You're surprised you got bullshit from the bullshit machine?
this post was submitted on 20 Dec 2025
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Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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Better for what? The question in isolation is fairly meaningless.
- it's free
- runs on a wider range of hardware
- is more customizable
- can run much windows software with wine or proton
- has a large ecosystem of native software
- much of it free and open source
The advantage of Mac is it's more widely used and thus more widely supported (for things that are supported at all). You can just buy an apple computer from a trusted source and it'll work. Linux doesn't quite have that yet. If more people move to Linux , you'll find better drivers and stuff.
It runs on generic hardware so you don't have to pay the Apple tax.
Fair point, but also, the M4 Mac mini is $500 for a pretty competitive chip, 16GB RAM, and 256GB on-chip SSD. You can beat that with a PC (and probably get a bit bigger drive, like 500GB, and you'd be able to upgrade), but you wouldn't save that much money. The Windows license puts it over; of course, the idea is you get someone to sell you one without a Windows license and install Linux. But if they aren't including Windows, they aren't selling in enough bulk to get the price down. There are a bunch of little computers from China that are competitive, but do you trust them? Up to you, I guess.
The other option, I went over in my top-level comment, is to find a gently used office PC that can't be upgraded to Windows 11, like a 7th gen i5. It's not gonna be competitive, performance wise, against that M4 Mac mini, though, but you might get it for like $100 from eBay or something, so maybe it's fine.
To add to your point, not only does it run on "generic" hardware, it runs on "whatever" hardware.
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Personally I find the MacOS interface to be horrendous. Window management is bad. The Mac apps are always opening my files instead of the third-party ones I designated as default. It's messy.
Other than that my primary concern with MacOS is that you can only run it on insanely expensive, irreparable, unupgradeable, disposable hardware.
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LLMs don't "understand" anything. They are predicting what text matches your prompt. If you don't understand what an AI is saying, it's not saying anything
Macos doesn't solve the ownership or customisation of OS problem that windows also has.
Mint does. Don't like how macos does something? Too bad.
Don't like how mint does something? Someone likely already has a package to fix it.
The problem is asking a fundamentally subjective question in a way that presupposes it to be objective truth.
If you instead asked,
What are some advantages that Linux Mint and macOS have over each other?
…you might get more useful answers—from people, that is. AI will just give you what you think you want to hear.
OK seems like you knew what I was trying to say, do you have an answer to this question?
What are some advantages that Linux Mint and macOS have over each other?
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The way AI works, it's likely to pick up on your style. I.e. if you ask with slang words or spelling mistakes, it's going to answer very colloquially. And this translates to meaning... Once you ask "stupid" questions, it's going to mistake that for a creative writing assignment. And I think your question is a bit alike »What's better, oranges or papayas?« That's just a weird question and you'll get a weird answer. Linux and MacOS are very different things. Used by different people for different tasks. None of them is "better" without any context given.
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Linux = Libre
MacOS = Jail
Don’t ask AI things if you don’t understand them and their limitations.
If you have a desktop/laptop, you run Linux.
If you have a Mac, you run OSX.
Im not sure where you’re going with this OP, unless you’re looking for purchasing advice. It’s kinda like asking if a car or truck tire is better, with the answer being “well, do you have a car or a truck?”
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Well, each one has pros and cons. *UNIX (I'm including *Linux and *BSD only, since masOS is technically uses a Unix-like kernel and *BSD code) systems tend to provide more control to the user, as they are Libre Software; however, the code can be rather clunky (especially in GNU+systemd+Linux distributions), and is much less secure.
What is Libre Software?
Libre Software is one in which you have the following freedoms:
1: Run the program for any purpose
2: Study the program by any means
3: Modify the program code in any manner
4: Distribute the program at any price
Depending on the Libre Software license, there can be conditions:
1: In any copies which you distribute, you must provide credit to authors of which code you used, and keep the license notice (example: Expat license)
2: If any patented techniques are on the code, you must provide rights to them (example: Apache 2.0 license)
3: Any code on the program is also licensed under it, and you must pass down the same freedoms and obligations; this can be either per-file, or more commonly, for the entire program, although exceptions can be made for other programs using it as a library (respective examples: MPL 2.0, GPL 3.0 or later, and LGPL 3.0 or later)
4: There must not be any system (e.g. DRM) preventing people from replacing the program with a modified version of it (example: GPL 3.0 or later)
macOS, on the other hand, is much more restrictive, but much better security (the best out of any desktop OS).
while you're probably looking for some very tangible reasons in a bullet list of how its better, there's really one foundational reason and everything else is a distant second.
Linux (mint or otherwise) is your OS that you use on your hardware. Period. It's not going to tell you how to use it, what is allowed, what is right, or anything of that nature. It's yours. Have at it.
Why is my chainsaw better than my accord?
It’s not a good question.
You cannot think of any good reasons?
Ever tried clearing trees with your Accord?
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I‘m a big fan of FOSS but it really depends on what you’re looking for. For work I’m completely fine with a Mac because I have a proper terminal and don’t have to deal with windows. It’s a walled garden so I don’t spend any time thinking about what I would do, I just focus on shipping code.
I think the price of Mac Minis and some of the MacBooks is actually competitive for what you get. This is not because I think Apple is good value for money, but because I think other hardware has become so much more expensive.
If you want to run something that you can customize and that’s forever free and yours, Apple is obviously the wrong choice tho
I'm a really big fan of both Mac Mini and Mac Studio. Macbook Pro is good too, but it is overpriced compared to the other two machines. It's not as 'idiot-proof' as some people believe, though. Most people don't know their settings, I've had trouble with this on the Mac too, the settings menu is intense, Windows-level privacy vs end-to-end encryption, all dependent on settings.
Recommendation: you can get a decent used laptop from eBay or Craigslist and install mint on it. Cost would be under $200.
I already have a flat mac mini. You know, the old ones that look flat.
Like, the 2012 model? That should work. Xubuntu would run nicely.
In my experiemce it's not. Unless you've not got Mac hardware, in which case it's your only choice from those two options.
Now, how is Mint better than macOS on older Macs?
Well. I used OCLP to run Sequoia on my 2014 Mac mini. It ran, but it was a dog egg. The fan was basically a continuous jet engine. So I used it to dip my toes in Linux and put Mint on it. 100% improvement. Mint doesn't mind only having 8Gb RAM, and doesn't really give a shit what it runs. It's modern and up to date and not growing new security holes with every month that passes. Running Mint, that little computer has become the hub of my homelab. Sure, there's better hardware for the task, but the best gear is the gear you've got, right?
However, if my M2 MacBook could run Mint, I'd still be running Sequoia on it, because there's a swathe of shit that macOS does out of the box that it's taken me a year of using Linux to give up trying to emulate with any level of success.
But not macOS 26 though. Oh Jesus fuck no. I've tried it on the M1 mini I have and it's fucking awful.
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