The Linux desktop is a viable option for more users.

As a long time Linux user, this article on Forbes by Jason Evangelho about his experience using Ubuntu after ditching Windows is a great example that the Linux desktop is more than good enough for most users.

Personally, I would rather go for Linux Mint, but his overall experience comes to show how much the Linux desktop experience has come usability wise. Nowadays, the main reason to use Windows or Mac is mainly specific apps that don't exist, or have a replacement on Linux. Which, is less common thing to happen nowadays.

Ever since I moved to Linux, I haven't missed Windows. Skype, Firefox, Spotify, and Dropbox have native support on both Linux Mint and Ubuntu. As such, I still can use them as I did on Windows.

The only two apps that didn't have direct replacement where Songbird mainly because it was discontinued, and the Microsoft Office suite. The former was replaced by Rhythmbox, which has become a favorite of mine, and the later with LibreOffice, which while its closing the feature gap with Microsoft Office is not quite there, its still a great option for most people. LibreOffice has bonus points on that its free to use on Windows, macOS and Linux, making it easier to work and share between people without worrying on what platform they work on.

To be honest, I use Windows at work because we use SAP. And though I don't mind using Windows, I feel more at home using Ubuntu or Linux Mint since they fit me workflow a lot better than Windows does.

Slowly but surely, the Linux desktops is becoming an option for the users led by Ubuntu and Linux Mint. Odds are that it won't be as big as Windows, yet it'll be something that will be used by more people than just the geeks or IT professionals.

Spotify has won me over to the music streaming services.

I admit that when music streaming services stared coming available, I was somewhat skeptical about them.

Being used to having my music on physical form(being tapes or cds), or on my devices on a digital format, instilled my with a sense of security, control, and in a way of ownership. So, the idea of moving to a streaming service made me feel like I was losing something, while not having much in return.

After being recommended Spotify by several of my close friends, and some family members, and reading several good things about it, I decided to give it a try. And to be honest, I was pleasantly surprised by how good the experience has been so far.

While I still own quite a significant collection of music, I've come to enjoy using Spotify. I haven't lost any of the security or any sense of control over how I experience music. In several ways, it has been enhanced since I can discover new music while enjoy the music I love.

One of the things I enjoyed from the start, was being able to have access to the Spotify app from my smartphone, and from Windows(which I use at work and has been a great thing to have since I can't put my music on that computer.) and Ubuntu(which I use on my personal computer.) desktops. The main selling point for me, is that the experience is the same since I can use a single account and access all the playlist I've so far.

For several years, I was quite happy using the free service. The sound quality quite good, and dealing with 30 seconds ads every 3-6 songs is quite a good deal.

To be honest, for most users this is the best option.

But I decided to move to Spotify Premium last August when I went to my sister's wedding. I had to make a long flight, and I was going to be there for some days and I didn't want to move my whole music to my smartphone since its 7.1 gigs, and the option of just having to go through it to decide which one to take with me didn't appeal to me either.

Yet, I already had a couple of playlist I on Spotify with more enough tracks for the trip, and there is an option to get better audio and save them to my smartphone like that. Better yet, I could try it for 3 months for a discounted price. So I said to myself, why not?

It'll be a year since I made the jump, and I'm not going back. For me, Spotify Premium is the right fit and value. Spotify has the right music library, and keeps adding more track that makes it great for me.

It has proven that music streaming is a great thing to have, though I still have my old and trusty music library. Better yet, there are several streaming services to pick the one that offers the experience you want. In my family, some use Pandora Radio, while some use Spotify. And I can honestly recommend both depending on your tastes.