News Linux Finally Hits 3% of Desktop PC Share After 30 Years

[SyCoREAPER]

That's not true at all. ChromeOS is a full-blown Debian distro, whereas Android basically just uses the kernel and none of the standard userspace.

People mistakenly assume ChromeOS is just dressed-up Android, but it's not.


Okay, so I guess you don't count school kids as average users. Good to know.


As of last year, a total of 40 million Pi's have been sold, and you know they'd have probably sold at least 50M+, if not for pandemic-era supply chain restrictions. Compare that to the number of Macs @hotaru.hino cited and you can't possibly dismiss them.

Sure, a lot of them have gone into projects, but the Pi was originally created with the mission of teaching more kids to code, which means using them as development machines. The Pi Foundation has stayed true to that mission, and you can bet that quite a lot of them are used in that way.


It's come a long ways, as they've moved closer to Debian. Sure, the 32-bit build is limited because they have to support devices with as little as 256 MiB of RAM, but the 64-bit build can assume at least 512 MiB. Even then, it's still not going to ship with a lot of drivers compiled in. That's a pretty small price to pay for being able to run a mostly desktop Linux experience on such a traditionally low-cost device.

I meant ChromeOS is barely Linux in the sense that the user facing side it's all GUI and click to run apps. That simplicity is why Chromebooks are everywhere and Linux laptops nowhere (retail).

As for Pi, I'm not downplaying their significance, they are capable little boards but they (were cheap) and people use them in tons of projects. It's a hobby device, I know maybe 3 people in my wide network of tech that actually use a Pi as an actual PC daily. By actual PC I mean browsing, email, YouTube, etc.. not Emulation and such. Their original mission may and probably does hold true but among the public it's become a tinkering device, at least in wealthier countries.

Regarding drivers, I'm not talking about getting them, I'm talking about them working at all. Anything that can't use a generic driver will either need a Linux driver ready made or wait for the community to create one. Years back I tried making a Mini SNES before the real thing came out. Had these awesome well built USB SNES controllers but no matter what driver I used they wouldn't work.
Maybe it's better today with drivers, don't know. I don't use it frequently enough or with oddball stuff anymore.

 

[ComputePronto]

If Linux could gain the full support of proprietary application and game publishers, then I would seriously consider switching. For now, I'll have to settle for running it in a virtual machine.

At least for games on Steam, most are now fully playable on Linux. I can't remember the last time a game I cared about wouldn't run on Linux through Steam's Proton. YMMV

 

[kanakaze]

These loonixtard aka linux fanboy is really high on copium.
To beat Windows first linux have to beat mac os in marketshare.

Also y'all forget Windows has WSL which basically runs linux, there are people who use WSL and it contributes to those 3% userbase, so the actual linux user who install linux on their pc actually is a lot less than 3%.

Even at gaming steam os with steam deck didn't help at all, today i see linux userbase from steam charts decreased and now it stays at 1,44% while Windows keep increasing by 0.63% and now stays at 96,77%. How you are going to say linux will beat Windows soon? this is straight nonsense !!

Saying linux going to take windows soon is very laughable, i want to know what these linux fanboy smoke.

 

[kanakaze]

Wonder if Steam Deck contributed to this figure.
Also if Windows 12 (or whatever the call it) rumors are accurate of Microsoft moving to a streaming model where we are basically using VM's in the cloud, I bet Linux use will explode.
I know I will ditch Windows in a heartbeat if that happens.

Can't wait to see you will comeback to Windows after realizing linux is so trash and headache, linux is only good for people who don't value their time.

 

[kanakaze]

At least for games on Steam, most are now fully playable on Linux. I can't remember the last time a game I cared about wouldn't run on Linux through Steam's Proton. YMMV

That's simply not true, so many games didn't work on steam flop OS especially the one with anti cheat. Not to mention linux performs like <Mod Edit> too in gaming because proton are garbage, it was debunked by people who have tested windows 11 vs steam os on steam deck and their game performs faster and more consistent fps in Windows.

 

[kanakaze]

Been using Kubuntu for couple of years as a test on Mac virtual box. Finally went all in and bought an LG laptop, erased Windows from it and installed fresh Kubuntu. dumped my expensive Mac too. Everything works. Could not be happier. Disclosure. I don't use Office. I just use Libre.

Imagine using garbage alternatives when real proffesional tools already available just for the sake of supporting the so called "underdog os" aka linux LMAO. No wonder why no company want to hire people like you because company want people to done their job rather than spending time fixing garbage os which barely usable.

