this post was submitted on 16 Aug 2024
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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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Could you give an example of something linux can't do?
Or are you alluding to windows software not running on linux even with wine etc?
Digitally sign a PDF with a couple of clicks.
So far, I have spent about 6 hours (sporadically over the past 3 years) trying to set up a way to do this, yet ultimately it didn't ever work at all. And every time I end up using some online third party service just to get it over with.
I did it on Windows once and the setup was a simple 5 step wizard. After which digitally signing a document just works with a couple of clicks.
Bonus round:
on Linux there is only one PDF viewer that implements tripple click for selecting a whole line AND can invert the colors of the document (which helps some partially blind users). That viewer is Atril and it has no way of even attempting to digitally sign a PDF. As soon as you want to do the signing, you lose those one of the two features and people with impairments can't do their work properly.
the screen readers have voices from the 90s and setting up anything modern with them is above my skill grade - as again, I fucked with it for days and didn't manage to get a natural sounding voice to work. On Windows it is way simpler, including working well for mixed language documents - for example German text with technical terms in english or latin.
Then again, it's not about Linux, it's just about your-favorite-few-click-program not being available for Linux.
There's nothing technically preventing Adobe from making Reader & Acrobat for Linux (they actually used to, around 2007 I even worked in a L10N company and we tested it.) It's just a business decision.
Once you start asking questions of why eg. Photoshop is not on Linux while eg. Firefox, VLC or GIMP are on all platforms, you will learn stuff about the world, which has little to do with Linux per se.
Technically you are absolutely correct.
Practically, people need to get work done. And if they can't do it on Linux, they will use another OS. No matter whose fault it actually is.
No one in the Linux community wants to force users onto Linux. If they do that, then they are morons and should not be listened to.
Windows is blatantly forced on users through monopolistic practices and underhanded dealings going back decades.
I know what I actively will choose. Also it is my choice. It doesnt have to be your choice or even the right choice. Choose what you want and what you need. No one in the Linux community can or will force you to switch to Linux.
I think your heart's in the right place here, but it comes across as an over-generalization to say that no one in the Linux community will try to convert you. Whether they have any valid points or will be successful in doing so is a very different matter. I'd argue that much of the FSF's official website is dedicated to exactly this, and even they can often come across as endorsing the attitude of moral superiority that Linux users are often mocked for IMO. (I'm a Linux user, but I believe this is a serious issue in our community that we need to take seriously.)
Evangelists exist in all communities. I was simply stating that people whose agenda to convert you to Linux may not always have other peoples best interests at heart. Clearly I don't have that agenda. I would prefer people made their own decisions and choices based on their own needs. Not forced into an untenable situation.
I like how upvote/downvote does not matter on Lemmy.
Its about free speech as in beer. And not censorship. We can have our opinions without fear of being the unpopular opinion.
TBH the problem is the PDF format. It was created as proprietary trash. It's just more adobe software so ofc it doesn't support linux.
PDF was a proprietary format controlled by Adobe until it was released as an open standard on July 1, 2008, and published by the International Organization for Standardization as ISO 32000-1:2008, at which time control of the specification passed to an ISO Committee of volunteer industry experts.
Yes, but still, it' something that may be commonly required, and Linux can't do it >!(according to the comment above, I never tried to do it so can't comment on how hard or easy it is)!<
Okular can digitally sign, invert colors (poorly hidden away so you need to customize the toolbar, but it has multiple ways, which is kinda cool).
TTS yes, but there seems to be progress. There is speech-dispatcher which could be used with piperTTS
Okular has no tripple click for whole line selection.
Other than that, setting up digitally signing with Okular never worked for me. Do you have a guide that worked for you?
I've setup okular signing and it worked, but I believe it was with a mime certificate tied to my email (and not pgp keys). If you want I can try to figure out exactly what I did to make it work.
Briefly off the top of my head, I believe it was
I can't remember if there was a way to do this with pgp certificates easily
Oh, read "select a word"
No idea how to setup digital signing.
Run 3dsmax.
I built an entire theatre using Linux. Architect was on autocad, that was alright, but engineering was on vectorworks & there I had to ask for .dxf exports.
Qlab (macos) is 100% a no-go, I actually own a macbook just for this piece of software.
Isadora runs on wine, but video play is problematic. Isadora is a video mapper/VJ/mixing software.
Of the big three of lighting console software, only Chamsys' MagicQ runs on Linux. Infuriating when you know Grand MA consoles are linux-based. ETC? Don't ask.
