What the Linux Desktop Really Needs To Challenge Windows

Linux's share of the desktop market has climbed to as much as 11% by one count, but that figure includes Chromebooks, and the traditional Linux desktop remains hamstrung by the same fragmentation that killed Unix decades ago. Steven J. Vaughan-Nichols, writing in The Register, argues that the proliferation of Linux desktops -- more than a dozen significant interfaces exist today, and DistroWatch lists 'upwards of a hundred' -- makes it nearly impossible for ordinary users to know where to start.

Linus Torvalds has long agreed with this hypothesis. 'We have way too many desktops,' Vaughan-Nichols notes, summarizing Torvalds' position. The deeper issue lies in software delivery: traditional package managers like DEB and RPM 'simply don't scale for the desktop,' forcing distro builders to constantly rebuild programs for their specific environments. Containerized solutions like Flatpaks, Snaps and AppImages should solve this by bundling dependencies into universal packages, but the Linux community remains divided over which to adopt.

Linux Mint, for instance, refuses Snap because 'Canonical has too much control over the Snap store.' Hardware support further complicates this challenges, the veteran journalist writes. While Dell sells Ubuntu machines and specialist vendors like System76 and TUXEDO Computers cater to enthusiasts, 'none of them make it easy' for mainstream buyers, and no major OEM strongly backs Linux. Torvalds has pointed to Chromebooks and Android as the model: Linux won on smartphones because 'there's a single, unified platform with a unified way to install programs.'

Read more of this story at Slashdot.