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Ditching Windows: 2 Weeks with Ubuntu Linux on the Dell XPS 13

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Re: Ditching Windows: 2 Weeks with Ubuntu Linux on the Dell XPS 13

#121

Post by tomohawk »

linsomniac wrote: post #112

If you don't have specific Windows apps, I'd be tempted to try a Chromebook these days. Around 2 years ago I got a cheap Chromebook and it was terrible. I think it was $250. Fit and finish and keyboard kind of sucked. I found one of those HP Chromebook 13 g1 boxes, which Woot had refurb for half off at just under $500, and it is much closer to the hardware experience I'm used to with Thinkpads, for 1/6th the price. N…

My chromebook sits on the shelf, unused. None of the apps really work properly. It's been a big disappointment.

I recently dusted it off and had the apps update. They worked worse than last time.

YMMV.

Re: Ditching Windows: 2 Weeks with Ubuntu Linux on the Dell XPS 13

#122

Post by aquabeagle »

izolate wrote: post #54
apexalpha wrote: post #12

>once I've spent a few hours configuring everything This is what stops noobs from using it.

Whoever first brings to market a laptop with Linux that "just works" 100% from the moment you press the on button, is poised to make a lot of money. That day will probably never arrive, but it's fun to think about.

The Dell XPS 13 Developer Edition ships with Ubuntu and should "just work" 100%

https://www.dell.com/en-us/work/shop/dell-laptops-and-notebo...

Re: Ditching Windows: 2 Weeks with Ubuntu Linux on the Dell XPS 13

#123

Post by kurtisc »

AnIdiotOnTheNet wrote: post #109
cix_pkez wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ah, yes, but my package manager covers every piece of software I use. No specialized update services. It seems like a small thing, but it's more pleasant.

And if it doesn't cover software you use, then it sucks to be you. Or if you want to install an application to a different disk. Or if you want to have two different versions of an application installed. Or if you want to use an application that relies on dependencies your package manager has decided are incompatible. The package management paradigm has its own set of limitations and flaws.

Those are all problems with implementations, not the paradigm.

Re: Ditching Windows: 2 Weeks with Ubuntu Linux on the Dell XPS 13

#124

Post by cix_pkez »

AnIdiotOnTheNet wrote: post #118
cix_pkez wrote: post #114

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've really not had any issues finding what I need for Arch Linux. If you want to install to a different disk, you could still install the raw binary, or mount a directory in your applications directory. Those are just hard situations in general. I'm a big advocate of statically linking anything possible, because I have disk space galore and dependencies can be a pain as for your last point.

They aren't hard problems at all. Even DOS handled them with ease. The problem is that the culture of application development around systems with package managers doesn't consider these use cases at all, forcing you to jump through a bunch of hacky hoops to do deal with them. Case in point: symlinking or mount-based tricks because developers hardcode paths.

Having multiple versions of dependency libraries was a pain on DOS, Windows, ... It just is what it is. For the record, you can have multiple versions on any OS, but it's important they have a version in their name and that the dependent application is aware of that convention.

The specifics of path layout is just how Unix-like systems do things in general. It's not all that different on MacOS.

If you really like the filesystem layout of Windows, just use Windows. If you really like `exe` files, just use Windows. I don't see the problem.

Re: Ditching Windows: 2 Weeks with Ubuntu Linux on the Dell XPS 13

#125

Post by AnIdiotOnTheNet »

cix_pkez wrote: post #117
AnIdiotOnTheNet wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure, maybe, if you have the time and expertise to fix those flaws. But if the community doesn't adopt your fixes then you're stuck maintaining them yourself forever. Over the years I've seen several solutions to my personal gripes with Linux Desktop, and they are routinely ignored or rejected because the culture as a whole just doesn't seem to actually care about those problems, or doesn't even believe they are prob…

I haven't had the same experience. Which distros have you tried? Perhaps another would be a better fit technically or community-wise. I'd recommend Manjaro for a rolling release (no major reinstall every year), a focus on user-friendliness, a friendly community, as well as being based on Arch, which means the platinum-standard Arch Wiki is available as documentation for you.

I've tried many. The problems I have with the Linux Desktop are not solved by any of them, though Nitrux at least tries to deal with one, albeit poorly. This is because the problems I have are pretty much endemic to the thought process of people who use and develop for UNIX systems. Things like hardcoded paths, the weird file hierarchy (please don't try and "explain" it, I know how it works and the reasoning behind it, I just disagree with it), no separation between system and application, overly complex and convoluted abstractions, etc.

>a rolling release (no major reinstall every year)

In my experience, rolling release just break things more often.

Re: Ditching Windows: 2 Weeks with Ubuntu Linux on the Dell XPS 13

#126

Post by shmerl »

Godel_unicode wrote: post #107
shmerl wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

macOS can't really be considered a proper gaming competitor to Linux, since it runs on very limited hardware. You can't use it for demanding games, unlike Linux.

https://www.apple.com/imac-pro/

That doesn't sound like a gaming targeted computer to me. More like an attempt to make a workstation one. Is it even modular?

