this post was submitted on 16 Jul 2023
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Linux
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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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Linux can be frustrating simply because it is so powerful and versatile in the way Windows is not. Unlike Windows, Linux is not a one size fits all approach. It's designed to be customized highly.
I think newbies would be better off with Linux Mint which pretty much works out of the box. This lowers the barrier to entry. As the newbie advances in their knowledge and skill, they can begin to tinker.
It's also not easy being a newbie and getting learning support isn't always easy. A lot of us sysadmins have a tendency to forget from whence they came.
This. Linux gives you full control and that includes the ability to break it. Not everyone should wield that power.
So often I see posts like this of people complaining without realizing that they are responsible for breaking things.
Example. Manjaro. In the package manager there is a toggle that is off by default for the AUR. And it warns you not to turn it on unless you understand it. But almost everyone turns it on. And they think, well, a simple flip of a toggle surely shouldn't be able to break my machine. It wouldn't be that easy. They are used to an OS like Windows that protects users from themselves. So when a fucked dependency breaks their system, they blame Linux, not themselves for ignoring a warning and changing a setting that they don't understand. This is just an example, there are many. What it comes down to is that Linux gives the user full control and power. And too many people don't understand when their changes break things.
I do think immutable distros will help prevent some of this from happening.
Suddenly I'm curious about how many of these are the same people who laugh at warnings on coffee cups and power tools.
"WARNING: don't put your hand here or this will saw your fingers off!" "haha lol who would do that"
"WARNING: don't flip this switch or this will break your computer" "omfg why puter not work!!"
Like, damn, if you're straight-up warned then maybe the real problem's in the chair :-\ Seems there's kinda no solution for that but for the user to get smarter. Can't put all of the intelligence into the software.
Also, what's the story with the immutable distro hype? peeks out from under her rock I've heard of NixOS and various critters seem to love it but I never imagined that sort of thing would become a thing (kinda thought it was just a neat little niche) let alone a big thing for 'inexperienced' sorts.
I'm not sure to be honest as I have not used them. I've looked into them though and they seem like a good solution to all the people that for whatever reason, struggle with stability.
NixOS is even cooler because it is declarative which makes it super easy to spin up similar machines saving in the setup process or just to revert back to a known state/configuration. Haven't used it yet for lack of time but I am very interested in it.
The AUR is usually necessary because not everything is in the core repos, so you don't really have any other choice.
You absolutely have other choices. Flatpak, appimage, or just compiling yourself from source and bypassing the AUR; I never use the AUR.
It's unfortunate that people that don't know what they are doing use it because it makes an installation easy. They shouldn't, if you don't understand how and why it might break things. If you do, and it breaks something, don't complain. But people do anyway because they are entitled and lazy.
So Flatpak is preferred? It should probably be the top option in the list. People keep complaining about Flatpak and Snaps, and they're lower in the list, so I assumed they weren't as good to use.
This isy personal preference:
Repo
Appimage
Flatpak
Snap
Compile