this post was submitted on 16 Oct 2025
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Linux

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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).

Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.

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I'm talking about like your mom if she started using Linux, and just needs it to be able to open a web browser and check Facebook or her email or something. A student that just needs a laptop to do homework and take notes, or someone that just wants to play games on Steam and chat on discord.

I'm working on a Windows - > Linux guide targeting people like this and I want to make sure it can be understood by just about anybody. A problem that I've noticed is that most guides trying to do something like this seem to operate under the assumption that the viewer already knows what Linux is and has already made up their mind about switching, or that they're already pretty computer savvy. This guide won't be that, I'm writing a guide and keeping my parents in mind the whole time.

Because of this there's some things I probably won't talk about. Do these people really need to know that it's actually GNU+Linux? No, I don't think so. Should I explain how to install, use and configure hyprland, or compile a custom gaming kernel? I dont think that's really necessary. You get what I'm saying? I don't want to over complicate this and scare people off.

That being said I also want to make sure that I'm not over simplifying by skipping on key things they should know. So what are some key concepts or things that you think even the most basic of Linux users should understand? Bonus points if you can provide a solid entry level explanation of it too.

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[–] sxan@midwest.social 14 points 2 days ago

IME, beyond the install, it's all distro- and desktop-specific.

  • How to find and install apps varies from distro to distro. IIRC, the Mint menu item is something obvious, like "Install software", but on Arch (you'd have to hate your newbie to throw them into Arch), it requires a chicken/egg finding and installing a graphical installer. If you know the distro, this would be good information - or if you're helping with the install, create a desktop launcher.
  • Showing them where settings are. Surprising to me, this has been super-not-obvious to my newbs. Even though the KDE Settings app is called "settings", I think Windows and Mac folks are used to looking for settings in a specific place, rather than an app name - and in Windows, there's can be several ways to get up different settings, like changing display stuff is always in a weird place. Again, maybe a desktop or panel shortcut would help.
  • One of my newbs used Mint for two years without opening a shell, so I don't think that's an issue. He even found and installed a piece of software he wanted, but I can't remember if I originally showed him how to the first time. But that's Mint. He did, however, need help setting up a printer, but that's because he couldn't find the settings program; he came from Windows originally.
  • Edge cases, like printers and other peripherals, can be hard, and I don't think any amount of extra documentation is going to help, because almost every difficulty is practically unique. There's a ton of online help for stuff like that already. And then, if they want to, eg, attach a game controller... well, that's very specific and again varies by controller. I don't think you can cover all of these edge cases.
  • Games can be hard only because of the indirection of having to install some other software, like Proton or Steam, creating an account, knowing how to check for compatability - there's a lot of moving parts. It's not just: go to the game's web site, buy, download, and install something and run it, like I imagine it is on Windows. So maybe that would be useful - or - again - pre-installing one of the game stores and (surprise) making a shortcut would eliminate that.
  • Network connections. Again, I always find figuring out how to get to network configuration in Windows to be hard, and bizarrely having multiple ways of accomplishing the same task, so I'd guess going the other direction would be confusing. Having a note about how to get to the configuration would be handy.

As I think about it, I realize that configuration under KDE of way more encapsulated and clear than on Windows, and people having learned the byzantine and myriad ways of Windows, KDE's relative simplicity is confusing. Windows people look for configurations in places they've learned to look, which aren't always where they are under KDE (I can't speak much about Gnome - I don't use it or set people up with it). MacOS isn't as bad, having a similar configure-everything-through-a-single-settings-program approach.

Anyway, that's my experience.

[–] answersplease77@lemmy.world 6 points 2 days ago (3 children)

googling and copypasting in that black app called terminal

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[–] SethranKada@lemmy.ca 12 points 2 days ago (1 children)
  • The difference between the OS and the DE.
  • How to install apps in Flatpak, AppImage, and dnf/apt
  • maybe user help programs like tldr or trash-rm? Those are both cmd programs though, so that might be too advanced for beginners.
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[–] SuperDuperKitten@lemmy.blahaj.zone 9 points 2 days ago (1 children)
  • Linux isn't Windows. I know that is a no-brainer but it needs to be said so it won't be as 1:1 to Windows.
  • How to install software both in terminal and as well as software manger GUI. Bonus points about compiling software from places like GitHub.
  • Packages type and their pros and cons
  • Trying to run Windows application via Wine (or some manager like Bottles or Lutris) as well as comparing running same Windows Application from Linux and Windows.
  • Alteratives to popular software and list out what it can do and what it doesn't have so user can see if that feature it doesn't have would affect them. For example, GIMP doesn't have full CMYK support which for most users, it isn't a big idea but for people that want to edit images to be ready for printing, they might want to keep that in mind.
[–] brax@sh.itjust.works 4 points 2 days ago (1 children)

I think Krita does proper CMYK

I have heard it does but it was generally just an example of "Try this software but note it may not have this feature if this means lot to you" and suggest others like maybe Krita then?

