I have used Windows all my life, and I have some questions

This is a great place to ask

But all I know about Linux is 1: it’s a cantankerous beast that can smell your fear and lack of computer skills and 2: that’s apparently not true any more?

Yes and no, the primary skill that you will be tested when using Linux is the ability to learn new things and adapt to changes. People misinterpret this as being complicated when in many cases its simpler but different.

I’m pretty much a fairly casual PC-user, I don’t do much more than play games. So I wrote down some questions I had about Linux.Will my ability to play games be significantly affected compared to Windows?

Depends, if you mostly play single player games then most likley not. If you play online games than maybe not also maybe not.

Can I mod games as freely and as easily as I do on Windows?If a program has no Linux version, is it unusable, or are there workarounds?

Depends on the game, for something like Minecraft or Doom youll be fine but games with less support may not have good Linux support.

Can Linux run programs that rely on frameworks like .NET or other Windows-specific libraries?

Yes, Wine has alternative frameworks and libraries

How do OS updates work in Linux? Is there a “Linux Update” program like what Windows has?

OS updates can either be done through the package manager or your distributions GUI software center

How does digital security work on Linux? Is it more vulnerable due to being open source?

On the surface it may seem so because more CVEs (Common Vulnerabilities and Exploits) are found on Linux but they’re also patched faster than Windows and mostly before they find their way into the wild. In addition Linux is designed more securely such as, using repos (so software can be verified as legitimate), not allowing user mode software to run in kernel mode (so no anticheat), and having more eyes on the code.

Is there integrated antivirus software, or will I have to source that myself?

Not really and nobody uses it, it’s like MacOS in that regard

Are GPU drivers reliable on Linux?Can Linux (in the case of a misconfiguration or serious failure) potentially damage hardware?

For the most part yes but keep in mind there are new drivers that arent ready to be used, as long as you stay on stable drivers you’ll be fine. Also hardware damage will most likley only occur if you do heavy overclocking and. Ignore temps.

And also, what distro might be best for me? Pop_OS

If she wants to be a mindless sheep all power to her I suppose

I support equal rights can she please slip estrogen into my food anyway :3

(For very cis reasons ofc)

Truly proof that gamers are the most oppressed people, its so joever /s

Yes but the act of dumping a game or acquiring it in any capacity is illegal (circumventing DRM measures) as well as running the game (which also requires circumventing DRM measures)

Yeah, sometimes there are software that just won’t have a Linux version. Thats to be expected because Linux isnt a Windows clone so itll never run all Windows software. If that software is important to you I would reccomend just installing Windows 11.

I have personally been using Linux for a few years now and I absolutely love it, however a lot of people will switch to Linux and be extremely disappointed. If you’re going into Linux expecting an open source Windows clone you’ll be solely mistaken. If you want an operating system that looks and works exactly like W11 youll be better off installing W11 and using something like classic shell. However if you’re willing to accept that its a completely different OS (so it naturally will work differently and have different software) then go ahead.

Pretty much, 1% of games don’t work on Linux and its the top 1% most popular games

Nearly every laptop OEM has been making comprimises, if you want a true classic Thinkpad style laptop (thats thick and has good build quality) the MNT Reform is the only option. Its massive, thick, has a mechanical keyboard, has an option for a trackball, and isnt particularly powerful (the Raspberry Pi CM5 is realistically the most powerful thing you can put in it).

Very good Thinkpad, especially with the classic keyboard mod and libreboot :3

The problem is that even the T and X model Thinkpads have been chasing thin and light above build quality. They no longer have protective metal cages, the keyboard isn’t as good, and its bends/flexes (which makes sense considering its thin). I get thats the “modern” laptop design but I wish they went back to making massive laptops.

Woah, I said an older Thinkpad. We dont talk about what Lenovo has done to the modern Thinkpad image (theyve dragged it through the mud). Eveyone knows the last good Thinkpad was the T480.

Wheres the introduction to Rust, choker, skirt, Blahaj, and Thinkpad X220?

I was going to say Life of Brian, also extremely quotable

“You know im something of a Libertarian myself”

Same, now im an Anarcho-Syndicalist :3

Start up a workers cooperative and a collectivized farm, you could also do the digital nomad stuff and make a worker owned digital syndicate. Turn it into a leftist center where theory flows like water and discussion of revolution flows through the air like the songs of the workers >:3

No I mean less permissive, a license that can ensure major corporations cant just take someone’s work and overshadow them

Imo thats also why its devolped as well, people genuenly like permissive licenses because apparently coporate leeches arent an issue to them.

That doesn’t mean we should make it easier for them, if anything that means we need a V4 of the GPL that addresses and combats that