For the past two decades, I’ve been beating the Linux drum as loudly as I can. There have been moments when it seemed to have worked, and moments when I felt like I was the only one dancing to the beat.
Over time, I’ve drawn more conclusions than I care to admit, but some of those conclusions have held fast and strong since I began this journey: conclusions that I believe could help make it easier for the masses to adopt Linux as its default OS.
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I know, I know … it sounds like a message delivered by a being from outer space bearing a flag that says, ‘Kaboom!’ With that said, why don’t I share with you the ideas I’ve harbored over these past years that could give the open-source OS a boost?
1. Add a Welcome app
Some distributions do this; some do it well; some not so well. Those who do it well provide an invaluable service to new users. These Welcome apps help introduce users to what Linux (and their chosen distribution is), give quick links to important features (such as an app store, settings, etc.), offer tips on how to use Linux, help users make certain decisions (such as theme, default browser, etc.), and give users choices on other software to install.
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I believe this sort of feature would be a very welcome addition to any distribution, especially those geared toward new users. In fact, I would go so far as to say this should be considered a must. And if distributions that don’t have a Welcome app are now considering one, take it seriously and put a good deal of thought and effort into designing and building this feature.
2. Bake Snap or Flatpak support into its GUI app store
I know there are some who hate these universal package managers. The truth is, however, they both make it possible for users to install much-needed (and, yes, proprietary) software. For a new user to have to go through the process of installing either Snap or Flatpak and then adding support for either into their default app store is a bridge too far. For example, a very large number of people depend on Slack for communication and collaboration.
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If a distribution has Flatpak or Snap rolled in by default, users could open their chosen app store, search for Slack, and install it with a single click. They don’t care about all the infighting that’s gone on about how Canonical has forced Snap onto users; they only care that they have quick and easy access to installing the software they need.
3. Include drivers for both NVIDIA and AMD GPUs
There’s one distribution I can think of that does this right — System76’s Pop!_OS. With that distribution, you can choose to download an ISO that includes drivers for either NVIDIA or AMD GPUs. Every distribution should do something like this.
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Or better yet, make it such that the installation detects the installed GPU, downloads the best driver, and installs it automatically. Don’t make the user do this because it can become a complicated mess for those who aren’t well-versed in Linux. You want those users to enjoy the best experience at first login, not gaze upon a poorly configured display and then have to take the time to research and solve the problem.
4. Create a one-click installation process
I think this would be a great installation option. Picture this: New users boot up an ISO and are given two choices: Easy Installation or Standard Installation. The Easy Installation would auto-detect the best options for the hardware it’s being installed on, and all the user would have to do is click Install. After the installation is complete, the user reboots and is then prompted to create a new user.
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Once the user is created, they log in and they’re ready to use Linux. Imagine how well that would go over with new users. “Oh, Linux can be installed with a single click.” That would be a boon.
5. Stop defaulting to dark themes
No other operating system on the planet defaults to dark themes, and the majority of users don’t want a dark theme. Why, then, do so many Linux distributions default to dark themes? My guess is that a lot of distribution designers forget that not every Linux user is a developer. Start thinking about what the masses want and not what developers prefer!
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This might not seem important, but it is. Dark themes aren’t necessarily the best option for those who tend to work during the day and prefer to have a display that looks nice and bright. Please, make this change.
6. Simplify the driver installation process
Similar to the GPU driver issue, it’s time for Linux to simplify the driver installation process. Printers, scanners, audio devices … everything. Linux could easily be a plug-and-play affair, and in some cases, it is. I have an old Brother laser printer that is always auto-detected. Why can’t that be the case for webcams and other items? I know it’s all about the availability of driver source, but many of these devices can work with generic drivers, so why complicate the process?
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Create an app (similar to the System76 firmware app) that can serve as an installation wizard for peripherals and other connected devices. When the user plugs something in, the wizard detects the new addition, opens, and walks the user through the installation of the necessary software.
7. Add Samba support by default (and bake it into the file manager)
Samba is an important feature for anyone who needs to share folders over a network. Some distributions include Samba, but don’t bake it into the file manager. Some don’t include any of the pieces necessary for network file sharing.
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And just as important is this: if you include Samba, don’t make users open the terminal window to create a Samba password and then enable the user for the service. Make this automatic, so users only need to right-click a folder they want to share and click Share. This would open a user-friendly wizard where the user could indicate the permissions they want to give users for the shared folder. Make Samba simple.
8. Include a GUI for cloud services
Windows has OneDrive, and macOS has iCloud. What does Linux have? Not much. Sure, some distributions allow users to add a cloud account from within Settings, but all that does is mount the cloud account to a folder, which doesn’t always work for syncing, and on top of that it’s very slow.
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Linux distributions could strike a deal with the likes of InSync, so connecting to, say, Google Drive is a no-brainer. This should be a top priority because users have grown to depend on cloud accounts, and having this built into the OS would go a long way to making life easier for many people.
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