According to Statcounter, GNU/Linux is the operating system used on 3.77% of desktop computers (laptops and desktop computers)¹. In the chart we can see that in January 2021 the share of GNU/Linux was 1.91%, which means that in three years it has doubled its popularity. It's also worth mentioning that the share of Chrome OS (which uses the Linux kernel) is 1.78%.

However, this statistic is not fully representative, since Statcounter's tracking code is installed on only 1.5 million websites². Also, some GNU/Linux users — those who care more about privacy — use tools that change the User-Agent (an example is Tor Browser, which always claims to use Windows to camouflage itself better).

In any case, this is an impressive growth that will probably continue in the coming years, as GNU/Linux is increasingly used in educational institutions and many countries are trying to increase their technological sovereignty (GNU/Linux is the cheapest and safest way to do it).

The videogame industry is a multi-billion dollar industry. However, there are thousands upon thousands of games that can be played for free. I am not only talking about free-as-in-freedom games, but also about old arcade games, console games, etc.

If you use GNU/Linux, you can install many videogames using the package manager of your distro. Other games are distributed in Flatpak, Snap and AppImage formats or must be compiled. To find free games I recommend LibreGameWiki.

However, we don't only have free games, but thousands of old arcade games, which can be played with Keep reading Do you buy video games? I've got more than 6000 for free

To block websites you can use a browser extension (such as Block Site), a proxy server (such as Squid), but there is also the option of editing the hosts file, a method that consumes very little RAM and, unlike the browser extension, will work for any browser or program Keep reading Block websites: hosts file

Is free software anarchist or capitalist? Some call it communist, others say it is capitalist, anarchist... Who is right? Who is right, and do the following comments made by former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer make sense?

Linux is a tough competitor. There's no company called Linux, there's barely a Linux road map. Yet Linux sort of springs organically from the earth. And it had, you know, the characteristics of communism that people love so very, very much about it. That is, it's free.¹

Capitalism

Proprietary software favours monopolies of companies that control almost the entirety of a market. It is impossible to achieve a good market position with proprietary software alone, so in order to compete many companies must use free software. Nowadays it is difficult to find technology companies that do not make considerable use of free software.

Of course, there are different capitalist currents. Free software, in any case, has a place in this type of society as long as there is a demand for it or its use provides a competitive advantage.

Anarchism

Free software ends the unjust power that programmers have over users. Since anarchism is about ending the authority imposed on the individual, the freedoms granted by free software mean liberation.

Other political systems

Free software is used in a wide variety of political systems. What's the problem? North Korea, for example, developed a GNU/Linux distribution called Red Star OS.

Conclusion

I consider it absurd to frame free software in a particular political system. It is undoubtedly more efficient and secure than proprietary software, and countless political models can benefit from its adoption. Proprietary software is like alchemy, while free software is like science. No wonder almost all supercomputers and web servers run on free software.