My week with Linux: I'm dumping Windows for Ubuntu to see how it goes

[danny009]

Windows XP/7 was your best friend. Windows 10/11/12 is your worst enemy.

 

[GeorgeLY]

Here are my 2 cents.
I am running Linuxes (Ubuntu, Raspbian, etc.) on multiple desktops, laptops, board computers and tablets.

Positive:
1. Just works
2. Great performance compared to Windows.
3. Works almost with any hardware that I can throw at it, including printers.
4. A lot of open source apps for any kind of necessity: LibreOffice, Dia, Gimp, Cinelerra.
5. Games that work, work better in Linux (at least with Proton).
6. No virus headaches.
7. Old Windows software just works in WINE. Try playing CD game from early 2000s - you just cant in Windows, in Linux you can.
8. Perfect for developers - you can create virtual version of almost anything. You can run any service or web-site in container.
9. Much better hardware diagnostic (if you know what you're doing)
10. Can install and switch between different window managers.
11. Intel and AMD drivers are better under Linux

Negative
1. Some minor adjustments are required.
2. If you have problem it might take you awhile to understand how to fix it, but the same goes for Windows as well - Windows just gives you less info to debug the issue.
3. Anti-cheat and some other games do not work. Some heavily DRM'd software - such as Photoshop has problems as well.
4. Distribution updates sometimes break the system, but at least on AMD64 it is easily fixable
5. Nvidia drivers for Linux are crap.

Also if you dual boot with BitLocker and want to attach BT device that automatically works in both - have fun . MS protected the generated BT keys, which you need to copy to Linux, as if they were keys to a bank vault.
You need `runas` utility to access them.

 

[ezst036]

A few months ago, I was troubleshooting weird system instability. In the process I installed Linux mint and used it for a week. It ran flawlessly. I even found apps that were kicking Window's free apps in the butt. But then I decided to add a second display... I spend many hours trying to make mint identify it. And as if that was not enough, my primary display refused to run in its natural 4k resolution due to my manipulations.
After many attempts, I reinstalled mint, which was justifiable to me since it was a fresh install, and I have not spent more than 3 hours setting it up. So, with fresh install and having 2 of my monitors preconnected, it worked excellent. I did not have to move a finger to make than OS to see and connect my monitors properly.
Then few days later I sold my old GPU and installed a new one. And the nightmare repeated again...
No matter how painful Windows can get, Linux is going to be worse. You might never have any issues but then one time you will need something to work urgently and that is when it will screw you.
I do not recommend it. I am a bit curious if AMD drivers are a bit better. Unfortunately, I did not have a Radeon card to check it out. That problem I had was like a giant concrete wall. I went step by step, trying everything mint community recommended, and it made zero difference.

Nvidia driver strikes again. I feel sad for your experience, we have been trying to push Nvidia to fix itself for years to no avail. Nvidia even got the middle finger and an F bomb from Linus Torvalds for being a pain.

I just took another look at Avram's review thus far, and it looks like his test bed ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 12) does not come with an Nvidia gpu in it. I'm thankful for that because this "my week in Linux" probably wouldn't go a week if he had Nvidia in there or else Avram would've spent half the week troubleshooting Nvidia problems that mask themselves as Linux problems.

 

[Keith Myers]

Keyboad shortcuts are easy. Settings >> Keyboard >> View and Customize Shortcuts >> Launchers >> Launch browser
Settings >> Keyboard >> View and Customize Shortcuts >> Screenshots
Settings >> Keyboard >> View and Customize Shortcuts >> Sound and Media

 

[jkflipflop98]

I keep an old 160GB SSD in my system with Ubuntu on it installed. About once every six months or so I boot into it when I get that wild Linux hare up my butt. I fiddle around with it for a week or two just to remind myself how amazing Windows actually is. Linux is trash in comparison.

 

[YardBoss]

I find this "story" incredibly biased in favour of Windows so far...
All I'm reading is a list of complaints about how you can't get extremely niche hardware or software shortcuts to work, which would be completely irrelevant to 90% of your readership...

How is the actual usability?

How does it perform compared to Windows?

Is it good enough to swap from Windows if all you want to do is actually use your PC?

