Who thinks Linux is better??

[Zhulanov_A_A]

Desktop environments. On windows and mac you have only one DE without much possibilities for customization. On Linux you have dozens of different popular DEs with different workflows and much more customization. It's just more chances the best workflow for you will be on Linux

[Catheriiine]

I'd just like to interject for a moment. What you're referring to as Linux,
is in fact, GNU/Linux, or as I've recently taken to calling it, GNU plus Linux.
Linux is not an operating system unto itself, but rather another free component
of a fully functioning GNU system made useful by the GNU corelibs, shell
utilities and vital system components comprising a full OS as defined by POSIX.

Many computer users run a modified version of the GNU system every day,
without realizing it. Through a peculiar turn of events, the version of GNU
which is widely used today is often called "Linux", and many of its users are
not aware that it is basically the GNU system, developed by the GNU Project.

There really is a Linux, and these people are using it, but it is just a
part of the system they use. Linux is the kernel: the program in the system
that allocates the machine's resources to the other programs that you run.
The kernel is an essential part of an operating system, but useless by itself;
it can only function in the context of a complete operating system. Linux is
normally used in combination with the GNU operating system: the whole system
is basically GNU with Linux added, or GNU/Linux. All the so-called "Linux"
distributions are really distributions of GNU/Linux.

[dflem2003]

Maybe you should collaborate with Chris Titus Tech. He's a MCSE that switched to Linux (pretty much completely) but is also a Youtuber and I learned A LOT from him. 

 

My main reasons for using (in no particular order):

1. As low on resources as you want it to be and FAST! Especially on older hardware! I dont think I have a PC/laptop older than 5/6 years that is running Windows. 

 

2. Obviously security, although I think I recently read an article that sudo has a vulnerability. Yikes!

 

3. Telemetry. Afaik, there are none or you can choose to completely disable it (let's ignore ubuntu ftm)

 

4. It can be really simple. Sure Windows is great. Lots of features can do a lot, but they pack it all in whether you use the features or not.

 

5. I "feel" more in control of what's running on my PC.

 

6. Safe repositories/sources for software. 

 

7. Less maintenance. I have installed Mint for all my elder family members. Those PCs are the most used by them and I get virtually no calls to repair them. When i ask they always say "it's working great". When there is something wrong it's usually because a website they went to is telling them they need to install an .exe file and it doesnt work. Tehe. 

 

8. Logging into a console session and being able to start/stop services, manipulate files, make backups, update, basically do anything as if you were in front of the pc directly. 

 

 

[RunnerWolf25]

TL;DR: main reason:

- win10 broke and couldn't be fixed, linux can often be fixed even, when the system itself will bootloop or fail altogether.

 

others:

- the terminal being more powerful allows for scripts fo be far more useful (and faster, look at 'jobs' and the & or 'run as a job in the background' operator and the dash shell)

- system updates can be installed while the system is up and kernel updates don't affect boot speed or time required to turn off.

- the filesystem is more robust, almost no need for defragmentation.

- things like instead of superfetch linux uses caching. Prefered on slow disks and more predictable.

- Only uses swap after ram ACTUALY ran out.

- reliable speed/consistency

- ram disks do not require a 3rd party app

- installing, removing and maintaining software can be centralized using the package manager.

- no adds

- developer-friendly

- low-level access

- built-in manual that is useful

- the registry is just a fancy file-system. Linux just uses the filesystem.

- robust permissions making it reasonably secure.

 

Long version of my main point:

The only reason I switched is because I ran into problems using windows.

Last time I was forced to re-install win10 was because the windows installer broke on me, asking for a file I couldn't find on the internet or anywhere else. That prevented me from Installing, uninstalling and repairing software on my pc not offered on steam or the likes (steam itself was also affected).

 

That along with many other issues like disk management kicking the bucket (and many more issues) I was forced to back up my data and reinstall.

 

This should be plenty, if I remember more I will add later.

