this post was submitted on 04 Sep 2024
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Is Linux (dumb)user friendly yet? (lemmy.ca)
submitted 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) by Noved@lemmy.ca to c/linux@lemmy.ml
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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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[–] data1701d@startrek.website 5 points 2 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.
[–] ElvenMithril@lemmy.dbzer0.com 5 points 2 months ago (2 children)

On Fedora AFAIK you can have Spotify app.

[–] Infernal_pizza@lemmy.world 2 points 2 months ago

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

[–] data1701d@startrek.website 2 points 2 months ago

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

[–] Peasley@lemmy.world 1 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 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

[–] data1701d@startrek.website 2 points 2 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@lemmy.world 1 points 2 months ago

That sounds like another good solution!