Just Use MSYS2 You Say?
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Just Use MSYS2 You Say?
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Re: Just Use MSYS2 You Say?
#2[deleted]
Re: Just Use MSYS2 You Say?
#3> First you install VSCode then spend then next 12 hours getting docker to run dev containers inside a WSL2 image (which is just a VM that can't talk to the internet) and TADA
Thought this article was old or something, but no, it’s from a few days ago.
Docker (for Windows) in WSL2 is the default now - if you wanted to do it a few years ago, then yes, it could be complicated to set up docker within WSL2 manually[0], but Docker has long moved away from being a Slow VM (toolbox) and recently from its own VM in Hyper-V to running inside WSL2, both of which offer near-native performance (depending on where your bind mounts are).
Re: Just Use MSYS2 You Say?
#4I'm only addressing the Pacman complaints because I genuinely don't understand them
> It uses pacman from ArchLinux, which is easily the worst package manager ever invented. Quick, how do you search for a package that you've installed? Oh? What's that, did you just have to google for one of the weird single letter options? I rest my case.
Rest your case? Is that the only argument? The fact that if someone can't remember specific flags that they rarely use makes a cli program the "worst" is stupid. By the same logic since I don't know how to search for installed packages with apt (it's been years since I used a debian based distro), is it fair for me to say apt is the worst package manager ever invented?
> If you don't think these things happen, you haven't use pacman for long enough.
How long is long enough? I've been using Arch (btw) daily for more than 10 years, maybe close to 15, on my personal PC and I've been using MSYS2 on my work laptop for more than 1 year. Never encountered Pacman-related issues...
Re: Just Use MSYS2 You Say?
#5I'm only addressing the Pacman complaints because I genuinely don't understand them > It uses pacman from ArchLinux, which is easily the worst package manager ever invented. Quick, how do you search for a package that you've installed? Oh? What's that, did you just have to google for one of the weird single letter options? I rest my case. Rest your case? Is that the only argument? The fact that if someone can't remem…
I was going to comment a similar sentiment regarding pacman. Having played with a few distros before swapping from Windows to Arch full time last year, pacman was trivially similar to other package managers.
Re: Just Use MSYS2 You Say?
#6I'm only addressing the Pacman complaints because I genuinely don't understand them > It uses pacman from ArchLinux, which is easily the worst package manager ever invented. Quick, how do you search for a package that you've installed? Oh? What's that, did you just have to google for one of the weird single letter options? I rest my case. Rest your case? Is that the only argument? The fact that if someone can't remem…
I was going to comment a similar sentiment regarding pacman. Having played with a few distros before swapping from Windows to Arch full time last year, pacman was trivially similar to other package managers.
Not to mention pacman is way faster than the others. dnf is close but apt is unbearably slow once you've used pacman
Re: Just Use MSYS2 You Say?
#7What everyone wants is native software for their chosen platform.
There are lots of programmers who would rather have a Unix-like environment but are compelled to use Windows machines. Almost nobody with the reverse situation.
So they install Cygwin, or MinGW / MSYS2, or Git Bash, or WSL, so they don't get the braindead Microsoft vision of what a shell and userspace should be. They get a comfortable and familiar environment they're productive with, using software that was designed for Unix and written using Unix. They know what they're doing and accept the tradeoffs they've made. They are not the same as the naive user who needs their hand held.
If these programmers build software for naive users, they should be using languages suitable for cross-platform support, and target-specific build solutions, like jlink, electron-builder, PyInstaller... duh! Or write C/C++ linked to cygwin1.dll for Unix semantics (in the same way Windows developers can write C/C++ linked to libwine.so.1 for Windows semantics...)
If that approach isn't a good fit, then sure, go native development in the target platform. Learn PowerShell rather than try to write it in bash and bundle the entire Unix userspace to make it work. But don't say you need to adopt the full Windows native toolchain and spend years becoming adept with them, unless you're actually planning to become a native Windows developer.
Re: Just Use MSYS2 You Say?
#8Doesn't mozilla use mingw to build firefox? Of course it's different from msys2, but I wonder if there are tradeoff and problems from using mingw.
mingw/msys2 are not easy to use
and now WSL2 can use a X server on windows, which is quite nice.
although when I see news about win11 I still think my next laptop will run linux, not windows... but then I remember avidemux, paint.net, foobar2000, and I realize that I will stay on windows
Re: Just Use MSYS2 You Say?
#9Doesn't mozilla use mingw to build firefox? Of course it's different from msys2, but I wonder if there are tradeoff and problems from using mingw. mingw/msys2 are not easy to use and now WSL2 can use a X server on windows, which is quite nice. although when I see news about win11 I still think my next laptop will run linux, not windows... but then I remember avidemux, paint.net, foobar2000, and I realize that I will…
> but then I remember avidemux, paint.net, foobar2000, and I realize that I will stay on windows
I felt like that, too. It's probably almost 10 years ago, when stuff kinda got easy, but weren't as of today. And after all I think, it's just habits. Yes, Linux can be frustrating sometimes. But I don't want to go back to a windows dev environment. I started using Windows 11 on my current job. I had the opportunity to use whatever I want, but I was thinking I'll just get started with the things most people there use to get used to the workflow. And oh boy, Windows 11 is such a horrible experience. Setting up all the enterprise stuff with VPNs and what else we need was kinda tricky on Ubuntu, but I got it done and now I enjoy work much more.
But in the end it doesn't really matter. Pick the tools that work best for you and try to master them.
Re: Just Use MSYS2 You Say?
#10> First you install VSCode then spend then next 12 hours getting docker to run dev containers inside a WSL2 image (which is just a VM that can't talk to the internet) and TADA
I hate developing on windows as much as the average arch user, but if setting up vscode with docker on windows takes you 12 hours it's a you problem. There are lots of reasons why using docker containers is appealing, especially for students.
Mostly because they generally end up installing ten different odd and outdated software packages for each eccentric overly opinionated instructor they have. Each of whom rarely care to spend enough time to help these novice students understand how to resolve the issues they sometimes create on their only computing device they need to use for all of their other classes in the process.
If the student can get docker installed, at least they are more likely to be able to keep a somewhat stable machine.