What Advice Would You Give a First-Time Linux User? (zdnet.com) 298
ZDNet published a new article this week with their own tips for new Linux users. It begins by arguing that switching to the Linux desktop "is easier than you think" and "you'll find help everywhere". (And also that "You won't want for apps.")
That doesn't mean it has everything. For example, there is no version of Adobe Photoshop. There is GIMP (which is just as powerful as Photoshop) but for those of you accustomed to Adobe's de facto standard, you're out of luck. The worst-case scenario is you have to learn a new piece of software to meet your graphic needs. At the same time, you might have to turn to proprietary software. For open-source purists, that's a no-go. But for those who just need to get things done, you'll find a mixture of open-source and proprietary software will give you everything you need to be productive and entertained.
Their article also recommends new users should "weed out Arch-based distributions," while warning that "Linux is more secure, but..." The truth is, any time you have a computer connected to a network, it's vulnerable and it doesn't matter what operating system you use. To that end, it's crucial that you keep your operating system (and the installed applications) up to date. Fortunately, most Linux operating systems make this very easy...
You're probably used to the slow trickle of updates and improvements found in the likes of Windows or MacOS. On Linux, you can count on that process being considerably faster. This is especially important with updates. When a vulnerability is found in an application that affects Linux, it is fixed far faster than it would be on competing platforms. The reason for this is that most Linux software is created and maintained by developers who don't have to answer to boards or committees or have a painfully slow bug resolution process. It might be announced that a vulnerability has been discovered in an application and the fix is officially released the next day. I've seen that very thing happen more times than I can count.
But it's not just about vulnerabilities. Developers add new features to software all the time and even listen to users. You could contact a developer of an open-source application with an idea and find it implemented in the next update. Linux is always evolving and it does so much faster than other operating systems.
And there's one final caveat. "Not all hardware will work (but most will)." I'll say this (and I stand by it): Ubuntu Linux probably has the best hardware detection and support of any operating system on the market. But that doesn't mean it works with everything. Certain peripherals you own could have trouble working with Linux. Two of the more problematic pieces of hardware are scanners and wireless chips. When I find a piece of hardware that isn't supported, here's one thing I've often done: I try a different Linux distribution... (Fedora often ships with a newer kernel than Ubuntu Linux, and therefore supports more modern hardware.)
Keep in mind that most Linux distributions are offered as Live images, which means you can test-drive them without making any changes to your hard drive. This is a great way to tell if a distribution will support all the hardware you need to use.
Agree? Disagree? Share your reactions in the comments...
And what advice would you give to a first-time Linux user?
Their article also recommends new users should "weed out Arch-based distributions," while warning that "Linux is more secure, but..." The truth is, any time you have a computer connected to a network, it's vulnerable and it doesn't matter what operating system you use. To that end, it's crucial that you keep your operating system (and the installed applications) up to date. Fortunately, most Linux operating systems make this very easy...
You're probably used to the slow trickle of updates and improvements found in the likes of Windows or MacOS. On Linux, you can count on that process being considerably faster. This is especially important with updates. When a vulnerability is found in an application that affects Linux, it is fixed far faster than it would be on competing platforms. The reason for this is that most Linux software is created and maintained by developers who don't have to answer to boards or committees or have a painfully slow bug resolution process. It might be announced that a vulnerability has been discovered in an application and the fix is officially released the next day. I've seen that very thing happen more times than I can count.
But it's not just about vulnerabilities. Developers add new features to software all the time and even listen to users. You could contact a developer of an open-source application with an idea and find it implemented in the next update. Linux is always evolving and it does so much faster than other operating systems.
And there's one final caveat. "Not all hardware will work (but most will)." I'll say this (and I stand by it): Ubuntu Linux probably has the best hardware detection and support of any operating system on the market. But that doesn't mean it works with everything. Certain peripherals you own could have trouble working with Linux. Two of the more problematic pieces of hardware are scanners and wireless chips. When I find a piece of hardware that isn't supported, here's one thing I've often done: I try a different Linux distribution... (Fedora often ships with a newer kernel than Ubuntu Linux, and therefore supports more modern hardware.)
Keep in mind that most Linux distributions are offered as Live images, which means you can test-drive them without making any changes to your hard drive. This is a great way to tell if a distribution will support all the hardware you need to use.
Agree? Disagree? Share your reactions in the comments...
And what advice would you give to a first-time Linux user?
Get a Linux expert friend (Score:5, Insightful)
Experienced people take for granted how hard and unintuitive all these things are.
Switch desktops? First things? Jesus Christ.... A user first has to understand such a thing is even a concept. Then would be left wondering what's wrong with the one they managed to install. And then what one would they switch to and why. And how do you even do that.
Until these sorts of things go away as questions, Windows and Mac will continue to dominate desktops. The average user wants to get work done. They see the computer as a tool not a hobby worth investing time in.
