Good news for those with Nvidia still on the fence about Linux

[Envee]

On 10/28/2025 at 1:12 AM, Dangerzone said:

One of the big hurdles I see though with Linux is people deciding which Distro to use. So many people seem to be using so many distro's - I think that actually holds Linux back at times. I mean - which Distro is the best for people to migrate from Windows to? Is there one that stands out as being obvious, or is it very much a free-for-all? 

Try some. Try a few. Try them all. Dont even need to install to have a look. They can run inside a USB stick. If you do want to install....take windows drive physically out of computer. Leave in the drive you want to have linux on. Install linux and update then shut down. Physically install the windows drive again.

Keep the linux boot loader off of partition 1 on drive 1 and let it get installed on its own drive - you do this by having one single drive in the system to install on so it cant install the boot loader on the windows drive...which it does by default. If you dont then it gets installed on the windows drive and then troubles begin when M$ messes that partition up and then you cant boot at all. Neither OS will function when M$ chucks it up. And they will.

Most middle ranged MOBO's now have 2 M2 slots, so perfect for dual booters. Windows on one. Linux on the other.

Mint was fairly easy for me to get my head around. The look and feel is similar to windows, as is the UI. Most linux users would say to use Mint first. I use Nobara.

If you are a gamer though with modern hardware, even if you use nvidia, i would suggest Nobara. Apps necessary for linux gaming are installed and configured already. Just install steam, download your games or use a backup, then play. Just using steam and proton. No messing about with settings. Noob friendly. It shares many short cuts with windows. Look and feel is also similar. If you have all AMD hardware then your linux experience will be even easier. AMD drivers are already built into the kernel unlike the hack job that nvidia uses to get their drivers to work in linux. Both AMD and Nvidia are fine to use in linux and i have used both with no issues. Nvida has closed drivers so they need to do their things differently. I used my 3060 12 GB to game on linux. To use nvidia with nobara you just choose a different ISO where it all set up already. 

Nobara offers pre-configured and apps necessary for gaming are all loaded into the different ISO they offer. 

E.g. Nvidia with gnome desktop. Nvidia with cinnamon desktop. Nvidia with KDE desktop. They offer 9 different ISO's to suit your hardware and likes.

People here do not even have the up to date stats for linux users. We are now at %6, not the claimed %2.5 or whatever i read above. That figure is most likely low balling it. That %6 number comes from the US government itself, when they count people using google analytics on official US government sites.

Linux is used in greater numbers in poorer nations since they do not have to play for the OS but can still game on steam. They dont use US government sites.

Privacy aware people also hide their browser identifiers as these can be used to track you. This makes linux users not appear as linux users on government sites, so they do not get counted even though they are using linux.

All i am saying is that the number of users, i think, is more than the %6.

Windows 10 is dead. That number will rise now. In a years time it will rise again when 10 truly reaches end of life. Its on life support at the moment. For a year. Then its dead.

[Envee]

On 10/27/2025 at 11:25 PM, Dragon1-1 said:

None of that changes the fact that Linux is not going to be a mainstream consumer OS in the near future. Why's that? Microsoft has a tight grip on OEMs. That means everyone who doesn't buy a Mac will, by default, use Windows, unless some sort of Linux lobby comes around to pull OEMs off it.

In that case, you probably encountered a much bemoaned, but somehow indispensable species called the Non-Technical End User, or luser for short. Among their exploits are things such as power cycling the monitor when asked to reboot, immediately closing popups with vital information, or accidently deleting important documents. When undisturbed, they're generally capable of accomplishing simple tasks in Office, using the web browser or playing modern games. I'd like to know how you envision this species making a move to Linux at scale.

Like I said in the other thread, MS had been doing that since MS DOS. Linux might be gaining in the server market because servers are, generally, not bought off the shelf and set up with whatever OS came in the box. They're also set up by people whose IT skills extend beyond installing Chrome. Consumer hardware is, for most part, used with whatever OS had been shipped with it. Now, much of the community here runs custom gaming boxes festooned with exotic peripherals and optimized up the wazoo, but that's not exactly the norm.

M$ caught flak for bundling IE with the OS/computer. Google is taking flak and significant heat now for demanding phone manufacturer's bundle andriod and by proxy firefox. Who knows what M$ demands from hardware makers in order to use their OS but i bet there are more stings attached than we know about. Those strings might be illegal if they are forcing factories to bundle the OS. If you stop giving consumers a choice that tends to have consequences. We might see hardware being sold without an OS in the future. Pick your OS when you get home

I would ask the user to shut the computer down and then restart it. This is the way to do it. Dont use "big words" KISS. At least this is what was demanded of me, when i was studying for my certs. Even people on the other end of the phone can be talked though very complex tasks. Dont treat them like an idiot and explain things in terms they can understand.

