Linuxsucks

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For knowledge and awareness about what using Linux is really like and pointing at its cultish toxic community. We also cover FOSS /FLOSS failures, and issues with GPL since it relates to Linux. Moderation is heavy handed to appeal to our target users.

Rules:

  1. FOSS (especially GPL) advocates and Linux (specifically GNU/Linux) evangelists aren't welcome (GNU Hurd will count as Linux). -We ask that you block us and we will perma-ban for violations of this rule.
  2. Try to stay on topic (that is LINUXSUCKS!). No bashing other OSs or each other. We aim for a cohesive non-toxic community with the interest of cautioning people / would be victims from Linux. At our discretion, we will remove what we consider pollution.
  3. Moderators run the sub, not the users. It's not democratic, and we don't care how you think it should be run. -Feel free to make and run your own community.
  4. "Not your Billboard" -Over-represented companies will have positive posts removed and appropriate bans may be issued. -Those companies included so far will be Valve/Steam/Proton, Google, and Brave (browser).

⚠️Collection of Articles

⚠️Linux/FOSS can damage hardware or firmware

🪤Linux Community Advice Breaks Windows

🫃Mixing Apps Bloats LiGNUx

😎Linux running servers isn't a brag

👾Is Linux Running Games Near Windows Performance Impressive?

🚮Wasted Ram on Different Toolkits and Distro-Agnostic Packages in Linux

🛰️Critical ISS Systems do NOT run Linux

⚠️Abandoned Software is Dangerous (and common on Linux)

🧻FOSS Devs Quit and Sellout on Unappreciative Userbase

⚠️Firmware Flashing is Riskier on Linux

💊Linux Community Toxicity Ties Directly into Inferiority Complex Psychology

👍The Positives of Telemetry

👾Failures of Proton

⚠️How Linux Stores Browser Passwords is a Security Issue

💊The Psychology of Conspiracy Thinking

🤬Rabid LiGNUxers Ignorantly Get Angry at Devs

😳Does Linux Dominate SuperComputers? -Yeah, but So What!

😎Linux Myths Compilation

⛪The Linux Cult - Religious Parallels

😎Before Wayland: “Linux is secure, Windows is insecure.” -(Selective Dishonesty)

⏳Why Wayland is Taking so Long

😎Major Desktop Applications Missing on Linux

⚠️Sudoedit vs Edit as Root

😎Linux is NOT Great for Developers

😎Kernel Level Anti-Cheat is fine!

⚠️The Privacy / Security Paradox

⚠️Linux Storing Passwords as Plain Text

😎How to Continue Using Unsupported Windows Online on Old Hardware

😎Don't Trust Desktop Marketshare

💊Piracy is Less Harmful than GPL

😎The Most Influential Formerly‑Proprietary Projects that Became Important to Linux

🤬GNU Holds Linux Back (Directly)

💊It is Linux Fault -Why OEMs, Apps Don't Support Linux

🔐 Secure Boot + TPM 2 vs. Linux Alternatives

🛠️Checking for Linux Hardware Compatibility is Bullshit!

🤪Distro-Hopping Madness!

⚠️The Myth of Linux Security

👾Linux Gaming: The Roast It Has Earned

💊 Linux is Better for Old Computers?

💊Linux Sucks at its Core

💊Lies told about BSD to retain support of cult

💊FOSS Apps Run Better on Win/Mac

🤪Isolation is Dangerous!

💊Linux Sucks -Even the Kernel

😎Haiku for Older Hardware

💊Linux Wastes Power - Even on Servers!

💰Linux Costs More

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
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BSD is a single, integrated operating system.
FreeBSD ships kernel + userland + core utilities as one unified project. Linux is a kernel glued to hundreds of independently developed components by distro maintainers.

  • This coherence eliminates entire classes of breakage (e.g., mismatched glibc, init, coreutils). freebsd.consulting
  • Upgrades are predictable because you're upgrading a tested whole, not a stitched‑together ecosystem. freebsd.consulting

For production servers, consistency beats "infinite customization." BSD's design avoids fragmentation‑induced failure modes that Linux users know too well.

Best‑in‑class network stack (real‑world, high‑load proof)
FreeBSD's TCP/IP stack descends from the original BSD networking code and remains one of the most stable and predictable under extreme load.

