this post was submitted on 27 Mar 2026
28 points (78.0% liked)

Linux

64148 readers
352 users here now

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).

Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.

Rules

Related Communities

Community icon by Alpár-Etele Méder, licensed under CC BY 3.0

founded 6 years ago
MODERATORS
AgreeableLandscape@lemmy.ml
nooter692@lemmy.ml
MarcellusDrum@lemmy.ml
cypherpunks@lemmy.ml
cyclohexane@lemmy.ml
d3Xt3r@lemmy.nz
28
Why sometimes Linux is hard to switch to (piefed.social)
submitted 1 day ago by BandanaBug@piefed.social to c/linux@lemmy.ml
85 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

Normally I always forget why I still keep thinking about switching back to Windows. Today was a great reminder. Linux can be frustrating. This post is somewhat about awareness and partly about me learning about other peoples experiences. I updated my CachyOS as usual. There were some system packages upgraded and I got the notification to reboot. Figuring I'd do it later I left after some time and the PC went to sleep. Upon returning the screen stayed black. Even upon forced reboot. Remembering I was using Limine with BTRFS snapshots I tried multiple previous snapshots but to no avail. I remember this happened before. So now I face another reinstall.. This and having to dive into the deep end of terminal commands to get drivers, programs or games working can be quite frustrating. I understand why people are turned off and go back to Windows..

Onto NixOS for me. A big dive but it seems very stable which might be just what i need. I feel like the philosophy of NixOS combined with a graphical store to install programs and what not seems like a great solution.

What would your ultimate distro be like?

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] BandanaBug@piefed.social 1 points 14 hours ago (2 children)

I've been on Linux for about 1-2 years now i think. Needed a reinstall a couple of times and did some distro hopping too.

NixOS seems to be a final destination for a lot of people and the premise of it seems really cool. I did try before but I was a bit put off by the programming style of installing. Like I kinda get it but having that automated by just installing from a store and having the programming stuff in the back would be so good for accessibility. How would I know how to program in a certain package or setting without internet?..

[–] hendrik@palaver.p3x.de 1 points 14 hours ago* (last edited 13 hours ago)

Ah great. Yeah, the entire premise of it is: you get to "program" your experience instead of clicking on some install buttons.

You can temporarily just install something in your shell: nix-shell -p firefox-esr

How would I know how to program in a certain package or setting without internet?

I guess the easiest way, and what all people do is just use https://search.nixos.org/ In doubt, use your phone 😅
You can also install "nix-search-cli" to search for packages. or "nix-option" to get info on options. However, I'm not sure how you'd end up in a situation without internet and wanting to change the configuration. I mean the moment you want to compile and install anything, it needs access to Github or wherever the code is stored. And if you don't compile it yourself, it will pull it from the NixOS cache, which is also on the internet. So you can't do anything. And the times we had a DVD to install software are long gone. So it's probably down to some rare exception when you're on the train or airplane, want to prepare something to apply later?! I don't think there's a good solution except the two CLI tools and maybe a local copy of the documentation / handbook.

And in my experience, the NixOS documentation isn't great. It's either there and straightforward. Or it's a lot of searching stuff on the Wiki, forum... Using GitHub search with an appended: "language:nix" to see if someone already came up with a config. Or I'll end up reading the code. That is for more advanced things, or niche stuff. It's a bit similar to the overall experience of NixOS (in my opinion). Either things are super straightforward and mostly done for you to configure with 3 lines of code. Then there's a fine line of stuff that's moderately complex. And all the things not covered can get very complex and much more involved.

[–] anon5621@lemmy.ml 0 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

Use with mix of codex and claude code jt becoming just another level and much more easier to do things

[–] hendrik@palaver.p3x.de 1 points 13 hours ago* (last edited 13 hours ago) (1 children)

Just don't do it like me and think copy-pasting stuff from ChatGPT would do it. It's not good at writing Nix configuration at all. And it doesn't have a solid understanding either, of all the concepts in the background. Like not being able to execute binaries, what it takes to adapt something without the FHS, the intricacies of Python... Which options are real or just made up...

[–] anon5621@lemmy.ml 1 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

I have absolutely opposite experience not in web browswer version exactly codex and claude code when it able to interact with system and debug it

[–] hendrik@palaver.p3x.de 1 points 12 hours ago

Yeah, it probably needs to be a coding agent with some thinking and planning and a feedback loop. Or you'll end up in a situation like me.