Wait… but why? A Linux usage retrospective

It is very common for people to notice that I am using a "different" system, especially when I take my laptop everywhere. Ever since I started using Linux in my first year of college, I have increased not only my computational skills but also my overall productivity, learned new ways to work that improve my everyday life, and never looked back.

As a physicist, I found in Linux the absolute solution for all the features that I want in an Operating System (OS), and it maximizes the amount of hardware resources that I have available.

When we talk about Linux, we need to understand several concepts that can be very confusing for most Windows users. First, as this is a different OS, programs from other OS won't run native in it (unless you have an emulator or virtual machine). Second, as the code is available for everyone to see and modify, there are many flavors and environments (around 600 from the main three branches), so you can choose between all of them freely according to your personal taste or needs. These flavors are known as "distributions" or "distros," which are nowadays designed for power users as well as the final user. Third, the community provides all the software needed to run every function and program you will find, unless it comes from a company or an independent developer (in which case, you have to be very careful). All the community and many other packages are located in one place for you to find, known as "repositories" or "repos," designed for developers of the distro you're using, so you can pick any program you need.

The community supplies the support and updates needed, which, in my opinion, is very cool because you don't have to find the program online, then purchase a license for a program you'll only be using for a couple of months or weeks. With simple steps, you can install and start using it right away, knowing that if something fails, you have a huge community that supports this program, and it is very common that the issue you might have has already been solved by someone else, and you just have to follow simple steps to fix it.

When I first attempted to install Linux, it was Ubuntu 12.04, but I changed it immediately because of a compatibility issue with my graphics card. Not only did Windows not have support for it either, but the tools that I needed ran only in Windows 10. I needed either a new PC or a new OS that supported both my graphics card and the programs that I was using at that time, such as Matlab, LaTeX, CorelDraw, Photoshop, and some games. But when I started, it was very hard to get it working because there was a specific set of drivers that I had to install for the card to work, and the hours spent searching for solutions were countless.

In the lab that I worked as a researcher/student, there was this old professor who had seen Linux grow, a specialist in programming and Linux admin, so he was the guy to go to. But in the third question, he told me: "I'm going to charge you with 5 pesos for every question you make." So I was kind of alone in this journey, I installed and re-installed my OS several times that week, tried every distro that I had access to at that time, such as Arch, Debian, Ubuntu, and Mint. I tried them all, no solution. Until there was this guy online who had the same problem, same computer as mine. Eureka! The community works! I even saved the name of the exact set of packages and uploaded it to the cloud so I wouldn't miss it.

You might say at this point, "Why didn't you just quit and find new programs to work with?" The answer is very simple: because when I was on Linux, everything was so fast, and I could find and have access to everything with so few steps that I totally fell in love with the customization. I was happy I had solved it with my own hands, so let's get to work, install a few programs. There are many ways to do it. If you're a "click kind of person" and you like to solve everything with your mouse/track-pad, you have the option. Some distros (mostly Debian-based) come with a store in which you can pick any program and just install and run. Or you can install via Terminal the Synaptics Package Manager and just search for the program in the repos available. Or, if you're a keyboard freak like myself, you can just run simple commands in the terminal to get everything done easier than any other way. You won't regret it once you get used to it; your productivity can go ten times faster.

If you have followed those basic tips, you're ready to customize and install all the options and programs you need for working, studying, or daily life use apps you'll need.

As usual, given that you have changed from any other OS to Linux, you will face a learning curve, but it is worth it in the end. You will have a system that is highly customizable, secure, and fast, with a huge community to back you up. The support and updates are constant and reliable, and you will be able to find all the software you need in one place.

In conclusion, for me, Linux has been an excellent choice, and I have never looked back. It has improved my skills, productivity, and overall quality of life. If you're considering changing to Linux, I highly recommend it, but be prepared to learn and be patient in the beginning. Once you get used to it, you won't regret it.