Instead of listing every random thing you can find that doesn't work (in your chosen distro), could you maybe talk about what does work?

I feel like that would be more helpful.

 

[USAFRet]

I find this "story" incredibly biased in favour of Windows so far...
All I'm reading is a list of complaints about how you can't get extremely niche hardware or software shortcuts to work, which would be completely irrelevant to 90% of your readership...

How is the actual usability?

How does it perform compared to Windows?

Is it good enough to swap from Windows if all you want to do is actually use your PC?

Instead of listing every random thing you can find that doesn't work (in your chosen distro), could you maybe talk about what does work?

I feel like that would be more helpful.

Actual usability, Linux vs Windows, depends on YOUR use.

For some people, Linux is just fine.
For others, it needs to be Windows.
And others, Apple.

An article like this can only point out the differences. It can't tell you which is better for you.

 

[mikiem]

I'm following this, and the comments [thanks BTW] with LOTS of interest, as I'm trying to help folks deal with the end of 10. I can't switch because I depend on P/Shop, but lots of people can. For most the easiest solution is to install 11 anyway, disregarding the hardware requirements, but not everyone is willing to do that, and for those folks, Linux is the better, maybe only answer. It helps to get a sense of what they'd encounter from the perspective of someone who hasn't used Linux -- I've played with it off & on it seems like forever.

 

[Keith Myers]

It was the 'trash' experience of trying Windows 11 that convinced me to just move over to Linux. Too many trashed installations with Windows with a non-functional recovery process that always failed. I installed Ubuntu the first time in less than ten minutes and I've never looked back or regretted the decision.

I've never wanted for any exclusive Windows application other than some of the monitoring apps that have used the NDA license to get access to hardware sensors that Linux won't ever get. But found enough alternative or built-in solutions in Linux to get what I need.

Plus for my usage, Linux is always faster than Windows, to a great degree for the science apps I use all day long.

 

[Keith Myers]

I'm following this, and the comments [thanks BTW] with LOTS of interest, as I'm trying to help folks deal with the end of 10. I can't switch because I depend on P/Shop, but lots of people can. For most the easiest solution is to install 11 anyway, disregarding the hardware requirements, but not everyone is willing to do that, and for those folks, Linux is the better, maybe only answer. It helps to get a sense of what they'd encounter from the perspective of someone who hasn't used Linux -- I've played with it off & on it seems like forever.

I found I can do all the same things I used to use Photoshop for with the use of GIMP or DarkTable.

 

[USAFRet]

I found I can do all the same things I used to use Photoshop for with the use of GIMP or DarkTable.

While most people do not need the whole actual Photoshop ecosystem, GIMP and darktable are not really viable replacements.
Good, but not quite.

Yes, I've used all of those.

 

[razor512]

in your example did windows have this by default no, took time for drivers to appear but no guarantee they worked on next release, with Linux, once you have them, they generally work across releases. IT's all about changing the attitude of users and developers to truly support and change Linux in to what we want it to be, secure, easy to use, Windows compatible until native apps available, fast, light weight, and the core os fully open source, drivers can be propriety without breaking all this. It may be a pipedream, but I think if enough heads come together it is doable now, especially if like the UK/EU of users are forced to switch away from Microsoft in government.

For windows, when it comes to driver support, microsoft has done a lot of work in that area since windows update will automatically download and install a wide range of 3rd party drivers, though often it will be older driver, thus requiring the user to still download the latest drivers, but it is likely to get things working.

For windows, while they have horrible released like windows 11 (horrible taskbar that takes up too much vertical screen space). The design culture of windows, focuses more heavily on automation, thus if a piece of hardware does not work properly or is not supported on a newer version of the OS, then the design culture meant that an automated solution was more likely. For example, getting an ancient Audigy and x-fi soundcards (meaning going beyond basic output and restoring its EAX features) working in windows 11 was reduced to a process of downloading an exe, double clicking it, and then clicking next a few times. While the developer of the modified drivers could have made it into a long winded CLI process, but since the super majority expect a GUI install process, that is what is offered.
And in the rare occasion where something is a CLI process, often a batch file will be included, and if not, one will be created be someone else.
For example, when you get lucky on XDA developers and you want to install a different ROM on your smartphone, but keep your current modem files (useful in cases where some device makers will release a new android version on the EU, but discontinue support before the US model gets an update. Often you will see guides where they are long winded with many steps, followed by users complaining that they made a mistake and bricked their device. Then it goes away when someone comes back with a simply batch package to automate everything.

