this post was submitted on 24 Apr 2025
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Linux

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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.

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Basically the forced shift to the enshittified Windows 11 in october has me eyeing the fence a lot. But all I know about Linux is 1: it's a cantankerous beast that can smell your fear and lack of computer skills and 2: that's apparently not true any more? Making the change has slowly become a more real possibility for me, though I'm pretty much a fairly casual PC-user, I don't do much more than play games. So I wrote down some questions I had about Linux.

Will my ability to play games be significantly affected compared to Windows?

Can I mod games as freely and as easily as I do on Windows?

If a program has no Linux version, is it unusable, or are there workarounds?

Can Linux run programs that rely on frameworks like .NET or other Windows-specific libraries?

How do OS updates work in Linux? Is there a "Linux Update" program like what Windows has?

How does digital security work on Linux? Is it more vulnerable due to being open source? Is there integrated antivirus software, or will I have to source that myself?

Are GPU drivers reliable on Linux?

Can Linux (in the case of a misconfiguration or serious failure) potentially damage hardware?

And also, what distro might be best for me?

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[–] wewbull@feddit.uk 1 points 4 weeks ago (3 children)

Will my ability to play games be significantly affected compared to Windows?

A lot of stuff runs with windows emulation as if it's native. It's the same method the steam deck uses and so Valve actively do work to keep it working. The main problem is games with heavy anti-cheat.

Can I mod games as freely and as easily as I do on Windows?

Generally, yes. I think so.

If a program has no Linux version, is it unusable, or are there workarounds?

See above.

Can Linux run programs that rely on frameworks like .NET or other Windows-specific libraries?

There's .NET libraries for Linux, but things have to be recompiled to use them.

How do OS updates work in Linux? Is there a "Linux Update" program like what Windows has?

The distribution maintainer will issue updates on a regular basis. Update procedure is different for different distros, but all have a push-button update scheme. It's pretty solid these days.

How does digital security work on Linux? Is it more vulnerable due to being open source? Is there integrated antivirus software, or will I have to source that myself?

Keep your system up to date with security updates, and you'll tend to be fine. Smaller user base tends to mean that there's far less malware. Antivirus isn't necessary.

Obviously phishing scams don't care what OS you're on, so mind what you click.

Are GPU drivers reliable on Linux?

AMD ones are very solid.

Nvidia ones can be a pain from what I hear, but I don't buy green.

Can Linux (in the case of a misconfiguration or serious failure) potentially damage hardware?

No.

That said... You can always wipe a disk when you install an OS.

And also, what distro might be best for me?

Download a few Live-USB images and try them out. You don't need to install them to get a desktop and a browser up. You can see if there's any compatibility issues with your hardware.

Whichever works for you, go with it.

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[–] GeraltvonNVIDIA@lemmy.ml 1 points 4 weeks ago

If you have any App you used before and isnt available on Linux: You can try to install the .exe-file with a Tool named "Bottles".

Each Programm you run with that tool gets its own virtual Space, so if you mess something up, you can throw that one bottle away and just create another in its fresh New environment.

It has a clean UI and you can play with all kinds of different configs to get your Bottle to run. You can choose between different Windows Versions for example.

Under the hood it uses Wine and Proton.

Pro-Tip: Start Programms via the UI in "Terminal-Mode" so you can See potential Error-Messages which you would normally not see, if you just run the Programm.

[–] megamaxsteele@lemmy.ca 1 points 4 weeks ago

So I'm going to caveat this that I'm not an expert so if I get some details wrong, people should correct me.

Your ability to play games will be effected to some degree, but not as much as it used to be. Because of Valve's work on Proton, about 80% of the games on steam work. You can usethis website to check a community maintained list. Most of the remaining games that don't work are games that the developer went out of their way to not work on linux. This is usually by having an anticheat that doesn't work with linux, or not enabling linux support for an anticheat that does. For playing games not on steam, it requires a bit more effort, but there is Lutris and Heroic for that. Feel free to look into them or ask for more information.

For modding, I don't have as much experience but I have done it and you can. I think how well it works varies game to game, but then again, modding is like that anyway. One piece of advice I've heard is that if you are going to be molded, make the folders not case sensitive. This is because on windows folder names aren't case sensitive, but on linux they are. EG /Folder/ vs /folder/ are the same on windows, and by default different on linux.

For software without a linux version, you can usually find an open source or web app alternative. Microsoft Word doesn't have a linux version, but you can use Libre office, or use the browser version of it, or use Google Docs. For most intents and purposes, this is what you should do. However, you can use a program called WINE to run a lot of Windows software on linux. WINE is what Proton(see first paragraph) is derived from. Similar to Proton, there are limitations, but most come from the developer side these days from my understanding.