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Why? Why would a user need to switch desktops? You are right. This is an option that is not available to Windows or Mac but not one that you must do. If the user installs Ubuntu they can keep using the desktop that came with the system just like they would do with Windows. The fact that the option is there is an advantage which both Windows and Mac lack.
On Windows if an option is not available you have no other recourse. As an example take the direction where the control panel is going on Windows. Slowly MS
Re:Get a Linux expert friend (Score:4, Insightful)
Windows changes the desktop for every version and since Windows 7 every version has been consuming more and more time from the user due to being dumber and dumber. What earlier took one right-click and menu selection now takes 2 or 3 clicks. The borderless windows are also a dumbing down thing that consumes time because it's so easy to close the wrong window.
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Re:Get a Linux expert friend (Score:5, Insightful)
My 85 year old mother in law has no issues with Ubuntu. "Works better than the other one she had" according to her. No stupid pop ups. No switching out Firefox for another browser.
Windows and Mac dominate because they are preinstalled.
Re: Get a Linux expert friend (Score:2)
Windows and Mac are designed with the average consumer in mind. Linux is designed with STEM pros in mind. This is why a mainstream Linux desktop (to the scale of windows/mac) does not and will not ever exist. If anyone wants it to exist, they will have to figure out how to cater to the average consumer when providing support. Most STEM pros arent willing to do that for anyone, including family.
Re:Get a Linux expert friend (Score:5, Insightful)
stopped reading at GIMP is as powerful (Score:5, Insightful)
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Re: stopped reading at GIMP is as powerful (Score:2)
image stacking for astrophotography
Pretty sure most serious astronomers roll their own for that one.
Re:stopped reading at GIMP is as powerful (Score:4, Informative)
I believe that is incorrect. Apparently GIMP now uses 32 bit floats internally, and there is a "high precision" setting for images.
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To anyone who disagrees: The GIMP doesn't have adjustment layers. If that doesn't end the discussion, then why are you discussing programs you're not actually using?
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It's being worked on. 3.0 should have an initial implementation.
https://www.gimp.org/news/2024... [gimp.org]
Re:stopped reading at GIMP is as powerful (Score:4, Informative)
And that's great. But objectively it's also an everyday feature for Photoshop users that has been available for a very long time, so the claim about GIMP being just as powerful as Photoshop is still extremely exaggerated. Considering how many completely new proprietary/professional graphics applications have appeared since Adobe went subscription-based and already have much closer feature parity with the main Adobe applications or in some cases do things in different and significantly better ways, unfortunately GIMP is one of the poster children for FOSS not really being able to keep up.
Re:stopped reading at GIMP is as powerful (Score:4, Informative)
So that's another "In five years we'll catch up to where Windows was five years ago" thing.
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Only partly right, IIRC GEGL operations that have a GUI are non-destructive.
Linux advice (Score:2, Insightful)
Stick with Debian/Ubuntu/Mint, avoid Fedora/CentOS/Rocky/RHEL if possible, and burn Arch/Manjaro/Gentoo with fire.
Gnome > KDE > XFCE > LXDE > i3.
vm.swappiness=0 because we are not savages.
nano > vi > emacs.
Fuck systemd.
Re:Linux advice (Score:5, Informative)
Gnome > KDE
That's about the worst advice that's appeared so far.
It's tragic how many new Linux users fall into the Gnome tar pit.
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Gnome > KDE
That's about the worst advice that's appeared so far.
It's tragic how many new Linux users fall into the Gnome tar pit.
No.
What is tragic is me opening up a thread on a forum for Nerds in 2024 who have WINEd incessantly about when The Year will be upon us, only to find THIS damn battle, still raging. Cmon now. Don’t half-ass my disappointment. Where’s the EMACS/Vi slap fest?
This. This is exactly why The Year has never come for Linux. From a commercial standpoint, this is worse than the pettiness of the WNBA and just as popular for the same reason. Mod me into oblivion all you want. You know I’m right
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>"It's tragic how many new Linux users fall into the Gnome tar pit."
+100 Insightful.
From my observations, Post Gnome 2 was and still is responsible for more failed attempts to get people to use Linux than everything else. I know, I have tons of experience helping new Linux explorers. You set Gnome as their first desktop, and the odds of the person giving up on Linux are very high. Just about anything else is better in every way. KDE, Cinnamon, Mate, XFCE... please steer them to anything else for a de
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It's been going on for years, as you say. Occasionally you see someone that takes the time to write about their toe tipping into Linux. They'll go with Ubuntu or Fedora and end up in the Gnome(-ish) tar pit. They end with slouching back to wherever they came from.
For every one of these people that bother to write about their experience there must be a thousand that silently went down the same road, never knowing that good Linux desktop environments exist.
The only word that fits, as I've already said,
Re: Linux advice (Score:2)
How do I add this app I downloaded to my favorites/launchbar/desktop?
Ok, create a text file? With all these lines of jargon? And hardcoded absolute paths? Can I at least use environment variables? No? Done, I guess. Oh, link that file so it's in two places, that makes sense. Oh, link the icon too?
