You may not be a power user yet, but you’ve undoubtedly grown since you started using Linux. Power user or not, by virtue of using Linux, you’re on course to become one, and the symptoms will show. I have detailed my personal experience and symptoms; perhaps you have your own?
4
There’s Always a Terminal Window Open
When I used Windows, I barely touched the command shell, except to run a shutdown timer or enter the odd command. The Windows command shell feels stuck in the 90s—it hasn’t really changed. There’s no autocomplete, it lacks useful utilities and practical scripting, and it uses backslashes in file paths. It was awkward, so I avoided using it.
When I switched to Linux, I didn’t start using the terminal immediately. I assumed it would be difficult to learn, so I delayed. However, I soon discovered that installing software via the terminal was easy, and so I started using it frequently. Over time, I gradually expanded upon my skills. Now, for many years, the terminal has been the first thing I open after booting.
I use a window manager, and because I’m too lazy to set up a proper launcher, I use the terminal instead. On the rare occasion that I do set up a launcher, it’s with FZF, which I also run inside a terminal. Almost every tool I use is shell-first. For some reason, I often open a new terminal just to run a single command, and I end up with terminals open everywhere, and it’s borderline clutter.
It’s no exaggeration to say that the terminal is the centerpiece of my Linux setup.
3
You Rarely Use a GUI
You can’t really avoid using a GUI unless you’re browsing the web using Lynx or w3m directly from a TTY. Still, aside from the obvious things like Firefox or a window manager, I rely on the terminal for everything.
With a few extra extensions like completions and fuzzy command execution, the Linux terminal is almost perfect. When I began using it, I painstakingly typed each character. After I found Zsh and its thousands of extensions, along with a personal Bash script library and shell configuration file, running long and complex commands became effortless.
Linux commands are composable—they work like building blocks. If you have enough of them, you can create anything you want, as many times as you want. A GUI, by comparison, is like a finished house—you’re stuck with what the developers give you and can only hope new features show up eventually.
When you want to accomplish something specific, you don’t need to follow complicated step-by-step guides that tell you what to click and where to find menu buttons. Those tutorials are slow and taxing on the mind. With the terminal, you just copy a command—or in 2025, simply ask AI to write it for you. One line, and it’s done.
The terminal feels more direct. GUIs were meant to make computers less intimidating—they’re built on familiar metaphors like a file system that looks like a filing cabinet. They were designed to simplify computers, but in my opinion, they’ve ironically made things more complicated.
To me, GUIs just get in the way and mask the true power of the Linux environment.
2
You Forgot How to Configure Windows—and You’re Proud of That
It’s been 10–15 years since I last dual-booted Windows, so it’s been a long time since I’ve set up or used it. I did use Windows briefly for work about eight years ago, and I remember struggling with it. I can’t recall the exact issue, but it was Windows 8, and I was likely trying to configure network settings. There was no /etc, and instead I had a labyrinth of configuration menus. I remember looking at the command shell—it looked familiar, but I had no idea how to complete my task. Considering it was Windows on a standard desktop, there were probably insufficient utilities available to help.
I was stuck; I didn’t know where anything was or how to configure it. Like a word that’s on the tip of your tongue, it felt familiar, but I couldn’t recall it. I paused for a moment to reflect on what had just happened: the last remnants of my Windows experience had just vanished into a black hole. I stared at that black box, wishing it were Bash. I had moved on, and oddly enough, I felt proud of that.
1
You’ve Stopped Making Shortcuts
I remember my first few days with Ubuntu, when I was setting up my desktop. Back then, I wanted to add my most frequently used applications to the Gnome 2 taskbar. I was essentially putting the finishing touches on my new desktop (how naive I was, since I’m still tweaking my system even now). But I quickly ran into a problem: there wasn’t a right-click option to create a shortcut.
For over an hour, I went down a rabbit hole and tried every solution I could find—learning about hard and soft symlinks and desktop files, which blew my mind. I began to wonder if Linux was just too difficult, but I didn’t give up. In the end, I started launching applications from the terminal instead.
I’m not sure what I did between installing Linux for the first time and discovering window managers, but I never used shortcuts, and I was always too lazy to set up launchers. I think I just launched applications from the terminal, as awkward as it sounds. Now, 15 years later, I still do the same thing, although now I use more advanced scripts that detach from the shell. One thing is for sure: the last shortcut that I ever made was well over a decade ago.
You may not be there yet, but you’ve probably experienced at least one of these symptoms. That means that you are on the path to becoming a Linux power user. Becoming so is inevitable, because there is no ceiling on Linux like there is on Windows. Windows will box you in and try to control and diminish your experience; Linux is open and lets your experience flourish. After years of Linux use, it’s hard to avoid these symptoms, because all roads lead to Rome, as they say.
You may be interested in my other post, in which I detail signs that you’ve shifted to a Linux mindset. Perhaps you’re instead interested in learning more about the terminal or a slightly more advanced terminal introduction.
