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So Long, Macbook. Hello Again, Linux

richardmavis.info

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Re: So Long, Macbook. Hello Again, Linux

#341

Post by H1Supreme »

unfunco wrote: post #179

Anecdotal like other comments but I and a few others from my workplace have switched to Dell XPS machines and run Linux now, and it's because we're working with Docker, even with 16GB RAM and solid-state drives, the performance of Docker on MacOS is pathetic, and entirely unusable for our work. The XPS machines we have are ugly, they're flimsy, they have a grotesque carbon-fibre pattern on them, the keys leave imprin…

For folks considering the XPS, check out the Dell Inspiron 7000 range. I have the 13" version and it very much reminds me of a MacBook Pro aesthetically. Brushed aluminum chasis, dark keys (with back lighting), and an overall sleek, understated design. Nothing like the cheap, plastic Dell's I was used to seeing.

And, it installed Ubuntu (mate) without a hitch. Everything worked out of the box except the font scaling. I suspect that's a Mate specific problem though. Gnome may work better.

Re: So Long, Macbook. Hello Again, Linux

#342

Post by stcredzero »

jandrese wrote: post #330
stcredzero wrote: post #320

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Time before last when I went to a Golang meetup, the presenter's Linux laptop embarrassed him for a few minutes, and lots of devs with Macbooks made some linux jokes at his expense. This was the story with printing in Linux as well, back in the day. It would work fine for some, and be a nightmare for others.

This is definitely a case where the details matter. The guy who runs Slackware on some no-name laptop is probably going to struggle more than the guy running Ubuntu on the Dell.

It was Bionic Beaver. He was a well heeled SV manager, and he had a fairly new laptop. Not sure if it was a Dell.

This also happened with printing. People would say it worked fine for them, then point out that scroungers on quirky old laptops were getting what they deserved. Really, the fault wasn't those quirky old laptops, but rather fragile and not so well standardized software.

Re: So Long, Macbook. Hello Again, Linux

#343

Post by jake_the_third »

rezeroed wrote: post #279
noahadavis wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It won't happen because Linux users like it the way it is. It is consistent, it's just not the way you want it to be. I love middle click paste. It makes sense that it doesn't follow the text cursor because the mouse is separate and this adds extra flexibility. Ctrl+A should select everything and put the cursor at the end. Actually, in some apps the cursor disappears and in some the cursor goes to the end, but the be…

What's a "middle click"?

A way to insert X11's "clipboard" buffer (i.e text that is currently selected text).

I agree with GP: I find the two separate copy-paste methods very useful and wouldn't want to see them merged. Users who aren't aware of one of the aren't affected, and those who are get an extra buffer to use.

Re: So Long, Macbook. Hello Again, Linux

#344

Post by noahadavis »

username3 wrote: post #323
noahadavis wrote: post #82

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It won't happen because Linux users like it the way it is. It is consistent, it's just not the way you want it to be. I love middle click paste. It makes sense that it doesn't follow the text cursor because the mouse is separate and this adds extra flexibility. Ctrl+A should select everything and put the cursor at the end. Actually, in some apps the cursor disappears and in some the cursor goes to the end, but the be…

Linux needs a preference layer between keyboard and app.

This already exists in desktop environments. Of course, not all desktop environments have the same features. I know KDE Plasma has this. It can't work with all apps though, for the same reasons that MacOS and Windows can't have a feature like this that works with all apps. That is, unless you want to translate keystrokes into other keystrokes on a per app basis.

Re: So Long, Macbook. Hello Again, Linux

#345

Post by lainga »

dwighttk wrote: post #12
TransAMrit wrote: post #3

> Recently I’ve just found myself disenchanted with Apple in a way similar to how I felt maybe twelve years earlier with Microsoft, when I switched to Linux the first time. This is exactly why I've been switching back to Linux everywhere, including laptops. Apple has done a pretty good job recreating the modern Windows experience.

I feel like I'd be much more open to Linux if I spent most of my time in emacs, but since I've spent like 8 minutes in emacs and about 14hrs in vim and have very little desire to increase either of those numbers, it only takes a small dose of Linux to re-enchant myself with Apple.

Why? You can change nearly everything to use vim keybindings.

