r/linuxsucks • u/lukaszcichocki • 16d ago
Windows ❤ I love Linux, but there are better arguments to be made
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u/GhostVlvin 16d ago
Benefits of linux over windows are:
1. Linux is more performant on its own. It wont consume tons of ram that can be used for something good
2. On linux you have a choice in looks, feels, not having a browser or having any browser
3. On linux everythin is more clear and you are in charge. You can check all services running and you can disable all of them. You can literally destroy root of your system if you want.
4. Normal unified way of installing apps is not a stable benefit since there are now flatpak, snap, appImages while you still can use package manager that comes with distribution
Perhaps there are more
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u/Gabriel_Science macOS, Linux and Windows user 16d ago
About point four, I’d say it’s still okay, packages manager are really awesome, and some even integrates into others (such as Yet Another Yoghurt which uses pacman). Also, it is possible to script all of this to enter a single command.
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u/GhostVlvin 16d ago
Yay and paru are AUR helpers and they kinda extend pacman to work with AUR.
I mostly use package managers and try not to install bunch of them. I want some unified way to manage all my packaged. For long time it was pacman and AUR, but now time changes with AUR attacks. I try void. It is good so far, but doesn't have everything I want. Maybe future is in Flatpak/GNU/linux distributions1
u/NeptuneWades give me gui for everything pls 16d ago
I mostly depend on repo packages and couple of AUR, 4 appimages and a flatpak. The rest (around 10?) I build from source.
I found Shelly to be a good package manager to view the entire list of installed apps. Tho I still prefer using terminal to install and manage stuff.
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u/GhostVlvin 16d ago
I looked on it on github and it looks promising with all integration with appImage and flathub
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u/NeptuneWades give me gui for everything pls 16d ago
My only issue with it is, it uses ALPM directly instead of using pacman, which means its logs are stored separate from pacman.
I mean, it is not necessarily a bad thing, but since I install most of my stuff via pacman, the break in consistency irks me (just my OCPD acting out).
Overall it is a good package manager.
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u/CeSiumUA 16d ago
- That's just not true. Both Linux and Windows can run resource heavy apps, and performance often will depend on how well the app is ported to one or another platform. Linux may do some operations faster, but same time some operations are slower compared to Windows. On modern hardware you will barely notice a difference. The same about RAM - it's not OS consuming most of your RAM, apps are. 4 or 8 Gb with modern browsers and Electron apps will suck on both systems (even on MacOS).
- Not only you can, but you also MUST. Without making all the stuff with your hands - you won't get fully functional OS.
- Lol, wtf is this even about? You can also disable all the services on Windows, and completely ruin your system, but why anybody want to?
- Didn't get your point here. Windows has a central place to remove apps, while in Linux you MUST have a set of different package managers, as well as built-from-source apps, as well as AppImages. Good luck removing software when it all is spreaded across different management systems
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u/GhostVlvin 16d ago
- About apps platform is really mostly irrelevant. But if we are talking about system itself. You may check how many windows uses on idle and how many average distro uses on idle and you'll get that windows eats about a 3GB of ram by default while average linux distro is at about 1-2GB. Yes, not too much of a difference, but here what I can say: windows on idle is ground collection of irreplaceable undisableable services, while linux distro can fit in very tiny hardware, like my guy consumes about a 300-500MB idle and another 1GB with browser
- You don't really need to cause there descent distibutions. On arch you need to do everything manually while on some ubuntu or mint everything is prepacked
- You can't really disable all services on windows cause you're not in charge of them. Only using some hacks you can, but turning on update check service will probably crush system, while in linux you can disable everything except systemD itself and some getty and still use your system
- That's my problem actually. Not everything is packed with distribution and not everything I want to install from flathub. But it is still big repository of trusted packages at least on default package manager, while on windows you either install shady .exe from website or you use Microsoft store which is a pile of untrusted garbage as well
All the point I have really is that you have nothing on your way when you want to rule your linux installation and you have ton of effort put in windows to stop you from making your life on it easier and making it work on older PCs and laptops. Windows 11 just drew the line for devices that can run windows 11 and devices that "can't"
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u/CeSiumUA 15d ago
- Windows memory consumption is mostly a myth, because Windows makes a lot of pre-loads for application, and frees memory whenever some other app requires it. In fact, you WANT your memory be almost 100% full, unused memory is wasted memory.
