It is infuriating that #MacOS security updates are now taking around TWO F***ING HOURS, at least if you still have a system with an Intel CPU. #Apple seems to think that all their users are made of money and can just go out and buy a faster machine whenever they release one, meanwhile they keep breaking features and removing functionality with every new MacOS release.
On the other hand I can do a full #kernel update on a #Linux machine in about 5 minutes or so. Even a complete reinstall of #Ubuntu #Linux from scratch doesn't take more than about half an hour, and that's on old hardware.
My only wish is that there was a Linux #distro that is not loaded down with everything but the kitchen sink (so not #LinuxMint ), but that operates from the assumption that its users are just that - USERS who want to get stuff done with their computers. Not programmers, not puzzle-solvers who like spending hours trying to figure out why something won't work or has stopped working, but just regular computer USERS who have no desire to learn programming or use the command line any more than is absolutely necessary.
@dm319 I don't mind a few esential programs such as a web browser being included, but #LinuxMint includes an entire suite of software that I would never use and that just occupies space on my drive. What they ought to do is give you the option to pick which pieces of recommended software to install when you are first doing the install of the distro.
@dm319 I'm aware you can do that in #Ubuntu and that is exactly what I do, but the issue I have with Ubuntu is that when something breaks, too many Ubuntu users and developers still have the old #Linux mindset that anyone who uses Linux should be willing to chase down bugs and use a search engine to find answers to problems. That is just not a mindset you find much in the Apple world. Apple users expect everything to pretty much just work (even if very slowly, as in the case of today's update).
I guess what I am saying is I wish there were at least one #distro that you could put on your grandparents' computer and even if you were not around to maintain it, you could feel pretty confident that it would not give them any problems. I think #LinuxMint aspires to that ideal (but maybe I'm wrong) but as far as I know they don't offer the minimal install option like #Ubuntu does.
(I love how that comment you posted says "Naturally most people who install Ubuntu will not want to do this." Makes me wonder if they know their users as well as they think they do.)
I have put #linuxmint on the machine of my parents for this exact reason. Its super stable and due to its rather conservative development approach the UI stays familiar them (low intensity users with Windows background). They will find their way around even if they only use the machine once a week.
It saved us a lot of money and my support effort mostly remains limited to major release upgrades.
@Lunatech have you considered something like Chrome OS Flex? It's low maintenance. More details here 👇
https://chromeenterprise.google/os/chromeosflex/
@nmstoker No, because it is "a cloud-first OS" that "can be managed from the cloud" according to their site. I am not a cloud fan for privacy and security reasons, but thanks for the suggestion anyway.
@Lunatech Does it matter so much if it comes with the kitchen sink? I find most Linux distros don't require command line knowledge, though something's are better done that way.