To this day I can't figure out why people still drink the windows koolaid.

It's less secure, slower, bloatier (is that a word?), Comes with ads, intrudes on privacy, etc. People say it's easier to use than Linux, but 99% of what anyone does happens on a chrome based web browser which is the same on all systems!

When it comes to dev, it boggles the mind that people will virtualize a Linux kernel in Windows to use npm, docker, k8s, pip, composer, git, vim, etc. What is Windows doing for you but making your life more complicated? All your favorite browsers and IDEs work on Linux, and so will your commands out of the box.

Maybe an argument can be made for gaming, but that's a chicken an egg scenario. Games aren't built for Linux because the Linux market is too small to be worth supporting, not that the games won't work on it...

It works and for most purposes has less driver issues than Linux.

This is how it goes for most of us:

When you are introduced to computers with Windows (which is the case for most people), then you stay with Windows.
You try something else and it feels so foreign and complicated.
And your games don’t run on it.
You never bother to go deeper into other OS and dismiss everything that is different from Windows as bad.
Linux is too complicated and macOS is for rich Apple fanboys.

It's less secure?
No, it's just targeted more due to the fact 95% of the world uses it, as you pointed out with your gaming comment!

It's slower?
Sure, but that also depends on what software you've installed too.

It's bloated?
Better believe it, but you can like any other OS remove shit!

It comes with ads?
Not really, it comes with semi-installed candy crush and a few other things, again, very easy to disable!

Intrudes on privacy?
Name 1 fucking price of software or OS without any, and I mean ANY kind of telemetry, even if it's just debug logging, everything tracks you, even if you aren't on a networked attached device.

We virtualise Linux on windows?
I do not for day-to-day, most things can run on windows natively that I need, and when it doesn't I'll just run a VM for a Linux machine instead of blogging down the .env paths with more shit.

what is windows doing for me?
Nothing Linux would solve, it sits there and does what the fuck I tell it to do!
Unless it's undergoing updates, and they break the MBR... that's a bitch, but otherwise 💪

All my favourite stuff works on Linux?
Sure, but I'm also a rampant gamer, and to that end, windows is king!

Paying to have Microsoft spy on you, what a deal !!!!

@C0D4 Good luck with your naked OS

People use Windows because people use Windows. Windows Phone failed because people weren't using Windows on phones.

@electrineer pretty much spot on.

Gamers are a big market. Steam is working hard to win them over to Linux, and with them game devs. If that happens, Linux might become more mainstream, but even then, you'll end up with one flavour of Linux that actually works out of the box (unlike the Linux experience of old) that everyone uses, quite possibly supported by Valve.

simple:

1. unlike 95% of linux flavors, the installation DOESN'T fail to boot for unknown reasons.

2. it enables me to USE my computer without having to spend 80% of the time server-adminning it.

3. the UX ISN'T shit

4. i have no issue finding a program/tool to do anything i need/want within 3 minutes.

5. my choices of installation of software aren't just "moronic package manager" or "spend hours trying to compile it from source"

6. it just works. wifi works, drivers work, everything works.

7. so i can just use the fucking system instead of having to admin and debug it 80% of the time.

any followup questions?

3.5. the software for it ISN'T shit (unless it's a port of something that's originally for linux) and the UX of the software (usually, unless it's port of something originally from linux) ISN'T shit

because it is more mainstream there's more support to windows than linux. drivers, software, games etc

Man, this old song again. 😒

@C0D4 I've never had a broken MBR

Can it run outlook? Cuz that’s my biggest problem at work. Gotta use OWA shit…

Also what’s with fwupd totally hanging the system once a day so I have to kill power via power button? 2000s want their bugs back.

@neriald yeah, exchange is a PITA. Evolution can work with it but the calendar and working with meeting invites is very underwhelming.

@iiii my last one was a Friday night, laptop just froze for no real reason and wouldn't boot, took about 90 minutes for it to get past the "windows is trying to fix your pc" bullshit, once it actually made it that far.

I'll admit it's rare though, but a "no, I think I'll do it myself" button at that point would go a long way.

work: mac
gaming: windows

@C0D4 wow. In my case even uptades don't bother me: they are blocked from rebooting automatically and configured so that majority is installed without a reboot, so I don't notice anything almost ever.

@C0D4 that’s some weird shit, but I think the freezing problem I have with ubuntu work laptop is similarly weird and edge case too.

For the average user, the windows UI is easier to work with than the average Linux distro desktop UI.

General use: Linux has the huge issue of a toxic community saying stuff they don’t have is shit until its implemented.

2004: “The usb drives? Who needs it!? And btw its easy to fix, just do [hypercomplex task]!”

2010: “Audio drivers and YouTube? Yeah if you are using it you are not productive and its simple to fix” (spoiler its not)

2016: “WPS? Lol, windows users can’t write down passwords.”

Workwise: we are getting there as we’re abandoning office in favour of drive suite, but its not a plus… the offline alternatives are lacking at best.
Gaming: still shitty and makes it hard af to play some games and/or use some peripherals, the fact there are knockoff versions of popular games make it look low quality tho
Video/Audio editing: lacks good software
Writing: heck, obsidian is enough, so any os is fine

Linux is ok-ish, but a lot of things are easier to do on windows. Add a sick love for the cli and a toxic community and you have your answer.

Corporate shit.
Some asshole suite in the top brass signed a contract and Microsoft and thus the company must use windows.
That easy, and inescapable. Very fitting for the kool-aid reference, where most people were forced to drink it.

For programing without company-mandated ms-aid? Maybe because the product is built for windows or must run in IE, but in that case it counts as company mandated anyway.

For video and audio editing it is the same as gaming, some highly specialized software for a specific task. People will use it regardless of platform.

For cloud native, mobile or platform independent software it's just bonkers not to do it straight on Linux.

@JsonBoa well, until the world runs on companies and the highly specialised software is still windows only… the point stands “^^

+ the “loving the cli” is a huge point. Normies and tired people (evening, weekends) don’t want to have to go to an obscure forum to find a line to fix what should be a simple checkbox on an interface.
Nor to learn a whole os to fix something which should be fixed already.

People don't usually choose linux, windows drives them to it. But that mostly happens to specialists like us here depending on what we need. I couldn't bear the retarded loading and boot times if Windows and obscene updates. The last drop was when I was sold a Windows 10 laptop with a HDD and Windows 10 silently doesn't Support HDDs anymore. It just bashes them with superfetch and updates. So I switched. I just wont support a product I hate. But if it works for others and they can bare it, that's their right. Im a technical guy, I can deal with Linux shit all day, at least I can fix everything even if the price is recompiling the kernel... However It's obvious why that isn't a solution for most. The power of linux comes at a considerable skill requirement, otherwise you'll just break it even more if something breaks

I’m really into Linux but job forces me to use Windows, I still use Linux at home.