In this post I'll try to cover the main reasons I see and believe lead new users to become disappointed with the penguin.
Article originally taken from the Oficina do Tux Blog.
Performance and compatibility
This point mainly concerns AMD graphics card users and those unlucky (or uninformed) people with a WiFi card whose manufacturer doesn't provide decent Linux support. Rare as it may be, I often see people having trouble with certain WiFi cards: sometimes they're recognized but don't work correctly. However cheap a WiFi card may be today, the user finds it easier to return to Windows than to buy a Linux-compatible card.
As for AMD users, what I notice is “fanboyism” on their part (not all of them, of course), refusing to accept that AMD doesn't provide Linux driver support as good as Nvidia's (I mean proprietary drivers). Because they like AMD so much, they return to Windows. I won't say everything is wonderful with Nvidia: people with old cards have problems even on Windows because they're no longer compatible with new drivers, and with hybrid cards (laptops), the manufacturer itself says they “may not work properly on Linux”.
But unfortunately, anyone wanting to play games on Linux needs an Nvidia card in their desktop for a good experience with quality major titles, as I show in gameplay and benchmarks on my FastOS channel.
False expectations
Here there are 2 types of users. One has very old hardware and heard that Linux “revives” any weak hardware. Well, it can revive it, but that takes some research, because the most popular distributions don't focus on this, so they won't run well on old hardware — Ubuntu with Unity, Fedora with Gnome, etc.
And even when users recognize they'll need an interface with older, simpler characteristics, they're disappointed that they can't use the most popular modern interfaces.
The second is the user who believes in “fairy tales”: someone who thinks they won't have any problems with Linux and will never need to search Google to do something, usually someone who had many problems using Windows.
Poorly informed about diversity
I see this one most often: the user who thinks Linux = Ubuntu(with unity), doesn't know versions with different interfaces exist, or even that there are other distributions!
“_I went back to windows because I thought Linux looked ugly”
“_which systems did you try?”
“_well, I tried linux ubuntu!”
Some discover other distributions but still think each distro has 1 interface. I've seen users try Fedora because they “liked the interface”, as though they couldn't use the same one on Ubuntu.
Little do they know there are Ubuntu “flavors” like Xubuntu, kubuntu, Ubuntu Gnome, Mate… and Fedora spins with kde,mate,cinnamon and others.
That's why I support showing people some interfaces/distributions. I said “some” because I don't think there's any need to show beginners all of them, like Gentoo or Funtoo, or very different interfaces like openbox, i3wm and similar ones.
Wine: you leave Windows, but Windows doesn't leave you
This is the classic user who tries to execute .exe files and run every program and game through wine/playonlinux.
This option can help in a pinch and work satisfactorily. What people forget to mention is how much work installing a game or a more complex program can take, how common errors are, and especially how performance is much worse than the native option. For these and other reasons, it's a tool for more experienced users.
The Community
The most controversial point for last: the community is also one factor making users give up Linux, with comments like:
“Linux isn't for games, Linux isn't for this or that… it's only good for servers…”
It's true that Linux may not have the best tool for professional video editing or the same number of games as Windows, but that doesn't mean everyone needs Adobe Premiere to edit videos or only plays EA games.
There are also free software zealots, or purists who think you shouldn't use proprietary software on Linux,
The other day I saw someone surprised to learn that some people don't use Linux just because it's free software! Such people can discourage users from the platform, making them think they won't be able to use proprietary software they like or won't get the same support because of it.
When in fact it's the opposite: today many proprietary games and programs run natively on Linux.
My conclusion is that there will always be some reason that might discourage new users, but the outcome isn't due only to the factors I mentioned. It also depends on users wanting to use the platform, understanding that the community isn't a search engine and doesn't work for them, rather than constantly asking questions whose answers could easily be found with a Google search.
In short, there may be “N” reasons to become discouraged or frustrated with Linux, but ultimately excuses won't help: you're responsible for your choices, and there will always be an alternative, whether dual boot, replacing hardware or whatever. In the end, it's up to you.
Nine years later: what changed and what stayed the same
The text above is from 2017 and remains online as a record. But leaving it without a counterpoint would be dishonest: most reasons it lists either became the opposite or ceased to exist. Point by point:
Graphics cards: the situation reversed
In 2017 the recommendation was to buy NVIDIA for a good experience. Today the advice is the reverse. The driver amdgpu lives inside the Linux kernel, with the open Mesa stack — you install the distro and the AMD GPU simply works, with Wayland, Vulkan and kernel updates, without a proprietary module to recompile. Intel is in the same situation.