Why isn't there a right-click-executable,-make-all-this-for-me?
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Why isn't there a right-click-executable,-make-all-this-for-me?
This is pretty much what Linux tell's a bunch of devs about some of his issues with desktop Linux, that this process is disjointed and messy. That was 11 years ago too.
Linus Torvalds on why desktop Linux sucks [youtube.com]
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I've never got on with recent Gnome. I use KDE. Before KDE I used Xfce. KDE is my preferred desktop environment for most things. Windows and Macos then follow (I'm not sure which I prefer of those two). Then Xfce. Gnome is a long way back.
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Worst. Advice. Ever.
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I'd say users who like the MacOS UI may prefer Gnome and users who like the Windows UI may want to try KDE first.
For new users, I'd suggest Mint (Cinnamon), Ubuntu (Gnome) and Kubuntu (KDE).
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You know, to me, someone who uses both Linux and Windows, the desktop UI/UX is not even in the top 3 features.
Most users who have just enough brain cells to function well will be able to adapt. Yes, it would take some grumbling, but UI/UX change continuously, even within the same OS type and flavor.
In my opinion (and I know this might not represent the majority, but whatever), the top 3 most important features a good OS should have are (in no particular order):
1. How easy it is to find your way around and i
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Avoid systemd, fsck Poettering.
And FVWM2 rules!
Buy a Mac (Score:4, Informative)
Linux is a self-service operating system. If you want to use it, then just use it. Try distros until you find one that works for you. Don't get sucked into distro-specific ways of doing things e.g. yast, or you won't understand the underlying configuration logic. Be prepared for everything to not work, and be prepared to make system administration your hobby.
Please don't lie to people and tell them that Gimp is as good as Photoshop, or LibreOffice is as good as Microsoft Office. They're shit, but you get what you pay for. Most people are better off just buying a Mac. You can run those shitty apps on macOS, too, but you also have the option to run decent commercial software. Pirate it if you can't afford it.
Re: Buy a Mac (Score:2)
How many normal users use Photoshop I bet it's not that many
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Anyone who needs photoshop knows they -need- photoshop.
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Anyone who needs photoshop knows they -need- photoshop.
Yup, I need Photoshop. It's not like I want to have to use the creative suite and it's subscription model, but PS simply does things the other offerings cannot.
Example, I needed to make some seamless animated gifs from a MP4. Photoshop can do that slicker than 'baccy spit on a glass dooknob. And the standalone offerings don't handle the other parts of image manipulation very well.
I've use PS from way back in the day. The closest Gimp gets to it is around version 3 Photoshop.
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How many normal users use Photoshop I bet it's not that many
Well, I have used Photoshop since it was just "Photoshop". Few would call me normal.
The big problem here to me is not normalcy, but some feeb trying to claim Gimp is as powerful as Photoshop. Photoshop is by now pretty topheavy, and beyond simple stuff has a long learning curve, but it's extremely powerful.
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How many normal users use Photoshop I bet it's not that many
Well, I have used Photoshop since it was just "Photoshop". Few would call me normal.
The big problem here to me is not normalcy, but some feeb trying to claim Gimp is as powerful as Photoshop. Photoshop is by now pretty topheavy, and beyond simple stuff has a long learning curve, but it's extremely powerful.
I used Photoshop back when it was called Digital Darkroom!
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How many normal users use Photoshop I bet it's not that many
Fortunately on Macs there are truly great alternatives, such as Pixelmator (Pro), that not only are a fraction of the cost ($40 one time cost, with a Free Trial available on their Website); but are built on macOS Frameworks that bring about 95% of Photoshop's Capabilities in ways that are more familiar to many Mac Users, and which leverage things like Machine Learning. Not to mention the convenience of an available iPad and iPhone version.
The Gimp is a valiant effort; but it just doesn't hold a candle to Pi
Re: Buy a Mac (Score:4, Informative)
I think saying GIMP and Libreoffice is âoeshitâ is a bit harsh. Are they as âoegoodâ or easy to use as their commercial counterparts? In many circumstances that depends on what you are doing. In many circumstances I agree that they are not as polished but itâ(TM)s more nuanced that saying they are shit.
Re: Buy a Mac (Score:4, Informative)
I think saying GIMP and Libreoffice is âoeshitâ is a bit harsh. Are they as âoegoodâ or easy to use as their commercial counterparts? In many circumstances that depends on what you are doing. In many circumstances I agree that they are not as polished but itâ(TM)s more nuanced that saying they are shit.
Gimp is fine if it can work with what you need. And If LibreOffice is shit, then so is the program it closely emulates. It even has the ability to load more file types than the Microsoft offerings.
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>"Most people are better off just buying a Mac."
What horrible advice. A Mac is a fine option. But it isn't if your objective is to run on any hardware you want, if you want to save a lot of money, if you want much more control over your system, if you don't like being kinda forced into an "ecosystem."
