# Why would I want to use Linux? ### Linux can be used for many different things, and most websites on the Internet use Linux as their OS to host Though, Linux can also be used on your Desktop PC just fine, with Linux Distros like Linux Mint, Fedora, Pop!_OS, and others. This has many advantages over using what your manufacturer provided (Likely Windows or macOS): - **Your privacy is preserved**, and your data is entirely under your control - **Linux tends to run smoother**, especially on older hardware - **Tons of games can run on Linux, sometimes even better than on Windows** (see [ProtonDB](https://www.protondb.com/) for compatibility with Linux/Steam Deck) - **It can be customized to fit your exact workflow**, whether that be writing, gaming, video production, or anything else - **You have full control** over programs and other software on your PC From pre-installed apps, to what's used to handle Audio and Multimedia, the choice is yours. - **You are not forced to have an internet connection** - **You are not forced to login/create an account for any service** - **You can encrypt the system easily** during the installation - *And many more...* *[Linux Distribution]: An Operating System made using Linux *[Linux Distributions]: Operating Systems made using Linux *[Linux Distros]: Operating Systems made using Linux *[Linux Distro]: An Operating System made using Linux *[Wayland]: A modern Display Server Protocol, which is aimed at replacing X.org *[ootb]: Out Of The Box (By Default) *[PipeWire]: Software for Multimedia processing on Linux *[PipeWire-Pulse]: An addition to Pipewire, which adds Audio functionality compatible with PulseAudio *[PulseAudio]: An older Audio implementation used on Linux, which has been mostly replaced by PipeWire *[Offline Upgrades]: Upgrades/Updates, which reboot the PC to apply