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The main problem still is that for some configuration you still need to use the CLI, the average user does not want to touch that no matter how powerful it is, they want a fully functional GUI that lets you so exactly the same thing but by clicking on buttons. Pair that with drivers that either do not exist or will not work for (some) of your hardware, odd crashed like the Bluetooth stack crapping out and not working anymore until you restart the system, or the system that hangs from hibernation with a black screen. So unless those hurdles are tackled the Linux adoption rate will stay low because the average user wants a system that works, and not one they have to debug.
I've been on and off different distros of Linux since Ubuntu 6 using Pop_OS! as my daily driver for work a few years now, and the same problems I had then are still here today which is a shame honestly.
the average user does not want
The average user wants their problem gone. And will use whatever helps. Windows users were editing register and editing ini files since Windows was an addon to DOS, and continue doing it. For a literate person there is absolutely nothing more inheritly more intuitive or easy in clicking a checkbox in a fifth submenu than entering a command in a console. Stop perpetuating this weird myth.
This is correct. I work with the "average user" of technology daily as IT support, and honestly, they don't give any shits at all about why it's messed up, or what needs to be done to correct the problem. Box broken, make fix.
The argument that I think the poster is trying to make is that, if a user needs to do any self troubleshooting, which is basically inevitable with technology at the moment, having to use a CLI to get things done is undesirable for the average person. They barely want to bother opening control panel in Windows (or the new "settings" app.... Ugh.) nevermind understand any of it.
Box broken. Make fix.
It's not a weird myth, have you ever worked with average users? Some of them have trouble opening a PDF or don't know how to import a CVS file in Excel. Power users have always been tinkering in their OS that's nothing new, but I'm talking about the average Joe.
People you described don't have better or worse time with different types of user interfaces, it's all incomprehensible to them. Average Joe with zero skills can't check boxes in some weird menus, just as they can't write text in a weird black box. We're talking about people who are at least a little curious about their OS.
The main problem still is that for some configuration you still need to use the CLI, the average user does not want to touch that no matter how powerful it is,
At this point this is just misinformation... you can easily live and configure everything an "average user" would via GUI in Ubuntu (and most of it's derivatives) or anything running KDE Plasma as a desktop
The reason must of us still CHOOSE to use CLI is because it's powerful but unless you are crazy as I am and running Hyprland as a daily driver, you really do not need CLI...
PS: I fucking love Hyprland! hehehehe
I dont know wtf you are using, KDE and Gnome dont use the terminal and Bluetooth has never crashed for me. Your shit is all fucked up
IMO, this is a demonstration of the problem. You're blaming the poster/their equipment. Rather than any real solution to the problem the defacto answer is "well, it works for me so what's wrong with you?"
I've never heard this kind of toxicity from other communities (like the apple/Windows crowds). Often you'll get useful answers indicating what to check or pointing to another resource. There's always the chance that the hardware is busted, but let's face it, in the modern era, that's far less likely to happen now than it was even 10 years ago.
Immediately blaming the user for their issue isn't going to solve the problem, nor does it endear any average user to the Linux community or the Linux OS. This attitude is not going to help adoption even if the posters concerns are invalidated by newer/better drivers/software, and all they need to do is update, and/or try again.
This kind of statement actively harms Linux adoption.
Sorry I meant to say I dont even remember how many years ago I saw anyone with Bluetooth problems. Look how you conveniently ignore the fact Kde and Gome dont use the terminal contrary to what you had stated. Your shit is all fucked up.
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/03/ubuntu-2404-bluetooth-connect-fix Bluetooth issues are still a present problem in Ubuntu 24.04LTS, which appear to be fixed in 24.10. If I want to restart the Bluetooth stack I have to do that in the terminal, on Windows, you go to the services window and restart it from there (not that I've ever had a Bluetooth issue on Windows). Just because you don't experience it does not mean it does not exist, you appear to be one of those toxic it works on my machine people.
Ubuntu
There is your problem. I know I am being snarky but i have had several discussions over the last few days about how Ubuntu has always been a problem for me since it came out. It is kind of nice to see another example.
As an aside: On my old windows laptop, the wireless was crippled to half speed/ half features because it was not the "pro" wireless version. Turns out that in Linux is ran flawlessly and fast because it wasn't being crippled artificially by the drivers. I have seen a lot of that over the years, including Bluetooth not working correctly in windows. There is a wide variety of hardware, and a wide variety of support of that hardware in both windows and linux communities.
Bitch please.
Just try to install a program that isn't in the repo without dropping to the CLI.
I dare you, I double dare you.
It's a brand new (one year old now) Thinkpad X1 Carbon, with a clean installed Pop_OS! system, so I don't know why it does that, but it has done it at least ten times since I got it. Also after installing VirtualBox I've been have kernel panics occasionally when shutting down the system ¯\(ツ)/¯
Yeah, that sums up my experience quite well.
There are also just a lot of personalization options that just aren't there, particularly for power-lite users, because Linix power users use the terminal for everything.
Like, heaven forbid you want a full featured, advanced file manager or something, but aren't interested in learning bash scripting...
Are you truly saying personalization is not there on linux but Windows has it? LoL
I'm pretty sure they're saying that customization, while present in Linux, is not accessible to most because of a lack of GUI options to configure a nontrivial number of the customization settings.
KDE can configure more things than there are atoms in this world. And All other DE are way more advanced than windows all through the GUI. So their point remains garbage
As a long-time Linux user who had to dive into the Windows world after taking an admin job, this is such a bizarre thing to hear. So many how-to articles that I found to make a change to user-level Windows settings start with opening the Registry Editor. Technically, that's a GUI program, but still a major challenge for the average user. On the admin side, the documentation and how-to articles are dominated by PowerShell scripts, because Microsoft has embraced the command line.
@MystikIncarnate @_carmin try different DE like TDE, XFCE, KDE
I'd argue that as Windows continues to abandon its (relatively) sane configuration UI for the newer useless Settings screens, it has reached the point where it really is sometimes easier to just look up what you need to do in Powershell.
This problem is only getting worse over time, so I don't think it's fair to hand the win to Windows.