>"Be prepared for everything to not work, and be prepared to make system administration your hobby."
Everything to not work? What past decade are you stuck in? I would say be prepared for a few things
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>"Quit lying."
Nothing I said was a lie.
>"You may indeed have "more control over your system" with Linux; but for 98.997% of all Users, they just want to get stuff done."
I don't deny that.
>"Macs allow that in a way that no Linux ever will, and you damn well know it.."
Yes, by greatly restricting control and options. That is a valid way, of course, but not what everyone wants. I never said that Linux is a better choice for all users, or even most users. But for those attracted to the benefits of a
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>"Please tell me what FOSS Project you "couldn't live without" that is not already on this list (or for which, a "Formula" could not be created) "
For me??? The OS and desktop itself. I would very much be unhappy with MacOS. But I am not a typical user, for sure.
Re:Buy a Mac (Score:4, Insightful)
Look guys, it doesn't matter. What matters is to have Chrome and VSCode. They exist on all platforms. The operating system has long ceased to be the locus of activity.
VSCode; so MS can spy and steal from our Source Code?
No thanks. That ship done Sailed.
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This is so sad it's funny. What's so good about MSOffice that the average user can't do on LibreOffice or nowadays is an email client? Comparing Photoshop to Gimp is like comparing Photoshop to MSPaint. Why bother. You have better options but to the average user out there Gimp would server as a replacement to Photoshop.
For me LibreOffice is better tha MSOffice. First) it has a published open standard document format. Second) it runs on Windows, Mac, Linux, FreeBSD, etc... Third) I don't have to worry about
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What's so good about MSOffice that the average user can't do on LibreOffice
Today, for folks using actual desktop MSOffice I would say it's the guaranteed compatibility and feature homogenity with what everyone they interact with is using, which is MSOffice since I have to imagine the majority of desktop Office users are using it for work.
Your average home user I don't think today is comparing LibreOffice vs Microsoft Office but rather Google Sheets and Office 365 and those just by nature of being cloud offerings have certain inherent advantages and while I know you can replicate t
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Linux is a self-service operating system. If you want to use it, then just use it. Try distros until you find one that works for you. Don't get sucked into distro-specific ways of doing things e.g. yast, or you won't understand the underlying configuration logic. Be prepared for everything to not work, and be prepared to make system administration your hobby.
Please don't lie to people and tell them that Gimp is as good as Photoshop, or LibreOffice is as good as Microsoft Office. They're shit, but you get what you pay for. Most people are better off just buying a Mac. You can run those shitty apps on macOS, too, but you also have the option to run decent commercial software. Pirate it if you can't afford it.
Exactly.
No OS is Perfect; but macOS appears to be the best Compromise for most who want to escape the throes of Windows, without having to become SysAdmins.
And these days, the Hardware Performance is Stellar.
Re:Don't Buy a Mac (Score:2, Informative)
You don't want to be locked into a company that hates repairs and only wants you to buy a new one instead of repairing it
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Graphing on LibreOffice is not as good as Excel. The spreadsheet works fine.
I dumped Windows in 2019 and went to Mint 19. It was an easy transition.
I don't do video or photo retouching so I won't wade into the GIMP vs Photoshop war.
Linux does have two weaknesses. Using Samba to share the Public folder on the desktop is an outstanding example of using a sledgehammer to kill a fly.
Setting up a VNC connection to remote control your computer is insanely complicated. On a Mac it's a couple mouse clicks. On Linux
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Honestly (Score:5, Funny)
Be prepared for bugs, missing features, regressions, a constant state of flux, googling, researching, filing bugs, learning to use console, patching, compiling and spending hours/days/weeks trying to fix it. Oh, and let's not forget about "blame shifting" and "you want it, do it yourself".
Also be prepared to learn that:
If you want a working reliable install-and-forget OS, use something else entirely. Windows, MacOS, even FreeBSD are much better candidates.
I don't expect nothing but downvotes for this message but I've been using Linux for over 25 years now (and I'm heavily involved in its development) and everything in this message has been confirmed thousands of times.
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The failure of Linux to be compatible with itself, means its ecosystem is more like Android OS (which now treats applets as disposable but not replaceable) than a desktop OS that's expected to last 8 years. Remember Google bullying developers with "All Android applets must work on version 12"? Linux does that by default. It's one of the reasons Windows OS survives despite it copying the worst habits of Android OS. Another is, Linux software doesn't offer the feature-set that Windows software does: Altho
Re:Honestly (Score:5, Interesting)
Unfortunately this is all true. To give an example, the other day I needed to swap out a driver. Raspberry Pi OS, which is based on Debian, had loaded a generic USB driver and I needed the manufacturer supplied one.
First I had to compile the driver, which required the kernel headers. I tried to install them via apt but it complained that the right version to match my kernel wasn't found, and the generic ones wouldn't work either. Tried updating everything, still broken, so eventually just reinstalled a slightly newer version of the OS and it magically started working.
