Living With Linux and Android After Two Decades of Apple

Living with Linux and Android after two decades of Apple #

Excerpt #

It now seems laughable that only a few months ago, I was questioning whether I’d actually be able to switch off the Apple stack and stick to my choice. That’s what two decades worth of entrenched habits will do to your belief in change! But not only was it possible, it’s been immensely enjoyable. What seemed so difficult at first now a…

It now seems laughable that only a few months ago, I was questioning whether I’d actually be able to switch off the Apple stack and stick to my choice. That’s what two decades worth of entrenched habits will do to your belief in change! But not only was it possible, it’s been immensely enjoyable. What seemed so difficult at first now appears trivial, since it’s been done.

That’s not a critique of the Apple ecosystem per se. Apple continues to make great hardware and pretty good software too. And I think accepting that fact from the get go actually makes sticking to a switch more likely to succeed. Falling in love with something new is a better and healthier motivator than hating something old.

That’s been my experience with Linux in particular. I’ve come to love the setup I’ve enshrined in the Omakub project. It does a whole host of things much nicer than the old macOS walled garden experience, on top of the fact that running an open source operating system simply feels right for someone who owes their entire career to open source. It’s a positive vision: I really, really like what Linux has to offer these days.

It’s a similar feeling, albeit not as strong, with the switch to Android. I don’t have any illusions that Google is any gentler of a corporate giant than Apple. The two have very similar ideas about extracting monopoly rents from their respective app stores. But the slogan that Android is more open is actually true.

Now plenty of people don’t really care about that openness, and that’s fine. But I do. I care about being able to download the Fortnite APK straight from Epic Games, and being able to play our favorite family game with the kids, without having to ask someone for permission. Sure, it could be a bit more convenient if the game was available in the Play Store, but spending another two minutes doing the direct install is nothing against the hundreds of hours we’ve spent playing since.

The same is true in terms of customization. I’m running this beautiful, minimal launcher called olauncher, which turns Android into a far less addictive mobile experience by replacing icons and app drawers with a simple set of text links. It’s great. And it’s the kind of stuff you can only really do properly on Android, because replacing the default launcher is possible.

Getting out of the Apple rut has also lead me to discover an amazing new world of both software and hardware. Solutions that I just wasn’t in the market for after settling into an Apple grove over the years. Since switching to Linux, I’ve picked up Neovim as my new editor of choice, I’ve fallen in love with the Framework 13 laptop, and recently, I’ve even gotten into mechanical keyboards (the current choice being the NuPhy Air75).

That’s what a change of scenery can do for you. Force you to open your eyes to what else is out there. And in turn introduce you to new ways of doing and being. That’s a gift in and of itself.

Now I’m not telling you any of this to convince you to give up your Mac or your iPhone. People who love their Apple gear aren’t going to be convinced by an alternative positive vision because they’re simply not in the market for one. That’s where I was for a long time. Just not interested.

I’m telling you this in case your Apple relationship isn’t quite so hunky dory. In case their recent trajectory and relationship with developers might have been bugging you too. Because it’s in that situation you really need to know that the alternatives are not just present, they’re good. Their value isn’t defined as not-Apple. There’s no valor in that.

Linux is wonderful, is flawed, is messy, is beautiful, is nerdy, is different. Android is customizable, is open, is fragmented, is less polished, is experimental. All the pros and the cons are true at the same time. 

And it’s a compelling adventure to discover whether the trade-offs speak to you. Don’t be afraid to take the trip, but give it at least two weeks (if not two months!), and don’t think of the journey as a way to find the same home in a different place. Be open to a new home, in a new way, in a new place. You might just like it.