in ♥️ with linux

Disclaimer: If this post comes across as Apple-bashing, I apologize. That’s not my intention! I had a lot of fun with the Mac and enjoyed my time with that system.

But exactly 1000 days ago, I switched back from Mac to Linux. Without a doubt, the best decision I could have made as a tech enthusiast.

I was already a Linux user in the late 90s and early 2000s (SuSE 5.1, Redhat 6, Mandrake, and Slackware), but then the Mac became too tempting with the iBook 12 G4. What a dream device! Additionally, macOS appealed as an “easy-to-use” Unix system.

Even though I had already been experimenting in the last years with Linux again on an “old” Thinkpad T460 and the MNT Pocket Reform, my main computer was still a MacBook.

Then, exactly 1000 days ago, a Tuxedo Pulse 14 finally replaced the MacBook as my main device.

Although it was a good choice, the hardware has since been replaced multiple times. But Linux has always remained.

Current hardware includes a self-built AMD desktop with an orange case and a Framework 12 as my laptop. The home server is a HPE ProLiant MicroServer Gen10.

Of course, I’ve been actively hopping distros during this time.

On the desktop: Fedora → Debian Stable → openSUSE Tumbleweed → Debian Stable → openSUSE Tumbleweed On the server: Debian Stable → openSUSE Slowroll → Debian Stable

openSUSE Tumbleweed seems to be the winner ... for now.

The same hopping around happened on the desktop environment: GNOME → SWAY → NIRI → GNOME → NIRI / GNOME

From a purely emotional perspective, I think GNOME will win out in the long run.

At first, I took the GNOME beginner’s route and installed a ton of extensions because things were missing. By now, I feel like I understand the GNOME way (and it’s fantastic!), and I only run two extensions: Caffeine and Audio Switch Shortcuts. No unnecessary stuff or UI clutter.

But NIRI is also used frequently. To me, NIRI and GNOME feel like closely related cousins ;) A GNOME with integrated NIRI will remain an unfulfilled dream.

SWAY also continues to tempt me daily with its sleek system access.

KDE is also frequently installed and uninstalled. I understand the approach, but I just can't warm up to the design.

That’s the beauty of Linux: the freedom to choose from a variety of desktops that can be installed in parallel. The apps don’t care what they run on or in.

The same freedom applies to hardware. Apple builds fantastic laptops! But I was limited to one manufacturer. If they did something (even ethically) that I didn’t like, I was stuck. With Linux, I don’t have this problem: I can simply buy from someone else next time.

This is currently the case with my Framework 12. I like the device, but I don’t like all the projects the company currently backs. So, for my next purchase, I can decide whether it will be another Framework or a device from a different manufacturer.

Switching to Linux also had the wonderful side effect of changing the ecosystem around me. iOS was replaced by free Android alternatives: via e/OS and iodeOS, I landed on GrapheneOS. Currently, I'm even playing around with SailfishOS.

Services have also changed: my music streams via Navidrome, and my family organizes photos using ente. KeepassXC and KeepassDX replaced 1Password.

Even home automation switched from HomeKit to Home Assistant.

So, 1000 happy days with the decision to switch—and never going back to proprietary! It wasn’t always a painless transition. But it was worth it.