I'm burning the boats

2025-11-25

So It Begins

I’m jumping ship.

I’m going to Linux.

Needing to upgrade my computer just to install Windows 11 was the last straw.

An Abusive Relationship

About six years ago, when I first started working from home, I had someone build the computer I have now. It’s been great. It’s handled everything I’ve thrown at it and then some. But in the last year, it’s definitely started to show its age.

So when the pop-ups started telling me I needed to upgrade my hardware or buy a new computer to move to Windows 11, I didn’t hate the idea. It was time.

What I didn’t like was why I had to do it. The reasoning felt strange and arbitrary. It didn’t sound like a true technical limitation and more like something Microsoft dreamed up for everyone to comply with. I began hearing others complain about Windows 11 spying on them, the ads, and forcing people into things they didn’t want… It really turned me off to doing the move. Instead of being excited, I dreaded it.

It Wasn’t Always Like This

I remember the first time I logged into Windows. Read that again. I remember when you just turned the computer on and used it.

I don’t remember the version. It’s not important. What I remember is that we all started using computers. Some people actually used them for work or important things, but for a lot of us, it was a novelty. It was something that everyone understood had massive potential, but for the most part, early on, it was simply for fun.

Computers were machines we bought and brought into our homes. We owned them. Then, one day, this new version of Windows came along and you needed a Microsoft account to log in. I remember looking around trying to find a way to bypass it. I didn’t want a Microsoft account. I wanted to use the computer I bought. I made an account like everyone else, and we’ve been paying for it ever since.

That login was a quiet shift into a new system. Products today are built like traps. They lure us in, lock us down in their ecosystems, and then farm data and money from us. They are not trying to meet our needs and fulfill our desires anymore. They are seeing how little they can provide and how poorly they can treat us and still make money. It’s that simple. They want the data. They want the money. Our will or desires as the consumer are seen as obstacles to their true purpose.

Heated seats in the car you purchased only work with a subscription.

Dishwashers only work if you connect to WiFi.

Everything is a scam.

I’m done with it.

Linux or bust

Going to Apple was not an option. I hate Apple products. However, I wasn’t too excited about subjecting myself to Windows 11 either. That’s about the time I remembered Linux.

I did some digging and quickly realized I should have moved to Linux a long time ago. I love figuring things out. I love the concept of open source. I love the “roll your own” way of thinking.

I am leaving Windows for good. Torching the boats. I’m never going back.