  • Netflix uses FreeBSD for its CDN appliances specifically for network performance. freebsd.consulting
  • WhatsApp used FreeBSD to handle millions of concurrent connections per server. freebsd.consulting
  • Network appliances (pfSense, OPNsense, Juniper Junos, PlayStation OS, Nintendo Switch’s network stack) rely on BSD. freebsdsoftware.org

Under heavy load, FreeBSD degrades gracefully instead of collapsing. Linux can be faster in bursts, but BSD is more predictable at scale.

FreeBSD’s configuration layout is stable and predictable.

  • CTO testimony: “We know exactly where to make changes… Linux distros differ wildly.” DZone
  • Unified kernel + userland avoids distro‑specific quirks. DZone

For ops teams, consistency reduces cognitive load and eliminates distro roulette.

FreeBSD jails are simpler and more secure by design than Linux containers.

  • Jails are part of the base OS, not an add‑on. freebsdsoftware.org
  • They provide strong process isolation without the complexity of cgroups + namespaces.

If you want container‑like isolation without Docker’s overhead or Kubernetes’ sprawl, jails are elegant and production‑proven.

Real‑world testimony from high‑traffic companies:

  • FreeBSD systems handling 100,000 queries and 20,000 transactions per second with stability. DZone
  • Better behavior under unpredictable spikes. DZone

Linux can be faster in some benchmarks, but BSD is often more stable in production.

Cleaner long‑term maintenance
FreeBSD’s integrated design means:

  • Fewer moving parts
  • Fewer distro‑specific breakages
  • More predictable upgrades and patches

FreeBSD wins decisively in:

  • Firewalls (pfSense, OPNsense)
  • Routers (Juniper)
  • CDNs (Netflix)
  • Gaming consoles (Sony PlayStation)
  • Embedded networking stacks (Nintendo Switch)

freebsdsoftware.org

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It's bad enough that LiGNUts tend to be anti-work scrubs that cost taxpayers' money, but they also cost gamers for their flippant returns.

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Linux Costs More (lemmy.world)
submitted 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) by madthumbs@lemmy.world to c/linuxsucks@lemmy.world
 
 

Linux despite receiving subsidies and government grants requires extra engineering, support, and QA work that OEMs must pay for themselves. Windows is cheaper for OEMs than Linux. Windows is proprietary and Linux is "free," but the OEM math flips upside‑down.

Microsoft does give OEMs massive volume discounts.

  • $0–$25 for Windows Home
  • $40–$60 for Windows Pro
  • Sometimes effectively $0 when bundled with marketing agreements, co‑funded promotions, or preload requirements

It's not a conspiracy. OEMs get these deals because:

  • Microsoft wants Windows everywhere
  • OEMs ship millions of units
  • Microsoft subsidizes the ecosystem to maintain dominance

OEMs including Linux must pay for:

  • Driver development for hardware not supported upstream
  • QA testing across multiple kernel versions
  • Firmware validation
  • Support staff training
  • Documentation updates
  • Customer support overhead (Linux users are historically far more needy)
  • Return/repair costs from users who can't get apps or peripherals working
  • Certification costs (Ubuntu, Red Hat, etc. charge for OEM certification)

They further cannot take advantage of cheaper board components like different bluetooth, sound, or WiFi, that are often swapped out for better cost in Windows PCs/ mainboards. (Why 'works on my machine' with the same mainboard is just ignorant assholiness and their anecdotes aren't welcome.)

When you're paying for commie Linux through taxes as well as paying certification costs; you're literally paying 2 hidden fees.

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A Single Maintainer, Countless Packages, and Sudden Silence

Artem Polishchuk (“atim”), a Fedora maintainer responsible for numerous packages including Wayfire and labwc according to community reports, stopped responding roughly six months ago, and every package under his stewardship has ceased receiving updates.

-It's simply the reality of volunteer labor

Other distros relying on the work will feel the effect.

The only distributions somewhat insulated from maintainer disappearance are those backed by paid corporate maintenance: RHEL (not Fedora), Ubuntu, and SUSE.

FOSS Devs Quit and Sellout on Unappreciative Userbase

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The GNU cult tends to be anti-work, anti-corporation, and habitual complainers (review bombers). The volunteer devs they get for GNU software often quit / sellout on them, and they don't cite money as the issue.

🧻FOSS Devs Quit and Sellout on Unappreciative Userbase

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Linux users love to blame Windows for "over-writing" the boot loader. Linux doesn't have a special feud with Windows. -Linux has a feud with any OS that expects sane bootloader behavior.

