Honestly, Day 1’ers, I’d rather they run Debian, Mint, Ubuntu, or Fedora. There are strong communities that are noob friendly. Go ahead and install Steam, get some games working, get their feet wet. 99% of the time, they don’t need more than basic stuff. Once they’re over being afraid of not being in windows, then start distro hopping to whatever they want.
I can really suggest Mint for beginners simply because it has an UI for about everything you need somewhat regularly. This means, that you can use GUIs to get familiar and aren’t forced to know your way around the terminal. Its the Ideal beginner Distros (at least from my experience)
That’s exactly it though. For most people using an OS isn’t about using the OS but about getting stuff done.
I don’t run an OS because I love writing config files and running obscure CLI commands. I run an OS because I want a working browser, text editor, development setup and games. The OS is nothing but a means to an end.
If I want to tinker, I got dozens of more fun projects in my life than trying to setup an OS.
And if there’s a good GUI way to do what I need, that’s a win, not a downside.
To put it differently: Do you want a hackable microwave that you can tweak and modify, where you can swap out the guts at any time, or do you want a microwave that heats your food? Most people are in the second camp, and PCs are just like microwaves a tool to get things done.
Not being forced to know your way around the terminal is an absolute win. Don’t be afraid, nobody’s going to take your CLI from you. It will always still exist. But dumping on people who don’t want to tinker but want their stuff to work without having to google and read through manuals is just elitism and nothing to be proud of.
CachyOS has been flawless on my S/O’s desktop. From an easy install to plenty of documentation available, I couldn’t have asked for much more. During install, there’s an entire step dedicated to checking a box if you want to play games. (To enable non-free drivers).
But for real, I think you misunderstand the point of documentation. Even if something were truly, literally flawless, having documentation would still be a net gain. It isn’t only to fix something when it goes wrong, but explains how things are working. If the only way for something to be literally flawless in your world view is for it to be so self explanatory that an idiot seeing it for the first time still understands it perfectly, nothing in computing can be flawless in that way.
The pedantry on this point is so unhelpful as to be actively harmful to the rest of the discussion.
🤞pleasejustpickbazzite pleasejustpickbazzite pleasejustpickbazzite🤞
oh god dammit
I’M FED UP, GOING TO INSTALL LINUX!
I’M FED UP, THIS IS TOO HARD, I’M GOING BACK TO WINDOWS!
If you want to use arch for the first time use an already setup distro like Manjaro.
Honestly, Day 1’ers, I’d rather they run Debian, Mint, Ubuntu, or Fedora. There are strong communities that are noob friendly. Go ahead and install Steam, get some games working, get their feet wet. 99% of the time, they don’t need more than basic stuff. Once they’re over being afraid of not being in windows, then start distro hopping to whatever they want.
I can really suggest Mint for beginners simply because it has an UI for about everything you need somewhat regularly. This means, that you can use GUIs to get familiar and aren’t forced to know your way around the terminal. Its the Ideal beginner Distros (at least from my experience)
That’s exactly it though. For most people using an OS isn’t about using the OS but about getting stuff done.
I don’t run an OS because I love writing config files and running obscure CLI commands. I run an OS because I want a working browser, text editor, development setup and games. The OS is nothing but a means to an end.
If I want to tinker, I got dozens of more fun projects in my life than trying to setup an OS.
And if there’s a good GUI way to do what I need, that’s a win, not a downside.
To put it differently: Do you want a hackable microwave that you can tweak and modify, where you can swap out the guts at any time, or do you want a microwave that heats your food? Most people are in the second camp, and PCs are just like microwaves a tool to get things done.
Not being forced to know your way around the terminal is an absolute win. Don’t be afraid, nobody’s going to take your CLI from you. It will always still exist. But dumping on people who don’t want to tinker but want their stuff to work without having to google and read through manuals is just elitism and nothing to be proud of.
Are you looking for fellow Bazzite users? (I’m one of them)
Good to meet you brother/sister! We walk a rather lonesome road but glad I stand alongside you
I’m standing slightly to the left of you.
I’m standing slightly to the right of you.
I am trying out Kinoite now but it’s very similar. I think the immutable distros are best for people who want a “Just works” experience to start with.
CachyOS has been flawless on my S/O’s desktop. From an easy install to plenty of documentation available, I couldn’t have asked for much more. During install, there’s an entire step dedicated to checking a box if you want to play games. (To enable non-free drivers).
I don’t think it was a poor choice.
Flawless wouldn’t require any documentation.
They didn’t say it required documentation, they said it had plenty of documentation should you need it.
And I’m telling you to grab a dictionary and lookup what flawless means
Damnit, you’re right!
But for real, I think you misunderstand the point of documentation. Even if something were truly, literally flawless, having documentation would still be a net gain. It isn’t only to fix something when it goes wrong, but explains how things are working. If the only way for something to be literally flawless in your world view is for it to be so self explanatory that an idiot seeing it for the first time still understands it perfectly, nothing in computing can be flawless in that way.
The pedantry on this point is so unhelpful as to be actively harmful to the rest of the discussion.