 

[kanakaze]

I am surprised that no one has mentioned the other Windows elephant in the room, the upcoming 2025 end of updates coming up for Windows 10. Recently I saw statistics showing that Windows 11 adoption is fairly weak, something around 30%. I also was going to mention that ChromeOS is just a proprietary Linux distro, but I see that has already been mentioned.

Windows 11 adopting is "fairly weak", in facts it already has 30% userbase just in a year compared to every linux distros combined which just reach 3% after 30 years is just showing Windows stays just fine. Only delusional linux fanboy will says otherwise.

 

[kanakaze]

Linux is capable but far from being useful to the average person. Even user-friendly distros require too much tinkering for the occasional device or program.

I know how to use Linux, I like Linux. I don't like it enough to daily drive.

This is the facts right here rather than other useless comments which made based on their feeling rather than logic.
Not to mention the mentality of retardation in linux community who keep trash talking people who use GUI but at the same time overpraising CLI like it was in their cults, no wonder why linux GUI still trash to these day.

 

[kanakaze]

Another thing they don't mention is; if you are indeed using Linux on a desktop, you most likely won't be participating or allowing in any data tracking. I've not used Windows as a gaming, development, or productivity desktop OS in years and I block trackers at my DNS server and within my web browser(s), so no stats get gathered on my Linux machines. That 3% is probably much, much higher than what public stats will show. If Adobe ever releases a Linux version of their suite of software, Linux desktop utilization will skyrocket. I'd happily pay for an Adobe subscription if they did that since right now I'm using a Mac Mini for the single purpose of Illustrator/Photoshop. Its a bit slow. 🙁

So much <Mod Edit> comes out from loonixtard like you.

That 3% is probably much

This is also <Mod Edit>, in facts linux userbase is lesser than 3% if we take out people who use WSL in Windows from these survey.

if you are indeed using Linux on a desktop, you most likely won't be participating or allowing in any data tracking

Wrong again, linux also has ads and data tracking like in ubuntu, not to mention many linux users are from ubuntu and it shows linux users didn't really give any sh*t about data tracking or the so called privacy.

Adobe ever releases a Linux version of their suite of software, Linux desktop utilization will skyrocket

They won't be, why would Adobe want to support minority who also prefer free software than the paid ones? your opinion doesn't make any sense at all. Not to mention linux hardware support is very laughable, almost everything depends on the so called "fix" by linux community and it really sucks compared to official support like in Windows.

I've not used Windows as a gaming, development, or productivity desktop OS in years

You got caught lying, the reason why you don't use Windows for "years" is because you are an iSheep who buy any trash from Apple which is worse than any Microsoft products. You even admit it on your last sentence LOL

 

[kanakaze]

This is the Steam effect. Linux has really needed some major/visible OEM to pick up Linux as their first-tier OS. The Steam Deck was just that visible item.

It took 5 years to double the Linux share from 2018. It'll take less than that time to double it again.

Honestly though, the bigger news is that MacOS has now over 20%. At this rate of growth, Apple could begin to start looking like a Windows replacement in a relatively short time.

The big loser, of course, is Microsoft. No wonder they're desperate to take over Activision/Blizzard.

What Microsoft buying Activision has to do with PC OS marketshare? You PS fanboy is so salty LMAO
If you really hate Microsoft then you better not using any of their products and boycott it like every retarded PS fanboy who crying after Microsoft beat the sh*t of FTC.
I wonder how much you can survive without any Microsoft products, even apple user relies on Microsoft products, for example like MS Office

 

[kanakaze]

If / when Windows moves to a subscription I will be joining that 3%

All these subscription <Mod Edit> talks must be comes from Gamepass which is dumb, from your comment it looks like you are salty PS fanboy who can't stop crying after seeing Microsoft beating the corrupt FTC, CMA and $ony who decided to stop competition.

 

[bit_user]

Also y'all forget Windows has WSL which basically runs linux, there are people who use WSL and it contributes to those 3% userbase, so the actual linux user who install linux on their pc actually is a lot less than 3%.

Given this is based on simple web browser metrics, people running WSL probably would not count. If you're running Windows, you'd almost certainly just run a browser natively on the host OS, not under WSL.

Even at gaming steam os with steam deck didn't help at all,

Do Steam Deck users run web browsers on them?

today i see linux userbase from steam charts decreased and now it stays at 1,44%

Does Steam Deck count towards those totals? What about if you run Steam under WINE?

 

[bit_user]

Wrong again, linux also has ads and data tracking like in ubuntu, not to mention many linux users are from ubuntu and it shows linux users didn't really give any sh*t about data tracking or the so called privacy.