Driver built with a few warnings, the usual high quality code I've come to expect. I installed it and make returned an error message about something missing, but otherwise completed installation. Driver not loaded though, the generic one was still in use. Tried rebooting etc, no joy. Spent a while googling, found a few solutions that claimed to fix it but all were out of date and no longer worked. Eventually found some magic commands that did fix it, but no explanation of why they fixed it or what they were doing. On Windows it would be a few clicks.
It's this kind of bullshit that makes me not want to use Linux. Maybe if I spent a lot of time understanding it in more depth, and keeping up with developments in the kernel and systemd and a few key distros it might be better... But Windows has mostly been the same for a very long time and stuff just works. Whenever I've looked into fixing stuff, it's a nightmare trying to get started with mountains of ancient code and (probably necessary) high barriers to participation. And even if you manage to create a patch, there's a significant chance the maintainer will just reject it. A great example is linuxptp, where the maintainer rejected a simple patch to fix a hardware bug that prevents the Raspberry Pi CM4 upgrading to 4.x versions, because even though someone else did all the work for him the guy "doesn't want to support broken hardware".
Plus Linux is missing some key apps, in particular a decent file manager. It's not very appealing.
Re: Honestly (Score:2)
Yeah the kernel hacking is a pain in the ass when you're doing hardware. But I have found software development in general on Windows to be pulling teeth compared to Linux.
The biggest obstacle is that Windows is build around mouse clicks, and while the command line has improved since the early days, a lot of Windows software that you might use defaults to the graphical paradigm (if it even can run headless or command line). So you probably can do on windows what you can do on Linux without being swallowed in
Re: Honestly (Score:2)
I didn't say you can't do it, I said you have to work harder to do it, and it doesn't work out of the box the way it does on most Linux distros.
Examples?
Awk, grep, sed.
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Check the Asix website. They provide Linux drivers in source code form only for some (all?) parts. As I said, the generic USB ethernet driver worked, but didn't support any advanced features like PTP.
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I would advise to wait one year (Score:4, Funny)
Linux Mint (Score:4, Interesting)
Every OS has a learning curve. If you're at all ready to make the switch to Linux and need this kind of advice, make your life easy and get Linux Mint. If you know that you need something else, you know not to ask.
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Mint worked for me. I even installed it on a 2012 Mac mini I wanted to use as a music player, PDF reader, and look-up-stuff-on-the-web gadget in the shop. ( it's out of Wi-Fi range.)
Advice? (Score:3)
I'd give them Gentoo stage1 tarball and leave them to it.
Good luck lad!
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Don't and if you do have a backup OS ready (Score:2)
.deb based sytems and KDE (Score:5, Informative)
Go for a KDE desktop as they are not that different to Windows but can be configured any way you fancy.
As a distribution I would suggest Neon, Kubuntu or Mint.
About hardware, stick with some brands like Fedora, Dell, Asus and Acer.
As others said, use the (USB) Live function to check various distro's and first install as a dual boot next to Windows.
Printers are best checked through one of the several sites listing Linux compatibility but Brother and Xerox usually work.
Scanners work a lot better than used to be, if not, use Vuescan and (for a price) nearly all are working, even when the manufacturer is no longer supporting a model.
LibreOffice is the office suit of choice.
For photo's I like Gwenview and for simple edits Showfoto, the Gimp and Krita can do more complicated operations.
A good video editor is Kdenlive.
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Browsers, most will use Firefox but several browsers based on Chrome also work nicely, Chrome itself is 'infected' by Google looking over your shoulder.
I use Chromium and for work compatibility in it most MS Office 365 things like Teams and Outlook work nicely, as do Zoom and Webex.
There are several good mail clients, an easy one is Thunderbird.
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Avidemux is a fast video editor that works rather well.
Stay on Windows but... (Score:5, Insightful)
Choose the distro with the best support & documentation, i.e. the one that most people use; Ubuntu (vanilla, off the shelf version).
Be patient & don't expect to be up & running within a few days. It can take weeks or months to really get used to using different apps, GUIs, & layouts, & get to the kinds of workflows & efficiencies you had before switching. That's why a recommend taking it slowly, one step at a time.
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...switch to FOSS apps first. Users can ease themselves into using different apps for their daily needs rather than going all-in at once. Change to one app at a time, e.g. Google Chrome -> Firefox or Chromium, Photoshop -> GIMP, Illustrator -> Inkscape, & MS Office -> LibreOffice, so that you can get used to them before changing OS Windows -> Linux. (And also get used to the idea that you don't have to pay licence fees to use FOSS software!)
Good advice. For most people, the process is just about seamless. After the browser and the LibreOffice suite, then a mail reader like T-Bird, you pretty much have what you need, and while I don't find the Linux offerings in Image processing anywhere near Photoshop level, I think 99 percent of people would find them just what they need.
I've seen that most of the issues that occur are people trying to impose Windows on Linux.
