willing to fix things themselves. And most importantly, users who are more willing to read through pages and pages of well-written instructions to configure their system the way they want.

Endeavour OS is an easy starting point where most things are already set up in a way that most users would want, but it is still based on Arch Linux, and as such, it is not for most people.

A rule of thumb is: if you weren’t already good at using computers and/or the internet, stay away from Arch Linux-based OSes/Distros.

Time for one more bit of bias, this time not directed at Apple users :wink::

**Do NOT install Manjaro if you want to use the AUR.** Click to learn why.

If you decided to do your own research and use any of the searches I gave examples for and you saw “Manjaro” listed as a good option, please pretend you didn’t see it.

If you are new to Linux or new to Arch Linux, you almost certainly will bork your system by using Manjaro. It is based on Arch Linux, but in a way that is almost anti-Arch Linux.

bork - mess up your system in a way that you possibly cannot repair

So, one day you will get excited to install an app you thought was not available on Linux, and this app will be in the AUR (Arch User Repository).

AUR - a massive community-maintained resource of apps.
Examples include: Maya, Brave, OnlyOffice, Skype, etc.

After you install it, maybe the same day, maybe a month later, an update will bork your system because you installed that app from the AUR.

Manjaro is often times not compatible with the AUR.

This is not how things generally work out when using most other Arch-based distros. It is unique to Manjaro and Manjaro-based distros. Please don’t use it.

And furthermore, don’t use their graphical package manager named “pamac” either. Use “Octopi” instead if you prefer to click an update button rather than type an update command.

So, if you decide that you would like the benefits of the AUR, please use EndeavourOS for a good experience.

End of biased opinion based on experience.

Now, the title says “If”, but if you read carefully, you know it’s actually a “When”.
So, “How To Tell When You Can Switch To Linux”.

The following is a simulation of how I normally speak with my actual friends. However, you may find it useful. Read it if you want.

Start of simulation

As I mentioned in a previous status, we are around 45 million (or 22.5 million if counting only adults). That is a little over half the population of Germany and a little less than all of Spain.
Why do those countries matter?

Germany is actually one of the pioneers for online privacy. Have you heard of the GDPR - General Data Protection Regulation?
The rules outlined by this act has made it so that many Europeans are able to take back their rights to privacy from companies who would sell their data to the highest bidder.

Spain (among other countries) on the other hand support a bill named “Chat Control”. It’s a bill with good intentions aimed at preventing child b0ru and tr@ff1ck1ng, but with privacy-violating terms, where no instant messenger can be private as message encryption would become illegal. Luckily the bill failed, though it has since been renamed with updated terms.

“I still don’t get the relevance.”

If this bill is passed, apart from the global ramifications of no privacy online, it would show that 40+ million people can make a change that affects billions. So, saying that we are small and insignificant is a lie we need to stop telling ourselves.

“Wow, what a round-a-bout way to say that.”
C’mon now, you know me - I love extreme examples. :heart_hands:

End of simulation

Moving on…

Software Alternatives (the reason you are seeing this)

The generalist section for apps apply to everyone. You’ll find web browsers, office suites, email providers, cloud storage, etc.

Generalists

If you just (or mostly) use your computer casually, click here. - - -

Use Linux Mint for a simple but fast desktop feel. It’s kind of like using Windows 7/10 in terms of UI design.

You could also go for MX Linux for a similar feel, but with more stability, and more “push this button to do this important thing properly for me”.

If after a year or so you feel like trying something different, you could also try Fedora, which gives equal stability, but is touted as having great modern hardware support.

Finally, if you feel like none of the above is doing it for you, and you think you have the patience to read a manual and understand your system, then give EndeavourOS a shot. Many old and new-to-Linux users say that it has the best online community support for Linux available. I can attest to to this. I am part of the community for this very reason.

Suggested Apps and Services for Desktops / Laptops

Microsoft Office / Google Docs Alternatives

Microsoft Edge / Google Chrome Alternatives

Gmail / Outlook / Yahoo Alternatives

Email Clients

Advanced Note-taking and Organisation - Notion and OneNote Alternatives

Simple to Advanced Text Editors (Can also be used for the above category)

Dedicated Password Managers (Yes, you should use one. Stop taking risks by storing them in your browser)

Two-factor Authentication (2FA) Clients

Suggested Apps and Services for Phones / Tablets (Android)

Microsoft Office / Google Docs Alternatives

Microsoft Edge / Google Chrome Alternatives

Email Clients

Dedicated Password Managers (Again. Stop taking risks by storing them in your browser)

Two-factor Authentication (2FA) Clients

Google Play Store (Yes, there are alternatives)

Gamers

If you're mostly a gamer, click here.

Straight up. Just use Steam. Plain and simple. Just use Steam in combination with Protondb. Steam is one of the only gaming platforms or markets that support Linux. The Steam Deck uses Linux. And the Steam Library is huge.

I have over 150 games in my Steam wish list that are compatible with Linux. Earlier in the year, the number was at about 110, and I had removed over 30 and ignored them so I wouldn’t see them anymore. I ignored them because I decided to reduce the list to the ones I really want to play and my wish list was getting ridiculously long. So, since then I’ve added almost 80 games. It’s even more now! On top of that, I’ve ignored a lot more than are just not my kind of game.