Ubuntu only tracks installations, not who you are or what you do on the machine.

Not to mention linux hardware support is very laughable,

While it's still sometimes slow to support new consumer hardware, it supports a lot of old hardware that won't work on modern Windows. Also, there's a lot of server hardware which only works on Linux, like AI accelerators, high-bandwidth networking, and storage.

I'll give you another example of Intel's X550-AT2, which added multi-gigabit support first on Linux.

 

[bit_user]

Regarding drivers, I'm not talking about getting them, I'm talking about them working at all. Anything that can't use a generic driver will either need a Linux driver ready made or wait for the community to create one. Years back I tried making a Mini SNES before the real thing came out. Had these awesome well built USB SNES controllers but no matter what driver I used they wouldn't work.
Maybe it's better today with drivers, don't know. I don't use it frequently enough or with oddball stuff anymore.

I don't think that's Pi-specific. If a controller doesn't simply implement the USB HID standard, then it will need a custom driver for it, no matter which OS or distro you use. If it did just use HID, then it should just work.

 

[USAFRet]

A word to all....all personal attacks WILL cease.
As of right now.

 

[lemongrassgarlic]

Just tried 2 linux distro's last month to get away from windows 11 . It was disappointing . Hardware support is not good , installing software is not good. So user-unfriendly. I don't have the time to be a terminal jockey to get things to kind of work like I want it to. But yeah , if windows goes full autoritarian with AI , mandatory accounts coupled to intrnet ID's or all online in the "cloud" , I'll get back to linux Mint .
3% after 3 decades ? Yeah , I know now why.

 

[bit_user]

Just tried 2 linux distro's last month to get away from windows 11 . It was disappointing . Hardware support is not good , installing software is not good. So user-unfriendly. I don't have the time to be a terminal jockey to get things to kind of work like I want it to.

By any chance do you have a Nvidia GPU? They are indeed not well-supported out-of-the-box. You have to install their proprietary drivers, because they wouldn't contribute to the open source drivers until very recently (and that new driver still isn't ready for prime time).

That said, the Nvidia proprietary drivers always worked well for me. It's an annoying extra step, though.

 

[lemongrassgarlic]

I have both nV and Intel iGPU. Not any direct issues with those drivers.
99,9 % of the time I use the iGPU.

 

[Dr3ams]

Out of curiosity I looked for Linux drivers for my hardware:

• RX6700XT GPU...driver found on AMD site
• Asus ROG Strix B550-F Gaming motherboard...no drivers found on Asus site. Probably need to find each chipset driver individually (for example: sound, LAN, etc...)
• Asus TUF VG34VQL1B 34" ultrawide display...no drivers found on Asus site (would have to install generic drivers)
• M.2 and SSD...Western Digital's Dashboard utility application does not work on Linux
• Logitech MX Master 3S mouse...no supporting software found on Logitech site (would have to install generic drivers)
• Logitech K740 keyboard...no supporting software found on Logitech site (would have to install generic drivers)
• Samsung M2675FN printer...no drivers or supporting software found on HP site (would have to install generic drivers)

Most likely a distro, such as Ubuntu, would have generic drivers ready for the non-supported hardware listed above. But, original hardware applications and/or utilities are important to me. And I wouldn't sacrifice those for an OS that doesn't fully support my choices of hardware. The same applies to applications (such as: Directory Opus, OneNote, etc...) and games...I checked and none of the games in my Steam library run natively on Linux.

 

[Bonzadog]

Wonder if Steam Deck contributed to this figure.
Also if Windows 12 (or whatever the call it) rumors are accurate of Microsoft moving to a streaming model where we are basically using VM's in the cloud, I bet Linux use will explode.
I know I will ditch Windows in a heartbeat if that happens.

I am with you on this...I am not happy with the direction MS is going and in no way do I want a Win "VM" system..
Also having to buy a new computer ( if Win 11/12 requirements are not met) is a real downer. Perhaps its "Linux here I come!"

 

[bit_user]

Out of curiosity I looked for Linux drivers for my hardware:

• RX6700XT GPU...driver found on AMD site

That's already built into the kernel. Unless you want ROCm-based compute, you don't need to install anything.

• Asus ROG Strix B550-F Gaming motherboard...no drivers found on Asus site. Probably need to find each chipset driver individually (for example: sound, LAN, etc...)

You don't normally have to install any driver for a motherboard. The main thing that people usually have issues with is sensors. However, that's been getting better, lately.