Choose the distro with the best support & documentation, i.e. the one that most people use; Ubuntu (vanilla, off the shelf version).
I've set people up with Mint, the Ubuntu derivative. I've not seen any issues w
Test LibreOffice on current OS first (Score:5, Interesting)
If you're an intensive and/or picky user of MS Office, install LibreOffice on your Windows machine and see how you get along. Some people - including my wife - find that they either can't stand the way Libre does things, or that file compatibility with MS Office is not quite as seamless as you need for collaborations. That applies to other software as well - find the nearest Linux equivalents of programs you rely on and see if they meet your needs.
That brings up another point - install Linux as a Virtual Machine under Windows first. This gives you both a safety net and a less painful way to manage the transition if you do decide to make the leap. Not comfortable with installing and using a VM? GET comfortable. As a current Windows user, there's a good chance you'll want access to Windows even after you've mostly transitioned to Linux. For many people a VM is the most convenient way to have simultaneous access to both OS's, although you may find that you ALSO need a standalone Windows box for some edge cases.
I have lots more suggestions for transitioning from Windows to Linux, but the above is probably a good starting point for would-be Linux noobs.
For users and not techies (Score:4, Insightful)
My current advice would be to put Linux Mint on a spare computer, then fiddle with it for a while to get used to it.
If you want to browse the Internet, watch videos, and do sound basic document work, I suspect you'll be OK after an adjustment period.
Re:For users and not techies (Score:4, Insightful)
Useful tips: (Score:5, Funny)
1) Errors are common in Linux. If a command ever doesn't work, try putting "sudo" in front of it, add "-rf" to the rm (remove) command, etc. This usually resolves it.
2) If you get permission errors a lot, it might be that the permissions in your home directory are overly restrictive. You can fix this with chmod -R 777 ~/ (lit. "change permissions, recursively, permissive, your-home-directory")
3) Running "X" (the graphical interface) as root also helps prevent errors.
4) Alt-Fkey changes terminals (command sessions) if you're not in X, but if you're in X, you'll need Ctrl-Alt-Fkey. F1 is the first terminal, F2 the second, and so forth, while Del is a root terminal.
5) If running a new program you've downloaded off the internet for the first time, you'll need to run it as root the first time so it can install any needed dependencies.
6) Maintain daily backups! A good way is "sudo mkdir /backup-$(date +%F) && cp -r /* /backup-$(date +%F)"
7) While installation methods vary depending on what distro you're on (dnf, apt, etc), you can always remove programs by using the "rm" command (they're usually located in /usr/bin)
8) The init service is relatively unstable; as a precaution it's good to automatically reenable it. Run echo "0 22 * * * /sbin/init 6" | sudo tee -a /etc/crontab
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If these are tips that are needed by the average person, the average person cannot use Linux. An operating system should be invisible. That is the main mistake that all of these alternatives make. If you need to be a computer nerd to use something, it is only of value to computer nerds (a tiny fraction of the public).
Except you don't need to do all those things. My example is after my SO had a rotator cuff operation, and actively avoids learning things like Terminal, which aligns with maybe 90 percent of users. I bought her a touch screen laptop. It had the abomination Windows 8 on it. It was several times a day with problems I had to fix. Then she stopped asking questions. After a few days, I went to congratulate her on getting things figured out. Her answer was "I figured out that I'm not going to use the computer."
Re: (Score:2)
I'd suggest to new users to understand commands before copying/pasting them. Or at least to take them from known reputable sources.
man [command] allows you to read the manual of that command. For example man sudo.
Install programs from the package manager of your distribution whenever possible, it's faster, safer and better.
Make sure you double check the trustiness of a program you've downloaded from a website before running it as root.
Don't run anything as root if not absolutely necessary.
systemd is the ini
Be ready for lacking documentation (Score:4, Informative)
Contrary to what the blurb says, "you'll find help everywhere", that help is almost always couched in the idea that the person reading the documentation knows all the intermediate steps needed to get to the end result. For example, when trying to download and install a piece of software, invariably the documentation is along the lines, "Download the file, extract it, then run these commands to get it installed."
For someone starting out using Linux, there are about 10 steps missing from those instructions. Download the file. From where? Where do I download it to (desktop, my user directory, etc)? Extract it? What's that? What do you mean run these commands? Run them where? How? How do I get there? What does run mean?
Reading Linux documentation is like giving instructions to someone who's never driven a car before. "Turn the key, put it in gear, and press the pedal." There are a bunch of missing steps, but somehow you're supposed to fill in the blanks even though you've never done it before.
As I did (Score:2)
Set up a spare machine, which nowadays can be done with a virtual machine to make it even easier, and simply begin using it.
Don't be afraid to break it just because it's new ground. It's not alive and it can always be replaced or fixed or set up from scratch.
I found out quickly enough how much less stress running Linux with a bare desktop caused than running Windows, and only then because I tend to tinker and try out a lot of things the average user doesn't do.