No adult has the time to play even 10 games and still have a working and personal life. So, again, just use Steam.

The following dialogue is a simulation of conversations I am likely to have with my actual friends. It is not directed at anyone I don’t personally know.

Start of dialogue

“But dawg, I paid like $50 for Game X. Fifty US dollars!”

Alright, tell you what, if it’s not compatible with Linux, watch this:

  • zero the game
  • install Linux
  • and… JUST USE STEAM!

“Dawg, you know it’s an online game. It can’t be zeroed.”

That’s irrelevant. I spent over $100 USD on League, and before I even stopped using Windows I had stopped playing it because the community sucks. It was always a bad investment. Just use Steam.

Nuff said. Argument done.

End of dialogue

Creators

If you create cool stuff on your computer, click here. Professionals and hobbyists included.

Now for you guys, my people. “If my people who shall call my name shall humble themselves….” and actually try. :pray:

On a real, this is hard to write. But… you are too comfortable with companies taking advantage of you, and it has caused you to see non-art-based challenges as impossible to handle. You face challenges every day in your tasks:

  • How does this sentence sound?
  • Will this movement translate properly on screen?
  • Oh crap! I forgot to turn off the blue light filter and now the colours look wack!
  • Why does this idiot plugin not work as advertised? Every time I tune the sound it resets to default!

I know you’re tired, drained even. But this last fight is more important than that company you work for/with. You’ve been attacked left, right, and centre by this wave of AI and the massive population of uninformed people who don’t see how bad things can/will get. Your art may have been used to train those models. You hear and/or see people saying artists “need to calm down” and “stop crying”, and you want to tell them all manner of evil. But at the same time, you know it’s simply because they know not what they do (or say). You have friends or family who use some of these tools, and you feel compelled to tell them how it’s affecting you while also hoping they don’t say some stupid inconsiderate crap.

Even with all of that, you also need to remember that art is what makes the world go round.

If a writer didn’t write about space travel in great detail as if he was there, or a story-teller didn’t tell fantastical myths about dragons and powerful beings, or a painter didn’t illustrate a new animal he saw on his travels, or a musician didn’t sing with the birds and the animals of the land around them, there would be no development whatsoever in the human brain.

No intelligent spoken language, no Game of Thrones or Altered Carbon or Star Trek/Wars, no Picasso or Frida Kahlo or Taj Francis, no “Not Like Us” or Adele… and no science.

So, fight we must. Whole-heartedly. Not that one foot in, one foot out approach. Things are heating up both literally and figuratively. We are not just the world’s creators - we are its directors and enders, if we so choose. “No choice is a choice in itself.”

I’d rather take the wheel than to let go and be steered by a pretender. But I need your help.

So, here’s the list. But before you go through it, you’ll notice that most of the alternatives I list are free or open source*. There’s a reason for that. And, no it’s not because they’re free. The reason is that if you pay for free, particularly, open source software, or “fund” if you prefer, you are more likely to ensure the long-term development and survival of that app, while also improving it to the level of the industry standards.

So, please “toss a coin to your witcher”. :palm_up_hand::coin::crossed_swords:

Desktop / Laptop

Photoshop / Clip Studio Paint / Affinity Photo

Illustrator / Affinity Designer / Linearity Curve (Vectornator)

After Effects / ToonBoom / TVPaint

Premier Pro / Filmora / Final Cut Pro

FL Studio / Ableton Live / Studio One

ZBrush / Mudbox / 3D Coat

Maya / 3DS Max / Cinema 4D

Substance Painter & Designer / Mari / Quixel Suite

Keyshot / Marmoset Toolbag / V-Ray

InDesign / Affinity Publisher / QuarkXPress

Niche Tools

Pixel Art

Game Engines / Game Development

Novel-writing

  • Manuskript
  • novelWriter
  • Obsidian (Free|Proprietary)

We have an ever-growing list of apps, many of which are cross-platform, so you probably know them already. That being said, I can’t recommend most because of the way they handle individual files. I’ll give more than one link because alternativeto.net doesn’t necessarily have the best organised list of apps that can be used for writing novels. Usually apps listed under “notes” or “knowledge management” or even “wiki” are also good.

Choose whichever suits your workflow.

App and Web Development / Coding

Please find your niche, then filter by Linux.
Pretty much all the major tools available on Windows and Mac are available on Linux.

Phone / Tablet (Android)

Painting / Drawing

Vector Art

Video Editing

Music Production

3D / 3D Sculpting

Phone / Tablet (iOS)

Sell your device and buy an Android or Graphene OS device. Not even joking.

If Procreate has a vice grip on you, HiPaint is a clone. Like, actually. You’ll barely miss a thing, if anything. Get a Samsung tablet equivalent for your iPad.

Otherwise, I really don’t see which other app you could be holding out on.
What Procreate Dreams? Check the Android list.

Combine an app or two if you need to. Krita actually does everything, except 3D. It’s “just” a different workflow.

