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From M1 MacBook to Arch Linux: A month-long experiment that became permanenent

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Re: From M1 MacBook to Arch Linux: A month-long experiment that became permanenent

#151
post #130
post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Considering that macOS is popular among even actual tech-illiterates, it is safe to say that their system is probably pretty logical and easy but since you are a power user on something else you will have to unlearn you previous ways of doing things. At some point it will click and you'll be fine.

Or, alternatively, non-illiterates have different needs.

macOS is quite popular among tech literate people too, it's almost the default OS for most techies.

Re: From M1 MacBook to Arch Linux: A month-long experiment that became permanenent

#152
I am still in the market for a laptop that a) has good linux drivers b) has a big battery ~80wh or more c) metal build d) good touchpad, screen, keyboard, e) strictly no dGPU. I genuinely don't care about the CPU, all of them are good enough for me. Although I suppose if I'm going to be spending on a laptop in 2025, I will be looking for one with 24 or 32GB of RAM instead of 16GB.

Macbook Pros satisfy b), c), d) and e). I currently have an HP laptop that satisfies a), c), d), and e). But is just 43Wh (now 36Wh after a few years).

Re: From M1 MacBook to Arch Linux: A month-long experiment that became permanenent

#153
post #11

Oh darn, I thought they'd gotten Arch running on an M1 but they actually switched to a ThinkBook. I somewhat regret my expensive switch from Linux to MacOS. MacOS is just so weird, it doesn't make any sense to me. For the first time in my life I feel like some tech-illiterate grandpa trying to figure out how to make his blasted computer do stuff.

Curious, what is it that doesn’t make sense?

The difficulty in navigating to arbitrary locations in file open/save dialogs.

I wanted to attach a build log to a Teams post (maybe we shouldn't be using Teams on Mac, but it's a corporate decision that's out of my hands), and I could not for the life of me figure how to get the file-selection dialog to look at the relevant folder (which was somewhere under /private/). In the end, I had to use iTerm to copy the file to somewhere the dialog could find.

Re: From M1 MacBook to Arch Linux: A month-long experiment that became permanenent

#154
post #90

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You simply can't compare anything to MacBooks. I had a Dell that I paid about $2,000 for, and it was really good (or so I thought). Then at work, I got a MacBook Pro, and that's when I saw the difference. Its not only the Pros, no "high-end" laptop running Windows or Linux with just 8GB of RAM can perform better than a MacBook Air with 8GB. I don't know how Apple has optimized memory usage, but my personal feeling is…

> You simply can't compare anything to MacBooks. I had a Dell that I paid about $2,000 for, and it was really good (or so I thought). Then at work, I got a MacBook Pro, and that's when I saw the difference. > > Its not only the Pros, no "high-end" laptop running Windows or Linux with just 8GB of RAM can perform better than a MacBook Air with 8GB. I don't know how Apple has optimized memory usage, but my personal feel…

Come on, let’s be real for a moment.

two things could be possibly true, people are sheep and people who interact with the platform can enjoy it so much that they become fans. This means that any person who actually enjoys using the technology is immediately dismissible because now they are fans. Right?

It’s so stupid because I’m a die hard linux user but I can definitely appreciate my Apple devices.

I’ve had this discussion so many times in real life, what is the value of a ThinkPad T-series over a ThinkPad E-series; or a HP Elitebook over an Ideabook? The specification looks the same, on paper. Why should I convince my employer to fork out an extra €500?

The truth is, the things that really matter to people don’t fit very well on a spec sheet. Build quality, palm rejection, colour accuracy, enjoyable sound, even the feel of the chassis. Apple seems to put a lot of care and attention into these things, so yes, they’ve optimised the operating system to be more pleasurable to use… and so it is, even in low memory conditions- they prioritise things the user might care about. (The currently active program, being responsive etc).

I’ll give another example, The Commodore64. It is so comically weak compared to even the micro processor inside my keyboard… so if compared to a full-blown desktop computer of the modern day (which is thousands of times more powerful still…) I should feel like the modern computer is better. Yet when I type on a Commodore 64 it is so immediate… there is no lag in typing, the words appear on the screen as quickly as they are pressed, it feels mechanical. It feels immediate. it feels direct.

