I have slowly been moving them, one by one, over to Fedora. I still get support calls, but not related to the OS, more like, "how do I add an attachment to this email, I forgot."
"How do I share my screen?"
"Well grandma, the Google Chrome Flatpak you're using defaults to Xorg so it runs in XWayland, which means it can't see the desktop because the rest of your shell is native in Wayland. If you go to chrome://flags and set prefered-ozone-platform to wayland it might work, but some people in this reddit thread also mention you need to install xdg-desktop-portal-gnome so it can call the screensharing API in GNOME. This also might not work in the Flatpak at all and maybe just the RPM."
Remote support is a breeze now, and we save the usual 30 minutes of guiding an update of TeamViewer over the phone (because of an old and incompatible version) etc.
Flatpak has made it so easy to install most common apps, just press the Super key, search for the app, click on it in the list and "Install". Usually takes less than 10-30 seconds from start 'till the app is installed and running. Very grandma-proof, actually!
EDIT: But I will say that the road to where GNOME / Fedora is today has been a bumpy ride, like a car that is under maintenance while driving :) It's the FOSS / Linux way. In the end, the result is actually quite amazing and user friendly.
I had my ageing parents set up with a Linux desktop for some years in the past. I just -pre-configured everything they'd likely have needed. Browser, email, instant messaging (as it was at the time), a photos app, possibly something else I'm forgetting.
It's the somewhat tech-savvy (or at least somewhat tech-independent) for whom such a transition might be the most trouble.
(And, of course, those people who use specialized applications or hardware for which support may not be available, or who use workflows that require going somewhat below the "appliance" level and which could require significant relearning.)
Sibling commenters have it right - if a computer is an appliance to them, then going for the simplest, least likely to accidentally mess up option is the best one.
But over the last few years, the Windows 10 and Windows 11 installations are being booted occasionally merely to update the Windows itself.
More and more I'm considering that to be a waste of time, because I don't use Win 10 or Win 11 for anything practical. I only use Win 7 when I do use Windows.
It's probably time to blow away those Win 10 and Win 11 partitions entirely, I think.
Also, what's up with the random "welcome to your new device, lets set everything up". Seen that about 4 times already on my current W11 install.
Personally, I am contemplating moving to a server version of Windows on my desktop. This AI nonsense looks like just a privacy invasion scheme.
Well, yes it can. But the choice of Desktop whether that be Linux, MacOS or Windows is just a matter of familiarisation.
I have the exact opposite view to you: "Too bad Windows still can't offer a desktop alternative that is widely acceptable." but that is because I have been using a Linux Desktop for over 20 years. I've been using the LinuxMint MATE Desktop for about 10-11 years.
If you feel happy with Windows, stick with it. It's your machine, and your choice.
Otherwise I would’ve switched long ago, as at the very least the development environment is much nicer in Linux.
Even if you filter *.microsoft.com and other domains in firewall ?
It was actually much better in the past, when it was more of a Unix with a fancy GUI bolted on. These days it's becoming more like iOS, "Trust us, we know better than you how things should work, you must use it like we intended". That's not how I am. I have very strong ideas on how my computer should work.
When I look at Gnome I see the exact same ("you're using it wrong") attitude in the developers. That will never fly for me. That's why I love KDE because they embrace choice.
The thing is that even with KDE my desktop is quite heavily modified. I use a 3x3 desktop grid with fullsize windows and I remapped the keys on the numpad to be quick desktop selectors without modifier keys and added other quick keys for tab shifting and window to desktop reassignment, so I can control most things fully with the keyboard. Also remapped other things like KDE's Activities for even more flexibility. Also I modified the look and feel very heavily.
But I didn't need a single plugin for KDE at all to make this possible! Every time I want to do something outlandish I look around and there is a setting for it. It's amazing. For Gnome (yes I did use it at one stage) I needed a bunch of plugins to do even the most simple things like make the window toolbars not so insanely big, to put virtual desktops in a grid, to add a dock etc.
These are some things I used to do in macOS but they removed for example the ability to put virtual desktops in a grid (they are now in a row only) and they added this horrible full-screen option that doesn't do what I want. It felt like every update apple was trying to saw the legs of my chair from under me. I was getting so sick of it.
But anyway I would never be on board the linux train if Gnome were the only option available. And even if it were to become one I (and I'm sure many others) would keep alternatives alive. I'm just not a team player. I don't get with the program.