I know it’s not “just” a different workflow. I’m “just” saying… :pray:

Industry Standards and File Types

This section will address the following questions:

Do you really expect people to suddenly stop using Proprietary App X? > No. However, in 10 years we can do so much. Photoshop is only 34 years old, not 100. It has only been the industry standard for about 20 (since about 2003-05). What I'm suggesting is not impossible, as the industry standard isn't so old that it is impossible to change it. Look at how many people started using CSP as their main painting and drawing app in the last few years. We can use the next 10 years to change the industry standard to open source, privacy-respecting tools.

A meme/quote I can’t remember exactly:

Persona A: 10 years is a lot of time to do this thing that will improve my life over time.

Person B: Yes, it is, but either way 10 years will still pass.

So, rather than sit and allow things to continue getting worse, it would be better to actually try to do something to make things better. “Proprietary App X” will not actually go away, but its business model would change significantly in favour of the people who use it, rather than only in the favour of itself.

Do you realise the effort it would take to shift a company, yet alone an industry, away from Proprietary App X? > Yes. I can't calculate the effort in dollars, but I can certainly imagine it would be costly in the short term, and invaluable in the long term.

“You reap what you sow. More than you sow. Later than you sow.”

If we keep sowing privacy and copyright violations by continuing our use of the current industry standards, we will reap more said violations in the future.

We will reap a dystopia.

What about file types? There are probably hundreds of millions of files on hard drives and servers around he world that are in Proprietary Extension X. How will these files be converted or be used in an open source app? > Well, the question answers itself. If proprietary formats are no more, and the source code is made available, then it means that developers will know exactly what needs to be done to make previously proprietary extensions work in apps they were not originally made to work in.

Look at the software development industry. By design, even if a format is not open source, it can usually be fully analysed and rewritten into a different language. This is why so many exist. People have the freedom to see the code, and when they don’t like something, they can make their own based on what they prefer.

The very people who write these proprietary apps know full well that making code proprietary is just wrong. But money talks.

Wait. Are you saying that you would like there to be a law that prevents proprietary formats from being distributed in/with apps? > Yes. The world we claim to want is a world where "sharing is caring", and as such, there would be no need for people to limit other's usage of and access to a file extension.

It’s actually ridiculous that a company can limit access to the source code of an industry standard file extension perpetually.

Social Media

This could have been under the “Generalists” section, but I decided to separate it because apparently, we can’t live without it (myself included, unfortunately).

Click Here For Social Media Alternatives

Main takeaway when it comes to social media apps that respect your privacy:
You usually don’t need to install them - there’s usually a web version. Unlike Instagram, as an example, the web version of most of these services is the same as the app. There are no missing features like with Instagram, as these services are simply not trying to collect information from your mobile device.

Also, this saves space on your devices, so instead, please use Firefox or Brave on your devices and keep the tabs open.

All the links below are provided so that you can do your own research, while the apps listed are my recommendations based on days to years of testing.

WhatsApp
Discord
Twitter / Facebook / Reddit
Instagram
YouTube

Stop using YouTube directly as soon as possible by using one of the following:

  • NewPipe for Android
  • FreeTube for Linux (and Windows and Mac too :roll_eyes:)
  • Invidious for Web - if you have the patience

You can export your current subscriptions list from YouTube and then import them using either NewPipe or FreeTube.
Instructions on how to do this can be found here: https://newpipe.net/FAQ/tutorials/import-export-data

It is a similar process for FreeTube.

If you are not usually signed into YouTube, awesome! However, even if you don’t have any subscriptions to export, you can create a private subscriptions list within both NewPipe and FreeTube to add some convenience for viewing your favourite channels.

ActivityPub

What is ActivityPub?

So… ActivityPub. What is it?

ActivityPub is an RSS reader pumped up with adrenaline.

Imagine if you only had an account on Twitter, but you couldn’t communicate with someone on Threads, so you decided to create a Threads account too.

ActivityPub removes this limitation and allows users of one social media site to communicate with users of another, all without the need to have multiple social media accounts.

However, it cannot be implemented with a simple on and off switch, and is not currently compatible with most mainstream social media. This is a good thing!

Make no mistake, I may have used Twitter and Threads as examples, but I am completely against their current existence and way of doing things. And I believe you should be too.

Instead, I’d encourage you to use their alternatives that already support ActivityPub and are not run based on instant gratification algorithms.

Just a chronological timeline, like all social media should be by default.

The current mainstream is set up in such a way that if you are following someone, you may miss a post or two from them simply because the algorithm thinks you may not want to see it. But you are following the person… :roll_eyes:

On Instagram, as an example, before I deleted my account little over a month ago, sometimes even going to the “Following” tab didn’t mean that you would see all of the posts from people you follow. I believe this is why they created the “Favourites” tab, which they still use to show you ads and suggested non-followed users.

It’s time to get back to the true chronological timeline. If you want to explore, then click “explore”.

ActivityPub is social media without “vendor lock-in”, algorithms, and ads. Organic social media.

If you see something from someone you don’t follow, it’s either because you clicked “explore”, or because someone you follow shared it. Organic social media.

ActivityPub is also not privacy-invasive. Unlike anything from Meta, it will never ask you for any personally identifiable information (PII), such as your ID, phone number, a recent picture of you holding your ID, etc.

