Now i’ve been considering moving to linux. I don’t have much of a history using a computer and find it tougher to use than my phone. But I also really appreciate the foss movement. I’ve currently got an old laptop running windows 11 I think and it would prolly speed up with linux too. But I’m afraid I’d fuck smth up trying to download linux, understand it or while using it. Is it worth switching and how different is it to a windows experience.
I’m going to reframe the question as “Are computers good for someone tech illiterate?”
I think the answer is “yes, if you have someone that can help you”.
The problem with proprietary systems like Windows or OS X is that that “someone” is a large corporation. And, in fairness, they generally do a good job of looking after tech illiterate people. They ensure that their users don’t have to worry about how to do updates, or figure out what browser they should be using, or what have you.
But (and it’s a big but) they don’t actually care about you. Their interest making sure you have a good experience ends at a dollar sign. If they think what’s best for you is to show you ads and spy on you, that’s what they’ll do. And you’re in a tricky position with them because you kind of have to trust them.
So with Linux you don’t have a corporation looking after you. You do have a community (like this one) to some degree, but there’s a limit to how much we can help you. We’re not there on your computer with you (thankfully, for your privacy’s sake), so to a large degree, you are kind of on your own.
But Linux actually works very well if you have a trusted friend/partner/child/sibling/whoever who can help you out now and then. If you’ve got someone to help you out with it, Linux can actually work very very well for tech illiterate people. The general experience of browsing around, editing documents, editing photos, etc., works very much the same way as it does on Windows or OS X. You will probably be able to do all that without help.
But you might not know which software is best for editing photos. Or you might need help with a specific task (like getting a printer set up) and having someone to fall back on will give you much better experience.
What are you talking about dude… Microsoft doesn’t help anyone. There’s no support hotline, their documentation sucks, their interfaces suck, etc. Your Windows help is your son, your local IT shop or corporate IT. Comparing Microsoft to a trusted friend, lol, what a crock of shit.
That’s true to an extent. But there is something to be said about having a more expansive and easy to navigate system for supporting windows and osx systems. If you have a computer issue odds are you can go into any staples or other chain office supply store and get tech support for a Windows computer.
I do believe learning tech literacy and putting some effort into being more familiar with the often expensive and critical piece of tech that one uses likely every day - but it doesn’t do Linux any favors to downplay the specific and limited advantages commercial operating systems have.
I really think you would have a great time with either “Linux Mint” because of its rocksolid philosophy of not breaking stuff or shipping “beta software”.
Otherwise a safe option would be a Linux variant with professional support options - just in case you need it. ZorinOS, Tuxedo or Pop_OS! are the most common ones.
Personally i’d take Linux Mint, which in most cases works flawless out of the box. The premium options are nonetheless also great options.
+1 for Linux Mint. It just works unless you try to break it.
I think it depends on what you plan to use it for.
If it’s just browsing the web or basic usage (email, watching videos, etc.) it’s perfect for a tech illiterate person. You have distros that just work, like Mint, or Pop!_Os (compared to distros like Debian that can require a bit of tinkering, or Arch/Gentoo where you need to tinker a lot more). I’m not certain but I think these distros work well for gaming as well.
If you have specific needs for software like the Adobe suite, Excel or audio/video software, it’s still possible but definitely less accessible.As far as the difference between Linux and Windows, I’m not sure you’d notice much if you stay at the surface. The main difference is the fact that you actually own your system and you can literally do what you want with it (even irreversibly break it).
This is pretty much my take. For tech newbies that essentially only need a browser, linux mint is great. On the other extreme, if you want to tinker, get your hands dirty, then you probably already know what distro you want.
It’s toughest for the people in between who need some more advanced os functionality or need programs that aren’t natively supported, but otherwise don’t want to know more about their os than they have to. Not because Linux doesn’t have that advanced functionality (and more!) or because there aren’t alternatives and workarounds for those programs, but because of the learning curve.
For someone already tech illiterate, the learning curve is almost a moot point. For the tinkerer, it’s practically a feature. But for the people in between, it can a real obstacle.