I've been using Fedora Silverblue for a while and never got a borked upgrade. It's not without its own flaws, but if you can live with mostly flatpak apps, it's a pretty compelling package.
on debian, i can create system backups/snapshots via timeshift and restore them if something breaks.
GNU/Linux actually might've been best because it's harder to do anything in it. Chromebook wasn't an option cause the screens are too small, and idk if Chromeboxes were viable back then (~2015). She used to use Windows, which was an unmitigated disaster with viruses.
As for other issues with basic use, my mother is even older now, and even things that used to be pre-arranged and familiar have become more difficult. But I don't think the OS matters much for that any more, on a grand scale. Touchscreens might help to an extent (and also avoid upside-down mouse issues), and obviously things would need to be set up so that there aren't any unnecessary hurdles. But beyond that it's learned routines rather than any kind of a generalized understanding anyway. She does know how to usually get rid of things by clicking 'x' though.
Did you find something that worked out for your grandma in the end?
(edit: You edited your reply before I finished mine, so I replied to the earlier version. I see the problem with accidentally triggering things. I guess it might be the fairly cautious nature and the limited use patterns that might have saved my parents from them.)
Nothing worked. In hindsight, maybe the Mac would've been ok-ish if I'd used Chrome Remote Desktop to help whenever she had issues, which had fewer pitfalls than the other screen sharing options I tried. Last one I remember was Teamviewer, which broke cause her friend "fixed her computer by removing junk" like that, but it also had other issues before.
Screen sharing for support is probably a necessary problem I didn't think of much since I happen to live close by. It'd absolutely need to be something that requires minimal effort from them.
Something like gnome is so closed down that it couldn't be for everyone. I tried using a ton of plugins to make it workable but then things break with every update.
But what's the problem with having choice?
for them, taskbar on bottom + 'start' menu = "neat, i already know how to use this!"
personally, i use i3/sway tiling window managers, and also keep gnome around if i want a full desktop. personally, i love the amount of choice we have in the gnu/linux world. if something doesn't work for you, you can select from so many other options.
"but...but...fragmentation! those guys working on cinnamon/mate/etc should just join gnome or kde and make The One True Desktop!" eh. i don't buy this line of thinking.
the flagship edition of ubuntu? GNOME.
the flagship edition of fedora? GNOME.
RHEL? GNOME.
installing debian with its defaults? GNOME.
while KDE ships on a few distros by default, and Mint ships with Cinnamon as its flagship, by-and-large, GNOME is what you're gonna get from your "major" distributions.
in 2019, my wife finally got fed up with windows 10. she used no software that was 'windows-only', so she asked me if i'd help her begin the move over to gnu/linux.
i made her live-drives of several different distributions, and showed her how to boot into them on her machine to play with the live environments. iirc, she messed around with ubuntu, solus, mint, and elementary.
she liked the fact that she had so much choice available to her. she eventually settled on mint cinnamon, as it has an environment she is familiar and comfortable with, and that was that. she's been running it ever since. and, keep in mind, my wife is someone who doesn't live and breathe computers like most of us here do.
i know there are the people out there who have disdain for the amount of choice we have in the linux desktop space ("fragmentation!"), but most people appreciate the amount of choice on offer.
Most people don't even think that far though, they just want a name brand they can trust and understand. So the most popular desktop Linux is probably ChromeOS.
That's because GNU/Linux isn't an OS. The distributions are distinct OSes. They just have a lot in common.
> It adds complexity, especially for new users and even more for corporations. There's maintenance burden as different DEs fall out of favor, things become incompatible, and you have to migrate.
Corporations can easily mandate whatever distro and DE they please on their internal systems. Not an issue.
The maintenance burden is on the distros and they can choose which DEs they support. They don't have to offer them all. In fact some distros come with a single DE only.
I know the wishful thinking that Linux would be a single system that would make it big with consumers. But if that happens, people that love Linux now will absolutely hate it. It will be unrecognisable. All the power and control will be gone because consumers don't want that. They must want to pay someone and trust them.
Case in point: ChromeOS. It's exactly that: Linux for the masses. How many Linux fans actually use that because it's Linux?
I would never ever consider using that. I'm surprised also, in our company nobody uses chromeos. But we have thousands of linux laptops and hundreds of Macs.
Also idk why there's nothing as good as the Mac iTerm2 for Linux.
The standalone (non-linux) ssh client is indeed not the best, it's okay.