Year of the Linux desktop let’s goooooooo!
3% is insanely high for those of us who remember the early 2000s. I am loving this.
Linux mint 21: loses a little
Linux mint 22: wins a little
my brother in christ. they just updated their pc
Importantly, there was a net increase in Linux users and a net decrease in Windows users.
Still increases in other areas ☺️👍
Linux use on steam has also passed mac use. The three most popular mac versions are still used by more than the 3 most popular linux versions, but the total for macs is under 3%.
And for me personally, I didn’t even have to give anything of value up to make the switch. I kept my old windows machine in a running condition as a backup, but I think I’m about ready to start retiring that machine entirely, at least as a windows machine.
3% is insane.
I am not a “year of linux” huffer. The majority of the population doesn’t even know what a filesystem is, much less (for example) how to get to the BIOS setting they need to even install linux.
But 3% is absolutely a threshold for “viral social spread” amongst those that can.
It’s like damn look how good the general Linux desktop got with barely any general consumer adoption for about 30 years. Imagine what it could get around ~10%. 20 years ago Mac’s were only around 5%. I love gaming on Linux but my main thought is how this is the trojan horse that brings users and some funding and developer attention to open source applications. Kdenlive needs love. Ardour needs love. Darktable. Get them all the Blender treatment someday
I think it really depends on your definition of what counts as year of Linux. Will Linux usage ever beat Windows or Mac? Of course not. But it can definitely get popular enough that companies have to think really hard about whether they need to support Linux or not. And meanwhile, Linux isn’t going to get popular overnight (or in a year, for that matter). So do you consider the year of the Linux to be the end of growth? Middle of growth? Or beginning of growth?
For me, I think year of the Linux desktop already passed in 2021, with the launch of the steam deck (where I’m defining year of Linux to be the point where Linux usage picks up and will hopefully end at a point where companies have to take Linux seriously)
I consider the “year of linux” when OEMs ship it in laptops and desktops, in volume.
In other words, it’s when I see several linux laptops in Best Buy.
Sadly, we might ‘miss’ that window. It seems like regular folks are moving to tablets, phones, and Android PCs for home use. Business will be stuck on Windows forever. So it appears the future we’re barreling to is iOS/Android for the masses, laptops (mostly) as pure workplace machines, and then the PC gaming sector essentially depreciating Windows and migrating to (in delicious irony) Windows APIs on linux.
0.15% in a month
that’s 1.8% in a year if it stays so, but it’s gonna get faster
year of the Linux desktop soon
I’m part of that 0.15%. I had been dual booting Windows for years and finally made the full switch with win10 EOL
It’s okay openSUSE Tumbleweed. I still stan for you. ;P
openSUSE is GOAT.
I’m a CachyOS shill, and I’d recommend Tumbleweed to anyone. It’s criminal that folks use stuff like Ubuntu or Manjaro over it.
I chuckled when I saw Manjaro of all things on there, and not my beloved OS of choice! lol
For real, though, openSUSE is truly something to rave about, as far as I am concerned! :)
Now that zypper has been pulled into the modern age with parallel & faster downloading, the only complaint remaining I have for it is the installer itself
I kind of liked the installer, but that is because I am a huge Fallout fan and liked the black with green theme you could use when I installed it about a year ago… I am but a simple person… lol :P
Really wanna try a perma switch from Fedora just cuz they include a nice grub theme lmao.
Plus I like that its proper rolling instead of staged releases.
Even though I think it’s generally frowned upon to use, I use GRUB Customizer from the Discover Store, and change the theme to a Fallout style one, if that would be easier for you to use!
I’ve had one or two hiccups when updating openSUSE Tumbleweed. Once was just a normal update, back then I was doing it weekly since I basically only game on my desktop, but it completely broke my graphics for whatever reason. I have an NVIDIA GPU, so I attribute it to that.
Luckily, Tumbleweed has that snapper component, and I used it for the first time. Absolutely amazing I could just run that and then be back in a working state at the shake of a lambs tail. I just started updating monthly after that, and so far, no hiccups!
I feel like the number of “I switched to Linux” videos on YouTube have exploded recently, although it might just be some algorithm thing.
All of the major gaming youtubers have made at least a couple videos featuring Linux over the last couple months, which is definitely a big change from the windows-only (except sometimes servers) content of years past.
I think there is a real change in people’s mind . Windows is at it worst since forever. Just this month 2 people in my inner circle just ask me how can they Make the switch and which distro should they use for their needs. Those 2 were hardcore Windows fan and gamer.
I also had a friend ask how to install Linux or where to buy a computer that has it preinstalled. It’s getting out there.
I like how all Arch based distros are in “quotes” by the way.
Right? It’s oozing with sarcasm, like—ArCh LiNuX
lmao
I think it’s because they’re including steam os which is an Arch derivative.
