Dell’s gamble on Linux laptops has paid off • Hacker News Board

Re: Dell’s gamble on Linux laptops has paid off

#121

Post by ClassyJacket » Thu, Nov 16, 2017, 12:53 PM UTC

vini wrote: post #53

Kipters wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's an option in Windows Defender settings that automatically wipes the hard drive and reinstalls from scratch, without the manufacturer's bloatware

Tried this on a Lenovo notebook and it will reinstall the Lenovo bloatware anyways. I think this restore the initial windows image state, but the image that came in the notebook is customized by Lenovo.

I believe it's even more sinister than that. I recall reading about a feature of Windows 10 where it will automatically install OEM bloatware from separate storage on the board, even if you install from a generic Window disk/USB. I'm trying to find a source.

Edit: I cannot find a source, so take this with a grain of salt, however I do clearly remember reading it.

Re: Dell’s gamble on Linux laptops has paid off

#122

Post by [deleted] » Thu, Nov 16, 2017, 12:55 PM UTC

[deleted]

Re: Dell’s gamble on Linux laptops has paid off

#123

Post by fsloth » Thu, Nov 16, 2017, 12:55 PM UTC

luka-birsa wrote: post #6

As a 20 year Linux user I really appreciate Dells support in proving the market exists. This improved support across all manufacturers. I've recently acquired a HP Envy 13 2017 laptop with Windows preinstalled. I've really wanted to try Windows out, but after installing Google Chrome and Docker (1hr after starting it up) it stopped working - windows boot up into a blank black screen. In a hurry I've downloaded Ubuntu…

"If you're a developer there's no UX reason to go Windows anymore."

'Developer' is a pretty encompassing term and I wouldn't presume to know what requirements people have.

I would claim that software that is available only for Os X or windows natively is still a pretty strong UX reason.

Or that the deployed software runs only on windows.

etc.

These constraints kick into place if we take "UX" to include the total behaviour of the man-machine-environment system and not just installing Linux and the apt-gettable software.

Re: Dell’s gamble on Linux laptops has paid off

#124

Post by baldfat » Thu, Nov 16, 2017, 12:57 PM UTC

vetinari wrote: post #86

chupasaurus wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Big note: Fedora is a kinda beta branch of RHEL with experimental features and could have breaking changes.

Fedora is not kinda beta branch of RHEL. Fedora is a fast-moving distribution, similar to non-LTS Ubuntu. RHEL is a long-term supported distribution (way longer than LTS Ubuntu). It is for machines that you want to set up and forget about their existence. The difference is in target audience and the intent, what their machines have to do. More proper designation would be, that RHEL is a fork of Fedora, that is being…

> Fedora is not kinda beta branch of RHEL.

I thought maybe Redhat changed their stance on Fedora and read from Redhat's page and well it is 100% a beta testing ground for RHEL.

"The size and expertise of the Fedora community make Fedora an ideal incubator and proving ground for features that eventually get incorporated into Red Hat Enterprise Linux. To meet the quality and reliability requirements that make Red Hat Enterprise Linux the choice for mission-critical applications, Red Hat puts Red Hat Enterprise Linux through its own set of tests and quality assurance (QA) processes that are separate and distinct from those of Fedora."

https://www.redhat.com/en/technologies/linux-platforms/artic...

Re: Dell’s gamble on Linux laptops has paid off

#125

Post by baldfat » Thu, Nov 16, 2017, 1:01 PM UTC

Const-me wrote: post #75

jenscow wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I develop for Windows, but I use Linux. I find Windows to be a hindrance (I've used it from v3.1 to 7, so it's nothing to do with unfamiliarity). Microsoft may be trying to become developer friendly - but their OS certainly is not, and increasingly so.

I develop for both, but I use Windows. Until there're Adobe Photoshop & Illustrator for Linux, no professional UI development is possible on that OS.

> Until there're Adobe Photoshop & Illustrator for Linux

There are plenty of great tools that really doesn't require these overly priced tools.

Re: Dell’s gamble on Linux laptops has paid off

#126

Post by beavis2 » Thu, Nov 16, 2017, 1:04 PM UTC

Const-me wrote: post #75

jenscow wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I develop for Windows, but I use Linux. I find Windows to be a hindrance (I've used it from v3.1 to 7, so it's nothing to do with unfamiliarity). Microsoft may be trying to become developer friendly - but their OS certainly is not, and increasingly so.

