Poll HN: What is your primary desktop OS (and version / distro)? | Hacker News Reader

Poll HN: What is your primary desktop OS (and version / distro)?

18 pointstomkwok14 comments

Please specify below if you choose 'other'.

The previous OS version poll on HN is 4 years old.

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2303726

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And for me:

   Windows XP (200X-2009)
   Windows 7 (2009-2012)
   Ubuntu (2012)
   Manjaro (for a few days)
   Arch Linux (since 2013)

I haven't tried OS X, but I'm sure that I'm never going back to Windows.

I used to like Windows a lot, but these days it only annoys me. Which is interesting, because every few years I'd try to work on a Linux desktop and give up in frustration. With Ubuntu 14.04 and Mint, I'm having a great experience with very little annoyances.

On Windows, I don't like:

* How the Windows key lost its ability for instantaneous search. I used to type Windows, a couple letters, and ENTER to launch a program. Now it takes many seconds for the first letter that I type to show up (on a 4th gen i7 with 8GB).

* Most file extensions got assigned to the obnoxious, brain-dead nee-Metro apps and, to add insult to injury, it's a pain to close them. Having to reassign those extensions to regular desktop (aka "Windows") apps is an example of the annoyances that Windows now imposes on users.

* In general it feels like 2 different OSs fighting each other. Despite what Julie Larson-Green promised, I didn't "get used" to it, I just put up with it when I have to, and mostly avoid it.

* How, despite being careful and having Windows Defender, it's almost inevitable to end up with some spyware/adware which is very hard to get rid of.

* That Windows pretends to boot up very quickly by showing the desktop, then starts to load a lot of services (the "real" bootstrap) and stays unusable for up to a minute. In contrast, Mint's GUI becomes fully responsive in less time than it takes Windows to show the login screen.

* The command-line app (I mean the GUI itself) is terrible and I don't think it has changed in 20 years. Yes, I know of the alternatives. None feels as good as what comes with Mint by default, and having to install them on each system I use is another nuisance.

* So many upgrades that require a system restart. No to mention the ones with serious bugs that enter an install-rollback loop that takes hours each time (like the awful KB 2919355).

In short, I've developed a negative Pavlovian conditioning to Windows.

In all seriousness I've been running Windows 10 Preview for a month, and it's been a joy. All of those things you mentioned have been addressed. As far as the shell is concerned, learn how to use PowerShell. CMD is there for legacy compatibility. PowerShell works well, but it is different that anything you've used before. Also, Microsoft Edge web browser is there instead of IE. It is 95% as good as Chrome for everyday use.

I'm aware of the PowerShell GUI. It's better than the ancient "cmd" GUI, but I still miss some niceties like marking with left-click and pasting with middle-click. Basic stuff like maximizing the window doesn't work (it doesn't auto-adjust width). It doesn't seem to have a way to open a new tab with a keyboard shortcut. For some reason it starts with the 4x6 font. When I change that setting, it displays a message that it can't modify the shortcut. Etc. I know there are ways around all this. I'm just saying that for me things have reversed. Mint works for me out of the box, and it's Windows that requires fiddling. It used to be the other way around.

Also, "PowerShell works well, but it is different that anything you've used before", in 30 years I have used a lot of things most people haven't heard of. Including PowerShell. I still find it's GUI lacking. I think Doom's console is superior: quick to open, clean and to the point.

"How, despite being careful and having Windows Defender, it's almost inevitable to end up with some spyware/adware which is very hard to get rid of." What the heck are you doing with your computer? I never get spyware/adware, and I don't even have any realtime protection, just regularly drop to safe mode and scan.

Installing Java without unticking a checkbox is an example. Or installing a Chrome extension that at a later time is bought by someone who silently updates it to do harm. Or installing Hola VPN. Etc.

a) Use ninite.com b) Don't install stupid shit, and pay attention when it all of a sudden says "I need more permissions" c) If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

I use parabola linux, which is a FSF-derivitive of arch.

I'm on Ubuntu whenever I have to work and then switch to Windows when I have to play games. So I guess Ubuntu?

LinuxBBQ.org, a Debian Sid/experimental derivative... i3 with no DE/DM.

I use Android with Nexus instead of a desktop like Ubuntu, when possible.

I am running Windows 10 RTM, and it is a huge improvement over Win 8.1.

This needs a Windows 10 (or applicable "other") option.

NixOS!

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