If they don't care about Bob Smith then they'll lose all of the hobbyists and passionate creators. Far fewer will be familiar with using and developing for Windows, as well as the potential to lose projects that either make every day life easier with Windows, or address those fringe edge cases that only a few people care about but make possible because it's the most popular platform. But, I admit it's possible that doesn't matter to Microsoft or the people who have to work with Windows.

The more easily people can feel free to ditch Windows, the better.

And I don't mean that as a slight against Windows. I mean that there should be better competition in order to spur more comparisons and improvements. Even people who love Windows would benefit from better rivalry. The way it has made Microsoft want to improve gaming under Windows is a perfect example of why. They could be doing much better on many fronts, and likely there are ways Linux might improve as well.

Additionally, if it is easier to move more freely between operating systems, that makes it easier for people to choose what is best for them. Feeling stuck making do with something subpar is not good. Everyone can agree to that.

Everyone should want Linux to get better. And Windows. And all other OSes.

This is why the Steam Deck felt like such a revelation when it hit the market. Every review for a pc handheld has used it as a comparison and mentioned the experience of the Steam Deck couldn't be beat for a handheld PC. People wanted ways to install the OS on other devices and that's why Bazzite and other similar solutions were being worked on by the community.

Sure there are games you can't play on Steam OS but that goes for almost any gaming device. Even Windows needs help with community based compatibility projects for older games, as well as solving issues with newer games that prevent them from running. Dual booting is always possible, and with this type of experience it seems preferable to spend as much time in Steam OS or a variant like Bazzite rather than Windows.

For the price of an Xbox Ally X you could get both a Steam Deck and a Switch 2 and be able to play a good variety of games including Fortnite and other games that might require anti cheat, and get the Nintendo games too. You could even afford a Steam Deck and digital PS5 for the same price and have access to a wide variety of games and be able to play in 4k.

There's a breakdown here

If we take this as fact, then it sounds like this makes AI an additional expense for companies. This means they will have to weigh if there is an increase in quality of output, and if that is worth the additional expense.

How is more consolidation, less competition, and more powerful corporations wielding copyright and causing a higher barrier of entry in the public interest?

You're knowingly side-loading the store and it already warns you about the risk. Apart from that Google Play Protect scans even side-loaded software for malicious code, so you're still protected in a way. Google Play Store is full of malware, so registering with Google apparently doesn't guarantee security. This is just a predatory move.

We've been hearing that forever. Let me know when it actually becomes mainstream.

Add to that AI has yet to prove itself. This just sounds like a line they're giving for investors.

As it is written, it doesn't eliminate the problem. It only attempts to minimize it. That makes it useless at the intended "privacy preserving"

I agree, and I use Firefox too. I hope the project stays strong and relevant.

It might be more of a sign of how few people use desktop computers anymore. Most connected people are using smart phones now, and that affects the statistics. A lot of those phones are Android and people will use Chrome because of that. This might be the core reason why Edge isn't making a dent, even as Windows tries to fend of Chrome at every turn and recommend Edge for everything. Consumers have abandoned the "personal computer" for the "personal device".

Will this bring back the slots to insert extra storage on phones? It seems like only the less expensive phones have that option, but people still want this ability on flagships.

Their UI is becoming more confusing with options moved around to different places, sometimes renamed, Windows has UI refreshes and overhauls. When you search for answers online a lot of guides don't work anymore because they keep changing things. I'm not surprised they think someone would need to command their computer in natural language instead of the "discoverable" UI that Microsoft used to aim for. But this doesn't sound like the way to do it. They should rethink their approach to UI and be consistent, and avoid pulling the rug out from users.

The rock of being an end user and just using my OS without having to follow news about it? Sorry boss, I apologize for not knowing about that incident.

That's when the commercial interest co-opting and enshittification tries to creep in. I know independent forks could always be maintained of the software we use but there could be commercial software that tries to get software to become reliant on it like Play Services does for Android.