People keep flocking to Linux, not just to escape Windows

Summary

cascoly/iStock/Getty Images PlusFollow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google. ZDNET key takeaways The Linux desktop has continued its slow growth.Linux has been making gains in no small part because of Microsoft Windows' blunders.Users and governments have been losing trust in Windows and Microsoft.My colleague Jack Wallen and I have been telling you for a while now that you should switch from Windows to the Linux desktop. Sounds like some of you have been listening.The proof of the pudding comes from various sources. First, with Windows 10 nearing the end of its supported life, we told you to consider switching from Windows to Linux Mint or another Windows-like Linux distribution. What do we find now? Also: The most beautiful Linux distributions for 2025Zorin OS, an excellent Linux desktop, reports that its latest release, "Zorin OS 18 has amassed 1 million downloads in just over a month since its release." What makes it especially interesting is that over "78% of these downloads came from Windows" users.Now, that's got my attention... 780,000 Windows users don't download a 3.5 Gigabyte Linux desktop distribution if they're not giving it serious consideration. Linux desktop fans download different distros all the time. For them, it's a hobby. For Windows users? You have to think they are considering making the Linux switch. The real top dog operating systemMany have already been making the leap. By May 2025, StatCounter data showed the Linux desktop had grown from a minute 1.5% global desktop share in 2020 to above 4% in 2024, and was at a new American high of above 5% by 2025.In StatCounter's latest US numbers, which cover through October, Linux shows up as only 3.49%. But if you look closer, "unknown" accounts for 4.21%. Allow me to make an educated guess here: I suspect those unknown desktops are actually running Linux. What else could it be? FreeBSD? Unix? OS/2? Unlikely.Also: What Linus Torvalds really thinks about AI and software development might sur...