I’m not sure if Twitter or LinkedIn ever does that last one, but Meta, as a company, needs to die.

How dare you ask someone to show a recent picture of themselves holding their ID just to log in from a different device or location?

Send the account holder an email. That’s it. What the actual…

Anyway, enough ranting. But also, seriously, what the f…!

My ActivityPub Recommendations
Mastodon

Mastodon. It has the most support, users, and funding and is the most versatile because it is a micro-blogging platform like Twitter or Facebook. This means all kinds of content can be posted on it with little to no compatibility or layout issues. Again though, because it uses ActivityPub, it doesn’t matter if it has more users, as pretty much all services that use ActivityPub can be accessed through it.

PixelFed

PixelFed. This is for those who want something similar to Instagram. It’s practically a clone, but is also great for artists and other creatives because it has an optional “Portfolio” layout.

PeerTube

PeerTube. I don’t think I know anyone who consistently makes YouTube videos, but this is the platform I’d recommend. However, the setup process isn’t as straightforward as it probably should be.

There is another option called “Odysee”. It is as straightforward as a media-sharing platform should be. However, it is not compatible with ActivityPub and they don’t intend to be, nor do I recommend it. All manner of abuse is currently allowed on the platform.

That said, Odysee is a media-sharing platform. It’s not just for videos. You can also post images and even articles.

To end this section. If you don’t upload videos to the internet, you don’t need a PeerTube account. If you sometimes want to write a post, instead of only posting images and videos, then you should probably get a Mastodon account.

However, if you want to have multiple accounts on different services or even the same service, you can do that too.

Still Not Sold?

If you feel you must use proprietary apps only, click here.

Get Ubuntu Pro, Zorin OS Pro, or Red Hat Enterprise Linux. That’s about as compatible as those apps will get on Linux. You also get paid tech support and the works. :vulcan_salute:

How Do I Actually Install One Of These “Distros”

Click me for more info

I’ll send some instructions in the Discord and via whichever instant messenger you choose from the social media section.

For those who really need assistance, I’ll come to you if I can.

Getting the “hard” part (the installation of the OS) out of the way is important, so I’m willing to offer direct assistance to as many of you as I can.

For your first year(s), I won’t remove Windows from your devices because I understand that something new, regardless of whether it is easy, is still something new.

In the end, your transitions will be much quicker than mine, as I took over 10 years, but that’s because I learned about all of this mostly on my own and didn’t have any in-person/personal assistance.

Links will be added…

Transitioning Period

Transitioning takes time. I know.

Without doubt, there has to be a period of time where you get used to something new, while slowly becoming less familiar with something you’re fully or mostly accustomed to.

Many of the apps and services above, possibly all actually, are available on Windows too. They are not Linux-specific.

Rather than making the huge sweeping change of switching to Linux, you could start using these apps one by one instead. As you start to learn more about online privacy and the alternative apps available, you could then start to consider making a full switch away from these “giant companies that are out to getcha!” But really, they are out to get you - your data for now. But eventually, with enough data about someone, or with enough data on a demographic, companies and governments can dictate certain aspects of our lives and take away whatever amount of freedom and control we have.

Not everyone wants to be in control of their lives, and that’s fine.
However, to look out for your fellow citizen, it would be a good idea to ensure those people cannot be taken advantage of by these corporations and/or governments.

One of the best ways I know we can do this is to make open source, privacy-respecting apps and services the standard.

Toss A Coin To Your Open Source Developer

Many of the apps and services we use are free, and most of the ones that are popular or are considered as the standard, turn you into the product by taking liberties with your data.

However, not all do. In most cases, the ones that don’t are free and open source software, or “FOSS”. There is also “FLOSS”, which usually gives a better idea of what I’m about to go into. It’s short for free/libre and open source software - and by this it means “freedom”.

Why Should You Pay For Free Software?

The purpose here is to inform you about ways to go about funding the FLOSS apps you use on a daily basis. I’ll start by showing how I do it, but there are other ways to go about it.

My list of projects I currently fund or plan to fund:

Liberapay

Organization Monthly Cost Yearly Cost
Syncthing $1.18 $14.16
The Document Foundation $1.08 $12.96
Gimp/GTK $1.19 $12.28
Keepass XC and DX $2.36 $28.32
Liberapay $1.08 $12.96

Patreon, Ko-fi, Buy Me A Coffee

Project Donation Options
Mastodon $1 monthly
Archcraft $11.80 yearly / $5 every 4 months
Linux Mint Team $5 quarterly / $1 monthly via PayPal
FluffyChat/Matrix $3+ every 4 months

PayPal Direct

Software Payment Type Amount
Krita/KDE Donation $1 / $5.80
Blender Donation/Subscription $5 every 4 months
Thunderbird Donation $5 every 4 months
Mozilla/Firefox Donation $5 every 4 months

Others

  • Transcribro > crypto only
  • BeeRef > pending response

This adds up to a minimum total of: $10+ USD monthly / $120+ USD yearly

There are others (not listed) that I would like to fund, but cannot, either because there is no donation link provided by the devs or the payment method is not something I can use (like crypto), or I’m not willing to use (like adding my card info to yet another site).

