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Razer targets perfect Linux support

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Re: Razer targets perfect Linux support

#201

Post by Razengan »

johnatwork wrote: post #87
mathnode wrote: post #36

I am one of many disgruntled Razer Blade Stealth and razer core owners, currently awaiting a refund. Some customers are on as many as their 4th or 5th replacement unit. They have no English support in the UK, just a couple of german phone numbers which nobody seems to answer. The forum is terrible and they can't translate emails correctly. It's insulting. The typical issues are usually related to firmware, which myse…

I'm glad I read this. I was thinking of perhaps switching out of Apple for Razor, since the last MacBook Pro update.

I was initially going to skip the 2016 MacBook Pro myself, mostly because of their price, but I got one recently and it's actually a very solid and I would even say amazing machine. The need for dongles/adapters can be overlooked as a transitionary pain.

Re: Razer targets perfect Linux support

#202

Post by stirner »

mikejmoffitt wrote: post #86
jolux wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I know some people love them but compared to the massive glass trackpad with multitouch that I have on my MacBook I don't understand the appeal. Is it a portability thing?

I won't vouch for the productivity savings from moving your hands less, since I think that's an absurd micro-optimization. Rather, I prefer it because I find it to be quick and accurate. After a week or so of getting used to it, when I first got a ThinkPad that only had it, it became the most natural and comfortable way of navigating. Not having to repeatedly paw at the bottom of the laptop and confort my hand to mak…

Exactly, it is about not having to "paw". I own a 2016 MBP and even with the massive trackpad I end up having to swipe and reposition at least a couple times for big movements, unless I set the sensitivity to a level that makes precision movements impossible.

Re: Razer targets perfect Linux support

#203

Post by pedrocr »

feld wrote: post #54
kobeya wrote: post #38

Any Razer engineers here? I'm a proud owner that would like to work with you directly to fix some of the remaining driver support issues. Also, has anyone gotten the Razer Blade to work with the Razer Core thunderbolt 3 expansion chassis? On default Ubuntu 16.04 it picks up the thunderbolt hub, but nothing underneath. This would be an amazing laptop for machine learning if I could supercharge it with a Titan-X. Also,…

I'm not sure that is something that could be "fixed" in 16.04 unless you can convince the Ubuntu kernel maintainers to backport patches for PCI-E hotplug / thunderbolt support.

LTS releases (like 16.04) get hardware enablement stacks where X/kernel/etc gets upgraded to the versions from the non-LTS releases. So if you make it work with ubuntu 17.04 for example it will trickle down to the LTS users. Makes LTS a much more attractive solution on the desktop. I've stopped bothering with the intermediate ones.

Re: Razer targets perfect Linux support

#204

Post by mschuster91 »

heipei wrote: post #186
mschuster91 wrote: post #168

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Then again, I have yet to witness any laptop that is as quiet as a MBP. Every Windows laptop I've encountered, no matter if at university, at work or at home, had its fans spinning even at idle - while it takes a 2015 MBP to do a full recompile of all Macports packages to noticeably heat up, much less engage the fans. It's a side effect of both Apples unibody aluminium cases which are way better at heat dissipation t…

Yes, noise and battery runtime are the only two things keeping me with a MacBook. I'd be willing to compromise on other things (resolution, CPU, aesthetics), but there is still no alternative. But currently still happy with my 2015 MBP Retina. That's the thing that people don't understand if they've never owned a MacBook. Build quality and noise are not in the specs, so they only compare it on price / power. Also som…

The biggest problem I have with Apple is that they've completely lost track when it comes to their core user group.

A modern MBP still can't have more than 16GB RAM, it has 0 legacy ports, and cannot be upgraded at all.

Yes it might be a perfect laptop for hipsters who just want to show off their MBP and do the occasional Photoshop, but without developers who create programs for OS X or professional users who make their entire company buy MBPs there will be no ecosystem to lure in said hipsters... more sooner than later.

Re: Razer targets perfect Linux support

#205

Post by inferiorhuman »

vetinari wrote: post #118
enknamel wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's a high quality linux-ish environment and has a huge ecosystem of developer tools. You can get almost anything that runs on linux on your MBP and you can also get a ton of things you can't get on linux that come from Apple or from enterprise companies. It's also probably the number 1 dev environment for a ton of use cases so you get support and network efforts in the ecosystem. Are you a fullstack dev? Then OSX i…

If by 'almost anything' you mean 'some, mostly using node.js or ruby', then yes. Otherwise, no. For example, Docker has to run a Linux VM underneath to just work. Both linux and macos have different strengths and weaknesses, and one is not a fully capable replacement of another, not even just for the cli/daemon stuff. I'm writing this on a rMBP - and there are still reasons to ssh into a centos box.

Docker is an extreme example. Of course things relying on Linux-only kernel features are unlikely to run natively. You'll find plenty of compiled stuff on OSX (wkhtmltopdf, freeciv, postgres, inkscape, clojure, etc., etc.).

