I have long been interested in and mostly comfortable with learning new technologies, but the push for me to give up an increasing amount of control and ownership of hardware and software that I purchase has me nervous about what comes next. Modern technology companies are increasingly more extractive and unethical in their practices with both consumers and businesses. Large tech corporations aided by global conflict continue to strangle the supply of consumer hardware to the point where it will impact availability for the foreseeable future, while simultaneously ending support for versions of software that run locally and do not require on-going subscriptions. These companies ensure their tools eliminate just enough friction for a specific task in order for you to not question parting with your data, personal identifying information (PII), or an ever increasing amount of money.
“I’m tired, boss.”
In response to these industry-wide shifts I have taken a much greater interest in online privacy and free open-source software (FOSS) during recent years. Taking steps to eliminate subscriptions, making data privacy requests, and thinking more critically before signing up for services in the first place has brought relief while living in the shadows of colossi. Unfortunately, those steps generally feel like half-measures at best, and I know there are other, more impactful avenues to explore. One such avenue worth exploring is the Linux kernel. Linux offers us full control of and ownership of the hardware that we purchase, and it is way past time that I explore it as an alternative to MacOS and Windows for personal use.
The Linux kernel can be paired with numerous wrappers, called distributions, that make practical and aesthetic choices for the user prior to installation, which combined with the kernel, provide access to a full operating system. Fedora is a community-driven distribution of Linux that is feature complete at install. It appears to be a great OS to begin identifying a tech stack that serves my needs, is stable over time, and doesn’t cost a fortune in recurring subscriptions. A massive part of my journey will be finding FOSS alternatives to for applications where necessary, but mostly using built-in kernel tools as much as possible (Vim, anyone?). I have made half-hearted attempts in the past to install various flavors of Linux across WinTel MacBooks and Windows PCs in the past. However, 2026 and all its trappings have finally pushed me toward committing to learning this alternative method for daily computing.