An Important Note:

There is no need for much more than $12 per year for most apps/services you use. If everyone else donates, $12 is more than enough. Do your part by informing others. No need to strain your pockets. You alone can’t make all the difference, unless you’re filthy rich.

A quick example:

Krita (an art app) very likely has well over 100,000 users. However, they only receive about $3,000 USD in donations monthly, YET, they are doing so much with only $3,000 USD.

Now, imagine that all the users were doing their part and what it would mean for the industry Krita is part of, including the developers who work on it.

Reference: https://fund.krita.org/
And: https://krita-artists.org/t/krita-usage-statistics/29184

So, think of the apps you use regularly, including your distro(s), and think of how much you can budget for them either monthly (recommended) or yearly. You can fund specific apps/services/distros (Krita, Mastodon, Linux Mint, etc.) or entire software ecosystems (KDE, ActivityPub, The Open Source Initiative, etc.).

So, why should we pay for free software?

The long and short of it is: It is better for everyone involved. People and companies can and will still become billionaires. They just can’t take advantage of your data anymore.

Free/Libre privacy-respecting software means that you will no longer hear people say this:

I was talking to my mother the other day about asking Maria to marry me, and when I got home, I got an ad from Company X with “the perfect engagement ring”.

Some random company shouldn’t know that you have plans to propose before you actually do it.

Government’s Role In The Free Software Movement

Furthermore, funding free software is the kind of thing that we could assign as a duty to our governments. In doing so, there would be no need for an individual to go out of their way to donate to an app.

If governments took literally the lowest value coin from every adult citizen once per month to fund the development of FLOSS apps all over the world, all of these apps, that have developers doing thankless jobs because they believe in FLOSS, would be so much better since they could hire additional developers to improve the apps.

Additionally, governments would see drastic decrease in license fees for the apps they use with your data. This is another mandate would should assign to them.

Why should your taxes pay for apps and services that are owned by some billionaire or billion-dollar company?

How about your taxes pay for something that is owned by the people instead of one entity?

But it has to start with us. If we, the citizens, do not show our governments what we value and demand changes for the better, then they will continue not considering that what they are doing is not what we want.

You can’t want change without first showing it, asking for it, and finally demanding it.

Lastly, for those of you who didn’t even know that you wanted this change, think about the times when you have a conversation with someone and lack of privacy and freedom comes up. Remember how hopeless you felt in that moment.

Now, understand that we live in an “online world”, and as such, changes to software freedom and industry standards and/or norms, like invasive social media, affect more than just the actual online world.

Why This OS/Distro

Why recommend one distro and not another?

Everyone has a different setup. What works on one device may not work on another. This is not a Linux issue; it’s the same for Windows and Mac, but less so for Mac.

“Planned obsolescence”. Look it up.

What I mean is, you may have an older device, while someone has a newer one. Or you may have a newer but weaker device, while someone may have an older but more powerful one.

It is for reasons like these why so many Linux OSes/Distros exist. It is to cater to everyone and their specific needs or preferences.

If you fall under the category of “Windows becoming very slow”" or “barely using your device”, then one of these distros is probably a good choice:

  • antiX
  • Linux Lite
  • Lubuntu
  • MX Linux
  • Peppermint OS
  • Puppy Linux
  • Xubuntu
  • Zorin OS Lite

Pick the one that you like best or the “prettiest” one. :wink:

Except MX Linux and Zorin OS Lite, these were all made for older or less powerful PCs.

MX Linux can be a powerhouse if you want it to, and Zorin OS Lite is really just a limited version of their paid Pro version.

Paid? Yes, there are paid Linux OSes/Distros.

And on that note, I’d like to encourage you to fund the development of and continued longevity of whichever distro you use. Unless it’s Ubuntu - don’t give them any money. :rofl:

But seriously, they get funded by your tax dollars already and large donations. It’s pretty much the same for Red Hat Enterprise.

You can fund your distro of choice monthly or yearly, or even a one-off payment. The important thing is that you understand that the distro may be free, but it still took (and is taking) at least one person’s time and effort to make and maintain it for you.

So, you could do the Microsoft method and pay the maintainer the same amount you would pay for Windows, then pretend they don’t exist for a few years. And once a new update comes out, pay them again.

Another method is the subscription method. Pay a smaller amount each week, month, or year, or something in-between, like every 6 months.

If you fall under the creative category, but you’re not exactly tech-savvy, then there is only one choice I’d fully recommend.

Ubuntu Studio

As far as having all the necessary tools a creative could need, this distro comes the closest, and it beats the others by several miles.

In this case, I am specifically talking about the out-of-the-box setup. Most of the creative apps you’ll ever need in any creative field come pre-installed with Ubuntu Studio.

This is great! … But it’s also bad.

If you don’t need some of the apps, it’s both a waste of space and time.

Ubuntu Studio can take about 20-30 minutes to install. In comparison to Windows, this is nothing. Windows takes ages!

But in comparison to other distros, this is a ridiculous amount of time. Most install in under 5 minutes with the basic apps - web browser, office suite, media players, etc.