And pricing is crazy. You can build a powerful rig for Linux gaming using way less money.

Re: Ditching Windows: 2 Weeks with Ubuntu Linux on the Dell XPS 13

#127

Post by AnIdiotOnTheNet »

rbanffy wrote: post #103
AnIdiotOnTheNet wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> When was the last time `apt dist-upgrade` did delete all your files? Oh... Never ;-) On the other hand, I have had it brick the package manager to the point that only reinstalling the OS from scratch would fix it, or break perfectly functional existing applications by replacing their libraries with incompatible versions. I think if you look around you'll find that Linux Desktop users are also remarkably tolerant of…

I don't remember when was the last time I had to edit a config file on a workstation or compile a program from source or set a kernel boot parameter (other than because I wanted my console to default to green on black). I'm pretty sure the last time was before 2010, possibly before 2005. We containerize apps for a multitude of reasons, one of which is for ease of integration. Security is also an interesting reason fo…

> I don't remember when was the last time I had to edit a config file on a workstation or compile a program from source or set a kernel boot parameter (other than because I wanted my console to default to green on black). I'm pretty sure the last time was before 2010, possibly before 2005.

Therefore it doesn't happen, right? I had to hand edit config files just the other day, because the distro I was working with exposed no other mechanism to work with cron. Change the distro and you just change which parts make you dive into the config files.

> Security is also an interesting reason for that.

True, but the prevalence of Docker and its lackluster security reputation suggests that it is not the primary reason. Where else are containers used? Oh, right, Snap and Flatpak, because it's considered a reasonable way to make a single application build work across distros.

Re: Ditching Windows: 2 Weeks with Ubuntu Linux on the Dell XPS 13

#128

Post by juancampa »

funkythings wrote: post #11

The only thing that is stopping me to jump to a linux laptop is battery life. MacOs is just optimised to a crazy extent. Nothing really comes close to the same battery performance if you don't want to get your hands dirty with tlp.

I recently moved from a MBP2015 to a MateBook X Pro and what I like more is the battery life, I can work a full day without plugging it in (I work from coffee shops). One reason for the long battery life is the 15W CPUs in ultrabooks, as opposed to 45W in bigger laptops. Here are some things I did to boost my battery life (I get 7~10h)

- Undervolted the CPU (-100mV). - Using bumblebeed/bbswitch to switch between GPUs, I never use the discrete GPU but I'm glad it's there just in case. - Show power consumption (watts) on my status bar to keep an eye for power hungry websites - Using Arch so it doesn't have anything I don't need running out of the box. A bit harder to install and configure though. I'm actually not sure if this helps or not - Disabled Xorg compositor, yeah, I don't get window shadows and there's a weird flicker when I switch desktops but it gives me an extra 10~15% battery life.

There's also a utility called "powertop" that gives you stats about power consumption and a bunch of levers to improve it.

It took me a few days to set everything up but now I'm in love with the mobility.

Re: Ditching Windows: 2 Weeks with Ubuntu Linux on the Dell XPS 13

#129

Post by AnIdiotOnTheNet »

Spivak wrote: post #116
AnIdiotOnTheNet wrote: post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not hard, it's just stupid that the platform has such a remarkable lack of consistency that you can't rely on anything but the kernel ABI.

But the Linux kernel is really the only common thing you can expect across a wide array of distributions. * If you're a GUI app you can also speak X11 with GLX and its up to the user to have something that understands your messages. * If you want desktop integration you use one of the many dbus protocols and it's up to the user's DE to understand your requests. * If you distribute through Steam you may also depend on…

> Also, nothing is stopping you from building against Ubuntu:latest. It's more cumbersome but Linux users will typically find a way to make your stuff work on other distros.

This is not the mentality of anyone who cares about the user experience of the product.

Re: Ditching Windows: 2 Weeks with Ubuntu Linux on the Dell XPS 13

#130

Post by neverminder »

linsomniac wrote: post #112

If you don't have specific Windows apps, I'd be tempted to try a Chromebook these days. Around 2 years ago I got a cheap Chromebook and it was terrible. I think it was $250. Fit and finish and keyboard kind of sucked. I found one of those HP Chromebook 13 g1 boxes, which Woot had refurb for half off at just under $500, and it is much closer to the hardware experience I'm used to with Thinkpads, for 1/6th the price. N…

Coincidentally, recently project Crostini has reached Chrome OS stable. To those who don't know what it is - Crostini enables running Linux apps on Chrome OS (https://chromium.googlesource.com/chromiumos/docs/+/master/c...). This makes Chrome OS a lot more appealing than it used to be, especially in combination with top end hardware like Pixelbook or Pixel Slate.
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