[–] chillpanzee@lemmy.ml 8 points 2 days ago

I don't think that's a guide... it's a hands on class. Maybe even a good idea to pitch to your local community college, community center, or adult edu department.

It'll shock you how low the average person's technical literacy is. And since you're talking about a guide for a lot of things that update independently, the guide will begin to be outdated before you even publish it. It's exceptionally hard to keep technical documentation in sync with software and hardware that you don't control, and when the users of your guide hit those spots where the doc doesn't match, they bail quickly.

What key concepts to cover probably depends on what you're trying to teach. If it's just how to use a web browser, the mainstream distros all do that pretty well out of the box once they're installed (although installation can still a bit of a challenge from one laptop to the next). Maybe the greatest communal benefit would be to teach foundational concepts of online security.

[–] mactan@lemmy.ml 7 points 2 days ago (1 children)

file manager works pretty much the same on Linux as it does on windows. you really can search for files yourself

text editor really does work the same on Linux as it does with notepad on windows, you really can just open files and read them

[–] burntbacon@discuss.tchncs.de 5 points 2 days ago

Hmm, I think that's where experiences will differ. I'm unable to search for files within file manager (thunar) easily, and use catfish file search instead.

[–] arox@lemmy.frozeninferno.xyz 7 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)
  1. Should have basic understanding of what they intent to do on Linux.
  2. They should know about the concept of input devices.
  3. Have an understanding of the internet if they are planing to use it. Like what websites are or how to search for things.
  4. And I think a basic of generic buttons or symbols (like the magnifying glass for search button) would be nice.
[–] BitsAndBites@lemmy.world 4 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

I've been using linux for years, but in limited contexts. With switching my primary desktop over this year I've found it helpful to stop by my local library and checked out some books on linux. I'm combining that with chatting with a locally running LLM. I've also setup an extra Raspberry Pi I had laying around with Ubuntu Lite as a sandbox OS to tinker with.

Maybe consider a portable sandbox setup like this you could quickly demonstrate or share?

[–] anamethatisnt@sopuli.xyz 6 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Eh, go for something simple like Fedora KDE and teach them how to update and install stuff through Discover - it's like App/Play/Microsoft store + the System update all in one.
I imagine Linux Mint and OpenSUSE has similar GUIs to introduce if that's more up your alley.

[–] JillyB@beehaw.org 3 points 2 days ago

This was going to be my suggestion. Most noobs will be familiar with phone app stores. You can present a distro's software manager like an app store. People coming from another OS will probably be happy they don't have to find, download, and install their programs.

[–] RadDevon@lemmy.zip 4 points 2 days ago (3 children)

This may be a controversial inclusion, and it’s based on my relatively unsophisticated understanding of Linux. I believe the reason casual computer users hate Linux (generalizing here) is that “Linux” is not one thing.

Commercial operating systems are monoliths. Windows 11 is Windows 11. macOS is macOS. Apart from a few surface-level settings, all instances of them are the same. If you know how to use that operating system, you can go to almost any computer running that OS and start using it, just like you use the one you have at home.

“Linux” is entirely modular. There’s no single thing called “Linux.” You can pick and choose each component to build up your own customized OS from the ground up, and distros take advantage of this. I know just within my household, I have three Linux systems, and casual usage varies wildly across the three. One is a SteamDeck, which is a different kind of thing, but if I just take the two computers as an example, on one, you have an application menu in the top left where the other has an application menu in the bottom left. Also, those menus look completely different. That alone is enough to frustrate a casual user. Now take the fact that they each have different settings panels, different bundled apps, etc. and you have a recipe for making users always feel lost when moving from one system to another.

I don’t think this means you need to teach how to use every available desktop environment, window manager, or sound settings panel, but I do think it would be useful to introduce this concept as part of your curriculum. The sad part is that I think a lot of your audience will tune out at this point because they never had to know that on the commercials OSes, but I think it’s important to be forthcoming about it rather than having your audience blindsided by it.

[–] HumanPenguin@feddit.uk 4 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

Sorry to grin at you. But in OS theory Linux is known as a monolith kernal. So you choice of words would have given my lecturers a freakout.

But while your terminology is a bit crossed. The ideal you are explaining is fine.

Better Technical way to put it. Linux is just the kernal. Much of the interface you see is actually programs or apps running above that kernal. A d can be changed amd selected.

Windows is also started multipart. But has become less so over time. And it's single distributer makes it way less obvious. By preventing any competition within it's internal structure. The original monolithic kernal of Windows was the MS Dos command.com program. But I no lying those of us from the 80s and early 90 remember using it.

[–] fox@hexbear.net 2 points 2 days ago (1 children)

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.

[–] Durandal@lemmy.today 1 points 1 day ago

Alpine Linux has entered the chat Mr. Stallman...

