I think something that is often underappreciated is the level of independent technical knowledge needed to install and use Linux, let alone troubleshoot it, even today.

Microsoft has a support hotline, and staff that will help you, it comes pre-installed, and every tech store under the sun will help you along.

With Linux, that’s a bit harder. Plus, although it’s often a criticism for some people, windows’ hand holding won’t let you truly fuck up, and will always have a backup ready.

Linux on the other hand will let you run it into a brick wall, and completely delete your whole laptop.

Those are generally still really good reasons people want to stick with Microsoft or Apple, since there’s a far more accessible support network around it.

And in my experience Linux portals and forums are quite gatekeepy if you’re not aware of what’s going on. That’s not the most fun place to be if you’re stuck and don’t know what you’re doing.

Linux is great and I personally would recommend it to a lot of people, but definitely not everyone, and it’s definitely not just downsides. There’s plenty of legit cases where it’s the better option, even if the tools and everything function equally.