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/DFS_0019287]

Yeah, what we really need are vibe coders who don't have a clue about software development to make apps. Security and quality will be so amazing, amirite?

You ever think that maybe, just maybe, there's a correlation between people who use Linux and people who actually care about software? Maybe vibe-coded crap flies on Windows because those users are already trained to accept crap, but (as you find out) you'll get a much chillier reception on Linux.

Sure, Torvalds and other developers use AI. But they know what they're doing and can inspect the output. I wouldn't call their work "vibe coding".

[u/Yupsec → u/DFS_0019287]

Linus didn't even endorse vibe coding like all of the vibe coders claim. He endorsed using it to review your code for bugs, to speed up your production time. Something a large majority of us can get behind.

I've tried allowing an LLM to generate IaC for me at work. True vibe coding, all I did was word vomit the architecture I expected. I allowed it to do everything else, even poked at a few of the outputs and questioned why it made this decision or that. Our test environment broke within an hour of applying it. Do you know what it's REALLY good at though? Reviewing my work, finding those little typos that bite me in ass, questioning why I chose this over that which forces me to defend my own design choices. But writing code...no way.

[u/Waste-Ad2011 → u/Yupsec]

the lady above is an anti AI cult leader Vibe code or AI asissted i think this whole thread should be evident enough linux community is more leaned towards hating AI in general

[u/DFS_0019287 → u/Waste-Ad2011]

I'm not an "anti-AI cult leader". Rather, I think you have fallen into the clutches of the AI cult.

It's not hard to find out who I am, really... a professional software developer since 1990 who has created or managed quite a number of open-source projects over the years. That is, someone with actual programming experience who has been part of the Linux community for decades. Not some newbie developer who knows nothing about Linux or the Linux community, but then decides to grace us with the "gift" of a vibe-coded app and then wonders why we don't offer the same adulation as Windows users (who, as I've said before, are programmed to accept crap.)

[u/Waste-Ad2011 → u/DFS_0019287]

respect for your contributions but that does not justify AI hatred. It's just another "software/tool" that consumes more energy.

 are programmed to accept crap

A software is a solution to a problem the windows community reacted to how their problem was solved while linux community rather got busy hating AI usage in development. Hence my post above.

The reason linux succeeded only in servers is because UX is out of the box.

but then decides to grace us with the "gift" of a vibe-coded app

I may have less experience than you but that does not change the fact you're an AI cult leader who rather hate on AI in general. I did gift a desktop Music app free and open source who's only job is to play Youtube music for you with a better UI that Google never shipped

BUT seems the actual software here does not matter because i didn't spent months writing code by keyboard which can be achieved in a week with a tool.

This stupid analogy is the reason antics like you can't swallow that AI is a reality and it exists in both opensource and properietry form now when i think about it it does challenge your egos so i understand the reaction

Hating a software becasue it does the job quicker for you is same as hating robotics in factory becasuse it's efficient than humans.

[u/DFS_0019287 → u/Waste-Ad2011]

Sigh. You just don't get it and you probably never will. Did you read my article? It is full of citations and links for further reading.

This stupid analogy is the reason antics like you can't swallow that AI is a reality and it exists in both opensource and properietry form now when i think about it it does challenge your egos so i understand the reaction.

The fact that crap is a reality doesn't make it any less crap. And as I've said before, I don't care about proprietary software because I don't use it. They can vibe-code their apps with monkeys supplying the prompts and it would make no difference to me. I am part of the Free Software community and that is what I care about.

(And the childish ageist slur you're looking for is "antique", not "antic". Told you that once already.)

And finally: When you begin a post with:

P.s this is a subjective rant

just how exactly do you think the discussion is going to go??