Linux has come a long way from the days when getting a graphical desktop running could feel like a project of its own. Today, you can install a modern Linux distro, open a browser, connect your Bluetooth headphones, and get on with your work. That experience is the result of decades of development, arguments, ambitious redesigns, and a few spectacular failures.

Some of the biggest moments in Linux desktop history came from familiar projects such as Debian, Red Hat, Ubuntu, GNOME, and KDE. Others came from unexpected places, including cheap netbooks, Microsoft’s developer tools, and Valve’s gaming hardware. Here are 15 moments that helped shape the Linux desktop we use today.

Debian lays the foundation for a massive Linux ecosystem (1993)

How Debian’s package management and community shaped Linux

In August 1993, Ian Murdock started the Debian Project with the idea of building a Linux distro through open collaboration.…