The good news is the .NET is on linux, officially supported. I habent checked in a while but i dont think its at 100% parity yet. And a good amount of software frameworks are also available. I've never run into a library or framework that didn't work on Linux that doesn't have a good alternative that does, but I'm not the most avid programmer so someone more experienced can chime in.

All versions of Linux have a program called a package manager, the specific one varies(apt, yum, etc), but they are the primary way you install software one linux. They are like an app store. It installs the software for you and updates it when you tell it to. Core system packages, like the kernel, are also updated through the package manager. Most of the time there is a GUI version or wrapper for package managers in case you aren't fond of using the terminal.

So this is another area where I don't know too much on, but my understanding that linux has fewer viruses and it being open source is a double-edged sword. There are fewer viruses for desktop linix because of the smaller user base. Why would someone making software to harm people not aim for the platforms with larger user bases like windows and Mac? This being said, I think there are more viruses for servers that target linux because of the dominance of it in that space. As for being open source being a double-edged sword, this means security exploits are easier to find because there are more people looking at the code. Both by those who wish to patch them and those who want to exploit them. All my friends and I don't use an anti-virus on our linux machines and just keep them up to date, but there does exist anti-virus for linux.

GPU driver are reliable in my experience, but more so for AMD. NVIDIA has proprietary drivers that some distributions don't let you install for ideological reasons, but they do work most of the time. My computer does run NVIDIA and while I have had issues getting started with the drivers its usually not a problem agyer you get past that stage. Again, AMD is better here and basically painless.

Not to my knowledge, no limux can't damage your hardware. But I'll leave this for someone with more knowledge than me.

The distro I tell beginners to start with is Mint. Installing NVIDIA drivers was easiest on that from my experience, and largely just works out of the box. It has a windows like UI but this is both a good and a bad thing. Good that it will be familiar; bad that you will sometime fall into windows behavior that doesn't make sense on linux. In the past ubuntu filled this niche, and mint is based on ubuntu, but canonical, the company behind ubuntu, has made some questionable choices.

Anyway wish you the best of luck and welcome to the linux community.

[–] emergencyfood@sh.itjust.works 1 points 3 weeks ago

Will my ability to play games be significantly affected compared to Windows?

Depends on the game. In general no, unless it has kernel anticheat, which Linux will not allow because that's a glaring security risk.

Can I mod games as freely and as easily as I do on Windows?

Yes.

If a program has no Linux version, is it unusable, or are there workarounds?

Most Windows software can be run on Linux using Wine. But there are advantages to using Linux-specific alternatives - they are often lighter and faster.

How do OS updates work in Linux? Is there a "Linux Update" program like what Windows has?

Yes, each distribution has its own update tool. They also install and update software (like in Android, where Google Play installs and updates all apps and not just the OS). No need to download exe files from random websites.

How does digital security work on Linux? Is it more vulnerable due to being open source? Is there integrated antivirus software, or will I have to source that myself?

Linux is generally much more secure than Windows, because it is open-source. Most internet servers and supercomputers use Linux partly because of its security.

Are GPU drivers reliable on Linux?

Nvidia is notoriously bad but getting better. AMD is good.

Can Linux (in the case of a misconfiguration or serious failure) potentially damage hardware?

No.

And also, what distro might be best for me?

Linux Mint. It is stable, reasonably up to date and does not make confusing changes every update. It also tends to work on most systems.

[–] Yaky@slrpnk.net 1 points 4 weeks ago

.NET applications using .NET Core or later are intended to be cross-platform, so technically, Linux can run .NET apps. (The use-case I know is running .NET sites on Linux servers)

[–] LordCrom@lemmy.world 1 points 4 weeks ago

I want to add 1 thing....graphics drivers have come a long way. Nvidia is a good example where some diatros come pre loaded to support Nvidia...like popOS. Check your vid card for distro compatibility

[–] Bogasse@lemmy.ml 1 points 3 weeks ago

I opened the topic while knowing there will be a ton of super enthusiastic and well-constructed answers. I'm not disappointed 🍿

[–] gamermanh@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 4 weeks ago

I'm too tired to reply to everything but for those who didn't know the Nexus Mods App is pretty good already and is in its AppImage stage. Any of the games it supports are flawless imo

[–] Kirk@startrek.website 1 points 4 weeks ago

+1 for Fedora. I recommend Kinoite as it is very similar to windows and very hard to break due to it's "immutability".

Bazzite is very similar to Fedora Kinoite but made to be easy for gaming.

[–] Briaaahn@lemm.ee 1 points 3 weeks ago

I just made the swap the other day. I figured there would be a huge learning curve but theres really not. I been on the steam deck for a couple years now and I realized all the games I play run on linux. Im using bazzite and its set up for gaming comes with steam and lutris for non steam stuff.

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