That said, again, it comes with pretty much everything any creative would need. So, it’s not so bad from this perspective.

If you feel you’ve got the patience, or you’re just tech-savvy, then you can instead install Debian, MX Linux, or EndeavourOS.

The first two are fundamentally the same. The difference is that MX Linux has many custom tools to maintain your device.

EndeavourOS also comes with tools to maintain your device but it is based on Arch Linux.

As a creative with many apps installed, you will get several updates every day. However, I’d recommend only updating once a week or even biweekly. This is to limit update frequency and to make it harder for software bugs or system bugs in a new update to affect you.

This is not unique to Linux, not even to creatives. If you update your Windows PC too early, an app or two may stop working, or your drivers may become wacky until the app or driver developers send out an update.

However, this does not mean that you should not update your web browser for months, like a certain someone I know. :eyes:

One of the riskiest things you can do (internet-wise) is not update your browser.

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The gaming point is tricky - the most commonly cited games that are incompatible with Linux even via the great strides made with Wine/Proton in recent years are cited for the very fact that they happen to be some of the most popular games in the world; Fortnite and Call of Duty immediately come to mind, and League of Legends recently updated their anticheat which ruled out being able to run it on Linux (which is notable because prior to this there was enough interest in the game as a whole for there to be LoL-specific builds of Proton rolled out to support it).

Those incredibly popular games will likely never see life on Linux due to their aggressive, practically-a-rootkit anticheat mechanisms, and in theory any current or future multiplayer title could end up going down the same route depending on how developers choose to continue pursuing anticheat methods in the future.

I would therefore potentially revise your gaming recommendation to caveat that while singleplayer titles are largely compatible, multiplayer is very much a moving target and even games that work now may stop working abruptly at any time.

I’d also consider your approach for creatives - in my own experience working with graphics, the usual standard people point at is Photoshop - you can (mostly) get some older versions running under Wine, but newer versions are out of the question. And then if you start looking at the alternatives, the most cited example is GIMP which is… clunky, to say the least, as well as lacking in out-of-the-box features that have been baked into Photoshop for years.

Of course if you have a suggestion for a Photoshop-esque application that isn’t GIMP I’d be all ears :smile:

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After the Crowdstrike event. MS is seriously reconsidering how the Kernel is accessed.
Here is Mental Outlaw speaking of this:

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I was going to find this video and mention how things may not be so bad for Linux gamers in the future thanks to this incident.

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I’ll add several. A kind of “Alternative or Open Source Creative Suite”.

For now, the main apps are:
GIMP + Krita + Graphite + Inkscape + Blender

These will handle most needs and then some.
Most people don’t know Graphite, so here’s the link: https://graphite.rs/

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Too long and convoluted for me but I have a short attention span. :sunglasses:

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I’ve bookmarked this to take a look at tomorrow since it’s getting late here, thanks!

Going from the gist of your commentary though, I’d be very surprised if MS started locking people out of the kernel at this point - if I remember rightly, they attempted this kind of thing before with either Vista or 7, and AV companies threatened to file the millionth antitrust complaint against MS in recorded history so they quickly shelved the feature in production and carried on as usual.

I also don’t think that even if they did decide to go ahead and close the doors they’d be able to roll it out within Windows 11 without absolute anarchy unfolding as countless existing applications and hardware devices that rely on kernel mode drivers suddenly became incompatible, or dependant on vendors providing updates that may or may not be viable.

It would likely need a new version of Windows to form the proper foundation to get the idea out the gate, and based on how poor the migration from 10 to 11 has already gone I imagine they’d be loathe to try it again right now.

On that basis while I can see the potential benefits to gaming on Linux, I don’t think we’re talking about something that could be considered to be right around the corner by any stretch, if it is indeed coming at all :laughing:

I’ll take a look at these tomorrow too, thanks!

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Regarding these points ^^:
Years of abuse I remember taking: security settings & policy settings all reverted after some crappy KB update, consulting Black Viper’s website every new re-install, constant borking, constant insertion of repair disk, introduction of viruses and malware every other day, introduction of malware/viruses every other day after installing some virus-ridden reputable AV freeware, apps, constant ongoing scans where something is always discovered, spending way more time than necessary obsessing about malware, registry edits always mysteriously reverting, viruses/bugs all the time, complete joke a firewall, hundreds of thousands of connections and calls out every move you make, all day & all night telemetry, keylogging, spying, selling, upselling crap, bloatware, sluggishness, complete absence of parity or competitive apps, updates never on your time, shot nerves, apps with back doors, apps with spyware (realplayer), rootkits constantly I even had the famous Sony one and I wasn’t downloading anything (later I would discover limewire and that changed), so much treachery forgotten there is probably a lot more.

People take that crap. When they decide not to take it they will come.

Took me 10 months of Linux toe-dipping to make a clean break. I am glad no one made it easy. I am glad I learned the terminal. I am glad I learned the guts of it, the filesystems. In some crazy way I’m glad it wasn’t easy. Easy is too easy. Dig it.

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You’ve taken on quite a challenge here.

If I can offer a general thought from all of this, it’s that I think if one is to try and promote the idea of Linux among peers, it needs to be done gently and respectfully. I think being a positive example, is more likely to win someone over than militant debate.