[Anduril]

I like Linux because:

• It's free, as in freedom to do what I want, as well as cost. But yeah, no mucking about with licenses, or worrying about if you've reached your max number of transfers. Or heck, want to run a server? You can convert any desktop into a server with the right software. On Windows they make it impossible to run Windows Server without an expensive server licenced copy of Windows.
• It's open source. So you know what's going on under the hood (of you read the source code anyway). And more eyes mean bugs are more likely to get caught and patched.
• It runs everything. The internet, to your smartphone, Linux has pretty much won. Look no further than how Microsoft is open sourcing some of their own software, or how they are making a push to play nice with Linux even with their subsystem for Linux. With Azure they are recognizing that Linux runs much of the internet, and they are supporting it.
• It's gotten more user friendly. Like Linux in 2019 isn't the obtuse operating system of yesteryear. It's easy to install, it's easy to maintain, and for many distros you don't even have to touch the command line! Linux is polished, and it works wonderfully. 
• It makes a great recovery tool. Something got your system (even Windows) messed up? Linux Live media can be used to find files, and browse your directories. Also partitioning and other advanced tools are available too.
• It runs great on old hardware. I bought an old ThinkPad with Windows XP for $50, put Linux on it, and it runs fantastically. No need to hunt for drivers, they are installed automatically.
• There's an app for that. Seriously, Linux has about everything you could possibly want. Yeah, it took me a while to get used to the idea that my favorite Windows software isn't on Linux, but there's often a free open source equivalent if you look for it. That means changing from what you're used to if you're new to Linux, but you can find a great deal of software that will do what you need, and it's 100% free to boot!
• Linux support forums are fantastic. Searching for a fix is way more helpful than any Windows forum I've been on. The official Microsoft reply rarely, if ever, fixes my problem. It's usually some comment squirreled away somewhere that actually ends up being a valid solution. But yeah, it's not the official way to fix the problem so the MS guys aren't going to recommend it. On Linux forums though I can almost always find what I'm looking for and the community is helpful and responsive. It's amazing what gets done with simple peer to peer support from like minded people.
• Updates are great! Run one command to update everything, and I mean everything. From the operating system, to installed programs, and unless you're updating the kernel you typically don't even need to reboot. You can run updates in the background while you work, with no real hit to performance (for most basic productivity work anyway). And if you're in a rolling release you never have to worry about EoL ever again, you just get steady updates forever until your hardware just gets way to old to even run Linux.

[MayaYa]

Open source

Enhanced productivity with tiling window managers

Customization

Making fun of arch users

You can grab anything you need from the command line

Less overhead compared to windows on windows I idle at 4GB of ram on arch I idle at < 400MB

not getting spied on is nice

Command Line

Documentation is fantastic and there's a lot of friendly people willing to help out complete noobs

Security

On 9/26/2019 at 11:22 PM, James said:

Hey guys! We're doing another "10 Reasons _____ is just Better" video - this time with Linux. Now's your chance to tell us what you love about Linux and/or why Linux is better than MacOS/ Windows.

 

Note: we're not interested in hearing from non-Linux users here
 

 

 

[Ishayu]

Because software is constantly reviewed by third parties, you can generally trust that nobody tries to sneak telemetry or spyware into your system.

 

its free - you don't have to activate Windows or pay the Apple tax.

 

its exceptionally scalable. It runs on literally anything. Got a server room and you wanna have 6 users gaming at once? That works. Got a desktop? That works. Got a laptop? It works. Got a phone? It works. You can play DOOM 3 on your $35 Raspberry Pi. The question is never what you can get, the question is what do you want. You can get anything. 

 

 Pretty much no matter what kind of desktop you want, you can have it. Prefer global menu's? We got them. Prefer start menu's? Well we've got' em. We've got both at once!

 

 Game compatibility is great. Lutris doesn't just run Windows games - it runs darn near anything. Got a GameBoy ROM? Check. Got a PSP game? Check. Got a friggin Atari game? No problem. Just about the only thing we can't run is a small set of Windows games because of DRM or anti-cheat as well as anything on dapple platforms. Other than that? We've got you covered.

