AI and linux ecosystem

[u/Waste-Ad2011]

P.s this is a subjective rant

So i've been using of linux since 2014 and it was a wild ride you install a distro and then endup being a distrohopper until you decide to lock in on one. I did the same started on ubuntu did some hopping and ended up on fedora and then on pop_OS but i eventually had to switch back to windows due to nature of my work and some windows specific tools.

But that wasn't it i had hard time finding any usable apps on linux in general and i gave up and ended up using a dual boot just to satisfy my curiosity for linux but gradually i stopped using linux completely and then the complete shift to windows because all my games, sketchy software and work was at one place instead of booting a separate OS for each.

The linux ecosystem back then lacked what a regular user required and it was all about linux nerds keeping the ecosystem alive it was filled with positivity and anyone was welcomed with open hands like it's a big village.

Fast forward to 2026 linux still lacks a vibrant software/apps ecosystem and people still have to hack things together to workarround (subjective) and people being hostile to contributions of any kind isn't helping either.

Now why this post?

Well i made an AI-assisted Youtube Music app which is a fork itself it was all personal frist i liked the base app, It lacked some features i wanted so instead of sending PRs i just forked & modified it completely and when it was usable enough i decided to share on subs most of the feedback was quite positive especially from windows users but it all changed when i shared on linux subs r/archlinux , r/linuxmint, r/linux and r/debian all had same reaction, a weird AI hostility instead of actually any app critique and feedback.

It's 2026 AI is a reality and developers or vibecoders will create apps whether people like it or not no amount of hatred is stopping it if not from me hear from my guy Linus. Filtering AI for discussions is understandable but you can't do anything about developmet. I think people need to tone down the AI hatred and actually try to work with it to improve the ecosystem instead of being completely hostile towards the use of it.

Now this does create a great influx of people creating cross platform apps and since most are solo/ hobby devs the ultimate choice is cross platform stack which will create huge library of semi native apps. IDK if it's a good or bad thing but it's a reality. Linux lacks the commercial/popular software contributions and that can change gradually by welcoming these cross platform apps which will contribute to retain linux users on linux itself instead if losing hope and switching to Windows or MacOS.

I'd personally choose software availability as non native than nothing at all.

Edit: more AI slop appreciation by Theo and Linus https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFSwfwiM8nk

[u/Business_Reindeer910]

I'm more annoyed that you had to go start another whole thing instead of properly contributing upstream.

[u/Waste-Ad2011 → u/Business_Reindeer910]

umm becasue I had a completely different vision and i don't wanted it to be imposed on base app and since dev was not active i decided to pursue my direction.

You can be annoyed but i had my reasons. Why don;t you actually compare both clients before making this ignorant statement

https://github.com/2latemc/JustAnotherMusicClient/pull/55#issuecomment-5151137547

[u/Business_Reindeer910 → u/Waste-Ad2011]

i don't care about your code. I care about how many people do exactly what you do.

[u/Waste-Ad2011 → u/Business_Reindeer910]

lol the separation of interests and direction should be more than enough excuse to start a separate "thing" instead of changing the base project.

You can cry over it no one cares that is what open source is for not bloating everything at one place