So anyway, here’s some feedback, as requested :sunglasses: :+1:

Whilst I might agree, we have to admit it is entirely subjective reasoning. To counter this, one can simply say “I like using OSX/Windows and have no reason to change”. I’d also be careful with statements like this, because perceived patronising (making little of your targets valid reasons) may actually raise defences.

Again, this is patronising and even insulting language. It’s not a question of whether we agree with this statement or not, it’s absolutely going to push people away, and solidify their current position.

I think this whole section is more likely to scare people away. For example, earlier it was said of people who are “fooling themselves”:

And then they’re presented with maybe a dozen different versions of Linux, oh but avoid this version, and don’t use that version, and this good for that, but not this… and so on. That’s very different to Windows, and it sounds complicated, thus reinforcing their point!

Your Creators section kinda lost me a bit. Perhaps you’re speaking to discussion points you’ve had with specific people, so I’m not privvy to the context. I’m not quite sure I see the connection between using open-source software, and… the survival of art? (if I understood that)

When it comes to delivering an Adobe Creative Suite alternative on Linux, the offerings are slim. Davinci Resolve is an excellent alternative to Premiere / After Effects / Audition, but if one relies on Photoshop, Illustrator, Animate and InDesign, they’ll have to settle for the considerably less polished alternatives. And if said artists need to collaborate with other artists, well forget it, the file format conversion is deal breaker enough.

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Some nice points.

Yes, I’ve had previous conversations with the creators about software and apps. The light and soft way only so far.

As you’ve said and others too, this is an exhaustive list. That is kind of the aim. However, regarding your point about having too many options, I will certainly be very specific with what I recommend to each group.

Essentially, Linux Mint, MX Linux, and Ubuntu Studio.
Not fully decided on the gaming distro yet, though.

I’ve already been sending snippets in the form of infographics, diced videos and video links.

There are of course some things I will probably separate, like an article specific to creators, as they require more from their systems than the average user.

If you have any other pointers, let me know. Thanks. :pray:

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A game isn’t exactly the same as piece of software. While some of your argument hold water, the one argument that persists through this section is “if you like a game that’s not available on Linux, stop playing it”. A game can’t really be replaced. They’re pieces of entertainment and art, not a tool that can be replaced with another one. Thus, I feel like the argument comes off as insensitive. The writing in the section to me, it comes off as oddly aggressive as well.

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I wonder that if a principled case is to be made against games that don’t readily run on Linux, it might instead point to issues that impact everyone.

Game launchers. They’re a pain, regardless of what OS you use. If you’re on Windows or OSX, and a game requires a launcher with Internet access, but the Internet or the remote server is down, it’s no play.

I have personally blacklisted companies on Steam that do this sort of thing. A case could also be made for the critically invasive nature of their anti-cheat software, having kernel level access to the system.

It’s typically games within these categories that have the most issues running on Linux.

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The fact that it comes off as aggressive is good for me in this case, as it is directed at fully-grown adults whom I’ve known since I was a toddler. :sweat_smile:

That’s why there’s a “simulated dialogue” of what their rebuttals might be.

But, for the reader giving feedback or someone who sees this as a list to use for making a decision, I can see how it would be too aggressive. Will make some edits to clarify what is for the general public and what is for people I know.

Yes. These games and game launchers are annoying even on their native platforms. League of Legends in particular has some quirks that always annoyed me, like the fact that based on your region, the game and the launcher would assume you spoke a particulkar language and made it super difficult to switch to another language.

There are several videos and websites with a hack on how to “fix” this issue, but I remember that it became unfixable in my final year on Windows.

I’ve since tried to sell my account in person and online to no avail. It’s not allowed, but it’s an account with many achievements and things current players would want.

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I play games, do art (not professionally but I have spoken to professional artists to do art similar to them via Photoshop). I have read everything in the post but if I have points I will mention them, but I’m currently at work (Working in ICT based career field) so I can’t right now and I don’t want to duplicate what others have replied with.

The biggest issue I can see with many people switching to Linux is many don’t even know how to reinstall the OS, windows, on a computer. So uninstalling windows an then installing a whole new unfamiliar OS from scratch is not likely to happen, pretty much all PCs are pre installed with Windows, and windows is all people grew up with. Even if Linux is easy to use this is a major hurdle most people can’t do without getting in to the amount of choices and what if they download an OS they don’t like too much, or could be the desktop environment they chose.

Even then a lot of companies wouldn’t want to offer installing Linux as most staff probably don’t know how Linux work or how to troubleshoot or help someone with issues. Even if someone could transition in 3 days they would need to know how to reformat drives and reinstall without losing the data they want and this is already learning stuff most people don’t want to deal with.

The only think I will say quickly with the post itself that I noticed while reading is it may need to be formatted in a way where it doesn’t real like you are telling people how to think or what they should do but just raise the concerns and offer what’s available or could help. Just a couple examples of this is “Only ones who actually have a reason to continue using Windows or Mac”, " The following people think they need to or must continue using Windows or Mac but are fooling themselves", however I am sorry if I misunderstood what you meant.