 

You are in control of your PC. No inconvenient Windows update. No mandatory upgrades. Nothing mandatory at all!

 

 You don't have to scour the web in an insecure way to find common software. No download.com or other such malware laden crap. We've got software in app stores, except everything is free and verified good by many third parties. 
 

to sum it up? Freedom. 

[emmetpdx]

Hey all, first post here. (As a Linux fan, you know I can't resist the urge to go out of my way for a bit of light evangelizing.) =P

 

Having taken a quick glance through this thread I've seen people bring up many of the classic arguments in favor of Linux (free, open source, powerful, customizable, ubiquitous, etc.). Those are all true, in my opinion, and are pretty strong arguments for why many of us use Linux at home, for work, in our phones, on little gadgets, in virtual machines all over the internet, and even as the basis of consumer products. For the LTT audience, I also see Linux as being kind of the software equivalent to building your own PC from parts--as an outsider it can seem inaccessible and a bit hard to understand why it's worth the extra "hassles", but once you get into it you realize that it's cost effective, fun, and allows you to create the (hardware or software, respectively) environment that you want.

 

Having said that, I want to actually take this post in a different direction and touch upon an aspect of Linux that is rarely discussed but absolutely at the heart of what it's all about; community. Simply put, while Microsoft Windows and Mac OSX are products, which are unilaterally designed by a relatively small group of people and then marketed and sold with the goal of making profit, Linux represents something fundamentally different--a community of users, developers, and companies with a diverse ecosystem of ideas, skills, and use cases who are all collaborating on something that is bigger than any of us as individuals. I know that sounds lofty, but frankly, it's true.

 

Now, I'll be the first to admit that some Linux users can be a bit overzealous, but that passion and enthusiasm comes from a place of truly caring about the platform in a way that I think users simply don't care about Windows or OSX. The same criticism can often be made for other passionate and geeky communities, whether we're talking about games, comic books, etc. People are invested in this stuff and they care deeply about it in a way that goes beyond a mere product in the greater market and, in the case of Linux, we've helped to build it into what it is today. And while everyone online remembers the one annoying encounter they had with some Linux maniac (like you might remember a bad interaction with somebody in an online game), what we often overlook is the bigger picture of a Linux community that started from 1 dude in a dorm room and eventually katamari'd into this global behemoth of geeks, "hackers", developers, companies, and (slowly but surely) even artists, musicians and gamers.

 

This, of course, can't be said about our relationship with Microsoft and Apple. They make something, we either buy it or we don't, we have very little agency over what Windows or OSX can do or how they act, and what little power we have over those companies or products exists by pure luck and is ultimately fleeting. Without getting into fear mongering, it's important to recognize the reality that they decide how we interact with our hardware and that the only thing stopping them from doing something deeply unpopular is the possibility of lost revenue. Logically speaking, in the event that doing something unpopular will make money, they'll do it, as they have in the past.

 

So, to end this wall of text, why does any of this matter? Who cares if Linux is a community-driven thing?

 

Off the top of my head, there are two big reasons why Linux being a community really matters. (1) If there is a will, there is almost always a way. If someone out there wants to do something and has the know-how (or cash) to make it happen, it will happen, no matter how niche the idea or how small the audience. If you've ever witnessed the successes of the open source community you'll know first hand that, what it is, Linux users make it happen. And (2) as the community grows, Linux's potential grows (seemingly exponentially). Linux has only existed since 1991, I first tried it in 2006 and thought it was pretty cool back then, but now, as we approach 2020, it's evolved into something that I barely recognize. The user experience is absolutely solid, the developer environment is unmatched while things like git and containers have taken over the world, you can make art with great tools like Blender, GIMP and Krita (I'm biased, since I contribute to this one, by the way), you can make music with great tools like Bitwig, Reaper, Renoise and Ardour, and you can even play thousands of great games, both retro and modern, with high-quality drivers and things like Proton and Lutris that make it easier than ever to play even non-native games. But none of this fell out of the sky, it was all a product of a community that has grown bigger and built things better than ever before, and as the community continues to snowball, I truly believe that our computer experience will be better than we've ever imagined. =]

 

Thanks for reading and I'm looking forward to the episode.

