Why I use only GNU/Linux and Free/Libre Open-Source Software?

First of all, I think it would be right to start by noting the conceptual difference between “Free Software” and “Open Source”. So let’s leave this link here.

This is an important detail; I think it sums up the general philosophy at the point of view, approach and application phase very well. From my point of view, I can say that as I got older, my perspective on this subject developed, took shape and evolved as my life became more simplified.

As a result, I have personally used GNU/Linux and open source free software for over 20 years, and my reasons for using it have been for different reasons. Today, when I consider the data control and privacy issues on the internet, I think that I have completed the parts explaining why I use “GNU/Linux and Free/Libre Software”.

What is GNU ?

From Wikipedia :

GNU is an extensive collection of free software, which can be used as an operating system or can be used in parts with other operating systems. The use of the completed GNU tools led to the family of operating systems popularly known as Linux. Most of GNU is licensed under the GNU Project’s own General Public License.

My distro experiments, which continued with Slackware, Mandrake, Suse and Debian for a long time in the early 2000s, have ended with Arch Linux for the last 10 years. It’s XFCE4 if using mouse and traditional window logic in terms of desktop environment, otherwise I have a happy life with i3wm and bspwm keyboard oriented workflow, cli tools and tiling windows.

Why I use GNU/Linux and open source free/libre software, I can express in four main headings.

Freedom

We know the meaning of the word freedom. I use Linux because I know no one has control over what I do, what I use and how I use. Likewise, with “Free Libre Software”, I continue to nurture my usage process with applications that serve this philosophy. Of course, the beauty of it is freedom of choice and alternatives.

Performance and Efficiency

Dominance over the entire system. Especially in the last five years, with i3wm and bspwm, which I love monocle structure, the way I’ve traveled has made me a desktop environment made up of my own unique shortcuts, dependency on terminal applications, and most importantly, a simple structure that fully meets the needs with sustainable and easy software even if the hardware is old. This naturally resulted in a more efficient and high-performance workflow. I will write a separate article about the system and applications I use, which I think may be useful.

Transparency and Open Source

Open source solutions provide full transparency for source code. This increases transparency, visibility, and engagement, maximizing the number of people who review the code. With more interaction on the code, all vulnerabilities are quickly identified, or even a PR you open personally is added to development if it’s acceptable to the community or developer. This whole process ensures that both trust and sustainable dynamic practices are permanent.

Privacy and Data Control

As you know, in 2018, the European Union implemented the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), a comprehensive privacy law. If the internet and proprietary software didn’t make things worse, I wouldn’t need to add this as an item. The purpose of GDPR was to restore privacy rights to individuals and to emphasize accountability between data controllers and processors. However, today companies are so fucked up that it is now very difficult to reach structures that will demand simple privacy principles as a user. Because the web is fucked. Although I think that there are still problems with internet browsers in general, the FLOSS (Free/Libre Open Source Software) structure and Fediverse completely solve this issue.