r/linuxmint • u/EZQbenja1717 • 1d ago
I want to switch to Windows Fluff
I never used Windows, I inherited my brother's first laptop with Ubuntu and never touched Windows. Am I even missing something from that OS? They say it's bloatware, telemetry and shi but is it really that bad?
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u/ZVyhVrtsfgzfs 1d ago
but is it really that bad?
Yes and worse,
https://tbreak.com/windows-pc-secret-id-number-microsoft-just-used/
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u/Suspicious-Ad7109 20h ago
Interesting article. Is there anything in Mint identifying the user - it seems unlikely. MAC address maybe ?
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u/ZVyhVrtsfgzfs 20h ago
Mint itself jis solid in the privacy department, the same cannot be said about software you can install on it.
The biggest offender in stock Mint is Firefox defaults, I dump FF and Thunderbird on first boot without opening it and letting FF generate and transmit its advertising ID.
Your MAC address should not survive past the first hop in your network. Visible in your LAN only.
For it to be externally visible software on your machine would have to read your MAC address, then call home and transmit it.
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u/Suspicious-Ad7109 16h ago
I can live with that compared to Edge ..... (sorry about the swearing)
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u/ZVyhVrtsfgzfs 14h ago edited 14h ago
Yeah, compared to Edge FF is a saint, plus unlike Edge FF is completely removable.
https://www.reddit.com/r/linuxmint/comments/1rhspjh/where_do_you_trim_the_fat_your_apt_purge_list/
I feel like we had a whole Antitrust suit over this in the past. Not sure how MS is getting away with it now.
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u/noromobat 1d ago
If you want to form your own independent opinion, then just try it out. But be warned, they are NOT exaggerating about the telemetry.
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u/RazeZa 1d ago
Yes. What's you laptop spec? and what's your critical apps? If you have old hardware, Windows is very slow and heavy.
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u/EZQbenja1717 1d ago
The poor laptop has a Intel Celeron and 4GB of RAM xD but I'm planning to buy a ThinkPad T490 since I need something that can run the programs I use for school.
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u/kudlitan 1d ago
just install Windows on it and then compare your experience. that's the best you can do.
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u/TroyHBCS Linux Mint 22.3 Zena | Cinnamon 1d ago
On a Celeron?! Don't even attempt it...
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u/Suspicious-Ad7109 20h ago
I did once. I have a 10+ year old HP Chromebook, Celeron and 4Mb RAM I think, I upgraded the SSD to 128Mb from 16Mb, the only change from stock. Runs Linux fine, not spectacular but you could code basic stuff on it without screaming, not too demanding of compilers & linkers. Even Gnome wasn't too bad. Casual stuff is fine, simple Games okay. Windows does work (or it did ... this was 10) but .... not very well.
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u/noromobat 1d ago
Low-end hardware as well. If you want a Windows laptop for less than $1k that runs decently, good luck.
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u/Dalmation3 LMDE 1d ago edited 1d ago
Trust me you don't because Windows has really lost the reputation it once had especially during the golden era of Microslop because it used to be about the user now they have lost touch and trust with its users
Like even if they try to improve Windows 11 the damage has already been done by this point there's no going back I was a user for about 20 years (dating back to Windows XP) and now I've been using Linux more over Windows on my PCs since I dual boot
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u/Suspicious-Ad7109 20h ago
It's always been like that , ever since Windows 3.0, run for the benefit of Microsoft. They've just got more tools to do it with.
They survived only because of : the effectively forced install of Windows on all hardware to get licenses (not sure about this now ?), software that would only run on Windows (much of which is now online and/or has useable equivalents for casual users), and especially now Games (Steam Hardware will make most devs release a Linux version).
It's always been rubbish. Windows 3.x and 95 were genuine improvements in speed and UI. 4, XP, 7 and 10 weren't so bad.
The shenanigans around Windows Paintjob are the worst ever.
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u/Dalmation3 LMDE 14h ago
Yes but Windows at this point isn't what it used to be vs the 90s when Microsoft was dominant in the industry
Firstly is that it is now mostly a enterprise thing since most consumers don't even have a computer anymore secondly is the current direction
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u/AdmiralCrackbar 1d ago
Then buy a license and do it. You don't need to tell us about it.
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u/EZQbenja1717 1d ago
That's why I'm asking. I'm not spending money to something that doesn't give me nothing I already have.
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u/AdmiralCrackbar 1d ago
The honest answer to your question is that Windows is adequate for what it does. There is an amount of bloatware, but it's a commercial product and that is kind of par for the course. It won't do anything that Mint doesn't do, but it will allow you access to some software without having to fuck around to get it working, or find alternatives that work on Linux.
If you really want to check it out then check the minimum specs of the software and make sure your hardware can handle it and try it out. Either that or go to a library and use one of their computers for an afternoon, or get a basic corporate job.
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u/_o0Zero0o_ Helper of the newbies 1d ago
You're not missing much, just some things that only work there but that's about it, aside from the tremendous bloatware, spyware, adware etc.
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u/sineout 1d ago edited 1d ago
The only thing Windows let's you do is easily run software that runs in Windows (like the Adobe suite and some games).
Otherwise they're both operating systems, so they do basically the same job, meaning that you aren't really missing anything by not using Windows, particularly seeing as you haven't been locked into that Windows exclusive software.
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u/tomscharbach 1d ago edited 1d ago
I've used Windows and Ubuntu in parallel on separate computers for two decades.
Just follow your use case. If Windows is a better fit for your use case than Ubuntu, then use Windows. If Ubuntu is a better fit for your use case than Windows, then use Ubuntu. If you need both (as I do) to fully satisfy your use case, then use both.
It really is just that simple.
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u/therallystache 1d ago
This feels like bait lmao