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Open Source Operating Systems Linux

Linux Hits Another Desktop Market Share Record 171

Posted by BeauHD from the year-of-the-Linux-desktop dept.
According to Statcounter, Linux use hit another all-time high in July. For July 2024, the statistics website is showing Linux at 4.45%, climbing almost a half a percentage point from June's 4.05% high.

Is 2024 truly the year of Linux on the desktop?
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Linux Hits Another Desktop Market Share Record More

Linux Hits Another Desktop Market Share Record

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  • it's happening (Score:5, Funny)

    by LodCrappo ( 705968 ) on Thursday August 01, 2024 @04:57PM (#64673678)

    this time it's for real

    • Re:it's happening (Score:5, Interesting)

      by Rosco P. Coltrane ( 209368 ) on Thursday August 01, 2024 @05:27PM (#64673780)

      You can thank Microsoft for that.

      When Window 11 rolled around, Microsoft thought they could have their way as usual and forcibly push perfectly serviceable PCs to the landfill. But that was one planned obsolescence too many.

      Also, people are starting to realize Windows as an OS is not only mediocre (that, they've been able to live with it somehow for decades for some reason...) but also now an adversarial platform for corporate surveillance and adversing. And it's gotten so bad that even newer generations who have never known anything better than the corporate surveillance model are starting to want out.

      And, silly Microsoft, they "embraced" open-source and made it super-easy to get a taste of Linux in Windows.

      So I'm not surprised it's finally happening now.

      • Half the thanks goes to Microsoft for royally fucking up. The other half goes to the Linux community for making it so easy these days to install Linux, e.g. even with a Windows pre-installed. It's exactly what I did a week ago and it was incredibly easy. Far easier than e.g. 6 or 10 years ago.

        • Re:it's happening (Score:5, Interesting)

          by Rosco P. Coltrane ( 209368 ) on Thursday August 01, 2024 @06:09PM (#64673898)

          It's been very easy for a long time. Even 10 years ago it was easy.

          My point was, however easy, people don't change if they don't have a reason. And that's a general rule, not just with computers.

          Microsoft is providing the impetus to change, and this time they've gone too far and pushed a lot of people over the threshhold - and those people then realize it wasn't so hard after all.

          And as Linux becomes more mainstream, hopefully more people will need less of a push to switch, because they've already seen it's not that bad before even trying.

          • Gaming on Linux has come astoundingly far in the last 10 years, but lots of Windows software I thought never would work correctly in general has begun to work and made it more feasible to switch by supporting that one pesky application that you just have to have. And now with NTSYNC going into the kernel we can look forward to another big step forwards in Wine compatibility and performance within the next few months as it gets fleshed out.

        • I think calling it "royally fucking up" is a little much. But that doesn't take away from the fact that Linux is quickly becomming easier to install that Windows is. When I install Linux, I get the benefit of a current, supported, patched OS that asks how to install, where to install, and which users to create. With Windows, the integration with cloud accounts ensures that I only have one path to installation.

          To be 100% clear, I've always been an MS person. The thing that keeps me from Linux is my relia

          • The thing that keeps me from Linux is my reliance on Office and OneDrive/SharePoint, and a lack of desire to contain it in a VM.

            Regarding Office, in what ways does LibreOffice not meet your needs? I'm not being critical, I'm honestly curious.

            It's been so long since I used MS Office that I'm not up on the differences, and when it comes to office suites I'm far from a power user. My wife can't stand LibreOffice because it's different from what she's used to - usually she's pretty adaptable, but not in this case. Yet I know that a lot of people are fine with it as a substitute for MS Office, so I'm trying to understand LibreOffice's dr

            • Excel is at least twice as good as Calc in literally every way.

              Writer is almost as good as Word, except it's a lot slower, and the interface is bad. Microsoft keeps making word slower (and of late it can't render text while you are scrolling! pathetic!) so they are getting closer together, but Writer's UI is still at least a generation behind Word. Calc however is sadly pretty much crap. It is missing a LOT of functions that Excel has, simple stuff like splitting a cell based on a character. You can do it w

              • Slightly different point of view:
                Impress is far behind Power Point. Impress does not even put the slide names automatically according to the title text zone of each slide (there is an open bug report). Tables are a misery. The whole thing does not get much love, at each release notes it gets very little new things.