[jnarical]

1. It is you who owns the computer - you decide when to perform system update, when to reboot, and there is no mysterious background tasks which eats CPU, or spies on you selling something to internet

2. updating is fast and not forcing you to reboot. No such things as “Don’t shutdown you computer”

3. You can scale OS for your hardware, having up-to-date and fast working system both for low-end & high-end configs. You can even have modern pretty looking distrib (MX Linux for example) work on really dated hw.

4. Incredible possibilities, you can say “btw I use Arch!” everywhere!

[Warriormaster]

My personal reasons are

- freedom to do anything I want with Os. For example do I want automatic updates? By choise I can enable and specify what kind of updates I want to update automatically.

- customization. Don't like how it looks like a mac or a Windows? Fine change it to look like what you want. Checkout r) unixporn for beautiful desktop environment customizations

- Gaming. Even though not all of the games run on linux, I believe it's the future of gaming. For example some old games that don't even run on Windows 10 run on linux just fine and we have to remember that thanks to Valve, dxvk, d9vk, lutris and wine there are now more games with out of the box experience than ever before.

- Security, stability & repairability. Security updates come faster thanks to open-source nature, stability in a way that you're computer can run 24/7 without any interruptions or errors and if you have a problem with your distro then you can always find a solution to your problem since you own the Os.

 

 

 

 

[Biggus Dickus]

It boils down to convenience, ease of use, freedom of choice and ownership/control over my OS.

 

1. It's free of charge and doesn't have DRM. You own your OS instead of renting a license to use someone else's. When using Linux you have full admin privileges on your device and can even swap system level stuff with ease instead of fighting against your OS like you would with Windows. There's nobody who can suddenly revoke your right to use Linux.
2. It comes with all drivers an average user would need out of the box. The only exception is nVidia (if you're not on PopOS/Ubuntu 19.10+), and new hardware which needs the latest kernel.
3. It comes with all software you'd need by default as well. Most distros will give you Firefox, LibreOffice, media players, GIMP, text editors, etc. All of these are much better than Windows default software. I mean, I can't think of anyone who doesn't replace at least half the windows defaults, whereas on Linux the good stuff [VLC, text editors, archive support (no need for 7z/winrar)] is already included. I mean, Manjaro even comes with Steam.
4. Choice of distros. Specific distros come with all or most software you'll want. If you need a distro for servers, routers, phones, data recovery, weak computers, penetration testing, media production, security/privacy-orientation, science, etc. there's a good chance you'll find a distro that has all the default software and configuration you'd need. Anywhere from TinyCoreLinux to SUSE, your choices are limitless.
5. It doesn't have a ton of arcane background services which will cause CPU&HDD usage spikes for no apparent reason, or annoyances like forced automatic updates and pop-ups asking you to use stuff you don't want. Also, no personal data collection.
6. Software centres/repositories are much more convenient than having to download software through a browser. And you don't need an account to use the software centre like you do with windows 10, Android and iOS. Also, system updates are at least twice as fast on Linux.
7. Security is slightly better, in my opinion. Instead of UAC you have password prompts. Instead of all files being executable you need to manually allow execution of files you download from internet or fetch from an external drive. There's a good isolation between root and user.
8. The Linux Terminal is a MUCH better tool than windows cmd and even power shell from my experience.
9. Linux is much more stable overall.
10. It's customizable as hell due to it giving you the freedom to do what you want (thanks, GNUnix philosophy) and being open source. So it's really good for specialized use like servers, and for developers. There's a reason WSL and Azure exist.
11. Platform support. You can install Linux on pretty much anything. From different CPU architectures to devices like desktops, laptops, tablets, phones, single-board computers, smart watches, consoles (PS2/Switch). You can run it with a Live USB, you can install a GNU/Linux distro under Android (Termux+anLinux) or Windows (WSL).

