Why am I a Pop!_OS advocate?

I write a lot about pop (looking back on previous posts).  Why is that?  Well honestly, since the BeOS came out almost 2 decades ago, Pop!_OS has become my favorite desktop operating system.

Pop! just works.  That's really all there is to it.  It installs and updates flawlessly.  It handles my NVidia card like a champ.  I can play many of my favorite games either through Steam/Proton or PlayOnLinux/WINE.

If have been using Linux off and on (as well as BSD) for a decade or so.  I have used Mac OS 7,8,9 and X... I have used OS/2... mostly WARP... I have used AmigaOS/Workbench... and of course I have used Windows in all its iterations.

I like Linux.  It is a decent kernel and the posix libraries and interfaces that are wrapped into it are solid.  I enjoy the WIDE range of software (most of it free) that is available.  I enjoy the modern UIs that are available.

Over the years the "year of linux" has been a running joke.  But to be straight forward, Linux is ready.  It is just a "different" OS and people need to get used to it, kind of like switching from Windows to a MAC or the other way around.  There are differences and similarities.  But in the end Linux meets all of my needs and more and it is as cheap as air.

On top of that, POP!_OS is just the distro (distribution of linux) that speaks to me personally.  I enjoy its look and feel, it's handling of proprietary drivers, its stability, etc.  It is solid.

OS Reflections

The first computer I ever used was a DEC VAX running VMS.  VMS became the operating system I knew and loved above all others.  I still love it, even though it is gone.

But because of VMS I became curious about other operating systems and have had (I think) a fine relationship with a number of them.

In the '80's I became a user of both Macintosh computers and even the first PCs running DOS and the very first version of Windows.  Personally I owned old PPC Macs running OS 7/8/9 before purchasing OS X Beta...

I also had an Amiga workstation, an OS/2 Warp workstation, and of course early versions of linux (slackware) followed soon thereafter by the very first Ubuntu distro.  It seems like aeons.

My favorite desktop operating system was the Be OS.  BeOs.  I fell in love and built out my own dual processing systems running BeOS in the late 90's early 2000's.  Still have the box with the software.

Of course I had the early versions of NT as well.

I even used FreeBSD for a year, for work.

I am still fascinated by the operating systems that I have not yet tried... and since then I have also become a hardware aficionado.

While I really enjoy OS X, and even Windows 10, my preferred OS for about 2 years now has been linux.  While I flip flop a bit from distro to distro, the ones I have narrowed down to are MX Linux and Pop_OS!  But the one I've used for the vast majority of time over the past year is Pop_OS!  I know Pop is an ubuntu derivative (which is in turn a Debian derivative) but it has been made sufficiently different that I find it not only enjoyable but superior to Ubuntu.  The System76 team has made a polished and different version of Ubuntu that is tuned to either Nvidia or AMD graphics, has simplified configuration utilities (sometimes more restrictive), a fine theme and other tweaks that differentiate it enough from Ubuntu.

In the end though, it is linux-based operating systems that have captured my curiosity and my preference.  With Steam I can even play many of my old Windows-based games.  (Yes, gaming is somewhat important).  I think that you often hear tell of "the year of linux" and it has become somewhat of a mockery; but in all honesty, linux has forged ahead of the past 3 decades and has become not only a viable, but a preferential operating system for many.

I am not out to convince anyone that they should use linux.  I want people to be happy with whatever operating system they choose.  I am just sharing my memories (albeit in very little detail) and my current preference.

Happy Memorial Day!