I’m glad I run Linux

Sometimes, people ask me why I run Linux and not Windows. I first booted Linux in 1993. I was an undergraduate student at the time, and I appreciated that Linux gave me all the power of the “Big Unix” systems in our campus computer lab. Linux also came with the source code. I was one of those users who actually looked at the source code to see how it worked, and to learn from it.

I dual-booted my home computer with Linux and DOS until 1995, when Microsoft released Windows95. While I didn’t like Windows 3.x, I thought Windows95 was a big improvement. Although I never considered myself a Windows “fan.” I booted into Windows less and less (mostly for the few Windows games I played) over the next few years. When Microsoft released Windows98 in 1998, I decided not to upgrade. I reinstalled my computer to drop Windows.

I remained entirely Linux at home until 2012, when I entered a Master’s degree program. The program recommended Windows, and Windows (with Microsoft Word) was required for one course in the program, so I bought a then-new Lenovo X1 Carbon (first-gen) laptop, which came with Windows 7. I ran Windows 7 until I earned my Master’s in 2014. It was a nice experiment to see what Windows was like; that experience convinced me I really didn’t like Windows.

Windows as a service

I haven’t run Windows at home since. That meant I avoided the conversion to “Windows as a service” in Windows 10 and 11. With these more recent versions, you don’t have control over your PC anymore.

This was made clear to Windows users in 2021 when Microsoft announced Windows 11 Home will require a Microsoft account to set up and use Windows on your PC. Windows 11 Pro also required a Microsoft account starting in 2022.

This remains true today; Microsoft’s Windows 11 system requirements says “Windows 11 Pro for personal use and Windows 11 Home require internet connectivity and a Microsoft account during initial device setup” and “a Microsoft account is required for some features.” Basically, you need to have an account controlled by Microsoft to run your own computer at home.

What could go wrong? It turns out, a lot of things can.

Locking you out

Recently, a LibreOffice developer wrote about how Microsoft locked him out of his computer after he sent an email through Microsoft’s Hotmail service. If you haven’t read the story, here’s a brief summary:

Mike tried to send an email update to the LibreOffice email list, but Hotmail rejected it. His email was short and had a fair number of links for its length (just over 60 words plus 5 links) so maybe Hotmail’s email filters decided it was spam. But the email was legitimate; it described warnings while compiling LibreOffice and linked to code and provided references while asking “Would bumping bison baseline, and replacing the problematic instruction, be OK at this time?”

Shortly thereafter, he can’t use his Windows PC because his Microsoft account is now locked due to “terms of service violations.”

Well, this time, it turned out, Microsoft decided to teach me to fear them. Thunderbird shown me a message, that the mail couldn’t be sent (well, not a problem: will re-try again…), but then I found myself logged off, with “Your account has been blocked” message. They decided, that I violated their service agreement!

And he can’t enter a ticket about it because Microsoft requires you to login to do that, but he can’t because his account is locked. He tried using his wife’s account to request an appeal, to restore access to his account, only to find the appeal process requires a login. Repeat.

Linux means open

Because I run Linux, I am immune from this issue. My data is mine, my account is mine, what I choose to do on computer is my business.

Sure, I use online services including Gmail and Facebook. But I recognize those services are owned by a giant corporation, and I generally try to minimize my use of online systems where someone else controls my data. I don’t even store much data on Google Drive.

If I lost access to my Facebook account, I might be sad because I would be out of touch with friends who live out of state, but I would go on. If Gmail locked me out tomorrow, I would be upset because that would take me offline, but I have other ways to communicate online. Most importantly, I wouldn’t lose access to my data.