Awesome

Chrome is my desktop

I use Linux since I was twenty years old, in the year 1996.

I loved it for server stuff: Super reliable, no need for a GUI. It was enough for me to access the server in a terminal based fashion (via SSH).

And of course I needed an operating with a GUI to display all these terminals, my text editor, the mail client and the browser.

Since some years I use Ubuntu. Not because I think it is perfect. I use Ubuntu because I found no better alternative.

Today is the year 2020 and the times have changed.

In spent 95% of my time using Chrome.

In the past I switched between applications with Alt+TAB. Today I use QuickTab Chrome Plugin to switch between browser tabs.

Like ctrl-r in the terminal to search backward in this bash history, I use the addressbar of chrome to navigate to recent pages.

In the past I used thinderbird for mails, now I use a web based solution.

I guess sooner or later most native GUIs except browsers will be gone.

In the past I was disappointed because Linux never gained a relevant market-share (concerning the desktop).

Now I am deeply relaxed and looking forward. A chrome based browser will is my new desktop.

Exceptions, where I still use a native GUI:

Imagine you use a native for reading mails. Maybe thunderbird.

And you have some tool where you make personal notes.

How can you create a link from you personal notes to a particular email?

AFAIK this is not possible.

With a web based mail user agent this is easy. You can copy+paste the URL of the web based mail user agent to your notes.

I love it.