Listen up Linux evangelists. Here is how you get users on Linux:
YOU DO NOT TELL THEM IT’S FUCKING LINUX.
Don’t talk about operating systems, M$ Winblows, open vs. closed source, security, privacy, STFU and deliver Linux.
I used to make “little old lady” laptops and PCs. “Oh! You know computers? Can you fix mine? I can’t afford much.”
Yes. And I’ll do it for free.
Take it apart, dust it out, throw in whatever spare parts ya got laying around, install an SSD, see if that old CPU will fit, new heatsink grease, Load Linux Lite, get all the drivers working, hook it to their WIFI, show them how to get email and browse.
Done. STFU about Linux. Nobody cares but nerds. They don’t know it isn’t Windows, and they don’t need to know.
Not one of those folks ever called me back to repair their machine.
This is what I do with my SOs mothers pc, she recently complained that the (15 yo) pc was slow to boot so I’m redoing it in the near future.
perhaps for that particular group… though i had a friend whose old af macbook air had stopped updating literally years ago, and he still used it because it still worked… but then apps slowly stopped working
i installed linux on it, and he was actually really keen to give linux itself a go, and it worked great for him!
i gave him an old macbook a little while after that, and he’s back on macos now, but he said he’d switch back in a heartbeat if there were problems (slowness, update compatibility, etc)
i guess the thing being he’s not really technical enough to care about the OS other than outcomes, but also was actually interested in linux itself to learn for the sake of it… he’s a lab tech, and vibe codes data manipulation tools, so not a lot of IT-related skills, but always interested in learning
for people who do not care about OSs, yes. but if they care about OSs, or you believe they actually want to know about it, you tell them
remember, nothing is black and white!
The type of person that cares will bring it up when you talk about what they use their computer for.
yes, but not the kind of person that would care but doesn’t even know the concept yet.
This is the way. “I don’t want to learn another operating system!” - My mom, dealing with Windows 10 EOL. All she needs is LibreOffice set to look like Excel/Word, and FF.
The company I work for just announced that we are switching to Windows 11. I’m considering quitting.
I recently installed mint on my laptop and I’m stumped trying to get my bluetooth headphones and windows’ shared folders to work, I can see why most people don’t use linux
bluetooth can be a common frustration point, but the Windows shared folders should work. Do you mind me asking what you’ve tried so far?
Schools run Windows?
These days it is all Chrome OS
Back in my day my school used windows. Activated by the computers teacher from some bootleg cd, as god intended.
Me when my 13yo daughter shows me how she can draw on her ipad on her mint box because she found, downloaded, and stood up weylus all by herself.
Thank you ! I’ve been looking for something like this
The school computers are probably using ChromeOS, which is arguably worse.
They all got issued some cheapo dell laptops, but abso windows ive seen them ha ha
Wonder if they are thin clients. I remember setting up some Dell thin and zero clients using Windows for a state college in Florida a few years back. 2019 I think. Everything being forced into OneDrive storage for their personal files, but it made it so they could sit down at any desk, and pull the computer up out of the desk and login and have their crap while it all being very locked down/managed.
I don’t think they are, she was able to bring it home and use it for homework
