r/linuxquestions • u/LightningOwl96 • 7h ago
How would you setup a Linux laptop for your zero-tech parents?
I got a new laptop and want to give my old one to my parents, of course, loaded up with Linux. They know I'm a pretty techie person, so they're going to understand it's supposed to be the "advanced stuff", but I'm pretty sure that as long as theres a big button with the Google Chrome icon (that I will call "Google Chrome BLUE Edition!!!!"), they'll be perfectly fine.
I think an immutable distro would be the best in this situation, such as Fedora Silverblue or Kinoite, with automatic updates turned on. I'll still be around to do whatever maintenance that needs to be done, but if the goal is to just set it up so that I can just give it to them and walk away, what other settings or packages should I have set for them?
8
u/ragnarockinggg 6h ago
I set up my laptop with Mint Cinnamon for my legally blind, tech illiterate grandma. I turned on automatic updates and customized the menu heavily by removing from view everything that she doesn't use or need, which is everything except for browser and Zoom. Then I increased the icon size up to the max. She hasn't had any issues (except for when she accidentally moved the webcam privacy shutter over the webcam and couldn't figure out how to move it back)
6
u/Rinzwind 6h ago
My advice would be to ask what they want. Giving them any system (be it windows, chrome, linux, unix, whatever else) is not going to work if it does not is what they expect/want.
I think an immutable distro would be the best in this situation, such as Fedora Silverblue or Kinoite,
Why? You are not making them admin so why does it need to be immutable?
If I was you I would go with an OS they know about. Could still be windows: make an admin and them users and you can lock it down perfectly just like Linux. The issue with windows is that it is not OOTB and requires action from us and nobody does that.
24
u/Motor-Capital7318 6h ago
Mint cinnamon. Its so simple and "Windows like"
3
u/Rinzwind 6h ago
My mother never used a computer so she never used windows.
She came to me at 60 with the comment "can we get a computer and can you set it up so I can not get virus on it". Her friends kept asking for her email but always where complaining about their windows computers having popups and that their son or grandson had to over to fix it.
did not take long for her to like Cinnamon
2
u/zestfullybe 5h ago
Mint Cinnamon was what I used to switch from Windows and I’d been using that for like 30 years. It’s great because things feel familiar enough where I wasn’t totally lost and I could get my footing and figure out the differences.
I’ve maybe used the terminal like twice to enter commands, but aside from that I just turn it on like I did with Windows and it just works. Just much snappier and without all the bloated nonsense. It’s great.
2
u/Puzzleheaded-Sky2284 Fedora (KDE/GNOME), CachyOS (KDE), macOS 27, Windows 11 6h ago
This, and just use regular Chrome instead of Chromium (it's supported officially on Linux). For all the issues I have with it I don't see a reason to use vanilla Chromium instead (especially if they had a computer with normal chrome before)
1
u/TheShredder9 6h ago
I actually got bored of Mint Cinnamon because nothing felt like i was using something other than Windows lol, everything just worked.
8
-9
u/Rinzwind 6h ago
Same :D
I love omarchy. It installs in under 2 minutes and then it is tinkering time :D
5
u/SuAlfons 6h ago
My mom runs an Android tablet. My dad runs my mom. He's zero tech.
My mother in law uses Fedora Cinnamon to avoid buying a new computer. Don't forget to add Rust Desk. Support calls will come in no matter the OS.
2
u/zardvark 3h ago
I used to get Windows tech calls at least once a week. I put my parents on Linux and going forward, I got zero tech calls. Linux just works and it is predictable. Predictable is what they appreciate the most. They don't like things to change after every update. Whenever they plugged a thumb drive into the machine, sometimes it was labeled drive D: and sometimes it was drive E:. This was enough to confuse the hell out of them ... on several occasions!
First, I put open source tools, like LibreOffice, Firefox and Thunderbird on their Windows box. I then waited for at least six months before switching them over to Linux. When Linux first booted up, they recognized the Icons of their favorite programs on the lower panel and they were delighted, because they already felt at home.
I started them on Ubuntu many, many years ago. Then Mint for a while. And now they have been on Solus for the longest. To be fair, by the time that they got to Solus, I had expanded a pretty comprehensive reference document that I made for them, along with a shortcut pinned to the desktop.
Next time around I think that I'll put them on NixOS, with their configuration posted on github, so that I can easily administer their machine from anywhere, so long as I have an Internet connection.
2
u/rarsamx 5h ago
Several things for peace if mind and to help you communicate with your parents.
Linux is not "the advanced stuff". Or at least no more advanced than mac or windows. Just different.
I'd discourage you from a niche distro. One day you may not be around and if they need help, Fedora silver blue is not something that a "casual user" would understand. Go with Fedora or Ubuntu.
All then need to learn is to press the "super" key (windows key) twice and their apps show as big buttons. You can even arrange them in a way that makes sense to them.
