Basic functionality needs to be rock solid. Every time I tried and quit Linux it was because something basic was broken out of the box, like Wi-Fi or touchpad drivers.
I hope that network drivers are the next thing to get overhauled now that there's finally a stable audio system.
Even after fixing such issues, some bullshit crops up again.
Exactly. That's the problem. Basic things need to be rock solid.
Overcome the issue of anticheat/video games, I'd use Linux were it not for the fact that a lot of games I enjoy sometimes are not available.
Devotees have said to me that I should just abandon the games I like in favor of using Linux and they may as well be shouting into a hole in the ground.
Linux and Windows have grown by stunning leaps and bounds over the years. So great to have such solid operating systems, but...
Linux absolutely sucks if you're not a nerd. Sorry, I spit truth. I've tried a dozen distros as daily drivers over the last 15 years. Always had to fiddle and learn. Windows 10 & 11 work right out the box, every time.
I'm not totally ignorant! I've spun dozens of Linux servers, my VPN is on Debian server. If fact, just now realized it was still running my internet, and I haven't logged into it in a few years. Rock solid.
So the question would be more to the point if we asked, "What is blocking normal people from making the move?"
To counter my own point, I used to make "little old lady" laptops and PCs for people who were too broke to get a new machine or pay me to fix Windows. I'd take their crap laptop/box, add whatever RAM I had on hand, SSD a must, load Linux Lite. Show them how to access the internet and their email, DONE. Never once had a call back. It just fucking worked.
Here's the key! Listening you nerds? I never once told them they were running Linux, never explained the concept of an OS, nada, STFU with your evangelizing. I merely handed their machine back in a working state, with minimal instruction.
The Year of the Linux Desktop may never hit. Most people don't use desktops outside their job and Microsoft has a lock on compatibility and business use cases. Can you imagine any sort of Linux Active Directory? LOL, hell no, what a scattered ecosystem.
Can you imagine any sort of Linux Active Directory?
What is openLDAP?
I've played with LDAP and it is nothing vs. AD. Ever administered an AD domain? Crazy what all you can manage. It's not only a user auth tool, it's so much more.
Ever administered an AD domain?
only as part of a curriculum and in an apprenticeship; so nothing serious.
Crazy what all you can manage. It’s not only a user auth tool, it’s so much more.
yeah sure you can manage the heck out of it. But what does one really need? Restricting/Enabling access to resources, and managing authentications right? And that's feasible with Kerberos and OpenLDAP, no?
I'm too far gone from my last AD admin job (7 years), but I mainly remember how tightly integrated everything was. I could play that infrastructure like a fiddle!
The greatest thing about AD is that it's a "single pane of glass", all there in one tool. One example, I used RADIUS auth with Network Policy Server (NPS) to manage wireless access. Put users in the appropriate group, never had to think about it again.
One of the best parts was how easy it was to manage with PowerShell. I had on on/offboarding script that would handle a dozen pain points at a button press.
/etc/selinux/config which is really quite complicated for "normal" users.I think those are the main things. I think it would also help if KDE were the "default" desktop environment instead of Gnome. It's much better, with one caveat - they seem incapable of good visual design! Don't get me wrong, it's a lot better than when KDE 5 first came out, but there are still very obvious spacing issues, and Gnome never has those.
You should NOT disable SELinux. Where in the hell did you get the idea it’s a good idea for people to do? Quite the opposite, people should have ways to interact with the MAC system easily.
You should read this before jumping to "it's more security therefore it's better" conclusions:
Mobile non-Android Linux on more than developer devices and 5 year old tech would be the largest impact, especially if you could pull off half of what the Liberux Nexx was promising. An all in one convergent pro-privacy device with flagship hardware would be a game changer. Possibly more urgent now that Google is pushing Android to be more locked down.
Desktops are primarily used by hobbyists (mostly gaming), creators, and businesses. To get Linux more there you need OEM installs and more driver support, Adobe and other big holdouts finally porting their stuff, and alternatives to AD respectively.
Librem 5
One YouTube or peertube channel that most Linux users would gladly recommend to newbies for onboarding, troubleshooting, and beyond.
I have reinstalled on a multitude of occasions on account of not being able to find the solution for whatever weird thing jibbers up my machine.
Gaming
A community for everything relating to the GNU/Linux operating system (except the memes!)
Also, check out:
Original icon base courtesy of lewing@isc.tamu.edu and The GIMP