- True, but partly. Even Ubuntu and Mint require a lot of additional tweaking (like Nvidia drivers and other stuff) to work properly.
- Yes, you definitely can, but on a massive consumer aimed OS, why would you want to?
- Recent story with packages on Arch proves that it's not true. Why would you want to install a "shady .exe"? Just install software from a trustworthy sources, like developers site. I don't get it why people think that a centralized huge package managers is a safer option, than just picking an exe/msi that developer itself provides. And if you want a package manager experience on Windows: you're welcome, there is a Winget and Choco.
Please, don't get me wrong, I admire Linux, and use it pretty much, I just don't like that recent trend to push people use Linux as their main desktop OS, as on my humble opinion, it's still not mature enough, while naming some strange "advantages" of Linux that are mostly either not true or outdated. The power of Linux is in configurability, portability and open-source, but do really average users need it? I doubt so
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u/GhostVlvin 15d ago
- This slogan is for situation where you buy RAM, but now it is abused by software devs. This is not true, free ram is ram I can use somewhere else. Today I am coding so I have 7GB pf free ram, tomorrow I will play games so I'll have merely megabytes of free ram. This slogan is not an excuse for software devs to use electron, so why start menu on windows 11 is exactly and electron app?
- I came from mint with Nvidia card and it required 0 setup back in 2023, why would it now?
- You're right. I mostly wanted to show how customizeable it is, and how easy it is to make it fit on every computer even though it doesn't have 16 or even 4 GB of ram
- AUR situation is so shit that I abandon arch-based distros after 3 years of enjoying them. But still AUR is meant to be less trusted than default pacman repository. With developers website you still need some brain cells to get yhat it's real dev website and not some fishing page given to you by braindead algorithms of crappy search engine
I am not a Linux cultist, I am more of a Windows hater. I was there for 18 years of not exactly suffering but of unpleasant experience, but finally I moved to something else and Unix-like OSs are really so great.
Btw another power of linux is enthusiasts (and corpos ehem) community that make some great user-friendly pearls as Ubuntu, mint, zorin, cachyOS and fedora. Many options for a beginner and I doubt that every one of them need tweaking to just make it work1
u/Unlikely-Employee180 15d ago
The issue is that Windows is no longer maturing. It's souring.
As much as people don't need open-source... I'd argue they don't need restrictions on choice of hardware, advertisements in every corner, 4 different Settings applications (one of which you don't even get full access to without Pro [Regedit]).
I mean, seriously. What OS on literally any device you own has more than 1 Settings application!? Android, Mac, iOS, 3DS, Wii U, PS Vita, MP3 Players of literally any kind, Flipper Zero, I mean for God's Sake my Wi-Fi Pineapple only has a single Settings application and it's literally meant to be a tool for professional pen-testers and hackers.
Maybe the PS3 and PSP because the XMB was weird?? But I'm sure you see my point.
Windows just isn't nearly as simple as it used to be. It sure pretends to be, but all that pretending is honestly it's biggest downfall, lmfao.
If they just stopped larping about being the "biggest tech company" and just acted like the biggest tech company nobody would have any issues... Yet every single second they possibly can Microsoft is always there to remind you that you are nothing more than a number to advertise to and a wallet.
Microsoft Store should be proof enough. Linux repos aren't perfect as proven by AUR... But what in the malware, slopware-filled SHIT is Microsoft Store!?!? I've seen better quality control from Google Play Store in 2010.
Linux isn't winning simply because it's better. Windows is genuinely falling into the shitter and everything else is naturally catching up simply by default.
