If only the author actually reported on the post install experience, that would’ve been helpful for people looking to switch to a Linux distro…Kinda annoying they paywalled the article (thankfully, you’ve provided an Archive Link). I do agree with the author’s suspicions that Windows is only going to get worse due to the AI bullshit that Microsoft is infecting Windows with; Windows, is at a breaking point because vibe coding is ruining update quality, a human hand is key to maintaining such a complex OS.
After seeing the writing on the wall during the initial Recall situation, I permanently switched to Ubuntu (dabbled in other distros, before returning to Ubuntu). Gotta say, having full control over my operating system is nice. I only borked it around 11 times in the years of being on Ubuntu and others (mostly due to devil may care experimentation and a healthy amount of backed up data). Most of the time, I even recovered from the TTYL 3 screen, snatching victory from the jaws of defeat. Linux is in a better place than years past, Ubuntu, Zorin OS, and Mint are very usable for beginners who just want a PC that works. Valve’s experimentation with Linux and funding development work done by Arch and others has smoothed out a lot of the bug bears associated with gaming, there are few barriers to entry.
Outside the hostile big publishers who use anti-cheat that makes their games not run on a Linux distro via Proton Compatibility Layer (Rockstar are the prime assholes doing this, among others I can’t rightly recall).
Like in the past, most of the Smart Features are still turned off for me, however, Google sneakily turned on the Workspace stuff…Annoying, so I toggled that stuff off once again. I am debating on if I really should return to Android (but it interacts better with Linux than iOS). Thankfully, most of my important accounts are being diverted to Tuta Mail. Gmail is mostly my spam inbox.