Linux is a great operating system. I've expounded its virtues for over 20 years. I was the founding senior technology editor of the now-defunct Linux Magazine in 1999. In my professional technology career, I was a principal consultant for open-source data center technology at Unisys and IBM, and until recently, I was the Linux Foundation's editorial director. So yes, I get Linux.

I have used Linux desktops, such as RedHat Workstation, CentOS, Ubuntu, Mint, Debian, and every GUI for the platform you can imagine, including GNOME, KDE, XFCE, and probably a dozen other weird forks of all of these flavors.

Also: The best Linux laptops you can buy

None of these desktops have ever been exceptionally well-designed systems for regular end users. They are fantastic for developers and technology professionals, but if you are a typical office worker, a student, or just someone at home who wants to get on their sites and do their stuff, Linux desktops are