[Skajmer]

-I can install and uninstall anything i want

- Very customizable (desktop envrioments,themes,icons)

-Runs smooth on anything (Runs perfectly on HP ProBook fom 2011)

-No telemetry or other means of spying on you

-Secure

-Free

-Big and helpful community

Edited October 16, 2019 by Skajmer

[RealGenericEric]

On 9/28/2019 at 10:20 PM, YellowJersey said:

I haven't worked with DaVinci Resolve. I, for one, find GIMP an incredibly frustrating piece of software to use. So much so that I think it makes more sense to stick with Windows for photo editing. I keep a Windows partition on one of my machines specifically for that purpose.

 

There are other photo editing programs that are more basic. GIMP is very much like Photoshop, it has a learning curve, but I seamlessly transitioned from Photoshop to GIMP. I found DaVinci to be really unnecessary, Kdenlive works great and has all the normal features.

[iulop]

It is FREE  as in free beer 
More eyes on the source code means it is more secure 

Ubuntu user here . Very satisfied with it . 

Also gaming native gaming I mean and also Steam Proton . 

[RealGenericEric]

1. I spend a lot of money and time on my PC builds. I want to own and control what I built, not Microsoft.

2. The variety of software is incredible and most distributions include everything most people need.

3. Linux is better with handling resources and typically faster.

4. Gaming has improved exponentially in recent years and will only get better with Stadia in the works. Lutris and Valve Proton have done amazing work.

5. Your choice as to which desktop environment you want and if/how you want to customize it.

[TeknoMatik]

Hello All,

 

Registered account just to take part on what I like most about Linux system. Although I need to mention that last my distros were only Ubuntus, so most of the points will be related to it. Here we go:

• Simplicity, yes simplicity. It's very simple to install software from store or package managers, very simple to navigate through the settings. 
• Stability. I'm always updating the system not to worry that it will brake something and on day to day basis it works as it is, just like Mac.
• Updates. They are fast and don't require reboot. Except of kernel or drivers.
• Performance. Not only old hardware will work fine on Linux, modern hardware fills snappier and smoother. 
• Terminal. You can do everything using only terminal. Although it requires some basic knowledge but it worth to learn it. 
• Freedom. And I'm not talking about Open Source here but more about freedom of choose different DE (Gnome, KDE, Xfce), different powerful editors, file managers, etc.

 

[Nettly_]

Works faster, better, stronger, easier

[Cowbutt]

Things I love about Linux:

 

* if your hardware can do something, the OS will let you (try to) do it. No arbitrary controls.

* complete source code for (almost) everything you're running. If something breaks, you can read the source and try to figure out why, and maybe even fix it (and this is something I hate about proprietary binary-only drivers from e.g. Nvidia). If you want to validate what something does, you can do that too.

* modularity: Linux command line tools are like Lego pieces - designed to be combined to solve problems maybe no-one else has ever had. Windows PowerShell has learnt from this (and actually improves it somewhat, by adding an *object* pipeline). At your own risk, you may even decline to update certain components if they cause problems in your environment, and this will usually work out fine.

* installation and automatic updating of the vast majority of applications from standard repositories is easier than hunting down the right installer for an application and remembering to keep it up to date (or having yet another application-specific updater in your system tray or services).

* Linux is generally where leading FOSS applications show up first.

* strict separation between different layers is a positive for reliability, security and privacy.

* it runs on everything from a SOHO router to a supercomputer: no need to learn new tools just because the hardware is different. Applications can be recompiled for new architectures and run as before.

* generally, no jarring changes: typically, distributions evolve and usually with good reasons (rather than due to artificial trends, akin to fins on automobiles)

* designed to be debugged, measured and analysed to whatever degree you need.

* all development tools have zero cash outlay.

