I want to second this point, but from a different experience. I'm definitely a linux "evangelist", in that I've convinced a lot of friends to switch over. But the biggest thing that's enabled me to convince people to give linux a try is... linux has changed.

Linux is just much easier to use than it was a decade ago. Much simpler than ever 5 years ago.

A decade ago I'd have to fret over updating a nvidia driver and wonder if I'm going to spend a few hours or more recovering my display. God, there were so many pains. They helped me learn a lot and helped me gain mastery, but that's not for everyone.

But now, projects like SteamOS, System76, EndeavourOS, Manjaro, PopOS, and others have really moved the space in usability. Things have just changed. There's more effort than ever being put into linux and with that comes a lot of people willing to put effort into design. I think it is easy to lose sight of design when resources are scarce, but it is also important for drawing people into the cause.

Now the biggest problem of getting people to switch is actually with the nerdy/techy friends. They have heard too much about how linux is difficult and all that stuff. They are judging by the state of where things were than where things are now. Whereas for the most part a normal person switching to linux will have a similar experience as if they were switching from Windows to Mac or vise versa. There's pain points and a lot of "why is this here and not there" stuff, but things are very doable. But this initial learning curve can also put many people off (just like switching between Windows and Mac or Android and iPhone). But it is harder to make that transition when you have confirmation bias on your side.

▲

pentagrama 3 days ago | parent | next [-]

> linux has changed

Windows has changed too, their bad practices are increasing and the public perception is suffering by that.

▲

estimator7292 2 days ago | parent | next [-]

It's truly shocking to live in a world where linux is a better option in every category over windows.[0]

I really never thought I'd see this day. I can't decide if this is a great win for OSS, or an incredible loss for the common folk. Either way, the world will be a far better place without Windows 11 or Microsoft in general.

[0] I consider a lack of kernel malware 'anti-cheat' a feature, not a bug. Adobe as well.

▲

uncircle 2 days ago | parent | next [-]

The Adobe Suite and those multiplayer games with kernel-level anticheat are probably the two things holding up the Windows’ crumbling empire. I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that Microsoft pays those companies a boatload of money to remain effectively Windows-exclusive.

▲

dpoloncsak 2 days ago | parent [-]

There was a great write-up that resurfaced on HN yesterday on specifically why anti-cheat on linux is so difficult. It has nothing to do with companies paying a boatload of money.

Adobe, I can't comment on

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44980064

	▲	godelski 2 days ago \| parent [-]
		Isn't the current CoD anti cheat system also flagging Valorant as cheating software because of Valorant's anti cheat?[0] Fundamentally the problem with any anti cheat system is that it is indistinguishable from a root kit. You're giving software full privileges to your machine with the ability to edit your kernel, inspect running processes, and inject code into running processes. I'm not saying there's no situations where you don't want a program to be able to do this but you should be extremely cautious about doing so because that program essentially owns your machine. Put it this way. Suppose you trust those game companies and their anti cheat software. Do you trust that this software will never be hacked? I mean we're talking about an extremely high profile target with wide adoption. Sounds like you're adding a pretty valuable target that's worth far more to hackers than it is to the game studios. I mean we're talking about the same game studios that let easily solvable but game breaking bugs persist for years. Even ones where the community has provided patches for... [0] <https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/battlefield-6-and-valorant...>

▲

MrVandemar 2 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> It's truly shocking to live in a world where linux is a better option in every category over windows.

I'm pretty sure it trounces Linux (for some value of whatever you think "Linux" actually is) on Accessibility. This is an area that could be vastly improved.

▲

worik 2 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

> It's truly shocking to live in a world where linux is a better option in every category over windows.

For people who have been using Linux for decades, it is not so shocking.

Definitely frustrating it has taken so lone.

▲

godelski 2 days ago | parent | prev [-]

I think a little of both?

