Surviving Windows After 15 Years on Linux: Practical Tips and Workarounds

Background

The author has used Linux as the sole operating system for about 15 years and recently started a new job that provides only a Windows 10 laptop.

First Impressions

Windows 10’s desktop feels chaotic, mixing a new UI with legacy Win32/GDI elements; dark mode only applies to the new UI, leaving many legacy components bright.

Customization Limitations

Unlike Linux, where any distribution can be fully customised (e.g., Xubuntu), Windows forces users to accept whatever Microsoft supplies, offering virtually no personalisation options.

Windows Not Designed for Developers

Windows primarily targets office‑product users (Word, Excel, Outlook), whereas Linux provides a rich, composable toolbox of command‑line utilities (echo, cat, grep, sed, awk, find, cut, sort, curl, ssh, etc.) that can be combined like LEGO bricks.

Workarounds for Unix Tools

Most standard *nix user‑land utilities are available for Windows and can be installed via scoop: $ scoop install coreutils Path handling can be cumbersome in GUI file managers, but PowerShell supports the ~ alias for the home directory. Environment variables use Windows syntax ( %PROFILE%) but PowerShell also accepts $HOME. To set persistent variables without restarting the shell, add setx commands to the $profile script and reload it.

Software Installation Challenges

Most Windows software is installed via downloaded .exe or .msi files, often accompanied by warnings. The Microsoft Store offers far fewer applications than Linux repositories such as Debian’s 60 000 packages or Arch’s AUR. Recent Windows package managers (nuget, chocolatey, scoop, winget) fill gaps but lack true repository metadata, signatures, and dependency handling.

Recommended Package Manager

Among the available options, Scoop provides the most usable experience:

$ scoop search wget
$ scoop info postgres
$ scoop install coreutils wget xh bat ripgrep

Terminal Experience

The default Windows terminal is dated; installing the modern Windows Terminal yields a configurable, multi‑tab environment. PowerShell serves as a capable shell, offering significant improvements over cmd.exe.

Automatic Restarts

Windows Update can reboot the machine without warning, closing all terminals, SSH sessions, and VS Code windows. Disabling automatic restarts (if not enforced by IT policy) prevents this loss of work.

Virtual Desktops

Windows 10 finally supports virtual desktops, but switching and visibility are clunky. Installing a desktop indicator and the PersistentWindows tool helps track and restore window layouts across monitors.

Display Sleep Issue

When a DisplayPort monitor sleeps, Windows often moves all windows to the primary monitor. Workarounds include extending the sleep timeout or using PersistentWindows to restore window positions after wake‑up.

Clipboard Differences

Linux offers multiple clipboards (primary, secondary, clipboard) enabling middle‑click paste without overwriting existing data. Windows provides only a single clipboard, and the terminal’s right‑click paste is the only similar behaviour.

SSH

While PuTTY is considered sub‑optimal, PowerShell includes a built‑in SSH client that works well when used from a proper terminal.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Useful shortcuts are illustrated in the image below. PowerToys can add custom global hotkeys, though some combinations (e.g., Win+Enter to open a new terminal) remain unavailable.

Community Opinions

网友 @cmehdy："在切换到 Windows 之前，我也曾使用了 Mac 10 年以上，感受基本相同。"

网友 @brokenmachine："我在 Linux 与 Windows 双系统使用，唯一使用 Windows 的原因是有些软件只能在 Windows 上运行。"

网友 @jmmv："平台切换需要时间，缺乏公平评价。"

网友 @libraryatnight："作为长期使用 AD、Azure 与 Windows Server 的人，我认为 Windows PowerShell 非常棒。"