Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Windows for Linux Nerds

blog.jessfraz.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

101–110 of 393 posts

Re: Windows for Linux Nerds

#101

Post by Wehrdo »

I have been super impressed with WSL after using it for close to a year now. The Creators Update fixed some issues like file watching and symbolic links which had been preventing certain programs from begin usable.

I now do all my C++ and node.js development through WSL so I can still use all the Windows GUI applications (which tend to have fewer bugs and be easier to use than Linux GUI apps, in my experience). VS Code even allows you to run gdb on WSL, and interface with it on Windows, if you can get the setup right.

Re: Windows for Linux Nerds

#102

Post by flukus »

santoshalper wrote: post #6
bactrian wrote: post #2

This post was interesting in a morbid way but you can count the Linux nerds that want leave the open world of Linux for Microsoft very easily. They all work at Microsoft. Microsoft is losing on mobile, desktop, servers, and IoT. Their entire ecosystem is a technological deadend. If you're a Linux Nerd, you should probably keep using Linux if you care about having a good career going forward.

Linux still sucks shit on the Desktop. I try it every year, and every year it sucks very slightly less. It goes beyond drivers and application compatibility, Linux distros are ugly and the people making them have no taste. The Desktop/Laptop market is not nearly as important as it used to be, but within that space, Microsoft's dominance is about as strong as ever. Apple might have been able to take a dent out of it i…

> Linux distros are ugly

Compared to the dominant desktop OS linux distros are beautiful and consistent. Windows doesn't even have a standard look and feel anymore. And if you don't like it you can tweak the whole desktop + apps in one place.

Re: Windows for Linux Nerds

#103

Post by nxc18 »

shmerl wrote: post #72

Why would you use WSL instead of straight VM for example (assuming you are somehow banned from running Linux proper directly on your hardware)? And I'm a bit confused about the benefit of launching PowerPoint from WSL, when you have the Windows host itself sitting there.

You can use use bash to interact with windows programs.

You can run native Linux binaries without the overhead of a vm.

You can run native Windows binaries without the overhead of a vm.

Re: Windows for Linux Nerds

#104

Post by mwcampbell »

craftyguy wrote: post #23
santoshalper wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Linux still sucks shit on the Desktop. I try it every year, and every year it sucks very slightly less. It goes beyond drivers and application compatibility, Linux distros are ugly and the people making them have no taste. The Desktop/Laptop market is not nearly as important as it used to be, but within that space, Microsoft's dominance is about as strong as ever. Apple might have been able to take a dent out of it i…

My sister, who majored in philosophy and is in absolutely no way technologically adept, has been a fulltime linux user for 12 years now (including 4 years in university). My partner, who is a grade school teacher and is in no way interested in learning about technology, has been using it full time for 2 years now. My dad, a 6 year user (4 years fulltime), same story about level of tech competence... There are others.…

Am I correct in guessing that they all use Linux at your recommendation and ask you for help from time to time? Regardless, I'm glad it works for them. But if they do benefit from your help, keep in mind that not everyone is so lucky. And for individual users who aren't using their computers in a corporate/institutional environment with a sysadmin, the best software is software that just works without any help from a techie.

Re: Windows for Linux Nerds

#105

Post by will_hughes »

shmerl wrote: post #72

Why would you use WSL instead of straight VM for example (assuming you are somehow banned from running Linux proper directly on your hardware)? And I'm a bit confused about the benefit of launching PowerPoint from WSL, when you have the Windows host itself sitting there.

I'm uncertain if you're asking "Why use WSL vs VM" or "Why use WSL/Linux VM if you can run Linux directly".

For the first: Unified filesystem, memory, processor resources. You don't need to have the extra overhead of running a VM.

For the second: The reason to run Windows is the same as the reason to run MacOS - so you can run apps for those platforms. If you don't need to do that, then obviously there's little/no point in doing so.

Re: Windows for Linux Nerds

#106

Post by rhinoceraptor »

tootie wrote: post #82
userbinator wrote: post #69

If you need to access files in VolFS, you can use bash.exe to copy them somewhere under /mnt/c, use Windows to do whatever on it, then use bash.exe to copy them back when you are done. IMHO this is the worst-designed(?) part of the whole WSL. Copying files back and forth is the antithesis of a "seamless Windows and Linux experience", to put it mildly. From that perspective it's no better than running an isolated VM.…

I'm not sure what she is talking about because you definitely do not have to copy files across. I have a git checkout on my C: drive and interact with it via /mnt/c with no trouble. I'm editing in VS Code and running git and npm in Ubuntu shell with zero friction.

Try mving a directory under /mnt/c from WSL. It won't work.

Re: Windows for Linux Nerds

#107

Post by tacticus »

kyriakos wrote: post #90
pbnjay wrote: post #56

TBH I dug out my Surface Pro when Jess started talking up WSL... Finally got Windows Insider Preview going so that I could try it out for myself. I spend most of my days in a text editor and a terminal, and macOS has been making even that painful sometimes. Linux was my desktop for ages before I switched to mac ~7 years ago, so it'll be nice to see what it can do now.

you no longer need Windows Insider preview for WSOL - its part of the creator's update. still has a beta tag but its available without having to use a full beta OS.

When did this change? as my home machine required me to move to insiders for WSL just on the weekend. (also the volume of spam they are sending to me now :|)

Re: Windows for Linux Nerds

#109

Post by 52-6F-62 »

seiferteric wrote: post #80
52-6F-62 wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's a generally valid concern, but I don't think I can see that ever really happening. It's really just a compatibility space, no? There is a bit of a contrarian culture here, lately. Some skepticism is healthy, but too much is toxic. As a general optimist and hopeful, I like to try and find good where I can without being suckered by hocus or sly marketing. Moving forward and growing outward should be a good thing…

I know what you mean, but you will never see MS contributing to Wine will you? Will we ever see office for linux? Why can't we get a proper POSIX layer for windows (like they used to offer)?

You've got a good point.

I believe personally that there are great people working at MS (because I know one or two... so I'll just take a leap and assume in general) --

so it seems like a problem of reining in the beast.

Hell, Gates seems like a generally good person. It's the default nature of a corporation [read: monster] so large to consume as much as it can and become as powerful as it can. Such organizations are structured this way, and bend this way regardless, because of the framework they operate within. I hardly need to say this. MS started making some good ground recently, so maybe with further prodding and pressure, who knows. Everything you suggested sounds like easy wins for them. It's not like it would affect their core consumer base too much.

Re: Windows for Linux Nerds

#110

Post by detaro »

rhinoceraptor wrote: post #106
tootie wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not sure what she is talking about because you definitely do not have to copy files across. I have a git checkout on my C: drive and interact with it via /mnt/c with no trouble. I'm editing in VS Code and running git and npm in Ubuntu shell with zero friction.

Try mving a directory under /mnt/c from WSL. It won't work.

I have never encountered a file or directory there that I couldn't manipulate, can you give a specific example?

The limitation I know is that you are not supposed to touch the subdirectory that contains the Linux' filesystem root with windows tools, because that'll mess up some kind of hidden metadata.

Post reply on HN