                Even if you don't like the Writer UI, one good thing is that is very flexible: 3 ribbon modes, 3 modes with classical toolbars, plus one sidebar mode. If you're a naive user, on a fresh install yo

            • I hate the current version of MS Office with the stupid ribbon menu and giving precedence to OneDrive over the local disk for loading/saving files. Ms Office peaked more than 10 years ago, now LibreOffice is more usable.
            • So some interesting irony: I worked for Microsoft and submitted my resume written using LibreOffice. I actually like the suite a lot, and was often an advocate, and even pushed for acknowledging it beyond "it's not as good as Word". So it's not a usability thing. That said, i also often remarked that the advent and evolution of the ribbon resulted in more consistant, prettier documents appearing in the wild, and will stand by the theory that the Ribbon, which went off to a rocky start, made styles more intu

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by chrish ( 4714 )

            You didn't ask, but maybe useful; there's an app called InSync that does OneDrive, Google Drive, and Dropbox: https://www.insynchq.com/ [insynchq.com]

            Are there SharePoint bits that don't work in a normal (ie, not Edge or IE) web browser?

            LibreOffice has been fine for the relatively light office-type stuff I do when I'm not at work.

            Presumably if you needed "real" MS stuff, the online versions (MS365 or whatever it's called this month) would hit the spot? Totally depends on your use cases though, and who you need to interact

      • You think its really happening? The gullibility of people... SMH

        Should note I agree microsoft sucks for all re reasons you state. But its still not happening. The have what some would describe as an entrenched monopoly. To the extent that linux is taking over, its in the form of Android and Chrome OS. Cause they're cheap and easy to admin. The percentage of non windows computers will steadily rise, but its still not going to be linux's year of dramatic growth.

        • Did you miss the part where it went up 0.4% in a month? We're talking world wide numbers. Today 1% of the world is more computers than were even in existence in 2004. 0.4% in only a month is insane.

      • While I would sort of like you to be right, out of spite towards Microsoft, I think what's more likely is that Linux as a desktop OS in the workplace is more viable than it has ever been, mostly thanks to SaaS software and web-based UIs that make developing native apps for operating systems much less costly (if a native application is needed at all).

        Before Slack, Gmail, Zoom, MS 365 "cloud" and other business tools could be used on Linux, you really couldn't use Linux at work if these tools were required. A

        • I just don't know how much of a factor this is for the average person.

          I agree with what you said, but I'd like to share a couple of anecdotal data points in the hope that others will chime in with similar experiences.

          Probably two years ago I installed Linux on an old laptop for the guy who owns the convenience store we frequent. He was sick of Windows updates, forced login with the Mothership, and a computer that ran slow as hell. So I set him up with MX Linux, as well as Firefox with U-block, and he's been happy since then. I've done a few minor support things, but his needs

          • Yeah my wife uses Linux on all of her devices as well. So I agree that there's little reason remaining that Linux is a viable option unless you need certain applications or games that are only available on Windows or Mac. And if Windows updates are annoying "normies" then cool. MS won't change as long as their metrics reflect that these updates are driving up the numbers that they care about. But if Linux gives people more choices then that's a huge win for everyone.

        • Needs to be a mind shift in management first. Every one of the tools our dev teams use is native for Linux or has standard replacements/equivalents (couple of different IDEs, ftp clients, terminal, git client, browsers) and yet I'm not allowed to run a Linux desktop for "management" reasons.

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

        There was some discussion of this on Gamer's Nexus recently, with Wendel from Leven 1 Techs who is a huge Linux proponent.

        There are still some major issues. For gamers, compatibility is getting better but is still not really there. For non-gamers it really depends on if they are mostly using web applications or not. If all they really need is a web browser, Linux can get the job done, probably. Compatibility with things like webcams is at the point where it mostly works on Linux, although you will be missin

    • Well, it's certainly not going to be the year of the Windows-desktop. That train has long been gone.

    • It's already +5 Funny and I don't have mod points but if I did I'd burn them modding this up again anyway.

