The post that was originally scheduled to go out today was delayed, so instead, you get ramblings about Linux, and laptops.
Lately, since solving that quite annoying graphical issue on my laptop, the Framework 16, I have rediscovered how much I love using it for daily things.
I would go as far as to say this is how Linux must feel for newcomers to make sure they stay. Saying this ahead, I’m currently using Fedora Workstation 43, which is one of the three supported Linux distributions on Framework laptops; I’m currently using KDE (but GNOME applies as well to this article, despite some being angry at its existence).
Small side note: please do not argue about distributions and desktop environments in the comments; open your own blog instead.
Since I’ve started using Linux full time, the path has been rough. Nonworking audio, weird drivers, Wi-Fi failing, and Nvidia drivers; I think I saw all the issues people usually complain about. Luckily, modern distributions and the software they ship have been getting a lot better as well in the meanwhile.
The only real audio issue I had in years was either me not selecting the right output device or just the device being funky by itself for instance. Same with Wi-Fi drivers, all the machines I’ve used since 2020 just work™ in that regard.
That leads me to the Framework 16. I got it in December 2024 as a self-gift (AKA finding an excuse to buy something expensive) to replace my old ThinkPad X200 that couldn’t even open a modern web browser anymore. Don’t get me wrong, it’s an expensive laptop with exotic features that only nerds such as me will appreciate, but it set nonetheless my standard for how Linux should feel to new users.
One thing you get is the fluidity. Just like on a macOS machine, things launch quickly when you click on a window, it’s there right away. It’s great, coming from years of using underpowered machines, it’s a breath of fresh air.
And yeah, minus the issue presented in the introduction that could use an official patch, it just works™ in general. All I have to worry about on this machine is clicking the “update” button once in a while, and that’s it. While fiddling with the system is fun once in a while, I think this is how a computer should feel: fast and to the point.
That’s why sometimes I get angry when people tell newcomers that their issues “aren’t a big deal”. They are! My desktop workstation has a GPU issue that I’ve been trying to solve forever; for instance, under certain workloads, the GPU will just have a driver timeout and crash. Now put yourself in the shoes of someone that just heard of Linux, is trying it for the first time, and encounters that issue. At first, you’re going to be confused, “What happened?” Then the moment to get help, someone will tell you to run some command, “Oh yeah, just run echo 'amdgpu.dcdebugmask=0x410' | sudo tee /etc/modprobe.d/amdgpu.conf && sudo dracut --force and it’ll work”. From an average user perspective, it’s just confusing.
Luckily, Linux has gotten better over time, and hardware like the Steam Deck proved that it’s a reliable platform for things it had the reputation of being bad at (gaming in this instance), and it can only improve further from here.
It’s only recently that I’ve really started to enjoy using Linux; of course, the freedom given was nice all along, but the fact that nowadays, I can have a machine that just works is the cherry on top.
In any case, if you want to try Linux, my usual recommendation is Fedora since it can be installed easily and is generally a breeze to use. Depending on your taste, you might want to choose the “KDE Plasma Desktop” version in case you want a more traditional desktop experience.
Also, don’t hesitate to e-mail me about your experience if you’re a first-time user; I love hearing about it. It doesn’t matter whether it ended well or not.
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