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Finally free of windows
Posted: Sat Sep 17, 2022 5:12 pm
by MichaelR
Ive been tired of windows and its constant updates for years but never could find a Linux disto that was easy to configure the drivers for without the need for command line. I tried ubuntu and it was was close but I still had problems getting my sound devices worked out. A couple days ago I installed Linux mint 21 and I found it really easy to get everything working without need for command line just to get my video and sound working. I have a m.2 ssd slot on my MB and that is where I have Windows10 installed, recently I bought a Pcie adapter which allows me to install another m.2 drive. The price of these drives has dropped enough that I got 1tb for around a hundred so I went that way. I installed mint on this drive which I have set to run by default but I can still boot to the windows drive If I need to making it possible to save everything. One of the things I didn't like about Linux was the fact that gaming was somewhat difficult and I like to play games like fallout4 sometimes. With mint I found that with a little research I can install Steam and it plays fallout4 flawlessly. So now I can play my guitar just as I could with windows and enjoy gaming to, so within a few weeks of learning the new software I no longer need windows at all which I have been longing to ditch for a long time. Mint is based on ubuntu but for me it was just setup better so I'm thrilled. I just thought I'd post this in case any of you want to mess around with Linux and ditch windows as I finally can do.
Re: Finally free of windows
Posted: Sat Sep 17, 2022 6:38 pm
by mickey
I've been running Mint here ever since Ubuntu got into bed with Amazon. Quit running Windoze back about the turn of the century.
Re: Finally free of windows
Posted: Sat Sep 17, 2022 9:39 pm
by golem
I'm so confused @mickey. I can see they have a Amazon Workspaces Ubuntu. But if the worse they did was turn it into a SASS or PASS offering I'm going to just shrug and ask why that's an issue.
If they did something else far more nefarious I'll likely be convinced.
It's so easy for me to install the few nice propietary things that Linux mint adds and Ubuntu doesn't have that I don't even think about it.
Re: Finally free of windows
Posted: Sat Sep 17, 2022 10:18 pm
by golem
@MichaelR I recognize the CLI isn't for everybody. Congrats on finding something that works for you.
I got to the point where I can basically setup my machine for work entirely with scripts and there's a lot of I stuff I need for work that isn't available out of the box so to me the CLI is a huge benefit. It sounds like something you think one wouldn't do very often, but you can bork a system doing the stuff I do and having a fresh install available fairly quickly and just how you like it is a time saver.
Re: Finally free of windows
Posted: Sat Sep 17, 2022 10:27 pm
by bleys21
I've been a long time Ubuntu user, and all my servers at work use Ubuntu server. Prior to that, I used Red Hat/Fedora, going all the way back to somewhere around 1998-2000. But I got a wild hair a few weeks ago, and decided to try an Arch based distro...and I ended up installing Manjaro. Compared to Ubuntu, its very different. Totally different update system, it uses KDE by default, and like all Arch-based systems, its a rolling release distro. A few things that really stick out as different:
1) Updates pretty much show up once a month, unless there's something serious. Its weird not seeing updates every day like Ubuntu typically has...
2) No more Snap packages. While I'm aware I could configure around them in Ubuntu, I was never a big fan of Snap packages, especially for Firefox and other major apps
3) Configuration options galore: There hasn't been one thing I can't change with Manjaro. Major change coming from Ubuntu, where its frequently difficult to change things in Gnome.
4) Little things: Stuff like when I hit the Power button on the keyboard, it asks me what I want to do. Ubuntu used to do that, then it started defaulting to Restart or Shutdown.
5) Kernel updates don't happen unless you specifically tell it to. Different than Ubuntu obviously, and I have to remember to check, although Manjaro will remind you occasionally.
Bad things: mainly driver support for stuff like printers. Ubuntu has excellent support for all hardware. Manjaro, not so much. Still was able to get my Epson Ecotank printer/scanner working with a little bit of research and hard work.
All in all, I'm really happy I switched. I think Ubuntu would benefit from a little more flexibility for desktop users. I'm not likely to switch from Ubuntu server at work, as their server versions are the best out there IMHO.
Re: Finally free of windows
Posted: Sun Sep 18, 2022 5:31 pm
by PoodlesAgain
Mint user here as well, just keeping one or two Windows boxes when one needs it.
Mint is comfortable in many ways. apt-get is addictive, and when in a new Linux spin based on some other scheme, I am too lazy to learn that.
I am still longing for a very novel desktop environment design, and there are some, but look unpolished (I want good-looking!) and may suffer instability I think. Not sure what the next metaphor beyond pull-down menus is, but I want something!
Re: Finally free of windows
Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2022 11:16 pm
by bleys21
Sounds like me, I was looking for an interface to catch my eye and convince me to move from the tried and true Ubuntu/Gnome combo. Of course, I cheated a bit, as I would crank up virtual machines to try each distro that caught my fancy. Manjaro was the one that looks nice, but also runs really nice too.
That said, I do miss apt
I'm not at all used to this Pacman thing that Arch variants use, but I'm slowly getting used to it...
PoodlesAgain wrote: ↑Sun Sep 18, 2022 5:31 pm
Mint user here as well, just keeping one or two Windows boxes when one needs it.
Mint is comfortable in many ways. apt-get is addictive, and when in a new Linux spin based on some other scheme, I am too lazy to learn that.
I am still longing for a very novel desktop environment design, and there are some, but look unpolished (I want good-looking!) and may suffer instability I think. Not sure what the next metaphor beyond pull-down menus is, but I want something!
Re: Finally free of windows
Posted: Mon Sep 26, 2022 4:38 pm
by MichaelR
ha I just remembered my password here so this is the first time logging in with mint. This is one of the problems I have getting rid of windows because many of my passwords are saved in windows so now I have this saved in mint =). Not sure why you need to know this haha.
Re: Finally free of windows
Posted: Mon Sep 26, 2022 7:41 pm
by PoodlesAgain
MichaelR wrote: ↑Mon Sep 26, 2022 4:38 pm
ha I just remembered my password here so this is the first time logging in with mint. This is one of the problems I have getting rid of windows because many of my passwords are saved in windows so now I have this saved in mint =). Not sure why you need to know this haha.
Doesn't your browser remembers passwords (if you opt for it), and they would be available under your browser account?
EDIT: or can be exported out to a file?
Re: Finally free of windows
Posted: Mon Sep 26, 2022 8:02 pm
by MichaelR
Probably I'm just wasn't sure how to go about it but thanks.