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Is 2021 the Year of the Linux Desktop?

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Re: Is 2021 the Year of the Linux Desktop?

#71

Post by leppr »

approxim8ion wrote: post #26

I don't really care, as long as the situation doesn't get worse, it will always be my year of the linux desktop.

I care because as supply chain issues get worse, it's becoming harder and harder to get the good Linux-ready laptops within a reasonable delay.

I recently switched to an Asus after a decade of Thinkpads (because a custom maxed-out Thinkpad would've taken 2 months+ to get delivered). What I forgot to check was Linux compatibility. With out-of-the-box Ubuntu, wifi didn't work. I was forced to switch from my usual distro, and still bluetooth doesn't work. Thankfully there are enough people wanting to run Linux on those machines that a few enthusiasts have managed to get the drivers to a point where it's usable.

Think about it, how much of your machine's stack have you actually built yourself? Probably only a tiny fraction: some dotfiles, tiling manager bindings, a few scripts, ...

It's a collective effort, and the more people use it, the more enthusiasts work on it, the better it becomes for you and I.

Re: Is 2021 the Year of the Linux Desktop?

#72

Post by AnIdiotOnTheNet »

wooque wrote: post #64

For me every year after 2015 was year of Linux Desktop

Why do people continually post this? We all know what is meant by the phrase "Year of the Linux Desktop", and it has nothing to do with one random individual on the internet using it.

Re: Is 2021 the Year of the Linux Desktop?

#73

Post by AnIdiotOnTheNet »

goda90 wrote: post #19

I think 2022 has the potential to be the Year of the Linux Desktop due to the Steam Deck. Valve has promised that Proton will allow almost all Windows games to run on it. Guaranteed they'll also be working hard on SteamOS polish. If Windows 11 turns out to be messy, then gamers could consider Linux more attractive now.

I think that is some combination of naïve and optimistic. Steam Deck's OS is just Arch with KDE and Steam on it. It might have games working well enough to make the product itself a success, but there's no reason I can see for people who use a Windows desktop computer to switch to using a Steam Deck as a replacement or to install Steam OS.

Re: Is 2021 the Year of the Linux Desktop?

#74

Post by wayneftw »

rreyes1979 wrote: post #62
lordgroff wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's the issue with dual monitors and GNOME?

Try using monitors with different pixel densities and setting per monitor fractional scaling. It never works as good as it works on a Mac (not a Mac fan boy... I would rather move to Linux but here I am).

But why though? At my desktop workstation both of my monitors are exactly the same brand and model (and sequential serial numbers, if I have a choice) and that's exactly what I would want regardless of my OS.

Why would anyone not prefer this over a mixed set up? The only reason I see to use a mixed set up is if you're forced to use a laptop. Personally I don't optimize for working in meetings and planes though and my life is just simple and straightforward. I keep just 1 cheapo laptop around for that stuff.

With that said, XFCE handles mixed DPI/scaling just fine for me.

Re: Is 2021 the Year of the Linux Desktop?

#75

Post by pg_1234 »

leppr wrote: post #71
approxim8ion wrote: post #26

I don't really care, as long as the situation doesn't get worse, it will always be my year of the linux desktop.

I care because as supply chain issues get worse, it's becoming harder and harder to get the good Linux-ready laptops within a reasonable delay. I recently switched to an Asus after a decade of Thinkpads (because a custom maxed-out Thinkpad would've taken 2 months+ to get delivered). What I forgot to check was Linux compatibility. With out-of-the-box Ubuntu, wifi didn't work. I was forced to switch from my usual distr…

What distro did you use in the end? I had to fall back from Mint to Kubuntu due to issues with both wifi and the touchpad on an acer swift.

Re: Is 2021 the Year of the Linux Desktop?

#76

Post by ajvs »

yissp wrote: post #66
ajvs wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The Android ecosystem has. Currently most mobile devices in the world run the Android Common Kernel, which is only a few patches of differences from mainline Linux kernel, plus proprietary drivers. Considering the current state of fully Linux phones, we'd have never had a shot at being the market leader on mobile otherwise. In Android 12-based devices these drivers will become simply plug-in kernel modules, so all de…

That's a good point, but I would ammend it slightly - Android might turn out to be a net boon for Linux enthusiasts in the next few years. I'm definitely super excited, but I still feel like the mobile Linux ecosystem is still not quite there just yet.

I think progress will speed up over the next year once mobile Linux distros like postmarketOS can be flashed on many Android devices, similar to how LineageOS and other ROMs can be flashed to many right now. Currently it takes too much work to mainline an Android device, and the main supported phones like the Pinephone just have too weak specs for most users.

Once new devices like the Pixel 6 start shipping and having the Android 12 requirement to run the Generic Kernel Image (GKI), then people will be able to use mobile Linux on powerful phones finally, as well as their old or cheap Androids.

Re: Is 2021 the Year of the Linux Desktop?

#77

Post by simonblack »

BrandoElFollito wrote: post #30

I tried to install Ubuntu 20.04 on my Thinkpad P51 with two monitors. Fonts were funny and the mouse never got the monitors right. Horrible things were happening when I was recovering from sleep mode. I installed Windows 10 on my Thinkpad P51 with two monitors. Everything worked out of the box. So at least for me 2021 is the year of Windows Desktop and certainly not Linux Desktop. Disclaimer: I try 1-2 times a year t…

I use Mint on my Thinkpad P53. Everything works out of the box.

I also use Mint on my M93P Desktop. Ditto likewise.

I used a Unix Desktop from 1991 to 2001. Since 2001 to 2021 I've used Linux as my day-to-day system.

I've never used Windows as my day-to-day system. There never was any need to.

I don't think I'm an exceptional genius, Linux just works.

Re: Is 2021 the Year of the Linux Desktop?

#78

Post by simonblack »

thrower123 wrote: post #10

No, it's never going to be the year of the Linux desktop. Right now all the distros together can't crack 2.5% of the desktop market.

To paraphrase your comment:

"No, it's never going to be the Year of Mercedes on the Highways.

Right now all the Mercedes models together can't crack 2.5% of the motor vehicle market."

(It makes no difference who drives a Mercedes and who drives a Ford, or a Pontiac, or a Volkswagen, or a Skoda, or a BMW, or a Lamborghini. One is just as useful as another. It's pointless arguing about such irrelevant trivia. Ditto for Windows, Linux and OSX.)

Re: Is 2021 the Year of the Linux Desktop?

#79

Post by BrightGlow »

open-source-ux wrote: post #33

If ChromeOS is the Linux Desktop of 2021, it surely represents the antithesis of open source ideals? ChromeOS is a cloud operating system (OS) that tracks and records all your activity the moment you sign in. Naturally, a Google account is required to use the full functionality of the OS. It is used by millions of schoolkids with all the privacy implications that entails. Somehow, Google's promise to never build prof…

I don't see what the problem there is. The entire goal of a school is to track the students and profile them into a set of grades and test scores.

Re: Is 2021 the Year of the Linux Desktop?

#80

Post by caeril »

2004 was the year of the Linux Desktop.

Fedora Core gave you everything you needed for the typical desktop use case: a browser, an office suite, and an email client, with a modern, sensible GUI.

Anybody still denying the usability of desktop Linux since then either plays vidya (which, granted, has been a perennial problem on Linux), or is simply wrong.

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