​

Linux 6.3 Supports Sensor Monitoring For Many ASUS B650/B660/X670 Motherboards - Phoronix

www.phoronix.com

​

• Asus TUF VG34VQL1B 34" ultrawide display...no drivers found on Asus site (would have to install generic drivers)

I'm not really sure what you're expecting drivers to do for a monitor. The most I've seen are custom color profiles.

• M.2 and SSD...Western Digital's Dashboard utility application does not work on Linux

The main reason I'm guessing someone would want that is for doing firmware updates. I found this guide on how to do it without Windows:

​

Western Digital Drive Update Guide Without Windows/WD Dashboard

If you want update the firmware on your SSD while avoiding Windows or the Western Digital Dashboard application, this is the guide for you. For those with the SN750 from Framework, no updates are available at this time. Before we begin, you will need two pieces of information about your drive...

community.frame.work

​

For other SSD-management tasks, Linux has programs like gsmartcontrol. This gives you an overview, but you should install it through your distro, as that's the best way to keep it up-to-date:

​

Screenshots · GSmartControl

Screenshots Note: Some of these screenshots may have been taken with older versions of GSmartControl. Main window - All drives pass the health self...

gsmartcontrol.shaduri.dev

​

• Logitech MX Master 3S mouse...no supporting software found on Logitech site (would have to install generic drivers)

A USB mouse will work with the default drivers. If you want to customize its buttons, RGB, sensitivity, etc. then you might find the info on this page useful:

​

Logitech MX Master - ArchWiki

wiki.archlinux.org

​

• Logitech K740 keyboard...no supporting software found on Logitech site (would have to install generic drivers)

Maybe some of the above also applies here.

• Samsung M2675FN printer...no drivers or supporting software found on HP site (would have to install generic drivers)

I have an Ethernet-based Samsung laser printer that I was able to configure and use just fine on Ubuntu. I forget the model, but I'd bet yours is supported too.

Most likely a distro, such as Ubuntu, would have generic drivers ready for the non-supported hardware listed above. But, original hardware applications and/or utilities are important to me.

Linux is different than most other operating systems is that most of the drivers get "up-streamed" into the main kernel source tree. This is the easiest way to keep them compatible with any other changes that are made to the kernel.

The main thing you typically need to install is just a custom utility. And those are often also available right from the distro.

I really can't comment on how good the gaming experience is on Linux. There's a lot of information out there, but it's not a path I've gone down at all. The most I ever do is fire up a really old game, to test that OpenGL acceleration is working. Here's a fun little game that's in pretty much every distro and runs fine on an iGPU:

​

Trackballs

Trackballs is a marble game inspired by the 80s Atari classic Marble Madness.

trackballs.github.io

​

And I wouldn't sacrifice those for an OS that doesn't fully support my choices of hardware. The same applies to applications (such as: Directory Opus, OneNote, etc...) and games...I checked and none of the games in my Steam library run natively on Linux.

There's often a tradeoff for stepping out of the mainstream. Today's Linux is a night-and-day difference from 10 years ago, but still not the kind of experience you get on Windows. However, I honestly wonder how it compares with trying to game and do those other things on Macs.

Linux still isn't the "default" choice of computing platform, but at least it's viable for most people doing something that requires it. It's still more of a technical computing platform than a consumer-oriented one. I never proselytize it, unless someone is trying to do something that really is better supported under Linux.

 

[bit_user]

The one thing I still do exclusively on Windows is burn optical discs. When I bought my current PC, that was just a lot better supported on Windows and I wanted to make sure the quality of my burnt discs was as good as possible.

Well, the other day, I went over to Newegg to see the state of the optical disc burning software and what I found was pretty disappointing. Old versions of packages that often bundled in lots of functionality I don't need or want.

 

[nuliknol]

this statistics is all wrong. Android is also Linux and it has 70% market share of all mobile users. So, talking about Linux failure is absolutely wrong. I don't use Windows since year 2000 and I never needed it.
Also if we include all devices like routers, DSL modems, which are mostly based on linux, Linux market share will increase. This article makes it look like Linux is a failure which is totally incorrect

 

[USAFRet]

this statistics is all wrong. Android is also Linux and it has 70% market share of all mobile users. So, talking about Linux failure is absolutely wrong. I don't use Windows since year 2000 and I never needed it.
Also if we include all devices like routers, DSL modems, which are mostly based on linux, Linux market share will increase. This article makes it look like Linux is a failure which is totally incorrect

"3% of Desktop PC Share"

 

[Dr3ams]

Steam's July OS usage stats:

• Windows 96.21%
• Linux 1.96%
• Mac 1.84%