Re: So Long, Macbook. Hello Again, Linux

#346

Post by emilecantin »

callinyouin wrote: post #185
Waterluvian wrote: post #129

Hooking up three monitors, 2 of which are 4k onto Ubuntu is the most frustrating thing I've done with that OS. It just works on OSX though. Rough spots is a good way to describe it. Overall it works... But not without effort and competence.

Not exactly your experience, but using a single (non-4k) external monitor is slightly painful for me with my MBP. It sometimes takes ~10 seconds for my display to work after plugging it in, with lots of intermittent flickering as the OS "figures it out". And afterwards, the menu bar on the external is a bit glitchy looking on the right side until I click on it. With my other laptop running Fedora the experience is mu…

This is an area of macOS that's gotten slightly worse over the years. It used to work much better than that, even El Cap used to flicker only once.

Re: So Long, Macbook. Hello Again, Linux

#347

Post by Derbasti »

caconym_ wrote: post #291
mrspeaker wrote: post #67

This is most definitely selection bias, but it seems like there's something in the air at the moment with people jumping off the "mainstream tech" ship. Lots of talk of nostalgia for 90s internet culture, switching to Linux (I also switched to Linux (and Emacs!) after a decade+ on Mac), more secure/transparent tech with phones etc. More willingness to put up with "rough spots" and "less shiny" for greater access to t…

For me it's because the big tech companies (one of which I work at) are making everything way too complicated, gimmicky, and over-integrated for me. I want a keyboard, not half a keyboard and a weird touch display that does nothing useful for me I want a directory that's synced to durable cloud-based storage, not a monolithic service product that tries to work its hooks into every corner of my computer(s) and digital…

I agree with every word you said. Thank you for writing this!

Re: So Long, Macbook. Hello Again, Linux

#348

Post by Wowfunhappy »

willtim wrote: post #273
ianhowson wrote: post #267

Earlier quoted context omitted.

With Apple, you can take it to any store and they'll diagnose it immediately. With business support (which isn't even expensive for individuals; it was $500/year when I had it) they'll give you a loaner on the spot. If you've got backups, your downtime for a dead machine maybe a few hours.

A loaned machine would be useless to me if they cannot swap the SSD. I wouldn't even be able to connect it to our company network.

How is your company's network configured such that you need to physically swap the hard drive in order to connect? What happens if the hard drive dies?

Re: So Long, Macbook. Hello Again, Linux

#349

Post by stcredzero »

jasondclinton wrote: post #217
stcredzero wrote: post #215

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That being said, it's still got rough spots that OSX doesn't. It works great when it works, but when it doesn't.... Someone really needs to make Linux distros just work when hooking a laptop up to a projector. The fact that there's so much trouble that's so public and faced with so much concentrated embarrassment is a serious ongoing PR impediment to Linux. Linux distros got printing licked across the board, so it ca…

This hasn't been an area where Linux has had problems for more than 5 years.

This hasn't been an area where Linux has had problems for more than 5 years.

Really? Because I definitely got the impression it was a widespread joke in that circle of devs. Also, when I saw it happen to the last poor sap, it happened on Bionic Beaver. Is this more of the Thermocline of Truth?

Re: So Long, Macbook. Hello Again, Linux

#350

Post by bayindirh »

cefstat wrote: post #337
bayindirh wrote: post #311

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have a feeling that Apple doesn't want their users to install that kind of development environments, other runtimes, etc. to their MacOS installations. Time Machine also sometimes doesn't Backup these installations correctly. Similarly, TeX installation is hard and it's forcefully shoehorned on the installation, and you can't do anything better in the current situation. My solution is to run a Linux VM for these si…

> Similarly, TeX installation is hard [...] Installing MacTeX has always been one of the most straightforward things I can imagine.

It was. When I got my first Mac in 2008, it was very straightforward. When Apple started to tighten OSX security they stumbled a little IIRC (I cannot find the old warnings and notes on the page). Also, around the same time, OSX installer changed, and OS upgrades started to take longer since TeX installation had so many files.

When they were working on these problems, I was in the middle of my Ph.D., and I needed a stable TeX installation, fast. I installed a Linux VM, all my woes went away, and that method just stuck.

I just checked the MacTeX page now, and it looks like they solved the problems I mentioned above, but currently I'm too lazy and need that TeX installation keep working, so I'll not retry it now.

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