I develop for both, but I use Windows. Until there're Adobe Photoshop & Illustrator for Linux, no professional UI development is possible on that OS.

> no professional UI development is possible

In your opinion.

I'm a professional. My skills relate to the domain/subject, not a specific software package/language/library. I'm able to transfer my skills and learn+use alternatives - and co-operate with those who aren't.

YMMV.

Re: Dell’s gamble on Linux laptops has paid off

#127

Post by sjellis » Thu, Nov 16, 2017, 1:14 PM UTC

jmkni wrote: post #31

luka-birsa wrote: post #6

As a 20 year Linux user I really appreciate Dells support in proving the market exists. This improved support across all manufacturers. I've recently acquired a HP Envy 13 2017 laptop with Windows preinstalled. I've really wanted to try Windows out, but after installing Google Chrome and Docker (1hr after starting it up) it stopped working - windows boot up into a blank black screen. In a hurry I've downloaded Ubuntu…

Windows has gotten a lot better, but the rules regarding new computers hasn't changed in the past 30 years, you still need to wipe the hard drive and install it yourself from scratch, and then spend a little time disabling the ads, bing crap, telemetry, etc. Once you do, it's rock solid, but it should be OOTB and it annoys me that it isn't. It leaves those not familiar with Windows with a bad first impression, and th…

"Windows has gotten a lot better, but the rules regarding new computers hasn't changed in the past 30 years, you still need to wipe the hard drive and install it yourself from scratch, and then spend a little time disabling the ads, bing crap, telemetry, etc."

The funny thing is that Microsoft know that the normal OOTB experience is bad, and created the "Signature" effort to offer people PCs with clean Windows installations. Then they seem to have forgotten that, and started putting their own passive-aggressive "value-adds" into Windows 10.

Re: Dell’s gamble on Linux laptops has paid off

#128

Post by beavis2 » Thu, Nov 16, 2017, 1:15 PM UTC

eli_gottlieb wrote: post #111

Sorry, I'm gonna have to flame Dell out here. I own a Dell XPS 13 9365, a 2-in-1 laptop. Dell have decided, arbitrarily, not to support Linux on this machine, but you can still actually make it run by disabling Secure Boot and setting the SATA mode to AHCI. Even then, Ubuntu doesn't seem to detect when you've rotated the screen for tablet mode or stuff like that -- but that's probably Ubuntu's driver support. The mac…

Did you check for Linux support before you purchased it?

If not, you can't blame Dell for your choice.

(I'm the type of person to buy the car before choosing the tyres)

Re: Dell’s gamble on Linux laptops has paid off

#129

Post by pkolaczk » Thu, Nov 16, 2017, 1:18 PM UTC

chx wrote: post #17

luka-birsa wrote: post #6

As a 20 year Linux user I really appreciate Dells support in proving the market exists. This improved support across all manufacturers. I've recently acquired a HP Envy 13 2017 laptop with Windows preinstalled. I've really wanted to try Windows out, but after installing Google Chrome and Docker (1hr after starting it up) it stopped working - windows boot up into a blank black screen. In a hurry I've downloaded Ubuntu…

As another 20+ (24 actually, 0.99pl15) Linux user let me counter: with the Linux subsystem for Windows there's no reason to wrestle with Linux any more. While Linux certainly works on laptops it doesn't work well. Wifi and battery life are absymal and for me seemingly every other update either breaks the printer half or the scanner half of the MFC device (and if not, then it's time for another bluetooth breakage, you…

"Wifi and battery life are absymal"

With Dell Precision 5520, I get much better battery life on Linux kernel 4.14 than on Windows 10. No Wifi problems as well.

Re: Dell’s gamble on Linux laptops has paid off

#130

Post by techspring » Thu, Nov 16, 2017, 1:18 PM UTC

I bought a Precision laptop preloaded with Ubuntu about 8 months ago and it's been awesome. The only problem I've run into is that I completely lose audio every time I reboot. A quick visit to alsamixer resolves the issue though, so not a huge deal.