The internet as you know it. Is run by and on, linux servers. linux servers have this corner of the market all to themselves. It is a monopoly. I would guess at least 2/3 or %65 of all computers that "serve" you the "net" are linux.. Maybe even more. 

Look. If people want to stay on windows. Cool. No sweat off of my back. I know why i left and that does not mean i have to force people to accept the same reasons and change. When people get sick of being abused by M$ maybe then is the time for people to leave. Some people just do not care about what it is that M$ plans and do already. They have been conditioned to accept those terms. Not me

[Dragon1-1]

3 minutes ago, Envee said:

If you stop giving consumers a choice that tends to have consequences. We might see hardware being sold without an OS in the future. Pick your OS when you get home

Err... there's already plenty of hardware being sold without an OS, you know that? Literally anything that isn't a complete, ready to go OEM machine will require you to install the OS of your choice. Leaving the OS out of a complete build makes about as much sense as leaving the storage out. Yes, a more discerning customer might want to chose their own HDD/SSD configuration (or transplant one from a previous computer, it's gotten surprisingly painless with Windows 10). If that's your use case, go right ahead. Most people, including many gamers, don't need this sort of thing.

There's nothing illegal about offering OEMs preferential package deals on Windows. People choose to have an OS preinstalled, and if you do want Windows, it's much cheaper than buying it separately (though it's not like cheap OEM keys are hard to come by). It's just that they can't choose an option to have Linux already there. They're free to install it later, but they have to actively decide to do so, and figure out a way to actually do that. In fact, notice that despite MS getting into trouble for bundling IE, it remained until late Windows 10 builds (funnily enough, I actually used it instead of early Edge a few times).

3 minutes ago, Envee said:

I would ask the user to shut the computer down and then restart it. This is the way to do it. 

They'll turn the monitor off then back on, and swear up and down it's the computer. People do this even today. Sounds like you didn't really support any actual lusers. Lucky you. 

You won't believe the elementary things that nevertheless seem to baffle the normies. Most people today have grown up with smartphones, concepts like local versus cloud storage ("why are pictures from my phone not on my work laptop?"), folders (ever seen one of their desktops?), manual saving, programs that actually close when you click the big X, are scary and foreign to them. The brighter ones can be taught. The dimmer ones will say "I'm not technical" and that's the end of it.

26 minutes ago, Envee said:

The internet as you know it. Is run by and on, linux servers. linux servers have this corner of the market all to themselves. It is a monopoly. I would guess at least 2/3 or %65 of all computers that "serve" you the "net" are linux.. Maybe even more. 

It's not a "monopoly" if various Linuxes have less than 60% of the market to themselves. In truth, WindowsServer seems to have something like 44% of server market, and the remaining 8% are still stuck on various UNIXes. Servers are also irrelevant to this discussion because of the reasons I already mentioned. People don't exactly walk into an IBM store and buy an S1012 all set up and ready to go. People who do set up servers are supposed to know what they're doing.

[SharpeXB]

2 hours ago, Envee said:

People here do not even have the up to date stats for linux users. We are now at %6, not the claimed %2.5 or whatever i read above.

For the PC gaming demographic that matters here, it’s 2.68%

https://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey/Steam-Hardware-Software-Survey-Welcome-to-Steam

[Envee]

13 hours ago, Dragon1-1 said:

Err... there's already plenty of hardware being sold without an OS, you know that? Literally anything that isn't a complete, ready to go OEM machine will require you to install the OS of your choice. Leaving the OS out of a complete build makes about as much sense as leaving the storage out. Yes, a more discerning customer might want to chose their own HDD/SSD configuration (or transplant one from a previous computer, it's gotten surprisingly painless with Windows 10). If that's your use case, go right ahead. Most people, including many gamers, don't need this sort of thing.

There's nothing illegal about offering OEMs preferential package deals on Windows. People choose to have an OS preinstalled, and if you do want Windows, it's much cheaper than buying it separately (though it's not like cheap OEM keys are hard to come by). It's just that they can't choose an option to have Linux already there. They're free to install it later, but they have to actively decide to do so, and figure out a way to actually do that. In fact, notice that despite MS getting into trouble for bundling IE, it remained until late Windows 10 builds (funnily enough, I actually used it instead of early Edge a few times).

They'll turn the monitor off then back on, and swear up and down it's the computer. People do this even today. Sounds like you didn't really support any actual lusers. Lucky you. 

You won't believe the elementary things that nevertheless seem to baffle the normies. Most people today have grown up with smartphones, concepts like local versus cloud storage ("why are pictures from my phone not on my work laptop?"), folders (ever seen one of their desktops?), manual saving, programs that actually close when you click the big X, are scary and foreign to them. The brighter ones can be taught. The dimmer ones will say "I'm not technical" and that's the end of it.

