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Comment by Sohcahtoa82 | Hacker News Reader

Question:

Given the advances, how possible is it to use Linux without ever touching the Terminal? Until the answer is "100% possible", it will never be the year of Desktop Linux.

It's also worth noting that desktop computers are dropping in popularity for home users. Gamers will use them for years to come, but the average non-technical home user that just wants a web browser and social media are more likely to opt for a tablet these days. If they REALLY want a keyboard and a larger screen, they'll probably get a laptop.

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It's perfectly doable. I set up Linux Mint for a non-technical family member on a laptop almost a year ago. They use it for browsing the Internet, watching things on streaming services, etc. I just told them to click on the small shield icon that pops up in the system tray now and again to install system updates. I visited them yesterday and asked to see the laptop out of curiosity. It's fully updated, fast, and does everything they want.

I wish it was true. I use linux on a day to day and when things go wrong (updates or apps), you need a terminal.

When things go well, you sometimes need a terminal to avoid jankiness.

I guess a person who uses a pc in a very limited way might not notice, but then they could also use any os and achieve the same.

When updates or apps go wrong on Windows, you sometimes need to use Powershell. Sometimes it's easier to use Powershell for admin tasks to avoid janky settings menus. What's the difference?

The person using the terminal who is not a developer has no idea what to type, unless they have *some bash training*

There are a lot of Linux distributions, but one of the things I bumped into with the early SteamOS version is it was really, really hard to get the command prompt. It was bugged and would fail until you got some environment settings, if I remember right. Games and the video drivers worked, however. Too funny.

Most folks are using a PC for games, surfing, and gmail. Linux works surprisingly well for those use cases and I really did not need to use a terminal for any of the normal setup. Ironically, cleaning up the crapware on my Windows 10 start menu... required powershell.

It is quickly hitting that good enough stage.

Given that I've had to either use the Command Prompt or Registry Editor to fix Windows on every installation I've had when it somehow messes itself up, I don't see how having to use the Linux terminal in similar situations is a big problem.

My grandmother used it for about half a decade before she passed 5 years ago. I set it up for her, and she just used the browser and email on it.

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