When I read that Linux desktop just passed the 2% market share, I had mixed feelings. On one hand, it means that more people are using a Linux distro on their computers. On the other hand, Linux is not as widely used as Windows or OS X.
Yet, the fact that Linux has increased it's market share is something to at least to be happy about. To be honest, I wouldn't be surprised if the percentage is actually a bit higher since a large number of installations go unnoticed. Specially since the number of times Linux distros is used to have an idea of how wide the user based is.
That number is not all that reliable, since one download could mean several installations on multiple machines. As such, any market share information should always be taken with a grain of salt.
But, I feel happy that Linux gets more widely deployed Because this means that more people will be likely to actually used a Linux distro, and see for themselves that Linux can be at least as user friendly as Windows or OS X. There is no better way to change people minds than with having them directly interact with something.
I don't expect that Linux will make a huge gain on market share, but I hope that this gain will at least sustain itself in time. If that happens, I believe that Linux stands a chance of continuing to increase it's market share.
As an active user of Ubuntu, I know that Linux distros can be used by anyone. Ubuntu, Linux Mint, and Zorin OS are three distros that can be used by beginners and average users with ease. There some other distros like Arch Linux and Fedora targeted to advanced users. While enterprise users would likely use Red Hat Linux or SUSE.
At the end of the day, Linux is about respecting users freedoms.
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