 

Edited October 16, 2019 by Cowbutt
Extra reasons!

[samyak039]

• FOSS
• Customization option: if you don't like it, change it according to your taste
• better control on your system
• easy connectivity with any Android phone (KDE Connect)
• better file management system. you can create nested partitions that's awesome man.
• it is basically a candy box, have a flavour for every ones need

[Dat Guy]

Message me when you're finally planning the "10 reasons why OpenBSD is better" video.

[Sam Smith]

On 9/26/2019 at 11:22 PM, James said:

Hey guys! We're doing another "10 Reasons _____ is just Better" video - this time with Linux. Now's your chance to tell us what you love about Linux and/or why Linux is better than MacOS/ Windows.

 

Note: we're not interested in hearing from non-Linux users here
 

 

I still use windows for apex legends. AND FOR SOME REASON ON A FRESH START. WONT OPEN. This is not the case on linux. It never freezes up like windows. It stays smoooth. Also, package manager, its unix based, and cron for schedualing of my backup script automatically. At 11:20 every day my fedora rawhide machine makes a backup of my home folder and shutsdown.

[RaidonChrome]

So, I came here to repeat what I've said in a reddit thread. For a lot of people who work with a number of windows this is a killer feature that is often gets sweeped into other categories, like "Customization" or "Flexibility", but really it's a league of it's own.

 

Tiling WMs

 

They are very popular among Linux users, and they allow for radically different and more clean and effective workflow where windows are always 100% of the screen, they don't move around on it's own, your workplaces are split and positioned like you want them no matter how many times you switch between them and you are fully in control. Stacking just doesn't make a lot of sense if you think about it - if you have a lot of windows open and have to constantly switch between them most people would have these in fullscreen and switch around by alt-tab or mousing over the panel. It seems that even stacking users prefer having windows to be 50/50 of screen space when moving files for example - because often you would put two file manager windows next to each other by using smart snapping or use a two-panel file manager. Stacking allows for much less chaotic experience, where apps don't get to steal focus, you can very conveniently open a few windows, like a terminal, documentation and your editor in one logical organized space and then switch to another without anything being moved. Per-app rules allow to have your browser always on the second tab, for example, or always on another monitor, etc. You really have to try it and hop this learning curve to see what is it you are missing.

 

Another thing I feel obligated to mention is how better Linux filesystems are. What other operating systems have to de in Hardware like Optane Linux does with bcache and ZFS freely and effortlessly.

[SohamM]

I have used linux only for 2 years and even though it wasn't always that smooth, I loved it none the less. 

* The first thing that really attracted me was the amount of customisability available in linux. Even though I don't customise that much now but still the ability to change certain things is very useful. 

* Even though windows has virtual desktops, its implementation on linux feels much more solid. 

* My trackpad feels more fluid and natural on linux.

* The filesystem on linux makes more sense than on windows. 

* There are some really great software on linux and a lot of great cli softwares.

* Terminal is excellent for getting work done and it isn't that scary.

* There are a lot of desktop environments available (my favourites : budgie,lxde)

* Works great with my potato systems.

* Excellent for development.

* If we can ignore the fact that there are so many package managers, the entire system of package management was just mind blowing to me when i first started using linux.

* Security on linux is really robust and that is not because people don't use it. The general practices on linux is what makes it so secure.

* Linux is case sensitive and doesn't care about file extensions. These is something i really like.

* The ability to install different shells.

 

The thing that I don't like is, sometimes i really don't feel like reading through a wiki to get something done. But that has nothing to do with the os and more with how people package their software.

There are a lot of small things that make it so enjoyable and useful. One has to use it to understand what makes linux so beautiful.

 

[Axle182]

On 9/27/2019 at 5:22 AM, James said:

Hey guys! We're doing another "10 Reasons _____ is just Better" video - this time with Linux. Now's your chance to tell us what you love about Linux and/or why Linux is better than MacOS/ Windows.