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Sudo sudo sudo sudo, hey, hey, hey! (Score:2)
"During those early years of using Linux, the command line was an absolute necessity, and the GUIs weren't always intuitive or stable. Today? Not so much. In fact, Linux has become so easy and user-friendly that you can go your entire career on the desktop and never touch the terminal window."
I guess my best advice for new Linux users would be that these folks are lying.
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"Linux has become so easy and user-friendly that you can go your entire career on the desktop and never touch the terminal window."
That really is a whopper. Even MacOS needs an occasional trip to the command line. Windows needed routine trips to edit the registry.
Gimp still stuck with 8 bits per channel colour? (Score:2)
Gimp Image Precision [gimp.org]: “Choosing the bit depth (8-bits vs 16-bits vs 32-bits)”
have fun and ... (Score:3)
ignore slashdot!
Advice (Score:5, Insightful)
>"What Advice Would You Give a First-Time Linux User?"
I haven't been a first-time Linux user in countless years. However, I am quite active with helping others, so I can offer my advice:
1) Be patient- remember that *ANY* system has a learning curve. That was true on whatever platform you are switching away from.
2) Explore- there are lots of choices for distro, desktop, apps, and configuration. Probably far more than you would expect. If one thing doesn't do what you want, try something else.
3) Be open to change- things might work differently than you expect/assume. There are many ways to accomplish what you might want and it likely will require shifting most of your tools.
4) Research- read reviews and info on which distro (I recommend Mint, myself) and apps, and look into what hardware accessories to buy (almost most stuff works fine, don't assume).
5) Join a local Linux/Unix user's group and/or online forums. Lots of people there to help and learn from.
6) Commit- don't bother with dual-booting or virtual machines for your old stuff, if you can avoid it. It will make things more complex and distract you from actually moving forward. There are cases this is a great option, however.
7) Enjoy- Enjoy the speed, choice, freedom, control, variety, privacy, and update process.
And a PS: If you are not ready to move to Linux yet, then start using the major FOSS tools on your existing platform for a while. These are cross-platform and will give you a huge advantage when you are ready to switch. For example: Install and start using: Firefox, LibreOffice, VLC, GIMP/Inkscape/Krita/Blender, Thunderbird, Filezilla, Audacity, Darktable, Okular, Kdenlive, Handbrake, and more.
Linux now does time travel /s (Score:2)
depends on what you need (Score:2)
www Browsing
email
Word processing
yer messaging apps: whatsapp, signal...
playing media, audio, video
If your use cases don't extend much beyond that, you're a good candidate for a Xfce or Kde based desktop. I've trained a handful of Windows refugees to use Xfce for those straighforward uses.
There is an irony that, that list probably covers most Apple users, OTHER than the people using industry specific software... Adob
Get a cheap refurb machine. (Score:2)
If you currently have a Windows PC that works well enough for daily use,
there's no need to immediately wipe it, or even dual boot. You can get something
cheap on eBay capable of running e.g. Kubuntu. Then you can learn and explore
without getting caught in the no-mans land of not knowing enough Linux to get
done what you need to get done.
If you need to run MS Office, then you need something that runs it.
Likewise if you need to run Adobe, you need something that runs it.
Da Vinci works, but you have to pay for t
Be kind to yourself (Score:2)
Be kind to yourself, save time, install gentoo. You're welcome, the check is in the post.
Get Linux pre-installed from a big seller (Score:3)
Like a Dell XPS or a Lenovo.
That way, the hardware already works, and you get support for both HW and OS from the maker.
Then, is a matter of slowly customizing your setup* as you learn more.
There are other sellers of linux laptops like system76, but, being smaller, do not cover the whole world, and me being in LatAm, I bet for the big brands.
JM2C
YMMV
Like adding proton, adding WinX Programs, testing FOSS alternatives until you find something that works for you, etc.
depends on what you want to do (Score:2)
I switched to Linux fully around 2008, before that I was a widows user and I was and am in IT. First thing is why do you want to switch and what do you currently do on your computer and what do you want to do.
For me this was fairly easy. I browsed the web, and I played with coding, with a bit of word processing. All this was and is easy to do on linux. In fact, coding/scripting is easier to do with access to almost every coding language for free!
If your using a very specific software that you can't live wit
Get Ubuntu, use the CLI (Score:2)
Disclaimer: I've been a Linux user for 24 years. Emphasis on _USER_. That been said, I've been mostly earning my living with LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, PHP) for the exact same time.
To your request:
Linux is a _very_ powerful operating system and there are a ton of solid reasons why experts swear by it. The fact that it's open source and industry leaders use it as their go-to choice when attempting a new project adds to that.
It is also the case that for most use cases Linux and FOSS offer software solutions
Be ready for endless arguments (Score:2)
my own advice (Score:2)
unless you are a power user and like to fix stuff and like to use the command line, use Windows or get a Mac mini
RTFM (Score:2)
.
First, know what you use your computer for. (Score:4, Informative)
The first thing you should do is make a list of all the things you use your computer for and from that write down what programs you use to do those things.