  • No, let it never be the year of the Linux desktop. (Score:5, Funny)

    by mmell ( 832646 ) on Thursday August 01, 2024 @04:57PM (#64673682)
    They'll make me do desktop support again, and I ain't goin' back. I ain't goin' back, man! I'll delete user files, show everyone in the office where they surf when nobody's looking, and dd if=/dev/rnd of=/dev/sda every chance I get. I ain't goin' back. I'll kill you all first, you can't make me go back . . .

  • Ha-ha!
    No.

    I recently asked a community which Linux distro should I introduce to a computer-illiterate friend who wanted a new PC so he could learn IT stuff.

    There were dozens of answers and almost as many distros recommended.
    And that, friends, is the problem with Desktop Linux. Way, way too much fragmentation.

    • Cool?

      I mean, I guess your anecdote makes the numbers a lie or something.

      It's OK guys, a well-documented, global, multi-year trend is meaningless because this commenter has a boring story . . .

      Part of the problem is that success isn't defined. Is Linux going to suddenly totally topple Windows? Probably not. Could it (globally, not in the US) break 10% of all desktops in less than five years? Yeah. That suddenly seems very possible, and that's pretty crazy.

      • Ah yes, because inching forward half a percent truly means it is the year of Linux on the Desktop.

        • Re: (Score:2)

          by r1348 ( 2567295 )

          Half percent in a month. And now, I'm not extrapolating a trend here, but it's a pretty crazy jump up.

    • Ha-ha!
      No.

      I recently asked a community which Linux distro should I introduce to a computer-illiterate friend who wanted a new PC so he could learn IT stuff.

      There were dozens of answers and almost as many distros recommended.
      And that, friends, is the problem with Desktop Linux. Way, way too much fragmentation.

      This is really not the problem.

      One of the problems is desktop Linux not getting pre-installed on OEM PCs. There are some, but the big names hide the desktop Linux computers pretty deep away and don't advertise them.

      The other is mind share. Do you see an ad campaign for desktop Linux distributions anywhere where the public at large will see it? I don't. So, people don't even know about it!

      Finally there's the issue of software availability. Adobe, Microsoft, Autodesk, etc. don't distribute their software for

      • >Adobe, Microsoft, Autodesk,

        With the enshitification those companies are providing their subscribers, I think they will help Linux and open source alternatives increase in popularity

        • The applications those companies produce are pretty much the standard in their respective sectors. Like it or not, no matter how many and good alternatives you provide, organizations will allow themselves to be shafted over and over by these companies simply because they can have some solid expectations of said proprietary software manufacturers.

          If the software messes up, they can sue. Educations are geared towards the software, so they know they have a pool of trained laborers to choose from. Just to name

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Dracos ( 107777 )

      I've started telling somewhat computer-inclined people not to pick a distro, but to pick a package manager first. Much less daunting.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by r1348 ( 2567295 )

      If that friend is computer illiterate, why didn't you choose for them?
      They clearly entrusted you with an educator role, and you failed them.

      • Um, that's beside the point. I did give him a choice (Linux Mint). Eventually, he decided IT Admin is not a career he wants to pursue, but he's happy with having fun in Blender.
        But then I thought about asking around myself, because it's always good to feel the pulse of the community.
        And that's what I got.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by caseih ( 160668 )

      The problem is if he wants to be successful in IT, he'll need some degree of flexibility and the ability to deal with change. If he wants to be a Windows IT administrator, then he should stick with Windows obviously. But if I wants to do any *nix IT work, he can't be put out by too much distro choice. He'll most likely need to become familiar with several distros. Most likely Debian, Ubuntu, and one of the RHEL derivatives such as Rocky or Alma (doesn't matter which).

      When I worked in IT I supported dozen

      • Dude... no offense.
        Forget the question itself. Don't focus on the question, don't provide an answer. That's not what I need.
        What I need is to convey a point: You ask 20 Linux users that question, you get 15 different answers.
        That puts beginners off.
        That's it.

        A beginner first needs to figure out what the starting point is. If they receive a gazillion starting points, each responder swearing HIS starting point is "the holy truth", the beginner will give up and look elsewhere.

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by dskoll ( 99328 )

      The reality is that the vast majority of desktop Linux installations used by non-tech users are one of three distros: Ubuntu, Mint or Fedora. You don't need to consider hundreds of choices... just the two or three most popular.