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@Bink @winnyace @_Six

I’ve updated some of the wording per your suggestions. Will find a way to make the overall article shorter. For now, though, it’s about getting everything in to address the points I normally get as pushback.

Will eventually narrow it down.

You can use the “Edit History” button to see only the parts that were edited. Let me know what you think.

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Narrowing it down will certainly be difficult. I just typed “Social Media” to begin the social media section, and thought of how many options there are. I will focus on Mastodon and ActivityPub a lot, as a microblogging platform covers most people’s needs.

However, once it’s time for specifying apps… :weary:

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Hey @ddnn, thanks for the excellent write up! I will echo a bit the sentiment mentioned previously about language, but also, it kinda doesn’t matter too much if it just stays on this forum. I’m sure as was mentioned somewhere, when most of us are trying to “evangelize” Linux in real life with real people, we have to get through their defences and politeness is key. Again, excellent write up though!

I wanted to touch a bit on the part about creatives: I’m an amateur (or semi-pro maybe, have been paid for a couple shoots) photographer and have been using Darktable as a Lightroom/Capture One alternative and GIMP a few times. One of the main problems with all the software you mentioned, is that you have to use them in conjunction, as opposed to Photoshop which can be used as a one-stop shop. Same for Illustrator/Inkscape and so on. I’ve personally faced resistance from people in this matter, “if I need 3-4 software to do what I can do with just one, why bother?” That’s not a criticism for you or for the software, but rather a general comment about the state of FOSS in general, we really have to go a long way still to convince people to switch, even when they’re not using the software professionally. Just my two cents.

P.S: I had never heard of Graphite, thanks for that recommendation! It looks absolutely cool and I hope those guys make it, I will certainly give it a go and will be following their progress closely!

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I like the OP’s analysis. Especially two points:

  • the segment about distro recommendations for generalists - in general, I tend to shorten the list to only one distro - Linux Mint; if you know nothing about GNU/Linux, this distro is the easiest to install and maintain - MX Linux, even though I find it more suitable for me than Mint, might be too confusing at first glance,
  • the segment about Manjaro (finally, the truth has been spoken!).

My point would be also including distro recommendations for old potato machines, since that’s another reason why someone would like to switch to Penguin. :penguin_face:

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There are good curated lists already that receive community input, such as this one:

Awesome Privacy
List of free, open source and privacy respecting services and alternatives to privative services.

I’d simply point them to things like this, or at least mentioning it. I like how you’ve also pointed to alternativeto.net though.

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I’ll certainly mention it. Thanks for the link. :pray:

However, I need to do a lot of this manually because the majority of the people this is directed at have no interest in tech alternatives if it’s not popular for work or art. So, I’m gonna have to show screenshots of the ones I’ve tested to appeal to them visually.

I tried and failed to switch a small group of them to Telegram or Signal in the past. It was so hard to get them to properly consider even Telegram, even though it’s the most visually appealing instant messenger app available, in my opinion, at least.

Hopefully, I succeed this time with all the crap going on in the digital space.

PS: The list from the link you provided is pretty good. I like that some of the things in mine are there too, and that there are short explanations here and there.

Will certainly reference it.

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I have had another read and it all seems to be fine, I like the changes made to the wording, it was a small thing but makes a difference in a similar way for why many people avoid the Arch forums (Not implying this post is like those forums, but in this case just a similar example on how newcomers to Linux they may get put off).

Everything else seems to be fine, I like the suggestions and advice. For gaming I agree Steam Proton is the way to go in terms of gaming and that is what I have been using most of the time. All my games are from GOG mostly, I have been installing via Bottles and then running via Steam as a non-steam game. There are a couple of games I play through WINE via Bottles and works fine with 4K raytracing and everything on max at 60+ FPS. So Linux is definitely capable of playing games but a shame not many games natively support it otherwise the performance would be even better.

In terms of the creative section, this looks fine and I like all the suggestions of software. I haven’t used any of the artist tools listed except Krita and these have been the biggest issue for me to get working (Other than just booting in to my Windows SSD). I have three of them, Photoshop, Affinity Photo, and Rebelle 7.0. I have had a dislike for the AI and how artists have been treated the past couple of years (And some AI developers attitudes towards artists) and lost faith that the dominating use of AI will be for good in creative and non-creative uses, including the scandals Adobe has been doing with photographers and users of their software. I was intending to move to Affinity back on Windows, the reason I still have Photoshop is because I currently do art courses I paid quite a lot for and they use Photoshop, and I need Photoshop to understand the techniques shown in the video, and then I can translate these to a different software afterwards. Rebelle 7.0 is a pretty unique software that mimics physical media extremely well. But currently I’m intending to get all of these working in Virt + QEMU/KVM and GPU pass-through if this works since none of these work on Linux.

In terms of the “generalists” sections these are probably fine, Linux will work fine if they are able to reinstall the OS. But I admit I can’t comment too much on the generalist part as the last time I was a general user was probably when I was a child so I don’t know what it’s like to be a general user anymore.

All in all, sorry for the long message, I was kind of also replying to stuff mentioned in your Post, mostly in the creative portion, but I don’t really see anything that needs changing now.

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