So basically Linux desktop needs a large company with enough resources and pull to convince OEMs preinstall Linux desktop on their machines? Sure. But what do we actually get as consumers? Some locked down version Linux that still locks you in via applications that only work on it.

No thank you. I'd rather instead of rooting for another big company replace Microsoft we make it illegal for companies do things to lock people in to their products. If you get caught then you lose whatever ip rights you have on that product and it becomes public domain.

Everyone has their own theories for what can/will trigger the "year of the Linux desktop."

The reality now is that desktop computing in general is becoming niche. Sure, maybe pre-installs well help, but personally I don't think so. More and more regular people get their computing done on their phone, or maybe a tablet. Why? Because the majority of people aren't creating things with computers, they are just consuming.

For those that do still need "desktop" level/general purpose computing, OS doesn't matter as much as app compatibility. Steam is helping this along in regard to gaming, but what about everything else? macOS wins here over Linux, and will be more likely to pick up any stragglers.

This article is 5-10 years late. Flatpak already won this battle. All that is still lacking is for some apps (including Steam) to ship official Flatpak packages, and properly integrate with its permissions system.

Linux is already challenging Windows. It has consistently growing adoption with gamers, more so than ever before. There won't be a "year of the Linux desktop"; this shift happens over time, not suddenly at once.