this post was submitted on 02 Sep 2023
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Ah yes, windows where I have to somehow figure out how to install the drivers for my network adapter before I can actually connect to the internet, on top of having to go to a different website for each device that needs a driver to find the correct one, download it and install it.
Vs Linux, where network (and most essential) drivers are baked into the kernel, and all other drivers (for peripherals, etc) can be had via a package manager, where you can often find free and open source solutions. Also, video drivers are automatically installed with the OS (provided you are using a distro with a proper graphical installer for ease of use, cough use Endeavour cough), and automatically updated when the system is updated.
I tend to have driver issues more so with Linux than windows in my experience. Both seem to be capable at the very least of automatically installing a lot of the drivers without user intervention.
You'd have more driver issues with Windows if you used hardware that wasn't already being sold with Windows pre-installed by OEMs/system integrators. Comparatively Linux supports a wider verity of hardware for much longer, Windows on the other hand only really supports consumer grade hardware that's likely to have it pre-installed anyway with a limited (and often predestined) EOL.
If manufacturers treated Linux desktop as first class like with Windows or Linux on Servers then there'd be a very small amount of unsupported & likely obsolete hardware.
My system is one I custom built myself. I don't really think I've ever owned an OEM desktop before. The driver issues I tend to have was with multiple USB WiFi adapters I've tried with my computer. I had to do some really weird black magic shit to get them to work properly. I also couldn't run my TV at 4K 60hz on Linux, but I could on Windows. Freesync has also given me issues when trying to activate it. Not the fault of Linux if manufacturers don't give it proper support, but this has been my experience unfortunately. Windows would indeed have more driver issues if less drivers were being officially supported like if any other OS didn't get proper driver support, so I'm not really sure what you're trying to point out to me. What exactly is "consumer grade hardware"? Doesn't Windows run on other things as well besides just your typical desktop?
I just use WiFi tethering which circumvents that whole thing, so I can't speak on that.
This could be a few things, from the drivers to your display output configuration. I have a 4K 60hz TV that works perfectly fine with Linux, the display output just wasn't configured correctly. This is something Wayland can indirectly streamline for us in the very near future as it adds features that allows developers to better handle & support various displays.
This is unfortunately an area that's all up to one entity (AMD) to sort out but they just haven't. The way they'd achieve this is straight forward on paper; they'd have to make a FreeSync standard driver and provide similar GUI tools.
That doesn't mean you're not using the components found in common OEM pre-builds.
Not really, no.
There's Windows server but it's woefully unused and is basically dead. Why even use it when Microsoft Azure (Linux based) exists. Amongst the security issues raised by various cyber security professionals.
Additionally the driver problem is flipped in this area; I could grab just about any server hardware and it'll likely work with Linux no problem. However with Windows, I'd have to look specifically for Windows compatible hardware, as there's just not much insensitive to support Windows in the server space.
You can find Windows XP running on random legacy crap. But as of modern Windows, a Microsoft Surface and Valves Steam Deck is about as unique/exotic as the hardware gets.
Windows just isn't flexible enough to be used outside of the desktop in any real compacity and Valves Steam Deck is great example of this. The Steam Deck may have the drivers to support Windows but navigating it is a whole different story.