Re:Is Microsoft boiling the users to death, by not boiling t...
by ChuckMcM on Saturday March 18, 2017 @08:59PM
(#13904476)
I'm sure there was a 'low disruption path' from 2001 to today but I apparently missed the memo :-). Window system churn Gnome->KDE 3 -> KDE 4-> XFCE, script churn (the whole systemd debacle), USB device churn and device feature churn (mouse tails? mouse scrolling? click to focus, focus under, hover focus?), and display driver churn especially with multiple displays and driver churn. (I've got two in an apparently freakish over / under configuration :-)
Re:Is Microsoft boiling the users to death, by not boiling t...
by jasonkostempski on Saturday March 18, 2017 @09:07PM
(#13904508)
I'm guessing, for example, if you use "bleeding edge desktop technology", you'll run into issues with stuff like this constantly because the focus is on flash, not stability. I was really into stuff like that probably 10 years ago, and it was a major headache to keep it up. It's nice that the retail products have dedicated teams to keep stuff tighter, but they needlessly change things way too often. If I'm going to be stuck with other peoples choices anyway, I'd rather choose the team dedicated to changing as little as possible and adding things only when proven to be actually useful.
Re:Is Microsoft boiling the users to death, by not boiling t...
by f4rker on Saturday March 18, 2017 @08:27PM
(#13904334)
Lol I always think it's so funny when people are like "I've been using Linux for years, almost never a problem". The last Linux mint update completely crashed the default desktop. I've used many distros including Ubuntu starting back when they would mail you a CD. The problems are endless.
Re:Is Microsoft boiling the users to death, by not boiling t...
by digi_owl on Saturday March 18, 2017 @09:24PM
(#13904574)
IMO all computers have problems, any claim otherwise are either delusional or fanboys (one could argue that's two terms for the same problem, btw).
Sadly in recent years Linux has taken on more and more of a Windows like black box experience.
What used to be clearly defined lines between parts have been blurred. And what used to be debuggable by running the same commands manually has turned into heisenbugs mediated over dbus.
Sad part is that while this makes me sound like an old graybeard, i am not much older than the people that are implementing all these changes.
Re:Is Microsoft boiling the users to death, by not boiling t...
by mjevans on Saturday March 18, 2017 @08:47PM
(#13904432)
Linux Mint officially does not support upgrades (at all). Their literal directions are to backup your data, re-install cleanly, and then restore your user files (implying it's not recommended to restore settings).
Debian provides a generally well supported and documented upgrade process. However it's the sort of thing that you frequently want an expert on hand to do. Still, many people pay to have their car's oil changed.
Re:Is Microsoft boiling the users to death, by not boiling t...
by Zpalmtree on Saturday March 18, 2017 @09:08PM
(#13904517)
I guess it kinda depends what packages and distro you use. Running arch for about 2 years, and the only thing which broke occasionaly was nvidia+steam compatibility, so sometimes games wouldn't launch. After switching to amd, I haven't had any issues on any updates.
I've been using Linux as my primary desktop in the form of Ubuntu since early 2009. What settings are screwed up by up by updates? I can think about init scripts becoming upstart and then systemd. Is it that?
I didn't notice anything else in these years unless we're regarding desktop environments as settings (Gnome 2 to 3 or to Unity). The change of desktop environment has been the most annoying change of the period. Luckily I managed to keep an almost Gnome 2 experience within the Gnome 3 environment using the Gnome fallback mode. However I wished they never spent time working on Gnome 3 and left it as it was. I have the feeling I had to work to undo all their work which is a pity.