      • I'm starting to believe my post was really confusing to everyone.
        The issue I was trying to point out was NOT the question itself, which everyone seems to be focused on. It was the range of answers I received.
        There is no fucking consensus. Even worse, there is no approximate consensus either.

    • Which Linux to try for a computer illiterate? One true answer: the one that people close to you will help you out with. Computer illiterates can't help themselves out with info on the internet. Which Linux to try for a Linux newbie but computer literate? Live USB stick, see if it offers what you need. Then get online help from the distribution user forum. Helpful community, and your hardware functions, you got your software needs fulfilled? Install to drive. Hiccups? Try to get IRL help, or change distribut

    • I recently asked a community

      Which community?

      which Linux distro should I introduce to a computer-illiterate friend who wanted a new PC so he could learn IT stuff.

      If your friend wants to learn IT stuff, they should run multiple distributions. They will learn more.

      And that, friends, is the problem with Desktop Linux. Way, way too much fragmentation.

      For your invented scenario that you gave up on? Shucks.

      For most users there are only a couple of considerations. apt or rpm? IMO apt. Original distribution or something else based on it? IMO the noob should use something based on it. To my mind that means Mint.

      • I respect you, mate, but you missed the point of my post.

        • The point of your post was hand wringing and helplessness.

          We don't need that around here.

          You have options! Oh noes1!!1!!

          Put on your big boy shoes, lace them up, and pick one.

          Linux's diversity is a strength. If Windows had the same diversity it wouldn't be flailing due to crap leadershit.

  • First post (Score:3)

    by phoenix_orb ( 469019 ) on Thursday August 01, 2024 @04:58PM (#64673688)

    No.

    Thatâ(TM)s my answer. No. At this point the âoedesktopâ is moot.

    Fifteen years from now âoedesktopâ will mean workstations. And a tiny sliver of the populace will use them.

    I used to work in IT and in my new role everything is an app on my phone. So who cares if I run Void or Open BSD on my laptop?

    I feel like itâ(TM)s becoming like being the biggest coachbuilder a decade after society switched to automobiles.

    • Most professional people will have a KVM for their phone by then.

      The future desktop operating systems are primarily mobile operating systems.

      • Mobile operating systems don't like the idea of a user-readable filesystem, and it's getting worse all the time.
        The paradigm seems to be that each app owns its own files, rather than each file being accessible in multiple apps.
        That's exactly the opposite of the file-centric desktop computing tradition. It's a non-starter for professional use.

  • *Ron Paul "It's Happening!" . gif*

  • So.... who uses a desktop any more?

    People have phones and tablets and ereaders and alexas and smarthome devices..... pretty much all of those already run linux.

    • A lot of people. It is a lot easier to write out a report on a desktop or laptop than it is to poke at a phone's screen or tap on a tablet's. Desktops also provide a lot better workflow than mobile operating systems.

      Desktops are also multi-user.

  • WSL: Windows's Surfin' LinuxMascot (Score:3)

    by davidwr ( 791652 ) on Thursday August 01, 2024 @05:12PM (#64673724) Homepage Journal

    Microsoft Edge's edge://surf pseudo-URL gives you a choice of surf-riding avatars.

    One looks suspiciously like Tux.

  • 10% (Score:3)

    by QuietLagoon ( 813062 ) on Thursday August 01, 2024 @05:19PM (#64673752)
    When Linux hits 10% desktop share, that would be significant.

  • It already won the computer market (Score:3)

    by Murdoch5 ( 1563847 ) on Thursday August 01, 2024 @05:19PM (#64673756) Homepage
    5% is not enough of the desktop market to matter, but the reality, Unix like OSes already run the world. If you look at https://gs.statcounter.com/os-... [statcounter.com], and add up the numbers ~73% of all OSes are Unix like, and that doesn't take into account servers, IoT and other devices.

    Even for Windows, how many of those installations are running the WSL, which is just Linux? The reality is the desktop isn't a useful metric, most tools are web based, many desktop applications are web based (Electron), and really the desktop is now a shell to launch the browser to show your files. It's been the year of Linux for a long time, because almost every device runs Linux at some level. If you count the number of Linux devices in your home, unless you only have a desktop, it will out number, probably, every other OS.

