News for hackers. Stuff that matters.
Re:German state planning to switch 25,000 PCs to LibreOffice by stelonix on Thursday November 18, 2021 @10:16AM (#29266351)
I'm not the parent but I'll answer as a 9 years Linux user and advocate.

Things just break with updates, or sometimes do not work. I'm on Ubuntu 20 right now and Firefox can't detect the microphone on some websites like FB or instagram, but works just fine on Chrome. On my home computer running Arch and similar setup Firefox detects the mic just fine.

It's brittle, it feels like it's duct tapes all the way down and the breakage is mostly because not many foss projects really care about backwards compatibility.

However, on topic, the awful mess that is the Linux desktop experience does not matter since we're talking about public servants and not home use.

Re:German state planning to switch 25,000 PCs to LibreOffice by cardanome on Thursday November 18, 2021 @10:40AM (#29266653)
Your example sounds more like typical Firefox to me. While I use it as my daily driver, video calls should always be done in Chrome in my experience. (Yeah, I know that is not exactly a point in favor of free software but it is what it is.)

Honestly at least relative to the general mood of the software industry I wouldn't say that foss projects don't care about backwards compatibility. The kernel is famous for caring a lot about it. The Debian project is quite known for being relatively conservative. Unfortunately Ubuntu is known for experimenting on its users but thank god nobody is forced to use that.

Re:German state planning to switch 25,000 PCs to LibreOffice by BlueTemplar on Thursday November 18, 2021 @11:29AM (#29267271)
Why are you doing video calls in a browser in the first place ?
Re:German state planning to switch 25,000 PCs to LibreOffice by com2kid on Thursday November 18, 2021 @12:51PM (#29268303)
Because that is how it is done now days?

Browsers have supported video calls for years now. Heck there are plenty of Show HN posts about the latest in browser virtual chat rooms with full video and audio.

Re:German state planning to switch 25,000 PCs to LibreOffice by cardanome on Thursday November 18, 2021 @01:06PM (#29268483)
Did I use the wrong preposition or are you telling me to always use proper apps for it?

I don't see the issue, yes Teams is crap in Browser but most WebRTC based solutions work fine, at least in Chrome. Plus if I can avoid installing proprietary Software that is always a plus.