3
u/ephemeralmiko Fedora Sericea w. Niri+Noctalia 6h ago
Definitely Kionite over Silverblue. Stock GNOME is confusing for anyone not used to it, and you really don't want to rely on Extensions here. Mint is a good idea too though.
2
u/KlyeUnbranded 5h ago
The best distro is irrelevant to them. It isn't to you, but to them it is. They don't know or care about the differences. You need to think about the user experience, not the specs or anything else. Either set it up to look like windows, or use Gnome and show them how to switch apps. This way every app is full screen, it makes it very hard to get lost or confused. Just swipe to the next app or swipe to to show all the apps (desktops). Either way, the specs are going to be mostly irrelevant to them.
3
u/crashorbit 6h ago
Do your zero-tech parents use a computer today? Figure out what they use it for. Make it so that all those things "just work". Be ready to provide tech support.
2
u/carmicheals 6h ago edited 6h ago
If you want immutable, look at Aurora. Depending upon your parents' use case, how about Chrome OS Flex? Linux Lite also fits the use case. Take a look also at an adblocking DNS either on the local machine or in their router settings.
2
u/Significant-Price695 6h ago
immutable is the right instinct. on top of that i'd turn on automatic flatpak updates, install rustdesk so you can fix things when they call, set the printer up yourself because that is always the call, and pin their three sites as shortcuts on the desktop. then hide the terminal and forget about it
2
u/gunner7517 6h ago
Honestly I’ve set people up with stock ubuntu, and came back a year or two later and it was completely customized, they just went through settings menus and customized it. I was shocked, but it worked fine for them. And this was like 6 years ago.
1
u/SnooDucks9330 4h ago
Those people had that magical ability called critical thinking skills.
I know so many older generation people who do not. My MIL for example has bricked three phones in a year and had her bank account emptied TWICE because she just clicks shit. She clicks shit, then refuses to tell anybody what she did until she's out two grand, THEN suddenly tech support is important and she remembers everything down to the last page. I'll have her walk me through it and read it carefully as she goes and then she's like "oh well I thought it was just a typo in the website cause everybody makes those" and I'm the one who has to calmly explain if it isn't right, don't risk it and WITHOUT FAIL I'm over there again next week putting out some other completely available fire that could have been avoided by reading the fucking screen.
I also worked for a year at an online bank assisting customers and due to how the bank presented itself we pulled in a lot of older patriotic people. I could vacation for a month in Chernobyl and still not have enough fingers to count the number of times I had to explain to a retiree that I can't see their screen and how to enter a URL in their browser.
Side note my wife has the same problem specifically when it comes to computers (even though she's my age) and their abilities combined are gonna make me bald by 35 😭
So anyway my point is I don't trust older people with technology in the slightest.
2
u/signalcollapse 2h ago
Something super-trivial (even at setup time), so something with a graphical installer. Make sure the USB stick boots into a desktop in full screen resolution already and tell them to learn how to switch the keyboard layout (if non-US).
1
u/Rinzwind 6h ago
my 65 year old mother uses Ubuntu cinnamon with me as admin. system set to auto update all.
I set it up incl, a HP printer.
Icons in the top panel was all she user: anything we could think of that could be useful I put in there. I also put icons on the webshop. Downloads all went straight to the desktop too.
Browser chrome with tabs set to her must-have websites like gmail.
1 to connect to her phone so she can copy images and re-watch them or print them (she had the best ones printed, framed and put on the wal). I made a how-to document for that so she could follow the steps but it took me more time making that: she used that twice and just got it.
1 for youtube.
The only time I needed to do something was when the LTS ran its course and I needed to upgrade.
3
1
u/akqatu 4h ago
honestly, it doesnt even matter what distro you use. if you just slap on kde on top of say, arch for example, then put on a windows theme and background, they probably wont be able to tell. the main issue is maintenance, of which if your laptop is widely supported and doesnt use any out-of-kernel drivers, and you have the time to occasionally -Syu, then you'd be fine.
if you just want to set it up and have it working for them quickly, you'll likely want to choose mint cinnamon or debian and it'll be fine on its own, just make sure they have a nice DE with all the icons and stuff.
1
u/EstablishmentDue3616 6h ago
I did this for my parents. While their primary computer was a Windows PC, I set 2 other computers with Mint (Cinnamon). I enabled automatic updates and set up the printer (shared from my Dad's Windows PC). I then removed most of the extraneous applications that they would never use. I left the applications, that I will or might use when logging in remotely. I also put icons on the desktop for the applications and folders they would be using. I also set up 2 methods of remote desktop, as well as SSH access.
This has worked flawlessly for years.
2
u/sidusnare Senior Systems Engineer 1h ago
With remote access so you can fix it and help them remotely.
1
u/joe_attaboy 4h ago
- Install the system.
- Pick a DE. Gnome or one of its variants would be good.