    On this desk, I have 7 devices, 6 of them are Linux based, including my notebook.

  • There is still much to be done. Proper multi-monitor, hidpi, scaling, advanced audio configuration, quality font rendering, lots of GUI stuff for edge configuration cases, still need to happen.

    A friend of mine (a music hobbyist, who invested in some pretty specific niche hardware) turned back to Windows, because getting his setup to work properly was too difficult (he did get it working, but then the rest wouldn't work anymore). I was stumped as well.

    Proper (complete and understandable by mere mortals) docu

  • I did a quick search for articles that do more than just regurgitate & put a spin on the usual stat counts. I didn't find much so I guess our speculation might be as good as any.

    I reckon one possible contributor might be governments looking to reduce their dependency on Microsoft & also increase their own security, such as Brazil, Russia, India, China, & even the EU (the EU has an "open-source first" directive which means greater interest in using Linux desktops, as we've seen in more than a

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by nekoken ( 101238 )

      I'd assume it is Steamdeck.

    • You saved the best and most incisive observation for the last sentence in your post. You (imply ) college courses (except computer science ) should be taught without computer intrusion. I've taught everything from SENIOR-LEVEL modern physics and Maxwell Equations to "poets physics" for frosh liberal arts majors; using nothing . but a chalk-board and trusty HP calculator. A slide-rule ( or abacus?) would have done as well. Computer take-over of high-school/college education is a stain on an environment

  • So I asked Co-Pilot... (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Mogster ( 459037 ) on Thursday August 01, 2024 @05:40PM (#64673806)
    Q: Is Windows or Linux the better Operating system?

    Co-Pilot:
    The choice between Windows and Linux depends on your needs and preferences. Here's a quick comparison to help you decide:
    ### **Windows**
    - **User-Friendly**: Windows is known for its user-friendly interface, making it easy for beginners to navigate.
    - **Software Compatibility**: Most commercial software, including popular games and productivity tools, are designed for Windows.
    - **Support**: Extensive support from Microsoft and a large user community.
    - **Hardware Compatibility**: Works well with a wide range of hardware.

    ### **Linux**
    - **Customization**: Highly customizable, allowing users to tweak almost every aspect of the OS.
    - **Open Source**: Free and open-source, with a variety of distributions (distros) to choose from, such as Ubuntu, Fedora, and Debian.
    - **Security**: Generally considered more secure due to its open-source nature and fewer targeted attacks.
    - **Performance**: Can be more efficient and faster, especially on older hardware.

    ### **Considerations**
    - **Purpose**: If you need an OS for gaming, professional software, or general use, Windows might be more suitable. For programming, server management, or if you enjoy customizing your OS, Linux could be a better fit.
    - **Learning Curve**: Windows is typically easier for beginners, while Linux might require more technical knowledge, especially for advanced customization.

    So I guess 2024 is the year you decide what OS is best for you
    • Wish I had mod-points for your post.  When RedHat & then Canonical kissed-off home lusrs and hobbyists they might have printed a banner that showed on every Linux boot " SURRENDER HOPE ALL YE WHO ENTER HERE ". I am a casual Linux user and have struggled thru the Linux brier-patch since 2000. Practical user help  is non-existence --- imagine how silly  I felt  struggling  thru DDs Cli when I upgraded hard-drives on my 5600X system. 

  • That is huge....it's well over 100

  • The whole bit about too many desktop variants and too many distros is valid, but isn't what prevents widespread adoption of Linux by regular people. It's also not the fact that every PC that isn't Apple comes with Windows. It's that everyone *knows* Windows and/or MacOS, and everyone *knows* Office.

    To get people to use any Linux desktop, you have to coerce huge numbers of regular, non-techie, non-gamer types to adopt it. That will never happen in significant numbers just from one-on-one evangelizing. Whole

    • None of the Windows users in my family "know" Windows or Office. Or they wouldn't be asking me (a Linux user) for help with their computer. I believe people are desperate for a computer they can use, one that Just Works(tm). And are not making buying choices in an attempt to leverage their own expertise, but instead aren't confident that they can figure out anything new since they have so mucb troubke operating computers in general.