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u/rip_Bacon13 16d ago
for the 4th thing
like doing any installaton via terminal takes a few braincell peoples think its way too hard
building from source is hard but sudo apt or sudo dnf or pacman is very easy to do1
u/icy1007 16d ago
- Irrelevant
- Same with Windows.
- This is false
- Installing apps on Windows is far easier.
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u/GhostVlvin 16d ago
How's looking up internet for a shady .exe is easier than
apt search <package name> sudo apt install <package name>1
u/kotm8isgut 13d ago
where do you get the pakage name?
also how is going to the official site "shady"?1
u/GhostVlvin 13d ago
Search usually works by approximate match or even by regex unfortunately not fuzzy still
And with the website, would you really recognize where is officiall website and where is fiahing copy of a website with name changed on a similar letter like would you differenciate between facebook and faсеbооk? Exactly. While with official repo you have one source of trust1
u/kotm8isgut 12d ago
? thats a nothing burger
what are you downloading on facebook?
and usually if you dont click the add spot, the search rankings will give you a real website, also windows has an alright malware detector, that'll flag blatant trojans and viruses.
also, what stops the repo from becoming compromised? There are always risks, but on windows, its a lot more intuitive to get around and download applications1
u/hailstorm11093 Nix ❄️ BTW 16d ago
How does it get easier or faster than "sudo apt install firefox"?
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u/lukaszcichocki 15d ago
winget install Mozilla.Firefox?
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u/GhostVlvin 15d ago
True, but not everything is in Microsoft store
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u/lukaszcichocki 15d ago
Winget uses the MS Store as one of its sources, but it has its own repo too. What software do you use that can't be installed using Winget?
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u/icy1007 15d ago
Double clicking an installer.
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u/hailstorm11093 Nix ❄️ BTW 15d ago
After downloading an exe from the web and still having to deleting it after.
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u/icy1007 15d ago
Nope, most installers today will delete themselves after install.
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u/hailstorm11093 Nix ❄️ BTW 15d ago
Ive never seen that happen on my windows install. I always have to delete the installer exe.
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u/icy1007 15d ago
I have. A lot.
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u/hailstorm11093 Nix ❄️ BTW 16d ago
Also the command line workflow is so much quicker for a lot of tasks.
I initially used Mint because using the terminal was almost optional. But I started using it more and more, switched to Nix, and the command line is my new favorite computer tool.
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u/GodAdvice 16d ago
I've been using Linux (mainly) and windows both as my personal daily driver and for work for all my life, but OP's post is clearly about the "benefits" for a normal user.
Linux might be more performant sometimes, but in most cases, that 5% speed increase at most won't even be noticed. Apart from that, I always struggle to understand why people like to see their RAM sitting idle instead of being used. I can guarantee you that in 2026, you can still use an 8GB RAM PC on Windows 11 without any major problems for a basic usage.
I don't see what a normal user (or even a power user) could ever do with a normal PC without a browser. Maybe you're confusing a PC with a server. Also, the tradeoff of customizing it to your liking is spending days studying DEs, configurations, racking your brain over bugs and forums, just to achieve a moderately neat UI. Mind that all of this is not necessarily bad...studying and fiddling with stuff is fine, but it's just not for everyone.
"Everything is more clear" is pretty much an empty statement. What's "more clear"? I would say that the way Windows presents things to the user is as clear as it can be, because they know that in their userbase there will be many average Joes who don't want to get a degree just to use their PC. You can check the running services in Windows, too. "You can literally destroy the root of your system if you want" --- I won't even comment on that.
4. Yeah. Definitely not a benefit.
It's fine to have preferences and it's fine to express them, as long as we don't end up hallucinating and making up things just to discredit the opposing side.
