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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).

Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.

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Is Linux (dumb)user friendly yet? (lemmy.ca)

submitted 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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So I'm building a new computer before the end of the year and lemmy is obviously pushing me towards Linux.

I am not computer savvy, I have a family member that will help me set up my PC, but I do not want to be calling/messaging them every day when I want to open a program.

Basically my question comes down to: can I operate a Linux PC these days without needing to troubleshoot or type code.

I use my computer about once a week for a few hours I would say, so any time spent troubleshooting is time wasted.

Thanks!

EDIT: since a lot of people are asking what programs I typically use, I'll just list my most used programs.

Word, Excel, ect(I'm fine with alternatives)

Spotify

Gimp (would have been a make or break, so I'm glad it's supported)

Brave browser (browser is a browser)

Steam

Discord

I would say that while I could figure out how the kernels work, I'm at a point with computers these days where I don't have the time. My priorities fall with a seamless daily experience. If I have the time to figure something out I can, but ideally my day to day usage being unbotherd is what I'm after.

A lot of the comments so far have been helpful! I'm definitely going to give Linux a fair shot with my new build, probably start with Mint.

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago (2 children)

Most of that sounds pretty easy to pull off. I have a few thoughts, though:

What games do you run in Steam?
Just a bit of a warning: Discord is annoying about updates, at least with the Debian version. I can't remember what the Flatpak does.
For MS Office, most distros should come with LibreOffice. If you have problems with LibreOffice, then Google Docs should be fine.
You'll have to run Spotify from the browser, but I imagine that won't be a problem, as you're probably not an audiophile
Run GIMP as a Flatpak, as distro versions tend to have weird bugs with the resynthesizer plugin.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago (2 children)

On Fedora AFAIK you can have Spotify app.

[–] Infernal_pizza 2 points 3 months ago

It’s on Arch and Debian as well which means it’s on basically every distro

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago

I had no idea there was even a native Spotify port for Linux.

[–] Peasley 1 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (1 children)

Re: Discord

You can edit a text file to get it to stop checking for updates. IDK if this is viable on Debian but on Fedora it was never more than 1 update behind so I never had an issue in years

I think it's on the Archwiki, but it applies to any Linux

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I added an apt repo someone had created. I've checked how it works, and it's just a CI routine pulling the latest Discord package for the website and throwing it in a repo.

[–] Peasley 1 points 3 months ago

That sounds like another good solution!