Add to that list how much downtime you could tolerate if (when) some compatibility issue arises later.
Take that list, and for every program you use, find if there is a Linux versiont.
For example, Google Chrome has a Linux version.
But, there's no MSOfice for Linux, but there is OpenOffice or LibreOffice to do what MS Office does. It works for me.
Another example. There is no Linux version of Quicken, but it can be run under an emulator such as Crossover until some update breaks it.
Now you need to decide how long you can go without using Quicken while you wait for the problem to get fixed because you cannot fix that yourself. I care a lot if Quicken breaks.
Or, perhaps the way you use Quicken can be replaced by another product such as Kmymoney or GNUcash. Those won't do what I want, but they are perfect for many people.
There's no Linux Version for World of Warcraft, but people have it working with Lutris and claim it works fine. I don't care if something breaks WoW and I can't play for a month.
My attempts with using Wine for various games have been variable including poor performance which matters a lot. I admit I haven't tried Wine in a few years.
Anyway, those are some example of the kind of things you want to have sorted out before switching.
As for the "run it in a virtual machine" suggestion, that's suggesting you continue to use Windows, so now you're doubling your upkeep.
Don't use the GUI (Score:4, Interesting)
Text mode, all the way.
By all means use the GUI to open many terminal windows (tiled or not) in which to run VIM or Emacs and to compile and run. You can graduate to screen or tmux later on.
If you are coding, the GUI is a distraction.
Then, whenever you're debugging something on an SSH session to something remote, you won't be clicking around looking for the IDE. You will be prepared and you will know what to do.
Just one (Score:3)
Open Regedit, e.g. with wine regedit.exe
Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Wine\X11 Driver, creating it if it does not exist
Create a new entry named UseTakeFocus with value N
This fix the issue with unity games where they lose focus and you can't get regain it.
Ask them if they're sure (Score:3)
An anecdote: The lady who does my garden uses Linux (I and she don't know which flavour). Her neighbour installed it on her computer about 8 years ago after serious problems with Windows. She can recall having to ask him once during that time to fix a problem, other than that it "just works". Her primary requirements are modest: email, browsing, accounts, letters, posters. She might do more, I don't know her personal life beyond that..
My advice: It's all about the desktop (Score:3)
My advice: It's all about the desktop, most people won't care or need to care what's under the hood. It could be Mint, it could be Ubuntu, it could be Fedora, SUSE, etc etc. Doesn't matter.
What matters is the desktop.
The fact is that the underlying OS isn't all that important to new Linux users. What they want and need is a desktop interface that is friendly and lets them get things done, preferably a desktop similar or familiar to what they may have used in the past.
Most people don't care if it's running Fedora or Ubuntu or SUSE, they're not interacting directly with the kernel or the file system so truly none of that really matters. As long as the file gets copied or the downloaded .zip opens or the song plays, that's all that matters to them.
So, to recap: focus on a desktop that works for them, not necessarily for you.
From experience (Score:4, Insightful)
I do think it's important to explain that there is different desktop environments. Countless times have I seen users prefer distro X over distro Y or even give up on linux altogether only because they like the DE better or even the default settings the distro has for those DE.
While the distro really is just fine. And, tbh, I think most users wouldn't notice if they were on Ubuntu, Debian or Arch, while they would immediately notice KDE/GNOME/*box/.. swapped out.
On the original question: I would advise first-time Linux user to:
* first, run a live distro, to find out if the hardware is supported. Wireless chipset, gfx acceleration, mousepad, that sort of thing.
* do not expect to just buy any hw then expect it to be supported. Do some research ahead: this I learned the hard way, early on, with both computers and mobile devices where I run free OS's.
* there is no "endless tinkering": while some friends ask me how on earth I have managed to set up my configuration, like remote file access and distributed audio, I done that once, maybe 10-15y ago, and never looked back.
* on Linux, unlike Windows or Apple machines, after a decade of, for example, "apt update && apt upgrade" one can just dd old OS disk to new, replace it and continue where one has left off. On the same old hw or moving the disk to totally new hw. The OS doesn't care.
OK, cloning takes a couple extra steps to assure new hostname, new keys,.. but that's about it.
I moved all my home machines save one to Debian two decades ago and never looked back. There is nothing like not having upgrades forced on you, like having the OS genuinely work for you not shareholders or suckers for your data, not disturbing with popups, ads or whatever crap modern non-free OS's have, or where MS or Apple decides your machine is suddenly unfit for them. Something that just works, and keeps working.
Re: (Score:2)
OMG, have you *seen* what Photoshop can do now? GIMP is still most of a decade behind, but at least has become usable for 80-90% of my photo editing / compositing needs. But the serious stuff always gets done in Photoshop.
I mean, you can change the color of an object with GIMP, and it will look like it belongs in an AliExpress listing. Or you can do it in Photoshop and no-one will be able to tell, except those who saw the original object or photo.
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