It Doesn't Look Like Ubuntu Reached Its Goal Of 200 Million Users This Year

[skierpage]

Linux desktop environments work well enough. Linux hardware support on an x86 laptop is good enough Most of what users do is in a browser and two good ones are available for Linux. For "professional" work Audacity, Blender, Gimp, Inkscape, and LibreOffice are available for Linux and work well enough. But "good enough" means there's just no compelling reason to switch. Windows 10 is $free, Office is constantly on special offers, and the free professional tools above are available for Windows and Mac OS X.

There are some non-Windows niches. Chromebook's zero-maintenance is compelling for some light users and many large installs. Mac hardware is worth the extra $$$. Meanwhile Linux desktops are $free and open-free, provide endless opportunities for tweaking and futzing around, and match the O.S. that a ton of cloud software runs on; that's why I run them, and there's a small niche for that. It's not going to change.

[blackiwid]

Linux desktop environments work well enough. Linux hardware support on an x86 laptop is good enough Most of what users do is in a browser and two good ones are available for Linux. For "professional" work Audacity, Blender, Gimp, Inkscape, and LibreOffice are available for Linux and work well enough. But "good enough" means there's just no compelling reason to switch. Windows 10 is $free, Office is constantly on special offers, and the free professional tools above are available for Windows and Mac OS X.

There are some non-Windows niches. Chromebook's zero-maintenance is compelling for some light users and many large installs. Mac hardware is worth the extra $$$. Meanwhile Linux desktops are $free and open-free, provide endless opportunities for tweaking and futzing around, and match the O.S. that a ton of cloud software runs on; that's why I run them, and there's a small niche for that. It's not going to change.

the "free" point is also a weak one, because before windows 10 it was not for free, and linux was good enough there too. so a cost advantage is only a weak selling point for operation systems. the preinstalled one works better. Even the freedom argument works better like in foss, when people see the consequences if its not there.

Here in germany at least many long term windows users get pissed of forced windows 10 updates, they want to have the control over the pc, they see now that they dont have, also snowden is kind of a thing at least for a big minority, and even the rest is mostly kind of on his side, even if they dont care if our goverment also does spy on us, they dont want the USA spy on us. So the more spying hardcoded into windows 10 that its even officialy doing, many people dont like. But stilll evenn thats a stronger argument than cost-free vs cost-a-few bucks that is good hidden into oem lisenses, its still nothing big user amounts to switch.

So we are back again preinstallation. Even if 3/4 of all users that would got sold a apealing linuxpc would manualy install windows or pay some guy to do it, and even if we would only get 40% of oem computers preinstalled with linux instead of windows, we would instantly makee out of the 2.5% linux users a 12.5% users (+10%).

and that are very worstcase numbers, the netbooks at the beginnig that got sold with often bad versions of linux, only got by a minority migrated to windows, sadly ms gave in to more or less give windows for this boxes away for free, and the oems (NOT the customers) delivered the things with windows preinstalled.

Shure you could argue to find solid numbers of that claim I made that most users did not switch away, and this devices had no internal cdrom and at this time usbsticks was not a real thing as install medium for windows, and I think you still cant buy a windows-installer on usb? that made it harder to switch, but which pc has this days a cdrom/dvd/bluray, I think only cheap 15" consumer boxes.

So still I belive that preinstalled machines (that are competitive in price/quality from the hardware) is the most important thing for market share, so thats why its so amazing that valve did steam machines, even its not clear yet if it will suceed, in the short run not thats shure

and its not officee, there a company like system76 would be nice for germany. But you need to be in the big local elektronic markets, so that the people that are not very invested and fanboys of windows already, that amd had to learn, even their athlons were the better prozessor than the pentium 4 in any aspect, they could not sell big amounts.

sry very late, so forgive my often strange and or redundent sentence/parts. have to sleep nnow.

[Kendji]

What matters is software & drivers support plus a profitable customer base to develop for. If that 200 million is "only" 200 million but and active and homogeneous group it will be profitable.