 

Note: we're not interested in hearing from non-Linux users here
 

 

I love how much freedom it provides. Customize all the things! Don't like the window manager? Replace it! I couldn't live without my tiling window manager. Install updates when you want, don't have the OS just decide "we'll do it now because screw you". The system runs so smoothly even with minimal specs. The community is generally fantastic and willing to help each other. 

[ElectricPrism]

https://www.reddit.com/r/linux_gaming/comments/did2k7/linus_tech_tips_is_planning_a_video_called_10/

It's kindof like that saying "All Roads Lead To Rome"

In the tech world "All Platforms Lead To Linux", if Windows, MacOS, Android, iOS, OrbisOS, Google Stadia, Atari VCS and all these other platforms and technologies Linux would be @ the middle with OpenGL and Vulkan connecting everything together.

Porting from any one platform to another it just makes sense to code with Linux in mind because dependency code wise you're going to be able to hit so many targets with one throw vs maintaining all these ports each in different code states.

Anyways, that said NASA uses Linux on the International Space Station. Tesla uses it in its cars. In the server market it won in a landslide victory and is King. In the phone market several billions of Android Phones and Tablets use the Linux kernel and are capable of the coreutils to port programs to Android IIUC.

As a platform no tech giant exclusively owns it so work done on Atari VCS can be deployed to Google Stadia without worrying as much about code compatibility, and no Tech Giant can say "You know, we deicided all your hard work is going to now be locked to our store and we've also decided we're taking 70% cut of sales." with no fight back.

Controller support has gotten really good -- there are kernel drivers for virtually any controller you could want save Xbox One v1.0 IIUC.

On Linux consumers are respected as owners of their devices and software. This is a big deal. The OS doesn't cripple you -- if you want to make bad decisions and delete your home directory or any file on the OS you can as long as you have sudo permissions enabled.

Updates are not forced. You can keep your OS in 2019 forever if you please.

Privacy is not broken out of the gate -- assuming you are not using Canonical and allowing them to share publicly and sell some data.

Software is centralized, a few clicks of a GUI or a single short command updates the whole software stack.

Software updates are stupid fast compared to Windows. I can reinstall every package on my Linux ~2000 in probably 10 minuets.

I can setup snapshotting my steamppas games folders making saves available to me from any time and also theoretically have access to old versions of game data files for modding if needed making it easier to DIFF files and see what changed or open other doors potentially.

Some proton games obviously run faster than their Windows counterparts, this is not always the case but it is a source of pride knowing the Linux kernel is faster at some stuff.

WINE IS NOT AN EMULATOR W.I.N.E -- technically Windows games are "native" using SteamPlay to Linux because nothing is emulated and the layer that allows the games to run is just reimplemented on Linux between the base stack os and the software at the top.

Theoretically having greater control over your system means more ability to control overclocking and optimizing. I am not a overclocked -- but theoretically, removing unnecessary packages and cherry picking version numbers among other things could yield maximum performance vs Windows where it's "one size fits all" -- Intel Clearlinux is a good example of optimization.

Linux is scalable. Google knows this. Each license cost $0 so you can deploy 10,000 servers and the costs are the human resources -- server admins.

Development of Emulation, Graphics Libraries and other achievements often have developers who are using a non-Windows platform or have non-Windows targets (Android, iOS) making development outside Windows ideal.

Linux has Multi-seat. Theoretically a single computer with 5 graphics cards can have 5 gamers on a single machine sharing resources of say a 32 thread processor. Throw in a kernel designed to balance the load among threads like Zen or other, and mount the same SteamApps folder to 5 users and you could theoretically save disk space, power, have a single machine with a USB PCI-E card for each user with their own mouse and keyboard and monitors, etc... all on the same machine. Maybe throw some wheels on that and you have a portable LAN Gamer solution.

When a Linux breaks in a upgrade, its actually possible to fix it. On windows you can't trust the tools provided for you. Windows Defender was useless at detecting or correcting problems. Damage done to the computer was rarely undone with a anti-virus. Once security was compromised it often destroyed the defenses of a Windows making it possible to reinfect more easily next time. This lead to reinstallation and repeat instead of repair.