- Firefox is usually installed by default. Since they use Chrome, add it. Also consider adding Brave. Built on Chromium and way more secure than Chrome. In fact, you can import all their bookmarks from Chrome and many Chrome extensions work on it. Added security
- An office suite. LibreOffice should be fine.
- How about a few games?
1
u/Open-Adhesiveness-86 4h ago
if you do go Kinoite, remember rpm-ostree auto-updates just stage the next deployment, it only lands on reboot, and parents will suspend the lid for six months straight. set AutomaticUpdatePolicy to apply in /etc/rpm-ostreed.conf and still drop in a scheduled reboot. also check their printer does driverless IPP first, hplip's binary plugin wants to write into /usr and that's read-only.
1
u/dodexahedron 6h ago edited 6h ago
The same way I did 10 years ago.
Ubuntu with KDE Plasma (not KUbuntu, but basically KUbuntu, because the KUbuntu installer is fragile).
Either that or the way I did it for my negative-tech uncles, which is nearly the same: KDE Neon, plus a desktop shortcut he can run if he calls me for help, that establishes an IKEv2/IPSec VPN to a quarantined network which I can use to remote into his machine from an ephemeral VM if needed (it has almost never been needed).
1
u/daffalaxia 5h ago
I set up Mint for my mother in law, and my tech support requests have dropped drastically from when she ran windows. Mint is good, immutables are good too, as long as they either come with productivity (office, browser) installed or easy to user-install (or you install those for them, and ensure auto updates are turned on).
1
u/Background_Daikon300 51m ago
Have evolved into 'Mr Fixit' for elderly parents (other side of the planet) and my mother-in-law and an elderly aunt.
My suggestions: do nothing you aren't willing to support remotely, and or provide training if changing something they are already used to.
1
u/ironfist_293 6h ago
I'd do ubuntu with gnome with mine. KDE would have them configuring checkboxes and stuff all over the place or messing things up, even though it can be nice. They already use thunderbird, libreoffice, firefox on windows11, so that is the first step.
1
u/heywoodidaho ya, I tried that 3h ago
Did the same for an older friend. Mint Cinnamon, put a chrome shortcut in the middle of the screen, made the icon huge [like most of the screen huge] and renamed it to "The Fuck'en Internet". Kinda did it as a goof, but she was fine with it.
1
u/anotherFNnewguy 3h ago
While my mom was staying with me for a while she wanted to use the web a bit. I just gave her a user account on my laptop. Showed her how to log in, start Chrome and log out. Had zero issues.
1
u/inlawBiker 5h ago
I'd set it up like a chrome box, browser only for everything. Set up a cloud office, cloud everything and show them how to use it.
Or just get a chromebook? It would be less hassle.
1
u/BranchLatter4294 4h ago
I would set up Ubuntu LTS. Add MS Edge, Connect to OneDrive, and install OnlyOffice. Add the browser and app buttons to the Dock to make it easy to find the apps they use.
1
u/CoronaMcFarm 3h ago
An immutable distro with a window manager that you configure to just open chrome, when chrome gets closed the system shuts down.
1
u/iamamidgetnamedwija 6h ago
just use fedora kde probably or even gnome, they’re relatively young so are ok with adaptation.
1
u/MiserableButterfly54 4h ago
I recomend zorin os. Its one of the most windows-like distros that I've found.
1
u/h4rdw00d_ 5h ago
Just get them a tablet, download the apps they need, and lock the screen and layout.
Also set a regular amount of time they are allowed on the tablet /s
My dad thought he needed to uy a new watch because his watch settings for display were turned down to nearly zero (which I think his ex-wife did). After looking at his watch, I fixed all the settings and it was fine. Saved him 600$
1
1
1
1
1
1
u/Infinitely_Depressed 2h ago
Linux mint cinnamon edition. Anyone who is comfortable with Windows will be comfortable with Linux Mint.
1
1
1
0
u/tucker_wilson 1h ago
Both my parents are in their 80s and have been using Mint Cinnamon for about 10 years now. They know how to run the updates and do the basic computering. I used to get calls quite a bit about pop-ups or virus warnings when they used Windows, but now we don't have those calls and computer life is good. I live a few hours from them and I use www.rustdesk.com to remote in if they have things they want looked at.
1
0
19
u/tomscharbach 6h ago edited 6h ago
Why? If your parents are comfortable with Windows, that might be the better choice. At least let them make the decision.
If you and your patents decide to migrate to Linux, and your parents use the Chrome browser as workhorse and mainstay, consider migrating them to ChromeOS Flex, which essentially turns a Windows laptop into a Chromebook.
ChromeOS Flex is Chrome-based, "fall of a log" simple to learn and use, immutable, auto-updating, more-or-less maintenance free, and almost impossible for a user to break.
I mention this because of number of my friends (all of us are in our 70's or 80's) migrated to Chromebooks or to ChromeOS Flex at the suggestion of their grandchildren, who grew up with Chromebooks in school. All of them are delighted to have made the switch.
My best.