[HanShotFirst]

I hate trying to teach my children how to use Windows these days. When I was young, it took some effort to get programs up and running, but once you cleared that hurdle, the computer worked the same, consistently, every single time you turned it on.

Now, most of the time they log in there's a new update to install; or a fresh and distracting dark pattern popup; or a service they need to re-enter credentials for; or, occasionally, a game I've previously installed for them either missing or no longer working properly. It's maddening and confusing even for experienced users.

Perhaps I do need to drop Windows. I'm not a huge fan of the obfuscaon and walled gardens on Macs, and Chromebooks and iPads are more geared towards consumption than creation.

My work keeps me on Windows (programs that have no good Linux equivalent, and a corporate environment that won't accept it for desktop users), but I'm seriously considering dual booting for my children's sake. It's a testament to how far Windows has fallen.

[AnthonyMouse]

> I'm seriously considering dual booting

Dual booting is only really for Windows programs that don't run well enough in WINE or a VM, which historically was primarily games before Steam made that a lot less relevant.

[kristianp]

Dual booting is pretty easy these days. The linux distribution installers help to resize partitions etc. The main inconvenience is accessing stuff off linux from windows. I used dropbox to do the sync in the past. Now I'm mainly on kubuntu and rarely use an old windows machine for some tasks.

[Gud]

I've been dual booting for 25 years.It was never difficult.

And sharing between the operating systems is also not difficult, you just keep your files on a NAS :-)

[kristianp]

You beat me, I've only been dual booting for about 12 years. It's easier than it used to be if you want to preserve your existing NTFS partition and resize it. Linux tools couldn't do that until some point in the last x years.

[userbinator]

When I multibooted Linux, DOS, Windows, and MacOS (Hackintosh) a long time ago, I had a huge FAT32 partition for this purpose as all the OSes could read and write it.

These days, ExFAT should also work for bigger files.

[userbinator]

programs that have no good Linux equivalent

There is WINE.

[HanShotFirst]

I do mostly video work. I am using DaVinci Resolve, which does have a Linux version, but a camera codec I very frequently encounter works seamlessly under Windows, and not at all under Linux. I've so far been unable to find a way to get it working in Linux.

[TiredOfLife]

> a game I've previously installed for them either missing or no longer working properly.

I have been using and supporting Windows users for 25+ years. Not a single time that has happened by itself.

[HanShotFirst]

I had Desktop icons disappear after a Windows update; individual game icons stop working after a Steam update; and Minecraft network play breaking constantly when Windows is on one version and whatever other device is on a different version. It all feels completely unstable and I brace myself for trouble whenever they turn on the PC.