It's niche (how about Enttec or DMXKing interfaces configurator?) but it's my niche. I survive doing things differently, and, yes, owning a dual-boot AsahiLinux/MacOS device.
Using this definition then Windows can't do everything Linux does either, and MaOS can't do everything Windows and Linux can do.
I don't think people use that phrase to mean "all Windows software is compatible with Linux".
Interesting point, but when people want to switch, and they hear Linux can do everything that windows can, they will think that everything they can do on windows can be done on Linux. To make everyone happy, Linux must be a superset. That's a tough ask.
Another thing Linux can't do: Run all hardware on many new computers.
Not that much of a problem, just buy different hardware or wait - they'll address the works. But if someone just bought fancy new hardware, and wants to put Linux on it, there is a decent chance of running into sore spots, or of Linux not booting at all.
That said, it would be pretty clear to say "Linux can't do everything windows can, and windows can't do everything Linux can. But for most cases, there's enough overlap that you'll be happy on Linux."
Edit: wording, additional stuff
Windows doesn't support running on a Raspberry Pi Zero or an M3 mac. And can't run a lot of the software that Linux runs. If you want to run Windows you just have to buy different hardware...
Usually the phrasing is something like "you can accomplish the same things on Linux that you can on Windows." Meaning "yes, you can use a web browser, edit photos, use email, etc." Many people have no idea what an operating system is and what it means to use a different one.
Are you telling someone what they need to do to get windows, converting from Linux?
I made it clear they support different things, even though there's significant overlap - and that means some of what Windows supports, Linux doesn't, which is critical info if you're switching from Windows to Linux. If someone were asking he reverse, I would likely tell them the reverse (if, for example, they were used to running a pi).
Not sure if when people say you can “do everything that windows does”, they should be interpreted to mean "every single piece of software/drivers ever written for windows was also written for linux".
This reminds me of that author who said Python 3 is not turing complete. People were taking the quote out of context but the post was still ridiculous so I don't blame them for not cutting them slack.
When you work in an industry where the entire collaborative workflow of everyone is based on software that doesn't run on Linux, then not running that software is equal to not being able to work in that industry.
Yes, you can mix music on Linux PC's. No, you can't run a concert venue on Linux PC's.
Believe me, my team and I have tried. And we yell "fuck this proprietary shit" on a regular basis. But we're still forced to use it.
there's no denying that's true, though ofc it has alot to do with microsofts very agreessive and anti-competitive practices.
though its all a bit tangential, the main issue i think comes down to what someone means when they say "everything". certainly if someone said "you can do everything", i'd expect them to qualify what is (should be) obviously a slight exaggeration as parlance. they don't literally mean "everything" they just mean most everyday things. i think its fairly common in everyday speech for someone to be able to work out thats what they meant.
in the few rare cases when someone literally means absolutely everything, then yes that silly statement would be incorrect. and if strictly intended with that meaning would certainly qualify as misinformation.
But I run a summer festival on linux!
Our media servers are W7 (!) but I access them with VNC. And lots of screens/beamers here are on PI computers.
...then of course we need a windows laptop for the wireless mics, for the FoH configuration, the videowall, stuff like that. Mails and docs are google anyway, remote access is teamviewer.
I can't run it all on linux, even if I sit at a linux computer the most.
Instead of VNC can I recommend running xRDP ?
VNC over SSH is secure, but VNC over network is inherently insecure and exposes plaintext passwords.
yeah same here.
Currently there are three things that stop me from going Linux and two of those are purely software related (the third is that I don’t want to hate my work software anymore than I currently do). Is it vital software in the sense of it allowing me to work or bring me income? No. Is it something I wish to just use without fiddling after every update because I use them for fun? Absolutely yes.
Software and hardware support definitely counts.
I would also guess that probably a lot of Microsoft enterprise stuff like active directory group policies likely aren't supported well, but I don't have enough knowledge to back that up.
Linux can't prevent you from permanently removing files. While in Windows it's a chore to remove a number of files/bloat, which are then most often back after a system update.
Some see this as a feature.
Why do you think Immutable Distros are all the rage these days? Beyond deleting shit, there's always Fucking Up shit.
Immutable Asahi will be a thing some day ;)
Is there atomic Asahi yet? I know I saw the Fedora release, so an Atomic Desktop probably isn't that far away. Or build it yourself! :)
There are some people in some stage of progress on a Fedora Atomic Asahi Remix
It's 100% a feature! Truly a horrendous approach to lock down a device someone purchased to the extent seen on Windows.