One of the things I like the most about being a Linux user is the wide variety of perspectives and experiences people have on the OS.Earlier this year, I lost an important work machine to a misbegotten Windows update.So I committed to using Linux Mint and Debian 13 for my daily work tasks.
I'd already been using Linux for personal stuff, but that botched update really made me go all in on Linux.Several HTG writers have done something similar.So I asked them what prompted them to make the switch (and what they switched to).
Mint, Zorin OS, and Debian A simple twist of fate brought me to the OS Close I came to the world of Linux through Red Hat a very long time ago.I worked a job that used it extensively.Later, I got into Raspberry Pis and Ubuntu, and eventually Mint.
Later, I got into Debian and have been loving it ever since.Mint is the distro that really made me say, “I'm ditching Windows for good” because it just works well and is perfect for beginners and advanced users alike.Jorge A.
Aguilar also ditched Windows for Mint.Mint is pretty user-friendly and easy to install.He was concerned about bricking his laptop, so he wanted to start small.
That makes perfect sense.After trying to figure out a way to squeeze more life out of old Windows PCs, Rich Hein decided to switch to Linux.He was very close to settling on Mint as his primary distro, but eventually decided he liked Zorin OS better.
I have yet to try Zorin OS, but it on my list of distros to try out in the next few months.Kubuntu A plasma desktop and KDE suite make a difference Kubuntu turned out to be the most mentioned next to Ubuntu.While I've done some work with Ubuntu in the past (circa 2014), I have never actually tried Kubuntu.
After talking with my fellow writers, I think I want to give it a go.Nick Lewis told me he dual-booted Linux for a long time, but after he tried Kubuntu, he switched to it for good.He liked it because it had a good mix of all the things that make Ubuntu and Debian great.
A lot of that came down to how well the Plasma desktop works and the fact that it "plays well with the KDE suite." That's a similar sentiment to the response I received from Senior Author Dibakar Ghosh (who writes about Linux for the site).While he uses Kubuntu now, he's gone through several distros, including Fedora and Garuda.Before that, he started using Ubuntu in 2016, but spent some time “distro hopping” and ended up liking Manjaro and Pop! OS.
A few years later, around 2019-ish, he made the switch to Linux as a daily driver (largely because he loved KDE Activities and the customizable nature of the OS).The big reason he switched to Linux came down to customization and a safer operating system.He's definitely put in the work on testing Linux-related things out, and it's interesting to see Kubuntu sitting at the center of that.
Fedora Silverblue The distro with Android-like features Fedora, surprisingly, didn't come up very often.I like Fedora quite a bit, but I've only used it for specific projects.It's a powerhouse OS, so I was intrigued to hear that it's my fellow writer (and fellow Samsung Z Fold 5 fan!), Bertel King’s go-to distro.
After messing with Xubuntu a bit, he ended up leaving Windows entirely for Ubuntu Intrepid Ibex.Of course, as he puts it, “That was obviously a long time ago.” Fair enough.Bertel does a lot of his work with Android, but he spent some time with Linux before shifting to his current workflow.
Nowadays, he uses Fedora Silverblue on a PC, but only when he needs to, largely because installing apps feels more like a phone (and plenty of other reasons).None at all A few of our writers aren't Linux fans As someone who is very much entrenched in the Linux ecosystem, it's sometimes easy to forget that some people prefer other operating systems.And those operating systems aren't always Windows.
One of our writers, Patrick Campanale, does a lot of interesting projects.He has a ton of great suggestions for homelab projects and covers a decent amount of 3D printing stuff.Lately, we've been discussing Raspberry Pis.
Reading about his projects, I had always just figured he used Linux in some capacity.But it turns out, he's a Mac guy who uses Windows for gaming.I can respect that.
My favorite response, though, was one writer who told me they wouldn't use Linux ever.Again, I respect that decision, but it did surprise me a bit.But my big takeaway is that Linux coverage isn't a small part of what we do.
And I kind of like it that way.Linux is my favorite OS, but there's more to it than that And there you have it: a roundup of reasons why HTG’s writers ditched Windows for Linux.A lot of it comes down to customization and being able to do what we want with our operating systems.
We cover a lot of different things at HTG.It's good to know that I'm working with some very knowledgeable people.And, hey, we'll keep writing about it because we love it just as much as our readers do.
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