I think the problem is really down to monopoly abuse, or green. The Apple lawsuit is a good example of this. They want 30% of in app purchases but... why? An iPhone only has value because of its apps. (Just like how a computer's real value is its ability to run programs) Specifically, apps that Apple didn't also create. You could pay people for those apps and Apple would still benefit. Seems like a lot of these big companies are making categorically similar mistakes. They only can do this because users don't (meaningfully) have other choices.

I'd love to see OSS win, but not because CSS has abused their customers. I wish the fight was over the value of the product. I guess that means I wish profits were more dependent on product value. Shame we conflate market value with product value.

▲

godelski 3 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Agreed. This has also made it easier to get people to switch. This Windows 11 stuff has been great for Linux adoption

▲

madphilosopher 3 days ago | parent | prev [-]

I read a comment on a forum recently that I'll just leave here:

"Windows 11 is a hate crime."

▲

briHass 2 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

I'd add that computing has changed in the last 5 years as well. The amount of actual apps a typical user installs is minimal. You really just need a web browser for most tasks, and obviously Linux can provide that.

Besides drivers for some weird hardware, the only daily application might be an office suite, which OSS still can't quite match the MS offering. However, I've found many are willing to deal with the differences given the licensing cost of Office.

▲

specproc 2 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Absolutely. The year of linux on the desktop was probably somewhere around 2020.

▲

lproven 2 days ago | parent [-]

I'd argue 2017: that was the year Chromebooks first outsold Macs in the USA.

(I know, the fanboys and penguin Taliban will rage that ChromeOS is not the True Linux, etc., but ignore them.)

Two things are non-obvious about this info.

1. The numbers are by value not by units. An average Mac is about 5x the cost of the average Chromebook.

2. This is long pre-COVID. The pandemic was very good for Chromebook sales and they've slackened off since, but the boom began well before.

▲

rstuart4133 2 days ago | parent [-]

Yes, I'm with you - Chromebooks are the first successful Linux Desktop.

To anyone doubting it - Google supports installing Debian apps on Chromebooks, via crostini. That's how I run Firefox, Thunderbird, LibreOffice and a number of other things on a Chromebook. The integration is pretty good - when you install a Debian desktop app, it's ICON appears in the list of apps you can run from the Chromebooks launch button.

It's a very good setup for my wife. The Chromebook is cheap, the UI is simple, the Google ecosystem just works when you need it, and all the desktop apps are still available.

It's not perfect, and it needs at lease 8G of RAM which is a high end Chromebook. This years crostini release was a big leap in stability. It went from the occasional Debian application crash (requiring a restart of the VM) to not stopping as far as I can tell. It's a pity the upgrade destroyed the VM, losing every file in there. Not nice, Google. There are still paper cuts, but a future were I choose "Chromebook" as my window manager for a 16GB Snapdragon X looked possible.

Or it did, until Google announced they were replacing ChromeOS with Android. But now, maybe, using Android as a Windows Manager for Debian on Snapdragon X might be in my future.

	▲	lproven a day ago \| parent [-]
		Thanks for that. Yep, I have given my wife an old (but high-spec: i7, 16GB) Dell Latitude with ChromeOS Flex as her desktop. She seems to like it more than the MacBook Pro she had before, because it's simpler. I discovered ChromeOS Flex can't play movie files. So I installed VLC in the Debian session. Now, when she clicks on any movie file, VLC opens automatically and it just plays. I didn't have to do any configuration; ChromeOS just knows that there's an app installed that can play filetypes including .MOV, .MP4, .AVI etc and it Just Works™. I also agree re the Android move. I wrote about it: https://www.theregister.com/2025/07/16/android_replacing_chr... I like the current ChromeOS. I am concerned by the change.

▲

rr808 2 days ago | parent | prev | next [-]

Hardware has changed too. Previously installing from CDs only spinning hard drives was a big investment in time. Now I'm really not scared of doing a fresh install, its often so easy I can switch distros without much trouble.

▲

swader999 2 days ago | parent | prev [-]

Another aspect is that Windows has gotten so terrible and distracting.