To continue a thought. . . .
I expect to get some push-back (that’s OK) from people who know and feel differently, but I feel confident that desktop Linux is not right or not ready for some people.
These include:
- avid gamers, because few games are ported to Linux
- most new-to-Linux laptop users, because of scattershot hardware incompatibilities
- people dependent on a particular piece of obscure or specialized software
For most everyone else, there is probably a Linux solution for you.
Indeed, I think it would be ideal for
- schools, community centers and libraries, where browsing users are prone to find viruses online
- those who use — out of necessity or hobbyist or environmental interest — very old hardware
- those who prize community involvement, participatory governance, subsidiarity and sustainability among their core values
- or all of these, in sum, nonprofits or do-gooders who need a full-featured, stable, laterally-developed and non-stolen operating system and software
Linux isn’t going to work for everyone, but I suspect my regular readers are a better fit for it than the general public. Month by month the “start-up costs” of adopting Linux for non-tech people is dropping.
You miss the most important sector: those who would love to get rid of Windows (and Microsoft in general). š
Scott,
This is a great list. To the list of those Linux is not for: those committed to using very new hardware. Forget about syncing the latest palm/treo, the newest printers, the fastest new video cards, etc. The drivers take time to reverse engineer, and very few hardware vendors ship drivers for Linux.
And, given my latest travail, it seems you may have to shop around for the distribution that gives you the easiest time with those new, new bits of hardware.