It's not a "monopoly" if various Linuxes have less than 60% of the market to themselves. In truth, WindowsServer seems to have something like 44% of server market, and the remaining 8% are still stuck on various UNIXes. ServerAre you claiming that uses are able to use power point, word and exel but not know how to shut down a s are also irrelevant to this discussion because of the reasons I already mentioned. People don't exactly walk into an IBM store and buy an S1012 all set up and ready to go. People who do set up servers are supposed to know what they're doing.

I stated i would describe how to do things and that includes shutting the computer down, and here is the important bit, if necessary.

Go argue with somebody else please. You seem to want to argue and since i dont like your tone i am declining to engage.. So, off you go to your own little corner and find somebody who will engage you, just the way you want. It wont be me!

I have better things to do with my time than argue with two people who have a combined post count over 13.000 and want to interpret official govenment statistics to suit their own needs. You two like to argue. Fine . Do it without me.

Linux uptake is at %6. Dont like that number as you feel threatened by it somehow? Not my problem.

I stopped reading your drivel about half way though. 

 

[Dragon1-1]

19 minutes ago, Envee said:

Linux uptake is at %6. Dont like that number as you feel threatened by it somehow? Not my problem.

I'm just saying you shouldn't get your hopes up based on the 6% figure, and pointing out significant barriers to it increasing much further. It's funny how Linux acolytes get defensive when it's pointed out why their dream FOSS-dominated future, which had been just around the corner since the 90s, might fail to materialize. Of course, if you look at it another way, counting all consumer devices, Linux is winning by a huge margin - the most popular distro is actually Android, which blows every other OS out of the water by sheer number of devices sold. The only problem, it's about as far from FOSS as you can be while still using the code. Almost as ironic as Unix of yore spawning MacOSX and the associated Apple's walled garden.

Funny how you don't like my "tone", where all I said was simply an in-depth refutation of every point that you made. Yeah, I can be snarky and sarcastic sometimes (make that most of the time). You'll generally find that constructive arguments, or proposing real solutions to the obstacles I point out, will shift the sarcasm to meritum ratio towards the latter (though I reserve the right to mock those who turn off their brains the moment a dialog window pops up). I'm not arguing for the sake of arguing, I genuinely want to know whether you can come up with a realistic way to overcome the stated issues.

[SharpeXB]

2 hours ago, Envee said:

Linux uptake is at %6. Dont like that number as you feel threatened by it somehow? Not my problem.

Again that’s not the number that’s relevant to PC gaming. It’s not a matter of liking or disliking. Simply a fact. Overall many people use OSX too. But in this market sector that number is 1.91% 

https://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey/Steam-Hardware-Software-Survey-Welcome-to-Steam

If you like using Linux that’s fine. But thinking it’s going to replace Windows or reach any significant share of this segment is really farfetched. It might be hard to believe from inside your echo chamber but the vast majority of people probably just don’t care or understand your gripes enough to justify switching. 

[Dragon1-1]

Essentially, the big problem with Linux is also the exact thing that draws people to it: there's no big corporation pushing it. So it doesn't run ads, it doesn't get lobbied for by salesmen, OEMs can't get deals for it. In fact, the fact it's got as far as 6% of the overall market share can be considered remarkable.

Also, there's another thing that Linux lovers will claim is a nice feature, that is the command line. I absolutely hate dealing with the command line. It's great if you want to write scripts, it sucks when you just want to do an obscure task on occasion and you have to look up all the commands. There doesn't seem to be an equivalent of the device manager in Linux, for instance, or per-app permissions management (at least, that's the impression I've gotten from the forums). Windows is all GUI, and it has the advantage of showing you what options are there in first place, rather than having to coax it out of the system. Even if the existence of Regedit or GPO editor isn't obvious, once you're there, they show you all the options. Windows sucks in many ways, but there are some things that Windows users take for granted which Linux simply doesn't have. 

As long as the answer to the question of "can you use Linux without command line" remains "no, not really", which always seems to be the conclusion after some prodding (and initial assurances that boil down to "yes, but only if you're interested in trivial use cases"), I suspect it'll have trouble shaking off its user-unfriendly reputation. At best, you can get a patchwork of GUI apps that give you the ability to execute some of the command line commands. If Linux is to win over people who grew up with Windows, this has to change.

[LucShep]

On 10/28/2025 at 3:46 PM, LucShep said:

I think that there's a misunderstanding regarding Linux. It's not trying to take on the world and become a monopoly. That won't happen, not anytime soon if ever. It's about having a great alternative, for anyone who has all the valid reasons to be discontent with MS Windows and wants a way out of it.

The simple fact that Bazzite alone (just one among many of the Linux versions/distros) gained over 10.000 users (ten thousand) between May and August this year is telling. That was two months ago... you can count on many more giving a chance to whatever Linux distro since then (disgruntled users with Win10 EOL) and even more in the future.
 

Meanwhile....

....and it's just one among so many other Linux distros, for which similar stories will be happening. 

It'll be cool to see the numbers in a few months from now.  
 

Edited 3 hours ago by LucShep