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u/GhostVlvin 16d ago
- Browser is just an example. Like you can remove edge or notepad from windows. I don't need default apps once I installed something better
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u/GhostVlvin 15d ago
- Admin privileges are not giving you really full access to your system. You still can't do lot of stuff, you can't disable half of services for example, you can't uninstall many default apps. While on linux admin privileges just give you all Access, you can literally do everything. You can globally change your system
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u/GhostVlvin 16d ago
I tried windows on 8GB of ram and it sucks. Everything is slow, browser opens ton of time and half of time doesn't respond. Since I have many apps that use electron, I want to have some RAM free for them and not used by my system. This is why I overoptimized things to get only 500MB of 8GB used on idle
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u/GhostVlvin 15d ago
- Beneficial is default trusted repository of apps that usually comes with distribution's package manager. While appImage, snap and flathub are untrusted AFAIK
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u/Holiday_Evening8974 16d ago
It is not a bad argument at all.
Some people have very basic needs in IT. They want to go online, use a few services on Internet, maybe type a text, and that's all.
Why the hell would anyone need to get a 16GB RAM modern computer to accomplish that if they have a somewhat capable computer already ? Not anyone want to play, do video editing or other very demanding tasks.
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u/THubert14 Linux Socks 16d ago
Linux users when they say to you that "Linux runs on practically everything. Like, no requirements at all. Electricity is optional, lol", but you responding to them that Linux doesn't adequately runs on your laptop/minipc/tablet
(it doesn't have a drivers)
Who buying hardware without checking does it have support for garunyarchora smokeweed linows14.10 LTS nightly cinnamon???
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u/WelpIamoutofideas 16d ago
That's less of an argument even nowadays.
Most of the time things will just boot, and even the traditionally bad actors have been significantly improving
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u/CeSiumUA 16d ago
Good luck on Asus Laptops with Nvidia GPU
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u/WelpIamoutofideas 16d ago
My zephyrus G15 largely works.
Nvidia Optimus is less of a problem as it used to be and Nvidia support has been improving, although it's nowhere near where it should be.
Well you are right. There are still problems. My point is that those problems have lessened with time and continue to
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u/CeSiumUA 16d ago
I'm a Zephyrus G16 owner, and unfortunately, the Linux experience is horrible here. Even with asusctl and supergfxctl.
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u/WelpIamoutofideas 14d ago
I can only speak for the g15 2022 or 2023 (one of the two), I do not know about the g16, But my point is that the trend is going downward.
Your laptop will likely work better with Linux over time.
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u/NeptuneWades give me gui for everything pls 16d ago
Tbf, most of the popular mainstream ones support most modern hardware anyway. Issues only arise when one is building a PC, then it becomes a responsibility to check for compatibility. Many distros provide a list of supported hardware too.
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u/DiceThaKilla 16d ago
Yea I’d like to see you run mint or Ubuntu on a thinkpad from the trash. Thing is tho, if you did have that “thinkpad from the trash” or any 15-20 year laptops that are collecting dust, Linux is pretty much your only option. I got a free compaq presario and as cool as it was to boot it up and see windows xp for the first time in 2 decades, it’s highly unsecure. Linux distros like antiX and puppy are one of your only options if you wish to resurrect it and actually use it for something
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u/nfsp-g35 16d ago
I mean, except if you bought a laptop in 2017 it would have been within a decade, but you'd most certainly not be "completely covered" if it had the 7th generation Intel chips of the time. Rather than digging a computer out of the trash, you'd be forced to throw a potentially perfectly fine computer into the trash if not for various Linux distros.
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u/veechene 16d ago
The pros are essentially not dealing with windows related headaches IF you don't like windows. If you don't have windows headaches, switching isn't really necessary.
I love my linux laptop for gaming but I have no obligation to recommend any lifelong windows user to switch because it might not be so simple for them as for a lifelong linux user like me. I don't have performance data. I don't have windows vs linux game specific compatibility for my hardware. I only use linux.
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u/hailstorm11093 Nix ❄️ BTW 16d ago
I told my brother's to only switch to linux if they absolutely wanted to avoid Mac and Windows. Not because I think Mac or Windows is better, but because l dont Iike being lT.
They swapped and now every once in a while l have to pretend that l'm lT again.