This is not a problem on Linux, AntiVirus is not commonly needed because security is built in from the ground up with advanced file permissions. If a Linux were to get a virus it would be possible to compare all system files against their signature to expose potential "problem files" or files not owned by the system outside user directories. It's also possible to reinstall the entire system with 2 or 3 commands on most Linux distros.

Data transfer between Linuxes is easier with SSH, Rsync, etc... making it possible to clone entire steamapp games on a LAN at a much faster speed. If file transfer is interupted it picks up where left off. Windows explorer.exe often crashes moving 10GB+ and if it fails its near impossible to determine what files completed copying and what files didn't. This causes problems that shouldn't exist. Some will bitch there are other file copy tools but I fail to see that as relevant because the system is locked down and the tools can only perform functions windows exposes and allows.

Linux is not a walled garden like Apple or Windows wants to be.

Basic file operation speeds including zipping, unzipping, copying, etc... are all faster on Linux because NTFS is old and Windows is weighed down with so much legacy code. This also makes advanced filesystem features impossible at the cost of backwards compatibility.

In Windows if you don't like Windows Explorer, or some other part of Windows you are stuck with it, in some cases historically you couldn't even disable or uninstall it -- Internet Explorer for example. In Linux there are at least 10 file managers to choose from, half of them offer different workflows for different kinds of users.

Linux software rarely has advertisements shoehorned into them. Windows is full of "30 day trial" and "click this banner ad", and all sorts of sheepery.

Driver issues in Windows usually result in BSOD and are unfixable.

Microsoft historically has been AWOL with Ballmer doing crazy things like making a big phone interface the main interface, failing tremendously to determine what customers actually want and pushing their own products and ideas on people because they had the dominance to do it.

Most people don't like the idea of the US government, or China automatically having a backdoor to their Digital /home -- it's a bad principle to live by because when 1 person has the backdoorkey then hackers and anyone and everyone can get it leaving your files or maybe your million dollar work files vulnerable to be held hostage for ransom.

I had a friend who had their family photo library encrypted and held ransom. They paid the ransom and the ransomer kept increasing the "cost" at each payment. They never got their photos back. Thanks Windows Bitlocker, Viruses, etc...

Linux FOSS projects like LibreOffice is better in the long run because the file format is truly free and open and could be imported for 100 years into office apps. Proprietary formats aren't even documented correctly and online versions basically own your soul and you are at their whim.

It's nice to be part of projects that give humanity hope in a otherwise technically dysmal post apocalyptic world where everyone is a dumbass consuming media on a rectangle and having no comprehension of how their device works all while being exploited entirely for financial gain. Theres nothing wrong with offering value to consumers, but when a company has unlimited power it secretly obsoletes devices early or slows them down to perpetuate the exploitation by tricking the consumer into thinking they need new devices more frequently than is true.

Linux runs 2x as good on old hardware or more, though I am not keen to make that argument, it also runs better on brand new hardware as well.

On Linux you don't need permission to do crazy things like add drivers to the kernel. You don't need permission to distribute software to consumers. You don't have to get stuck in developer software update check to get screened for the A-Okay. If your consumers trust you software is delivered direct without a middle man.

I expect software that runs in 2019 on Linux can more easily be made to run in 2060 due to the open platform.

There are 6000+ native games and 6000+ proton games. Emulators are installable with the click of a button.

Linux is basically a secret club of cool pc programmers and gamers and if you need help or want to talk to someone they are generally more educated and close-knit compared to the deafening masses and average low IQ of the commoner -- not trying to be that guy but if you are the smartest person in the room you are in the wrong room wasting your time.

I could probably keep going but that's already a wall of text, I could probably double down and do a better job -- maybe the r/linux_gaming community should make a public data list where we upvote the top reasons to the top so we can reference it forever to put this kind of question to an answer more easily.