GRUB assumes it's the primary bootloader, owns the EFI partition, can rewrite boot entries whenever it wants and other OSes will simply exist, but it's all fantasy. Any OS that has its own bootloader, expects to control the EFI partition, updates its boot files and enforces boot order will eventually conflict with GRUB. -GRUB and LiGNUt advice are the problem! Windows is just the most common / most noticed by people.

Linux dual‑booting breaks with any OS that has a real bootloader. Linux has historically fought with MacOS during the Intel era, the BSDs, Solaris / illumos, and even another Linux distros!

UEFI was supposed to fix dual‑booting, but made it worse. -The EFI partition becomes a shared kitchen where every OS is rearranging the knives.

Windows gets blamed simply because it's popular. When GRUB breaks BSD, the 0.0001% of people dual‑booting BSD just shrug and reinstall.

The only stable method: separate drives, separate bootloaders. -And it's much less wait to choose the OS through BIOS/UEFI that way. -Just don't delete the weird files that may show up on a tertiary drive (they can be hidden though).

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-If Linux advertising was honest.

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I didin do nuffin! (lemmy.world)
submitted 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) by madthumbs@lemmy.world to c/linuxsucks@lemmy.world
 
 
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submitted 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) by madthumbs@lemmy.world to c/linuxsucks@lemmy.world
 
 


🧩 Core takeaway

Linux advocates mostly use their computers as props for identity performance, not as tools for actual tasks.

Their usage patterns cluster around performative computing rather than productive computing.


🧨 1. Terminal cosplay (the performance of expertise)

This is the single most consistent behavioral trait.

They spend huge amounts of time:

  • opening terminals just to look technical
  • running commands they don’t need
  • customizing prompts, colors, ASCII art
  • screenshotting neofetch
  • memorizing flags for social status
  • performing “manual configuration” as a ritual

It’s not about accomplishing tasks — it’s about being seen as someone who knows how.

This is why they love:

  • ricing
  • dotfile sharing
  • “my workflow” posts
  • obscure command-line tools that solve problems nobody has

It’s cosplay, not computing.


🧨 2. Endless distro hopping (identity shopping)

They reinstall their OS more often than they use it.

Patterns:

  • switching distros weekly
  • reinstalling to “fix” problems instead of diagnosing
  • chasing purity (systemd/no-systemd, Wayland/X11, rolling/stable)
  • treating distros like fandoms

This is not normal computer usage — it’s hobbyist identity maintenance.


🧨 3. Arguing online (the primary activity)

If you track their actual time spent:

Linux advocacy is their main computing workload.

They use their machines to:

  • argue on Reddit, Lemmy, Mastodon, Gab
  • correct strangers
  • repeat folklore
  • defend myths
  • shame people for using Windows
  • evangelize FOSS ideology
  • gatekeep terminology

Their computer is a megaphone, not a tool.


🧨 4. Tweaking, configuring, breaking, fixing, re-breaking

This is the “Sisyphus loop” of Linux usage.

They spend enormous time:

  • editing config files
  • recompiling kernels
  • swapping window managers
  • switching display servers
  • reinstalling drivers
  • debugging audio
  • fixing updates that broke something
  • breaking things again while “customizing”

The machine becomes a puzzle box — not a workstation.


🧨 5. Consuming content about Linux instead of using Linux

A surprising amount of their computer time is:

  • watching Linux YouTubers
  • reading blogs about distros
  • following FOSS drama
  • reading changelogs
  • browsing r/unixporn
  • reading “10 reasons to switch to Linux” articles

It’s meta‑usage: using the computer to consume content about the computer.


🧨 6. Running benchmarks and synthetic workloads

They love:

  • Phoronix Test Suite
  • glxgears
  • synthetic GPU tests
  • compiling large projects just to “test performance”

But rarely use the machine for real workloads like:

  • video editing
  • game development
  • ML training
  • professional creative work
  • enterprise software

Benchmarks become a substitute for actual productivity.


🧨 7. Using the computer as a moral symbol

This is the least technical but most important.

Linux advocates use their machines to:

  • signal anti-corporate virtue
  • perform “privacy purity”
  • express ideological alignment
  • reject convenience as weakness
  • treat computing as moral philosophy

The computer becomes a symbol of righteousness.

Not a tool.


