Intro
I have been trying out Linux Mint and Ubuntu recently, I tried some Linux distro some years ago too. Back then I wasn’t into programming, I just like tinkering around, and I always have a Puppy Linux USB with me. I really do try, even now I’m more capable of programming and give it a go one more time – I find myself always coming back to Mac, or Windows.
Conclusion
Use Mac – and I’ll tell you why from my experience.
Why Not Linux
- Difficulty
Mac is a consumer grade operating system, which means a lot of its features and user interfaces are very user-friendly. Most applications have an installer for you to download, click, install, and you’re good to go.
Linux on the other hand is largely text-based if you want to do anything with your pc. Don’t believe people who said Linux Mint is very much Windows like. It is to a certain point, but if you ever want to install anything that’s not built-in or available in software manger (which you will), you will need to figure all the how’s, searching and trying the commands people said worked for them but might not work for you – to just install a simple program that’s available on macOS and Windows one click away.
- Time Consuming
To continue on the previous point, if you ever try to install something, you will need to spend a lot of time tinkering around. Especially, finding the alternatives you were familiar with on Windows or Mac that’s not available on Linux. That sounds great and all because you are working on code using Terminal most of the time, but the thing is you can use all that time to build something already using code such as JavaScript, React, SQL, Python, etc. The code that you use in a job or for building a website or an application. I’m not saying you won’t use bash, it’s just not necessary.
- OS Hiccups
If you bought a device that includes Linux out of the box, that’s great. If you install a Linux distro using a device originally running Windows or Mac, you will most probably face some hiccups running the OS. There are chances the OS will work nicely, but there’s always something here and there you need to fix. To name a few – maybe zoom occasion freezes, maybe keyboard brightness is not working on your laptop, slower Wi-Fi, etc. Because Linux kernels and drivers are largely community contributed which is great, but it also means they held no responsibility for your laptop, you have to figure out the why and how by yourself, using code. A lot of the time, these issues are caused by hardware incompatibility with the Linux distro.
- Community
Major Linux distro like Ubuntu and Linux Mint have the largest user base. If you are just starting to use Linux, it is strongly advised that you pick one of the two, because more users means more solution to issues. However, Mac has way more support than Linux. Either just on Apple website or you can find the precise solution for your model of MacBook much more easily.
- Learning Programming
A lot of the programming tutorials are built for Mac and Windows, even though most of the time we’ll work in VSCode, you still need to interact with the OS terminal for some tweaks and Linux just works a bit differently. You can always find solutions and alternative to your problem, but again these things are not necessary to know if say you just want to be a front-end developer.
- Personal PC
To me, Mac is a personal pc, Linux is not. Many of the built-in features in Mac are so easy to use and highly regarded, especially if you have an iPhone, you can copy and paste across your Apple devices, airdrop etc.
- All Roundness
You can do everything on a Mac you do on Linux, but not vice versa. For example, if you want to build a mobile app for iOS, Xcode is there for you. If you want to use VSCode, of course both offers that too. If you prefer command line, Mac offers terminal too.
Bottom Line
Mac is arguably more robust, all rounded, trustworthy without tinkering and straight forward for your programming needs as well as personal needs. I can only suggest you to use Linux if you simply don’t like Apple or costly device. But again, you can always get a used MacBook. It’s worth just getting a MacBook to not use Linux. Haha, I know I am biased.
Nonetheless, wish you successes.
Code on.