I haven’t seen anyone mentioning this yet, so I will: if you’re looking for the most accessible way to use Linux, nothing beats Endless OS. It’s a Linux distribution that is built specifically with ease of use and offline usage in mind (if you don’t know what a “distribution” is, feel free to ask). It’s pretty different from Windows (the user interface is nothing alike, you should download every program/app from the App Center instead of downloading from your browser), but I think you’d get the gist of it quickly.
Now, whether you would want to change to Linux or not greatly depends on what you use your computer for. If you use your computer mostly for browsing the Internet and making Word documents, then I think you should change. If you play videogames on your computer, but mostly via Steam, then Linux won’t be bad. But if your work depends on something like Adobe Photoshop and you really aren’t available to using any other program, then you would not want tochange to Linux, because Photoshop isn’t compatible with it.
TL;DR: Have a look at Endless OS; and please share what you use your computer for / what devices other than a normal keyboard and mouse you normally connect to your computer, so we can help you determine whether you should just switch to Linux or not.
From what I can gather distributions (distros?) are forks of the original os? Thats an assumption tho.
Don’t use anything special here. I do connect my wireless headphones at most other than mouse and keyboard.
Technically, Linux is just the kernel. What makes a distro different is the software they choose to install and package, and what version: some come with the latest version of kde plasma and busybox, others use versions of GNOME and the GNU core system utilities that are a few years old, etc.
Ooooh ok thanks
Linux is perfect for teaching someone to be tech literate, which should be your ultimate goal.
Just because someone can follow a pictorial cookbook more easily is no reason to not teach them to read. Being tech literate is a little more important than people generally realize, just for having a cursory understanding of how things really work.
I recommend Ubuntu.
It’s development has been focused on teaching and enabling tech literacy across the world since its inception, and is designed to be very user friendly.
For someone as tech illiterate as my mom, I’d advise against trying it. But you are here and my mom would never know that Lemmy is a thing. You also ask about Linux.
I’d guess that you will have great fun using and appreciating what Linux and the foss communities have created.I put Linux Mint on my wifes, her parents and my parents computers, they all are somewhat to absolutely tech illiterate. I have to remind them to update once in a while and new software gets installed by me. But apart from that, everyone is happy with their rocksolid day to day system. Windows wouldn’t make anything easier, neither for me nor for them.
I am very curious about the type of person who would rather use a phone than a computer. I am already getting annoyed just typing these two sentences on my phone, because I know hoe much more convenient this would be on my computer.
Swipe typing. Also most people I know are the same
Thank you so much everyone. I’m very likely going to try the live usb method with linux mint probably. I really appreciate all the advice.
Nice choice. Try to stick to the standard repository, kinda like the Play store on android.
I believe Mint tries to have minimal dependence on the command line. But usually it’s easier to help others solve problems with the command line since that is easier to write out than how to click through menus. So don’t let it scare you too much.
The internet is a friendlier place now, at least in the linux help-o-sphere. People don’t let others post destructive “lessons” for people to learn anymore.
Smart choice! The option to just try it in a safe way with the live USB is a good way to try it.
Also try out some of the themes in the settings 😉 The amazing wallpapers of Linux Mint are so fancy, so I decided to use it on my work Windows PC, which I am forced to deal with ☺️
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Thanks I appreciate the detailed response. Luckily I dont game. I’ll be honest I was hoping/ expecting it to suddenly be twice as fast and that was a major factor in considering linux. But if it decreases overheating I’m still happy with that.
I have been degoogling and going the foss roite on my phone to the point of considering graphene os for my phone too so won’t be going the google route thats for sure.
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Ok i’m reading up on this sub and not arch seems to be the consensus for a newbie. I want to download smth and just have it there without thinking bout it the way it is with windows. Not a hobby that i spend hours on.
Apparently theres many versions of linux you can get?
Yeah, don’t use Arch if you’re new to Linux and not tech-literate. You seem pretty interested in Linux Mint from other comments here, I’d say give that a go.