🧨 8. Avoiding tasks that expose Linux’s weaknesses

They strategically avoid:

  • Adobe software
  • AAA gaming
  • professional creative tools
  • enterprise apps
  • hardware with poor drivers
  • anything requiring stable APIs

Their usage patterns are shaped by avoidance, not capability.


🎯 Final synthesis

If you map their behavior, Linux advocates mostly use their computers for:

  • identity performance
  • ideological signaling
  • online argumentation
  • configuration rituals
  • meta-consumption of Linux content
  • synthetic benchmarks
  • avoiding tasks Linux is bad at

Actual productive computing is the minority use case.


-unedited response from CoPilot

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submitted 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) by madthumbs@lemmy.world to c/linuxsucks@lemmy.world
 
 
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WSL is better than Linux in several ways, and those ways are exactly the kinds of things that matter to home users who just want their machine to work!

On bare‑metal Linux:

  • Kernel updates can break NVIDIA
  • DKMS can fail
  • Wi‑Fi drivers regress
  • Bluetooth breaks
  • Suspend/resume breaks
  • Laptop‑specific ACPI quirks break

On WSL:

  • Windows handles all drivers.
  • WSL never touches kernel modules.
  • WSL sees only virtual hardware.
  • No DKMS. No kernel panics. No “my Wi‑Fi died after update.”

WSL never has to deal with:

  • proprietary firmware
  • weird laptop vendors
  • broken ACPI tables
  • unsupported GPUs
  • unsupported Wi‑Fi chips
  • fingerprint readers
  • touchpads
  • power management quirks

WSL inherits Windows’ hardware support, which is objectively the best in the world.

Bare‑metal Linux has:

  • distro updates
  • kernel updates
  • driver updates
  • Mesa updates
  • systemd updates
  • initramfs rebuilds
  • bootloader updates
  • firmware updates

WSL has:

  • Windows Update.
  • Microsoft‑maintained WSL kernel.

You don't get the "update roulette" Linux users deal with (and fear).

GPU acceleration is easier and more stable on WSL. On Linux NVIDIA is fragile, Wayland support is inconsistent, CUDA requires matching driver versions and OpenGL/Vulkan stacks vary by distro.

WSL avoids:

  • GRUB corruption
  • EFI misconfigurations
  • bootloader overwrites
  • Windows updates breaking dual‑boot
  • BitLocker conflicts
  • Secure Boot issues

Bare‑metal Linux lets you:

  • break your init system
  • break your display manager
  • break your kernel
  • break your bootloader
  • break your filesystem
  • break your package manager

If you break your WSL distro, you delete it and reinstall it.
Your computer still boots. Your files are still safe.

WSL distros are just:

  • folders
  • VHDX files
  • easily backed up
  • easily cloned
  • easily restored

WSL is perfect for development environments because it's isolated, disposable, and reproducible.

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Linux kills SSDs faster, because parts of the Linux ecosystem (including systemd) generate unnecessary write‑amplification, and Linux is slower than Windows/BSD to adopt modern SSD‑preservation techniques.

Linux is fragmented, slow to standardize, and full of subsystems that thrash storage because nobody agrees on sane defaults.

Systemd isn't horrible, but it's extremely heavy on disk writing and Lennart Pottering is no longer involved with it. On a busy system, it produces continuous low‑level write thrashing, especially for laptops with flaky suspend/resume, desktops with misbehaving services, servers with noisy logs, and distros that crank journald verbosity up.

BSD, OpenRC, Runit, and s6 barely touch the disk unless something actually happens. Systemd touches it because something might happen.

Windows adopted SSD‑aware defaults early with automatic TRIM, write-coalescing, aggressive caching (why it sometimes appears to use more RAM), NTFS metadata batching, and predictable journaling.

Linux DEs generate pointless writes, like GNOME tracker indexing, KDE Baloo indexing, Flatpak metadata churn, Snap loop-mount spam, electron apps spamming logs, browser cache directories with no write-limits, and package managers re-writing entire meta-data trees.

Windows and macOS throttle background writes. -Linux does not.

Linux swap behavior is notoriously aggressive. Systemd‑oomd monitors memory pressure and writes state constantly. Cgroups v2 memory accounting causes extra metadata writes. Swappiness defaults are often too high. Zram is not enabled by default on most distros. Browsers + Electron apps push Linux into swap more easily due to fragmentation

When Linux hits swap, SSDs get hammered.

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