this post was submitted on 10 Mar 2024
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Linux
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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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I think it's a win. For most people the computer is a tool to look up information and communicate, etc. If they can do that with free software, we all benefit, even if they don't fall down the rabbit hole and spend endless nights configuring tiling window managers and arguing about vi vs emacs.
Lately I've felt an itch to put together a manual for these people, a sort of "Linux for people who don't really care about Linux"-manual. The problem I guess is that they are not likely to seek out a manual to begin with.
And the amount of support requests I used to get when my family was on Windows (and it was mostly but not all cracked copies, before Microsoft stopped doing anything about it) was much higher too.
Obscure hardware issues that require savviness and extensive googling is always the biggest concern with Linux, but even there, the gap is much smaller these days.
Meanwhile, the retirees who've used Windows all their working life, never complained even once. I guess if they were so busy with work even a day's confusion with how the "Windows" layout for KDE Plasma differs from the actual one they were used to might be frustrating or too disruptive; not anymore though! And that was before all the Copilot mess!
Most people don't care about Linux. They don't need to. It's not just fine, but probably a good thing!
As a physiotherapist, I liked this part especially: "Take computer breaks every hour, and rotate your eyes and shoulders." :)