Hi! Thanks for reading.
I’m sure all of us Linux users revel in the countless articles coming out about the enshittification of Windows, reporting on how Microslop is utilizing more and more vibe coding, transforming PCs into rental clients, and more.
While I’m happy to call myself a Kubuntu-ist, many of my family members still daily drive Windows 11 on their PCs. I can only imagine how their UX is declining day over day.
This makes me want them to witness the freedom of Linux!
So, what are your easiest ways to set up dual boot between W11 and your favorite distro?
Seems like a GUI would be best for non-tech savvy people. Something like rEFInd or Clover (I come from the Steam Deck dual boot world, and am somewhat familiar with this one).
Are there any risks with changing the default Windows Boot Manager? I’ve heard that Windows updates can mess things up, but that if you install Windows first, that can save some headache down the road.
Bonus if you have a favorite distro for non-tech savvy people that needs minimal configuration!
People want to turn on their computer and have the OS boot and get out of the way. Adding a bootloader in between is just annoying. You either default it to autoboot X, and then find it frustrating that you need Y, or you set it to always pester you to choose, which is annoying in of itself. The UX experience really hasn’t improved ever and kinda can’t.
I’ve been dual booting since fedora 4, and whether it’s stock GRUB, or one of the flavours of the month GUI boot loaders, it’s the same lowsy experience. I can live with it, but I wouldn’t dare inflict it on a new user.
UEFI has somewhat changed it, as I now just default boot to Linux, but from Linux can run a script to set it to boot to Windows on next boot, and then reboot, but it’s still pretty gross to use.
USB boot is okay, but perhaps use a USB SSD, standard USBs can be very slow which will give a poor user experience. I also don’t think distro is that critical, as long as you stick to the mainstream ones. Make sure it’s one that you know well, as realistically, your gonna end up being called for support.
Is it really that annoying when a launch screen like rEFInd or Clover pops up with graphical logos of Windows or X distro? How is that any different than them picking an account to use over someone else’s? The GUI experience is the same to me.
Is autobooting rEFInd or Clover not possible?
Wouldn’t a restart a booting into rEFInd or Clover fix this? Maybe my understanding of the IT support world is wrong, but I would think that restarting a computer to fix issues isn’t too far from the average user’s troubleshooting skills.
Seems like this disdain is coming from personal experience. Have you tried dual booting recently? Is it really as annoying as you think? Asking the Linux pros here because I don’t know.
Have you used GUI boot managers like rEFInd or Clover?
What other options have you tried? I’m looking for a flavor that’s the easiest and simplest for a noob to use.
I believe if you install Windows first then Linux after, you won’t have the issue of Windows overwriting your boot sequence. I could be wrong though. My thinking was to set the GUI boot manager as the primary boot, and from there they can pick the OS they want.
Only issue I foresee with this is Windows updates fucking shit up.
Good to know! Actual first or second good piece of advice to my post that doesn’t involve people telling me to shut the fuck up.
It’d probably be Mint, Ubuntu, or Fedora. But yeah good advice! Can you imagine giving a noob Arch haha
I’m taking the train to go help my sister set up her OG Chromecast today.
Safe to say I’m used to it :)
I was using X and Y to refer to Windows/Linux.
I do currently dual boot, using UEFI + grub2 (and also macos bootloader+asahi linux), and yes, it definitely is a personal disdain. The various bootloaders themselves don’t really change the experience that much its that you have to choose your OS during the boot process that cause the UX friction.
It may be the same as a user login screen, but it doesn’t take the place of one. So you press the on button -> wait a bit -> choose your OS -> wait a bit more -> choose your user -> wait a bit more. That extra step in there just really gets on your nerves, especially if you just want to turn on the PC and get on with something. If there was a way to set the boot choice before pressing the on button (like a physical toggle switch or something), that would be slightly better, but afaik, that doesn’t exist.
I’m not telling you to shut up, but I would suggest caution, it only takes one bad experience to irreparably damage your families opinion of linux, sometimes its better to let them come to you when their ready. But USB to demo the experience is definitely a good way to go about it. But when they are ready, I’d go all in on the distro of choice and spend some time with them to iron out all the issues. A little hand holding early on will save you a lot of headache later.