[–] jjjalljs@ttrpg.network 3 points 2 days ago

I think there's a certain kind of user who doesn't really learn concepts, but rote actions. They click the start menu and then excel to open excel, but they don't really understand that the start menu is an application launcher and Excel is an application that can be opened in other ways. It's very one dimensional.

Then when something changes, like the application launcher is moved, they freak out. They don't have a mental model.

That's how my mother is, anyway. It's all magic with no underlying coherent anything. Not sure how to fix that, because it usually comes up when they're mad or scared, and that's not a time anyone will learn.

[–] bpt11@reddthat.com 3 points 2 days ago

This is something that I actually planned on explaining! A big reason I myself like to use Linux is because it's modular and can be customized and used in so many ways just to meet your needs which I think is ideal. An operating system shouldn't be a one size fits all kind of thing!

[–] SnotFlickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zone 4 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

At least a basic primer about finding your way around in Linux in command line, and where various configuration files live.

When shit goes wrong (and it likely will at some point) knowing how to dump to another tty and log in via the console and fix issues via command line is pretty key. This has saved my ass more times than I can count now.

Having trouble finding a CLI focused course, but this is a free course that covers a lot of basics:

https://training.linuxfoundation.org/training/introduction-to-linux/

[–] JillyB@beehaw.org 8 points 2 days ago (1 children)

As a Linux noob, this is not as basic as you think it is. It's probably cool to show them "sudo apt install [program]" as a neat trick to dip their toes into the command line. All the other things you mentioned would scare me away if it was presented as beginner essential knowledge. I legit have no idea what you're talking about.

[–] SnotFlickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (5 children)

It's basic in the sense that Linux is always a work in progress and no matter how hard you try, you're going to need it at some point.

When your system randomly turns on to a black screen and there is seemingly no way to log in, knowing how to switch to the command line and at bare minimum back up your settings and documents before you wipe and start over is pretty key. To be clear, I have been in that exact situation and even more confusing situations where the PC has basically become unusable but I was able to fix it via CLI.

Just imagine losing months or years of work because you don't know that you can probably fix it all from command line and likely don't even need to wipe your computer and start over if you can narrow down what is going wrong and remove it via the command line.

I dunno seems pretty important to me.

[–] mistermodal@lemmy.ml 2 points 2 days ago

True, first time I ran into catastrophic problems (caused by entering in commands I copied from online, knowing damn well it was a bad idea), I got annoyed having to fish out corrupted files and shit, but I realized that anytime something had gone wrong with Windows I had no tools to fix it and could only check in on a loading screen that lasts hours. It was a learning experience

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[–] HubertManne@piefed.social 3 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Honestly if you can install windows on a machine and use it then you can install linux on a machine and use it. especially if its an out of the box distro (like my favorite zorin). when downloading something from the web you have to choose linux instead of windows and its usually .debian so its good for it to be a debian based distro. if someone else install the linux for the person then they just need the same skills they needed to run windows. mouse moves the same. login is same. doubleclick is the same. etc. etc.

[–] Tenderizer78@lemmy.ml 2 points 2 days ago (1 children)

More maintainers should charge for iso's. Nobody's gonna compile them themselves or trust "pirated" iso's. It's a real genius move from Zorin.

[–] HubertManne@piefed.social 2 points 2 days ago

zorin has a free version though. the paid gives you the gui chooser basically which is not necessary to me. If I had a job I might pay but that would be just to support. Want to sign up for status coup news first though. Need that postive cash flow though so who knows.

[–] Auster@thebrainbin.org 4 points 2 days ago

cd command.

No joke, when I started, it was the thing I stalled on the most as it's so basic no one explains

[–] njm1314@lemmy.world 4 points 2 days ago

Communication is the key. And the problem is most Linux users aren't able to grasp how the language they use is opaque to new users who don't share their knowledge base. Just the word distro is already a barrier to new users cuz they don't know what it means and yet Linux users throw it around as if everyone knows what it means. These basic terms are the biggest barrier I think. Most people who just use a computer check their email don't know what a bios is. They don't know how to boot from a flash drive. That's going to be your biggest barrier. Language and the basic stuff you don't think of as remarkable.

[–] ISolox@lemmy.world 4 points 2 days ago

Understanding the proper way to install apps is the biggest one. Make it clear that .exe files are for Windows only.

I wouldn't try to go further than that, I feel that's the biggest thing a general user really needs to know.

[–] turbowafflz@lemmy.world 4 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Honestly the biggest thing is just READ WHAT IS ON THE SCREEN. So many people just refuse to read when the computer is literally telling them exactly how to resolve a problem

[–] comfy@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 day ago

Yep. And also for bonus points, learn the basics of asking for help. Even simple things like writing a useful subject for a post, being respectful and how to share useful error codes or logs.

[–] AbouBenAdhem@lemmy.world 4 points 2 days ago

The way Linux treats many things as part of the file system (devices, sockets, etc.) that Windows doesn’t.

[–] individual@toast.ooo 1 points 2 days ago

apple bad ; windows worse

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