GamingOnLinux estimates >7% of English language install base for Steam is using Linux (if I’m understanding this correctly): GamingOnLinux Steam Tracker
Yeah, indeed. Steam language breakdown is about 40% English, 30% Chinese, 10% Russian, 5% Spanish, 15% other. Chinese speakers overwhelmingly use Windows rather than Linux, so choosing ‘English only’ basically doubles the Linux percentage.
I’d be interested to know why Linux has such bad update in Chinese-speaking regions. (It’s the lingua franca for much of Asia, so not just China, just largely China.) Obviously, inertia plays a part - easier to move to Linux if you know someone else that can help you, which if there’s no-one then you might be a bit stuck. Are the fonts crappy? Are the input methods greatly superior in Windows?
I would put it down to censorship. Not of Linux directly but of information about noncomformity. Windows is the default OS for desktop PCs and I imagine it is easier to get exposed to the idea of searching an alternative in the west than in China. If you never question the oppressive bullshit corporations are doing to you, you will not think to break free and use Linux.
i find this a little difficult to believe when china develops and promotes their own linux distro and desktop environment
they do not care about many of the things that people in western societies care about. they do not care about privacy. they want to use the same type of computer their friends and coworkers are using. 11 is a higher number than 10.
unless there’s a chinese linux distro that gets pre-installed at the factory, along with a government ban of windows (it could happen), they will be the last society to adopt.
11 is a higher number than 10
Jokes on them. I am using 24.04.
Guessing Linux is associated mostly with the government attempts to make their own distribution. I think in their context windows may feel safer.
I’d be interested to know why Linux has such bad update in Chinese-speaking regions.
I wonder if language in particular may be a factor hindering Linux adoption there?
- How does the documentation for Linux (including forums, how-tos, blogs, etc) available in Chinese dialects compare to what is available in English, and how well does machine translation work for translating the English sources?
- The documentation available online for Linux very often involves the command line. How much of a pain is it for people who only speak Chinese dialects to use an English command line? If the commands are available in Chinese, how well do the machine translations of the English documentation sources work for that purpose.
I feel that there are probably significant language barriers that have an effect here, and effectively create a chicken-and-egg problem for Linux adoption, possibly limiting Linux usage to Chinese people who are relatively proficient in English.
For reference, here’s an article about what proportion of Chinese people speaks English (it seems to be around 5%?): https://www.thehistoryofenglish.com/how-many-people-in-china-speak-english
That chart shows what I would interpret as really strong Linux growth. Somewhere around 200% growth in the last 4 years, and seems to be significantly accelerating.
I am waiting for SteamOS Desktop to be released before switching. I want the support of an 800lb corporate gorilla, that prioritizes gaming. I use mods and play niche games, so I need a Linux that balances casual users while allowing for some power user stuff.
I already know about Bazzite and Cachy, but again, I want the support of a focused giant who won’t die or change hands.
I’ve been gaming on Arch (btw) since 2013 and only had minor issues I could resolve with a bit of googling.
Things have only gotten better over the years. Steam will just work on pretty much any distro as it has its own runtime.
I don’t do just Steam. As said before, I sometimes use mods or play niche games, such as ones that require Japanese locale, Windows v3.1, GOG games, and so forth. While I am not a true power user, my needs definitely go beyond Steam alone. I had tried out Mint a year ago, Hero, Lutris, Mini Galaxy, and so forth failed to work smoothly with my games.
Nowadays it’s super simple, with Lutris or another launcher. But you can still make Steam launch those too, with Proton.
What games require JP locale? Do you mean hentai games ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)?
Asian games, both perverse and standard. Translation patches don’t necessarily make the internal workings of a game able to run on English locale. As to specific games, I don’t recall at the moment - I play too many.
‘won’t die’ ? I mean Gabe is great, but I don’t think he’s immortal.
Granted. I really hope he is raising a protege to take the helm when the time comes, or divides up the Steam Kingdom and lets the best folk win.
I respect that. Tho do remember this is opensource instead of a traditional system.
Any improvement to steamos will improve bazzite and any improvement to bazzite will improve steamos.
Which is good. It is just that I don’t have much patience for troubleshooting, I prefer to just game or work. For me, I would stick to Windows if it weren’t for Microsoft likely being a bad actor.
I have doubts that Valve will officially support SteamOS on anything but their own hardware (and maybe some partners’), in which case unless you plan on buying a Steam Machine you’re going to be stuck for a very, very long time.
Valve said they want SteamOS to work on every PC. My guess is, they will release a more PC friendly version some time soonish after Steam Machine releases.
should be a market for ‘old’ hardware with linux. just drop them in a web browser and most can’t tell the difference. like a chromebook. win11 is just pushing people to buy new hardware. let em. other reasons to upgrade hardware
Got my new bazzite gaming laptop YTD!
Screw you, windows, I’m out
It was gaming all along guys