On the linux side of things, it is rare to reach that stage when a project is at the stage of a random package linked on the forums, and since CLI steps often do not work perfectly on different versions, it is not novice friendly.

For linux, developer attitudes need to change, to move away from the "get gud" attitude, and move more towards UX.
Users are willing to accept a different UI if it is intuitive, has features they have come to like, and they are not required to loearn a higher complxity of skils than what they needed for their previous OS. For example, if they didn't need to learn CLI in windows, then no matter how well you market linux, the novice windows users will disengage the moment they need to learn CLI in linux, especially since there are far fewer workarounds. For the novice user, in windows, when CLI comes up, often their experience will still be a double click process because someone would have either done a batch file, or made a GUI frontend.
This even applies to more niche items, for example, a lot of the SDR tools that lack a proper GUI, quickly got batch files and GUI front ends which made the process of integrating them into applications such as SDR sharp, a double click process.

 

[razor512]

5. Nvidia drivers for Linux are crap.

While Nvidia has their share of issues, there are many other issues that are the fault of many app developers that have support for various linuixdistros. For example, why is it that after so many years, if you do a fresh install of ubuntu on a system with an Nvidia GPU, and then install anydesk, you will get an error every time you try to connect.
You will get an error of Display_Server_Not_Supported

Then you will see many forum posts of people suggesting things like disable wayland using CLI, and doing a bunch of other CLI stuff, can't the company making the application do something about it?

 

[qxp]

I'm following this, and the comments [thanks BTW] with LOTS of interest, as I'm trying to help folks deal with the end of 10. I can't switch because I depend on P/Shop, but lots of people can. For most the easiest solution is to install 11 anyway, disregarding the hardware requirements, but not everyone is willing to do that, and for those folks, Linux is the better, maybe only answer. It helps to get a sense of what they'd encounter from the perspective of someone who hasn't used Linux -- I've played with it off & on it seems like forever.

You might be able to run PhotoShop under Linux using wine:

https://github.com/Gictorbit/photoshopCClinux

 

[rustigsmed]

Not really a gnome person myself. Maybe you should consider installing KDE onto the systems like everyone has suggested in the comments. Don't worry you can have more than one Desktop Environment on the PC at login you can then choose under the options button which DE you want to log in on (after you put password in but before hitting enter).

sudo apt install kubuntu-desktop
yes you could install kde-full or kde-standard but they aren't really tweaked for ubuntu specifically.
for screenshot editing you should install 'spectacle' this is however standard with kde suite.
same with KDE connect - for your phone.
there are a million of customisable options in KDE shortcuts. I think you won't have any issue doing what you need there.

Also be sure to try in kde settings (settings - window management - desktop effects - select 'translucency, wobbly windows and magic lamp'. just nice display options (no gnome extensions required).

have you tried for the StreamDeck below?
https://github.com/streamdeck-linux-gui/streamdeck-linux-gui/blob/main/docs/installation/ubuntu.md

GitHub - abcminiuser/python-elgato-streamdeck: Python library to control the Elgato Stream Deck.

Python library to control the Elgato Stream Deck. Contribute to abcminiuser/python-elgato-streamdeck development by creating an account on GitHub.

github.com

 

[qwertymac93]

Gnome is for Mac users, KDE is better for windows users. KDE is flexible enough for either, but out of the box it's much closer to windows than gnome is.

 

[peterf28]

I am too tired to try any more Linux distros for desktop. It always endeded in some nonfunctional situation, and I went back to Windows.

It's a lot of small details that are annoying or not working, and accumulated they make using the OS uncomfortable.

A warning for someone like me who gets easily sidetracked : you will end up spending time solving all kind of different problems with the OS, and not doing the thing you originally wanted to do.

 

[herrwizo]

As for your Stream Deck woes, you might try this:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install streamdeck-ui

If not available, here are other options:

https://flathub.org/apps/com.core447.StreamController

or this:

https://github.com/streamdeck-linux-gui/streamdeck-linux-gui

For controlling phone for desktop, try GSConnect GNOME shell extension.