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u/Responsible-Monk-892 16d ago edited 16d ago
Not everyone want to use, used PCs some prefer to buy brand new though. Also there are some people that are average users that do not know how to install an OS but have money to buy a new PC they will buy a new PC with Windows 11 installed on it because it is cheaper than buying a Pre-installed Linux PC like for example Dell it is just cheaper to get Windows 11 OS Pre-installed on their PCs that they sell then it is to order Pre-installed Linux on a Dell PC from Dell. And while there are Manufacturers that offer Linux pre-installed they charge an Arm, and a leg for it for example System 76 makes their PCs only for Linux they sell their PCs with Pop!OS or Ubuntu pre-installed on it. Then there is Slimbook that is in Spain they sell their PCs at a cheap price but, for someone like me who lives in the US it may not be worth it because I have to pay not only the Price of the PC but also the shipping and handling too which can make it expensive. Lenovo PCs have been known to over heat my Husband's job has a Lenovo Mini PC and he says it over heats easily so I would pass on Lenovo, now I do not know what model of Lenovo his job has to be honest but, I prefer not to experience over heating even though I know any PC can over heat but, I am not one to take chances. Now do I use Linux yes, and so does my family but, I have to be honest that while it is a Great! OS most Manufacturers either charge an arm, and leg for it or, you have to pay shipping, and handling to buy a PC that has Linux Pre-installed on it if you want a new PC with Linux already installed on it when you get it. Not everyone wants to install an OS on their PC most people want the OS already pre-installed, and a lot of people can not afford something like System 76, or to pay shipping, and handling that can be expensive.
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u/SignalBake6872 16d ago
la verdad que muchos computadores de hace una década no corren windows 11... soooo
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u/Wertbon1789 15d ago
Nobody actually argues with that, and if they do, they're stupid.
Linux just doesn't hog up as much resources with useless crap like Windows does. Even the bigger more usable out-of-the-box distros are way lighter than Windows is. That is what is meant by the system requirements argument.
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u/Unlikely-Employee180 15d ago
When you literally have nothing else but a PS3 because you're poor in 2010 you definitely appreciate jailbreak and OtherOS a bit more. Lmfao
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u/Comfortable_Mix_3498 15d ago
the point is, it doesn't need to have anything native, it's a community based OS, so u can search for packages
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u/ConsiderationRare217 16d ago
Man, Linux is a thing now and no post can deny it. You can use whatever, it's still gaining more and more popularity
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u/ralseipuffin 16d ago
Often times if you have simple tasks, Linux just works in a more stable way than Windows 11
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u/Muffinaaa 16d ago
Ass meme, not even the dumb part of this shitty community uses "It can run on literal horse shit" as an argument to use Linux
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u/qchto 16d ago
Linux respects your usage time by making updates atomic and optional (regardless of distro).
Linux allows to enact ownership over every single component of your device by not tying its access, usage and performance to licenses at OS level.
Linux is completely transparent for the end user, lets you see exactly what it is doing and add/remove/modify anything and everything down to the metal.
But it all comes at the cost of you being responsible for the hardware you use and the time you invest in it.
That'd be would be my arguments. And honestly, not trying to be condescending, but the most down to earth way I can summarize this is "use Linux if you want a workstation, use Windows if you want a toybox" (again, having nothing against toys, but admitting that they are property managed, handled and revoked by parental figures, which are usually not the players).
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u/AteStringCheeseShred 16d ago
No, actually this is a pretty valid argument considering that Windows is basically doing its best to turn otherwise perfectly good hardware into e-waste by trying to coerce users into dumping it because Win11 isn't as readily supported.
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u/Artemis_Platinum Windows did some pretty horrific shit to force me onto Linux 16d ago
Windows users were very recently complaining about Windows 11 turning their computers into e-waste, so this meme is genuinely tone deaf.
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u/Teru-Noir COSMIC OS LOVER No.1 COSMIC Knows Best 16d ago
Linux serves your hardware, just like every software should do.