NVIDIA has improved considerably — open kernel modules have existed since 2022 and became the default in recent series — but it still requires a proprietary driver, breaks during kernel updates and takes more work on Wayland. For anyone migrating now who can choose their hardware: AMD is the trouble-free route.
Games: Proton changed everything
The original post predates the turning point. In August 2018 Valve launched Proton — a compatibility layer on top of Wine, integrated into Steam, that runs most Windows games with one click. In February 2022 came the Steam Deck, a handheld running Arch Linux that sold millions and forced the industry to test on Linux.
The practical result: thousands of titles run without configuration, many with performance equivalent to Windows. ProtonDB shows each game's status before you buy.
What still doesn't run: competitive games with kernel-mode anti-cheat — Valorant, Fortnite, some Call of Duty and Battlefield titles. It isn't a technical Linux limitation: it's a decision by publishers that opted not to enable the support Easy Anti-Cheat and BattlEye already offer. If one of these titles is your life, Linux won't solve it, and no tutorial changes that.
Wine and PlayOnLinux: the problem moved elsewhere
The 2017 diagnosis remains valid in spirit — but the tools are different. PlayOnLinux left the scene; today people use Bottles, Lutris or Proton itself outside Steam. And the right question changed: instead of “how do I run this .exe”, it's “is there a native or web alternative for this?”. In most cases there is, and it works better than emulation.
Those truly without substitutes: Adobe (Photoshop, Premiere, Lightroom) and full Office with heavy VBA macros. If your work depends on one of these, dual boot or a virtual machine is the honest answer — not a Wine workaround that breaks on the next update.
Distro diversity: the problem became something else
“Linux = Ubuntu with Unity” no longer makes sense: Unity was abandoned in October 2017, and Ubuntu returned to GNOME. But the confusion remains, now with too much choice. For newcomers, the practical 2026 recommendation is short:
- Linux Mint — the softest landing for people coming from Windows.
- Ubuntu or Fedora — the industry standard, with the best chance of supporting your hardware.
- Pop!_OS or Bazzite — if gaming is the goal.
Trying five distros in the first week is the classic mistake. Pick one, use it for a month, and only then form an opinion.
What really trips up new users in 2026
The reasons in the original list lost strength. These took their place:
- Wayland × X11. The transition is almost complete, but “almost” hurts: screenshots in old apps, screen sharing in videoconferences, automation with
xdotool, some proprietary programs. Almost every distro still lets you return to X11 on the login screen — and that's the first thing to try when something strange happens. - Fractional scaling and mixed monitors. A 4K laptop beside a 1080p monitor still produces blurry windows or wrong sizes, depending on the environment.
- Secure Boot. Installing an NVIDIA driver or DKMS module with Secure Boot enabled requires signing the module. The distro explains this poorly, leaving users with a nonworking card and no idea why.
- Multifunction printer and scanner. Printing has improved considerably with IPP and driverless support; scanning on a cheap multifunction device is still a lottery.
- Videoconferencing and DRM. Teams and Netflix in 4K still have limitations on Linux — the former because of web-version quality, the latter because of Widevine.
- Laptop suspend. It has improved, but machines with poorly implemented S0ix from the manufacturer still heat up in backpacks.
- Online banking and digital certificates. In Brazil, A3 tokens, e-CAC and some online banking systems still assume Windows. It's the quiet reason many people give up here, and the 2017 text didn't even touch on it.
The community: the point that hasn't changed
This is the part of the original post that remains accurate. “Linux isn't for games”, “use the terminal”, “RTFM”, the fight between purists and pragmatists — none of it ended. What changed is that today there's an alternative that didn't exist in 2017: an AI assistant in the terminal answers beginners' questions without sarcasm, at three in the morning, as many times as needed. It doesn't replace the community — but removes its gatekeeper role.
Advice that holds for 2026
- Test before installing. Boot the live USB stick and check Wi-Fi, sound, video, suspend and the printer before formatting.
- Don't erase Windows in the first week. Dual boot costs 100 GB and avoids decisions made in desperation.
- Choose the hardware if you can. An AMD GPU, Intel Wi-Fi and a laptop with declared Linux support resolve 90% of frustrations before they happen.
- One distro at a time.
- Accept that it's a different system. It isn't free Windows, and most disappointment comes from that expectation. Those who migrate expecting the same system in another color will be disappointed — in either direction.
To continue: Linux turns 35 tells how the system got here, and the Linux Servers Series is the path for anyone wanting to go beyond the desktop.