Set keyboard shortcuts to launch favorite apps --> this is 100% available in GNOME. Settings->Keyboard->Shortcuts (here you can create a custom shortcut, you will need to enter the executable path and give it a name and shortcut combo)

Remapping keys --> xremap,

Screenshot with delays and editor -> Flameshot

Ungroup taskbar icons -> Doable, but in Ubuntu this is prevented by default Ubuntu Dock by deliberate design. No idea why. You can modify the default dock with "Dash to Panel" GNOME Shell extension and only now you can turn this thing on (Extensions > Dash to Panel > Settings > Behavior > Applications: Ungroup applications).

Keyboard macros: xdotool or sxhkd

Most, if not all of your latest remaining issues can be resolved. Moreover, ChatGPT and others make a really good job at locating right tools for Linux and making them work. Give it a shot.

 

[ianpac1969]

I have been trying Linux on and off for 20 years because I keep hearing how amazing it is and how easy it is for Windows users to switch. Sorry this is just not the case for most PC users. The GUI in Linux is only skin deep and as soon as you want to do anything not 100% mainstream then it is straight to the terminal. The amount of time I have spent typing in complex commands which only have a 50/50 chance of working is horrendous.

I have tried Ubuntu, Mint, MX, Fedora, Pop, Solus, Zorin and Manjaro. All but Mint and Zorin crashed repeatedly especially after updates and I was often unable to repair the others despite hours of research leading to a reinstall. Then a few weeks later comes another terminal crash.

I have been using computers since 1981 with my trusty ZX81 then Spectrum. When I was young I used to love programming them and fiddling around. Now that I am older I dont want to learn a new system through copious amounts of repairs and maintenance.

I get why some love the Linux system and hats off to you. But please lay off the whole Linux is better than Windows. Because it is not true for most users which is why Linux desktop usage is so small in comparison despite 30+ years of development.

There is no advantage to an average user in switching to Linux. None. And please do not mention the hardware limitations of Windows 11 because you all know fine well how incredibily easy it is to sidestep that issue. Windows 11 runs flawlessly on my ten year old PC at home. And the annonying desktop behavior can easily be mitigated by spending 5 minutes once on a third party tweaking app.

 

[qxp]

Gnome is for Mac users, KDE is better for windows users. KDE is flexible enough for either, but out of the box it's much closer to windows than gnome is.

It's not the issue of Mac vs Windows looks - you can configure KDE to look like either.

I think it is more the question of more features vs less features. Some people prefer to have the smallest amount of controls possible, at the expense of losing ability to do some task. They can be happy with Gnome or Unity.

Other people are comfortable with more features - for them I would recommend KDE. Just the ability to type
"fish://remotecomputer1" into Dolphin to access files on remote computer via ssh is worth it, but there are many more features.

 

[TheMaddScientist]

GIMP has the screenshot abilities you are looking for.

I did a similar switch about six months ago, as I have deep dislike for the monetization Microsoft has been adding to Windows. I will definitely not be switching the Windows 11. I use it at work, because I have to, but it is a step backwards in usability. My tests with AI have shown no real time savings, mostly frustration. I chose Kubuntu, and, as a daily driver, it works well. It took awhile to get comfortable, but now I prefer it to Windows. I am no longer a heavy gamer, although I do use Steam to play online with my kids. I do a lot of music, both typesetting (lilypond/frescobaldi - open source music typesetting software) and audio editing (Reaper - commercial DAW which works well in linux). I did install the UbuntuStudio pack to get a lot of functionality quickly. I did not install UbuntuStudio directly, as I prefer the Kubuntu default setup, even though both use the KDE window manager. I would recommend anyone to try linux as a dual boot for two or three months before making a decision. It takes awhile to learn the ins and outs of a new OS, especially if you have been using the old one for so long, like most of us. The pot just got too hot for this frog. Leaving while I am still alive.

Please note that I started computing with a DECSystem 20 mainframe and PDP 11/23 embedded computers, followed that with a few years of HP-UX on HP workstations, then went to Windows 3.1 and successive Windows versions. As such, I have a pretty high tolerance for things like command line use. At one point, I was an expert VIM user. I am not your average Windows user.