    • Most users don't know shit about shit. All they know is that the one program they need won't run on Linux. Sometimes that's true, sometimes it isn't, but do you want to depend on Wine for anything your livelihood depends on? I sure don't. It's not there yet. To be fair, I don't want to depend on Windows either, but I'd rather try to get help with running a Windows program on Windows than running a Windows program on Wine — especially when in the end, the answer might just be "that program doesn't work

  • Does this include China? I suspect that it's pretty ubiquitous due to national security requirements.
  • In the stats, Windows is UP by 4-5%. Linux is up by 1%. OSX is down by around 6. So per the data this is not a shift from Windows...it's a shift from OSX to others and Microsoft is benefitting most (fortunately or unfortunately depending on your perspective).

  • At this rate we can expect Linux to hold nearly all of the desktop market in 600 years. What a time to be alive!

  • I've been running Linux since 1994? It is an extraordinary piece of collaborative software.

    Unfortunately, the patent and copyright system has resulted in key areas of software service to become owned by a few companies.

    The example is the open source software Openshot. The application looks and runs just like it did 5 years ago. From several tries, I am not getting results.
    In contrast, my son's girlfriend uses the proprietary software from a big San Jose outfit and she grinds out professional quality work wi

    • > The example is the open source software Openshot. The application looks and runs just like it did 5 years ago.

      Lets see for ourselves:

      OpenShot Video Editor - Tutorial for Beginners in 10 MINUTES! [youtube.com] (10:23)

      Getting Started | OpenShot Video Editor Tutorial [youtube.com] (05:12)

    • Openshot is weak sauce. Check out DaVinci Resolve which runs on Linux, Windows, & OSX and is free, (but not open-source). Resolve is a very serious program and no doubt you can get screaming good, professional results without much effort. Just watch a few YouTube how-to's to get started.

      DaVinci Resolve Studio costs $300 once and includes Very Professional features and seems to be Hollywood's favorite video editor. It's a great deal. Before you pay the very reasonable $300 price however, have a good look

  • is so we could post these same snarky comments that we saw when Linux reached 4.44% adoption, and 4.43% adoption before that.

  • wrong date (Score:2)

    by Tom ( 822 )

    Is 2024 truly the year of Linux on the desktop?

    It's August 1st, not April 1st. Dudes, use NTP so a power outage doesn't screw up your system time.

  • I am wondering what everyone is using as their daily-driver Linux distribution of choice if you just want a rock solid and stable, reliable and secure system?
    Personal preferences and experience, no distro flame war.

    • None, actually. My daily driver is FreeBSD with fvwm2, although I do have a small Slackware system (also with fvwm2) set up for one specific task.

      That said, I'd probably recommend Mint for a more typical user.

    • Devuan 5. It's Debian without systemd. I run Xfce on X11. I have a 6.9 kernel. It's rock solid. Everything works like you would expect and you can reasonably troubleshoot problems. I have root on ZFS with FDE, sadly the installer won't do this for you but it's not too hard to do manually using the instructions for Debian 12 on the OpenZFS page, with some tweaks for sysvinit instead of systemd. Probably the next version will do it for you, I believe Debian's installer will do it now? I am using the Nvidia bi

  • This article is at 98 comments (including this one). Can it become the first one in months to reach triple digits without being a political story that either praises the GOP or trashes democrats?

    Come on, we can do it! We can pretend to be technical and relevant again!

  • Surely this number is excluding the bazillion chromebooks for every student in every classroom. Its still a linux kernel, why doesnt it get counted? Between Android and Chrome, and its variants, I would say adoption is significant higher than 4%. That just seems like number manipulation to me. Who did the study? A MS funded non-prodit? Lol. Lets count all the caucasian people, but only the brunette hair types. Fuck those blonde shades and dont even get me started on redheads, they arent true caucasians.

  • For me the year of Linux on the desktop was 2005, with SuSE Linux 10.1
    Truly 64-bit (winxp64 was a joke), it installed in half an hour with all software from a single dvd, and it had everything. I never looked back.
    My first encounter with Linux GUI, was with KDE (pre v1.0) back in 1998. It was already better looking than than win95.

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