Why? Clearly the Commodore 64 has much fewer resources, but it feels so much nicer to write text on a Commodore 64. Not because of the keyboard (I have a better one), not because of the processor (because it’s a weaker one). But because the latency of typing is so low that it is barely perceptible and that goes directly against the specification.

One cannot infer user experience from spec sheets.

And people interacting with the Apple ecosystem who become fans might have a point. No matter how much you don’t want to hear it.

Re: From M1 MacBook to Arch Linux: A month-long experiment that became permanenent

#155
post #127

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What Lenovo model + screen option do you have that is better than the M1 Pro 16 inch screen? I've yet to see anything better.

It has an OLED screen so image quality isn’t even comparable. It is worse in terms of glare but not unusable and I don’t use it outside much

Which $600 model has an OLED screen?

Re: From M1 MacBook to Arch Linux: A month-long experiment that became permanenent

#156

Power management in all aspects is one big thing that I wish was better in all distros. Hibernate/fans/shorter battery life are real usability things. I only use windows when I am at risk of being fired for not using it and macos is 'acceptable' but there are soooo many little things that make me cringe about it (.DS_Store littering every drive I touch is close to the top) but if I knew I could get mac hardware, incl…

Unfortunately, at the behest of Microsoft, manufacturers just came out with s2idle suspend and removed s3 suspend.

And it seems the only Microsoft has working support… so sleep issues continue to plague linux… again… after we just solved them.

It makes me so furious.

more info: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=33608991

Re: From M1 MacBook to Arch Linux: A month-long experiment that became permanenent

#157

> But the quality of MacBooks is just another level. I had 3 or 4 so far since 2010, and each of them held at least 5 years. Crazy good. When I read things like this it really sounds like there is some reality distortion field in the mac world. How is that anywhere special? I'm running a thinkpad X1 as my 2 main laptops (it was my only work machine until 2 years ago) and I never felt the need to replace it. It gave m…

Same here, my personal computers are from around 2009, the latest one from 2018, all PC laptops.

At work, my Thinkpad from 2021 is still holding on, and has higher specs than entry level MacBooks from 2025.

Re: From M1 MacBook to Arch Linux: A month-long experiment that became permanenent

#158

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It has an OLED screen so image quality isn’t even comparable. It is worse in terms of glare but not unusable and I don’t use it outside much

Which $600 model has an OLED screen?

https://www.microcenter.com/product/678489/lenovo-ideapad-sl...

This one is very similar. I bought mine from Thailand

Re: From M1 MacBook to Arch Linux: A month-long experiment that became permanenent

#159
post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’d say it’s barely 3 things : - The trackpad (but other manufacturers now have tolerable alternatives and anyway you can work without it) - The screen : at an equivalent price point (and even more), nothing comes close to Apple screens. The cheapest MacBook have a better screen than most high end PCs. - The audio : Apple truly did some sorcery to get such an awesome sound from machines that are flat as sheet. It’s s…

This. My 2013 MacBook Pro lasted just shy of 10 years no issues. My m3 max mbpro I only wish was the larger screen one and not the 13 inch one … oh well. But I suspect it will last me — and be passed down as well — 8-10 years as well. The trackpads are second to none. So are the speakers. The screen are pretty good. I wish mine got even brighter but the m4s do. The keyboard is finally awesome. The OS just works. In f…

It's possible to increase the brightness in software on M1, by faking HDR (desktop capture -> scale brightness to HDR -> display).

One example: https://www.brightintosh.de/ but there's many others.

Re: From M1 MacBook to Arch Linux: A month-long experiment that became permanenent

#160
post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’d say it’s barely 3 things : - The trackpad (but other manufacturers now have tolerable alternatives and anyway you can work without it) - The screen : at an equivalent price point (and even more), nothing comes close to Apple screens. The cheapest MacBook have a better screen than most high end PCs. - The audio : Apple truly did some sorcery to get such an awesome sound from machines that are flat as sheet. It’s s…

Also durability. I’m shocked that something that looks so good can withstand by downright abuse. I hold my MacBook Pro with one hand and fling it around and I’ve lost track of the number of times it has fallen down. But except for some chips at random places, it works perfectly fine

I'm not really sure that's remarkable, maybe compared to the netbook level machines. Now that HDs are gone the only cause of failure I see from my coworkers is extended vacations and remote work in tropical climates.
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