 

[cameronbosch]

For the Stream Deck, this might not be the best solution, but have you tried Boatswain? It allows for the Stream Deck to work.

 

[mikiem]

It was the 'trash' experience of trying Windows 11 that convinced me to just move over to Linux. Too many trashed installations with Windows with a non-functional recovery process that always failed. I installed Ubuntu the first time in less than ten minutes and I've never looked back or regretted the decision...

Oh, I agree 100%. Windows Restore Points may or may not work, recovery &/or reset may or may not work, installing or upgrading versions requiring a reinstall may or may not work, and when you get Windows installed you may very occasionally just get a bad copy & have to start over, as documented at Neowin & I've had it happen to me. I rely on VMs to test & monitor any new software & maintain disk image backups to make it work reliably.

 

[ezst036]

I find this "story" incredibly biased in favour of Windows so far...
All I'm reading is a list of complaints about how you can't get extremely niche hardware or software shortcuts to work, which would be completely irrelevant to 90% of your readership...

How is the actual usability?

How does it perform compared to Windows?

Is it good enough to swap from Windows if all you want to do is actually use your PC?

Instead of listing every random thing you can find that doesn't work (in your chosen distro), could you maybe talk about what does work?

I feel like that would be more helpful.

I think overall Avram is doing a decent job, and yes I'm a Linux user myself. Sure he could talk a little more about what does work, for example, showing those horrible Steam fonts. But no mention at all about some Steam usage and maybe some games. The converse to this is that there are tons of reviews and YouTube videos showing gaming on Linux through Steam and not through Steam. That would be a waste of his time and also it would be out of scope.

As an opposite example, Avram has shown how to get his phone connected to his computer using GSConnect - and he did not perpetuate the old 1990s myth that you have to use the terminal to do anything in Linux. He showed screenshots and buttons. Which is how modern desktop linux is. It's all clicky and UI now.

The reality is, that when people switch to Linux nobody knows but that one individual what hardware configurations they will have and I'm reading his "dumping Windows" as an extended trek from a switcher's point of view.

The standout to me is this Plugable thunderbolt dock. Plugable forces the user to drop to a terminal. That's not a Linux problem, that is a Plugable problem. Plugable doesn't force Windows users to drop to a CMD or Powershell to do a driver install - even though Plugable could easily force you to drop to a CMD or Powershell to do a driver install.

Overall what Avram is doing makes sense and it highlights the most difficult aspect of all for switching to Linux - knowing what the names of programs are called.

That's it! What's the names of these things? You can see it right here in the comments, people complaining about this thing or that thing and the only way they could get it done was through the terminal. No. What you described has a GUI, you just didn't find the name of the GUI.

Look, if you wanted to connect your phone to Linux could you do it through the terminal? Absolutely. And what would happen to the user who didn't find the name of GSCOnnect? They would try doing it through the terminal and then grumble about how they can only connect their phones to Linux through the terminal. The fact of the matter is, is that the terminal is completely universal. The dirty secret is that in Windows the CMD is also universal. If you really wanted to, you could stick 100% with the Windows CMD and do everything - everything. Everything in Windows can in fact be CMD driven, its just that most people do not choose to do it this way.

To get back to your comment, in highlighting GSConnect, Avram is actually doing these things: showing usability. Talking about what does work. Like early on in this Week-In-Linux Avram showed how there are so many different ways of installing apps, which helps to prevent the perpetuation of this myth that everything needs to be done in Linux through the terminal.

A lot of people cling to that FUD even though this isn't the 1990s anymore. Its bizarre.

 

[mikiem]

I found I can do all the same things I used to use Photoshop for with the use of GIMP or DarkTable.

NOT shortchanging the huge amount of work that's gone into GIMP, and 5 years ago I preferred it over P/Shop, but AI has been a true game changer editing/restoring scanned photo prints and negatives. AI denoise makes an immense difference with scanned 35mm negatives, AI generative remove and fill make repairs possible that wouldn't be otherwise, while AI powered selections just save time. Granted, a Lot of the AI stuff in P/Shop *to me* seems rather gimmicky, but the parts that make the biggest difference *to me* aren't available in anything else I've tried.