Re: Razer targets perfect Linux support

#206

Post by vetinari »

inferiorhuman wrote: post #205
vetinari wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If by 'almost anything' you mean 'some, mostly using node.js or ruby', then yes. Otherwise, no. For example, Docker has to run a Linux VM underneath to just work. Both linux and macos have different strengths and weaknesses, and one is not a fully capable replacement of another, not even just for the cli/daemon stuff. I'm writing this on a rMBP - and there are still reasons to ssh into a centos box.

Docker is an extreme example. Of course things relying on Linux-only kernel features are unlikely to run natively. You'll find plenty of compiled stuff on OSX (wkhtmltopdf, freeciv, postgres, inkscape, clojure, etc., etc.).

I know, I run postgis+mapnik on OSX. It is quite PITA to build, postgres clients usually link against wrong (system-supplied & ancient) libpq[1], everything links against wrong (system-supplied & ancient) zlib, half the things link against wrong (system-supplied & ancient; see the pattern?) sqlite, etc. Yes, it is problem with the build scripts, but I don't have an ambition to fix all the packages, and Linux packages do not have this problem. Actually, they have usable and maintained binaries just a single yum command away, so you are up and running in no time, compared to solving build env problems in OSX.

[1] - /usr/lib/libpq.dylib is especially annoying offender. Most dylibs are at least fat ones, but this one is x86_64 only. That means, when you want to build a fat binary of some libpq client, and it is being linked against system one, the build will fail. That includes building i386/fat version of postgresql itself.

Re: Razer targets perfect Linux support

#207

Post by kinleyd »

poink wrote: post #111
maxsilver wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I also got bit by this. Razer's simpler wired keyboards and mice might be OK, but their systems are fundamentally broken. The Razer Blade Stealth (7500u) has broken Thunderbolt 3 / USB-C support. Most popular devices simply won't work at all, even though they work with other Kaby Lake computers, and even though they work with Razer's own previous Stealth laptop (6500u model). The Razer Core has broken display softwar…

Even Razer's mice are pretty shit quality. I've had them going back to the original Boomslang, and I don't think I've ever had one last more than two years. I just like their ergonomics and features -- and the fact that Razer is good about replacing them when they break quickly, which they often do -- enough to put up with it. I'm probably harder on input devices than most people, but I have working Logitech and Micr…

Mine barely lasted a few weeks. Threw it away and made a note never to touch anything by Razer ever again.

Re: Razer targets perfect Linux support

#208

Post by francoisfeugeas »

Strom wrote: post #103
robertdpi wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Another signal about the reliability of the company is how they handle logistics. So if you are an US citizen living in Germany, you cannot buy a laptop with US keyboard layout. The assumption that razer makes is that if you access the website from a Germany, you are a german citizen, speaker and someone who uses a QWERTZ keyboard.. Im literally trying to purchase their product, but they discourage me with this absur…

At least Razer offers ISO keyboard layouts. I'm very grateful for that. All their competitors offer only US layout, no matter where you buy. [1] -- [1] Apple Macbook Pro is the closest device that has a ISO layout option. ASUS/Acer/HP/Dell/MSI/Gigabyte etc only offer ISO layouts for their "mainstream" devices which are nowhere near the level of performance that a Razer Blade has. All "gaming models" are US keyboard o…

What models specifically are you talking about ? My company buys high end ASUS and Dells with AZERTY (fr) layouts...

I've never heard of a major vendor not shipping ISO layouts before

Re: Razer targets perfect Linux support

#209

Post by mathnode »

danjoc wrote: post #131
thaumaturgy wrote: post #95

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's unfortunate. Razer was my leading choice to replace my aging Dell laptop. Thank you for taking the time to let other people know about these issues.

People with bad experiences are usually the loudest. I don't think Razer would continue to be in business if problems were commonplace. I suggest going to your local Microsoft Store or Fry's Electronics if you have one near you. Both carry Razer laptops. You can see one, buy one, and if necessary, return one, all in one place. Brick and mortar. Good stuff. At least that way you get to see one before you make the big…

I think it's because gamers have lower expectations than people used to the quality of other laptops.

Re: Razer targets perfect Linux support

#210

Post by [deleted] »

tallowen wrote: post #71
robertdpi wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Another signal about the reliability of the company is how they handle logistics. So if you are an US citizen living in Germany, you cannot buy a laptop with US keyboard layout. The assumption that razer makes is that if you access the website from a Germany, you are a german citizen, speaker and someone who uses a QWERTZ keyboard.. Im literally trying to purchase their product, but they discourage me with this absur…

Have you had a different experience with other companies? My experience living in Germany has been that its been pretty hard to get American keyboards. Apple for instance only lets businesses oder laptops with US keyboards in Germany.

[deleted]
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