[Luke]

So we are back again preinstallation. Even if 3/4 of all users that would got sold a apealing linuxpc would manualy install windows or pay some guy to do it, and even if we would only get 40% of oem computers preinstalled with linux instead of windows, we would instantly makee out of the 2.5% linux users a 12.5% users (+10%).

and that are very worstcase numbers, the netbooks at the beginnig that got sold with often bad versions of linux, only got by a minority migrated to windows, sadly ms gave in to more or less give windows for this boxes away for free, and the oems (NOT the customers) delivered the things with windows preinstalled.

For me this works the other way around: any pre-installed operating system comes from someone who could try to make money spying on me and selling data and/or have added backdoors for the cops and is thus untrusted. Even preinstalled Debian using a mate-gtk3 desktop (my preference) would have to be replaced as the seller could easily drop in a malicious binary with an innocuous name and a systemd unit in /etc/systemd/system to start it up. After Carrier IQ in phones and Lenovo's malicious BIOS shit to reinstall Windows crapware, we now live in a world where the preinstalled OS is presumed malicious due to the source, and even the BIOS/UEFI has to be checked with Wireshark at the reinstall for any networked "surprises."

Also, I use encrypted disks and would presume all commercially supplied encryption to contain keyloggers or weak random number generators, expecially in light of the Paris attacks and resulting pressures on commerical vendors. Thus they cannot be used. For my purposes it is critical to install the system myself and ensure that the hardware and software never come from the same or cooperating vendors.

[F1esDgSdUTYpm0iy]

For my purposes it is critical to install the system myself and ensure that the hardware and software never come from the same or cooperating vendors.

Makes me curious what those purposes are.

Which is not to say I don't agree with you with regards to the general point you're trying to get across; government sanctioned intrusion is indeed becoming all too prevalent. However, to go to extreme lengths to avoid it could be construed as suspicious behavior in and of itself. So, are they really your purposes or are they just your preferences? To go that extra mile, I mean.

[blackiwid]

However, to go to extreme lengths to avoid it could be construed as suspicious behavior in and of itself.

that sentence is the definition of a totalitary police state/world.

[F1esDgSdUTYpm0iy]

that sentence is the definition of a totalitary police state/world.

And what makes you think we don't already live in one? Wake up and smell the sewage, I'd say.

[Luke]

Makes me curious what those purposes are.

Which is not to say I don't agree with you with regards to the general point you're trying to get across; government sanctioned intrusion is indeed becoming all too prevalent. However, to go to extreme lengths to avoid it could be construed as suspicious behavior in and of itself. So, are they really your purposes or are they just your preferences? To go that extra mile, I mean.

I don't care if it "looks suspicious" when I go to great lengths to secure my computers given that I shoot activist video of protests that sometimes (like in Baltimore) erupt into street battles. There have been raids and subpoenas against activist videographers many times. It is my duty not to shoot video that my battle comrades don't want shot and to protect unedited raw clips of actions they do want on video but which might contain sensitive images with every tool at my disposal. It is also my duty to defy any flat-out demands for data or encryption passphrases. Helping prosecutors put your comrades in jail is called snitching. I won't let my electronics do this either so known snitches like iPhones, Facebook. and Google are not part of my life.

After things like the big IMF protests, the Occupy protests, Black LIves Matter, the tar sands and fracking protests and all those corporate lobbying offices stormed by protesters and all those night protests at the homes of corporate executives I am already on their radar. The fact that I am known for heavy data security has probably prevented a repeat of the 2008 police raid that netted an encrypted computer they failed to crack.

With shit like this, I assume I am always on their radar anyway and data security thus becomes a straight-up fight. I try to stay ahead of the game by coming up with lines of attack they have yet to use like subpeonas against advertising networks for IP address data on ad-supported sites used by other activists like Twitter. I then move to pre-emptively block those attacks before they can be used, just like when I first installed encryption before instead of after that 2008 police raid. When you've been raided and seen encryption do its job, yes, you take it damned seriously.

[F1esDgSdUTYpm0iy]

Again, I agree; privacy intrusion is indeed becoming a major issue in the world today but as I posted just before your reply just now, it's already too late. And now, they've got you right where they want you -- scared stiff. It's all about control and, you're being controlled right now; by feeling the need to hide everything you do.

Still, I wish you all the best in your efforts to protest the status quo, it is needed (sadly so).