Linux is good now

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Rising momentum & gaming on Linux

  • Many see a qualitative shift: mainstream gaming press, big YouTube channels, Steam not distinguishing Windows/Linux by default, and Steam Deck success are cited as proof it “just works” for lots of titles.
  • Proton/Wine are praised as “good enough” that some no longer check compatibility before buying, reporting equal or better performance than Windows for many single‑player games.
  • Some home “LAN party” setups have fully switched to Linux and report fewer issues than on Windows.

Remaining gaming roadblocks

  • Kernel‑level anti‑cheat (EAC, Riot, some Battlefields, CoD, etc.) is widely seen as the main hard blocker. Many refuse to run kernel rootkits even on Windows.
  • Debate over possible Linux‑friendly anti‑cheat: eBPF, special locked‑down kernels, TPM/remote attestation, or console‑like secure VMs – with strong pushback from users who see this as a threat to general‑purpose computing.
  • Nvidia is repeatedly called out: DX12 under Proton, HDR, and some Vulkan paths perform poorly vs Windows; AMD generally “just works.”
  • VR support is mixed: some get good results with Monado/ALVR/Quest; others report stutter and setup pain. Niche controllers, wheels, RGB tools, and capture cards often need hacks.

Distros, UX & stability

  • Bazzite, CachyOS, NixOS, Mint, Fedora, and Arch‑based spins get lots of positive mentions; immutable/image‑based systems with rollbacks are especially liked for gaming rigs.
  • Ubuntu draws criticism for snaps, heavy defaults, and aggressive OOM behavior; Mint and Debian (with KDE) are often recommended as saner “just works” desktops.
  • Some report years of rock‑solid use; others complain of occasional unrecoverable black screens, sleep issues, or slow “rot” from background daemons and indexers.

Windows/macOS backlash

  • Many frame Linux’s rise as “not the year of Linux, but the year Windows lost it”: ads, Copilot/AI push, telemetry, nagware, and rough Windows 11 UX are common grievances.
  • macOS is criticized for UI changes, closed hardware, and lack of Linux‑level control, despite strong laptop hardware and sleep/battery behavior.

Non‑gaming blockers & “normie” suitability

  • Persistent deal‑breakers: Adobe CC, Affinity, major CAD/CAE (SolidWorks, Fusion 360, Altium, LabVIEW, Vivado), some enterprise tools (Outlook client, zScaler), and specific cloud‑sync features (Dropbox/OneDrive “online‑only” files).
  • Opinions split on suitability for average users: some claim Mint/KDE are already easier than Windows; others argue that needing the terminal, dealing with drivers, and distro choice remains too much for non‑technical people.