Considering the nature of this converstaion, i love your instance name lol
Linux Mint is very easy with GUI’s for everything you need and the UI is pretty similar out of the box. Try it out on a live usb before making the switch.
Thanks. Just opened the linuxmint website and it looks promising
i gotta join in with the other Linux Mint voices here. It’s very user friendly. You just need to know:
- the desktop environment is called Cinnamon. this will help you google stuff.
- the system package manager is called APT, and if you just use the update manager you won’t have to interact with it directly, but it’s good to know.
- in the software center many apps have the options sytem package or flatpak. system package means it goes through APT, flatpak is a sandbox system that is good for isolating your apps from your system. imo always choose flatpak, except for steam.
Probably the most important thing to ask before you do anything is, do you have someone who can fix the computer if you screw it up? Installing Linux means removing Windows, so if you get half way through and get stuck, you’re going to be left with a computer that doesn’t work. Will you be able to recover it, or have someone who can?
Once you’re on the desktop, most of what you do is going to be very similar to Windows, except most of the programs will have different names. I would imagine that the vast majority of people can use Linux once it’s installed, especially if they’re in your situation, where they’re not used to computers and don’t have any habits from Windows.
Oh my thats an issue. I don’t know anyone who uses linux. In my country everyone just has pirated windows as I do. Thanks for the warning.
Create a linux mint install USB. When you boot from it, you’ll be in a fully functional linux OS, without installing anything. This way you can try it out before making a commitment.
Although a recurring recommendation is to install linux on a second PC to try it for a while.
This sounds good. Thanks
It doesn’t have to be someone who knows Linux, you just need to be able to get back to a working computer. If it means going back to Windows until you know more, that’s fine, just keep learning :)
It can be a great experience. I used to work in a program for teaching informatics to people who didn’t have access to technology, and we used linux. The results were great. Most people who came from a phone-only background would feel more comfortable with gnome as a gui, so I’d recommend a gnome-based distro for you, like ubuntu, pop os or fedora. Don’t think too much about the distr, just pick one and give it a try. And don’t forget to post your experience here later.
Good luck!
Thank you. I’m now worried about what tippon said and am 50-50 on trying it again lol.
But you don’t have to remove windows. You can install linux in another partition and have an option to choose which system you want to boot. If I remember well, the ubuntu installer has an option t do that automatically ( I will check for you later) . You can also install linux to an external usb media for testing and insert it every time you want to give it a try (usually, pressing f12 or other vendor-specific combination at boot time allows you to choose boot media)
Edit: found this nice tutorial with images: https://www.tomshardware.com/how-to/dual-boot-linux-and-windows-11
Oh I really appreciate that thanks.
You shouşd definetly give mint a try it is one of the most just works distros. great for beginners, maybe test the software you want to use on the live environment before installing, if all goes well than give it a spin.
If you’re not doing anything crazy, there’s no reason linux should be any harder to use than Windows.
Once you’re up and running, daily life will be pretty straightforward.
Plenty of great advice in the other posts that I won’t rehash. One thing I didn’t see mentioned is using a live boot to try out linux. You can basically run it off a USB stick before you install it to get a feel for what it’s like. Most “beginner friendly” distros will have tutorials on how to create the live disk. Example for Pop!_OS: https://support.system76.com/articles/live-disk/
This is an interesting question.
My daughters have grown up with Ubuntu as their main typing and work computer, with windows being what they game on. They are just as able to use one as the other. They don’t break stuff in Ubuntu, and I find myself troubleshooting their windows game pc more than their Ubuntu installs. They don’t touch the command line in either OS.
I use Debian as my main ride, and don’t do any troubleshooting with that either, unless I’m just tinkering around and even then it’s not like I’m borking the whole OS.
I think most Debian distributions could be installed and used with no issue, and unless you are gaming or doing 3D modeling or CAD, could be daily driven. I don’t believe you need any more ability to use Linux than you do windows. I believe you have just as much chance blowing your windows OS away as you do any Linux distribution. Just practice 3-2-1 backups, which you should do with any OS, and take it one step at a time.
