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From OS X to Ubuntu

nicolas.perriault.net

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Re: From OS X to Ubuntu

#191

Post by hobarrera »

rl3 wrote: post #175
developer2 wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> Linux laptops: buy pre-installed. The fact that hardware - though much improved in the past 15 years - is still a crapshoot on Linux, particularly when it comes to laptop hardware, is so frustrating. Windows will work on practically any combination of hardware. OS X will work on any hardware it is permitted to operate on. Linux is the only consortium of operating systems that still suffer from the inability to "ju…

> We need another closed-source unix/linux-based operating system that throws away X.org and its attempted modern replacements, that can directly compete with OS X. In context of laptops, Microsoft is in a position to kick serious ass on this front should they wish to. Their Surface hardware line is vastly superior to Apple at the moment. Windows Subsystem For Linux (WSL) looks promising but is still in its infancy.…

I don't get why people insist that the whole "bash on windows" things makes it a suitable replacement for Linux. It's like when people say "oh, but OS X has a terminal as well".

I don't use Linux just because of the terminal. Package managers (and the ability to deterministically install/uninstall packages!!) are one of the strongest pilars. WMs I like are another (we'll each have a preference, mine bine i3wm). And finally, a [somewhat] sane, understandable filesystem hierarchy.

Windows is still so, so far from all of those, that it's still not even close to being a suitable replacement.

Re: From OS X to Ubuntu

#192

Post by digi_owl »

With these things it boils down to two issues that are often related.

First being drivers, second being software patents.

With regards to drivers there are two variants of the issue.

The first is buggy proprietary drivers.

Please stop insisting on using Nividia hardware under Linux just because they offer a proprietary driver pack. That driver pack is a mess and a half, and most of the complaints i have seen levied against X11 can be explained by said proprietary drivers being in use.

The second is buggy hardware hidden by proprietary Windows drivers.

This is why you see all kinds of power management issues under Linux. All too often the hardware will claim to support being suspended, but never come back to life one done so. Manufacturers knows of this, and will implement workarounds in their official drivers.

As for software patents, they result in FOSS having to wait some 20 years to implement "bleeding obvious" features to avoid getting sued.

Re: From OS X to Ubuntu

#193

Post by hobarrera »

throwaway729 wrote: post #34
sk1pper wrote: post #31

IMO if money isn't an object, OS X is a better call when it comes to laptops. If money is tight, going for a Linux box is almost as good. Linux on desktops - as in, not a laptop - has worked pretty much flawlessly for me for >10 years. Not much else to say there. If desktop or server, this shouldn't be a discussion. As far as laptops go, I've just had better experiences with macbooks. Linux on a laptop is still 100%…

Wireless hasn't been a problem (for me) for at least the past 3 years. The really dramatic improvements happened prior before 2010, and things have only gotten better since then. Bluetooth is still a damned mess. That, and battery life, and GPUs "just working", are the big differentiators IME. Of course YMMV.

> Bluetooth is still a damned mess

You can say that again. If you ever get a mic working, that is.

Through the years, my headset has switched back and forth between "works flawlessly" and "I've no fucking idea why it won't work or how to make it work".

My current status is the latter, and there seems to be no clear understanding on why it fails. Even though my setup is the exact same (except for OS updates, of course).

Meanwhile, nothing else has failed. Ever.

Re: From OS X to Ubuntu

#194

Post by digi_owl »

chubuntu wrote: post #185
developer2 wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> Linux laptops: buy pre-installed. The fact that hardware - though much improved in the past 15 years - is still a crapshoot on Linux, particularly when it comes to laptop hardware, is so frustrating. Windows will work on practically any combination of hardware. OS X will work on any hardware it is permitted to operate on. Linux is the only consortium of operating systems that still suffer from the inability to "ju…

Asterisk show up fine if followed by white space * ... The question is how to show (asterisk)nix? Apparently three asterisks + nix = *nix

I have taken to using _ as an alternative...

Re: From OS X to Ubuntu

#195

Post by lightbulbjim »

contingencies wrote: post #68
noam87 wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah; switched my 50 year old mom to Linux three years ago. People still acting like every distro is Gentoo.

To be fair to Gentoo (which has it's share of problems[0] for sure)... it is still far more organized than older distros (Slackware, etc.) in terms of packaging, automation, currency, cross-compilation, security and community. Also, it supports more platforms and features. For Linux all around, the bar has steadily raised. The complexity of a modern system is staggering, Gentoo is the only platform I know that goes t…

Its rolling release nature can make it feel overwhelming if you don't surf the bleeding edge. I ran a Gentoo desktop back in the day and if I didn't `emerge world` once a week or so I'd find myself sinking into that swamp of maintenance that you refer to.

Re: From OS X to Ubuntu

#196

Post by hobarrera »

willismichael wrote: post #190
renownedmedia wrote: post #172

I've been switching back and forth between OS X and Linux for the past several years. I'm currently at a year and a half into a Linux streak and really enjoying recent advancements. My Dell XPS 13 typically gets 10 hours of battery life. Linux itself is quite stable. Simply install a recent distro and off you go. If you're using a heavy Window Manager you'll get all the convenient configuration applets you need. The…

Oh come on, I've been a Linux enthusiast for over a decade now and it's been years since I've even touched xorg.conf, installed a kernel that didn't come from a standard repo, or had trouble rebooting due to a change I made to the system. Linux has gotten significantly less painful over the years, and it's not just that I'm more familiar with it now. Installing a mainstream distro these days is easier than the last t…

My life has been great these last years, and mostly due to this:

https://xkcd.com/963/

Re: From OS X to Ubuntu

#197

Post by hobarrera »

slitaz wrote: post #100
Abishek_Muthian wrote: post #95

In my humble opinion, OSX : Productivity, Linux : Development, Windows : Games I've been with all of these for all my computing life & still doing the same. OSX/macOS is great for anyone who doesn't want to meddle with their system, especially if you use iDevices. Though developers have historically liked OSX, it could be apt for web development or anything non resource consuming (like java/android). For e.g I symlin…

The game situation is changing fast. Even CivIV was just announced that it is coming to Linux. Perhaps the Vulkan drivers will make it even better to write crossplatform games.

Plus, wine works marvelously nowadays, with lots of games getting platinum or gold ratings, some even on the day they're released.

Re: From OS X to Ubuntu

#198

Post by intopieces »

artursapek wrote: post #103
criddell wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Will you miss the retina display though?

I just bought the highest-end 4th gen X1 Carbon and it has a high-density 2560x1440 matte display. It's as good as or better than the MBP's. And Ubuntu handles handles UI scaling surprisingly well.

> And Ubuntu handles handles UI scaling surprisingly well.

This is why I jumped from Ubuntu on a Dell XPS 13 9343 (Early 2015) to a new MacBook Pro (Late 2016, non-touch). I was tired of being surprised when things worked well.

I gave it a good shot -- five months of tweaking, five months of reinstalls and forum posts and being back on the Linux Train with everything. But it just got so old. Workarounds for workarounds, unpredictability, lack of interoperability with my other devices... I just couldn't do it anymore. Linux rarely delights.

I still keep Elementary OS on a desktop (it too has some oddities, but it's mostly smooth sailing) but on a laptop, when I'm out of my home and really want to just get work done, I haven't found anything as pleasing as OS X.

I enjoyed Linux for learning how to tweak things, but sometimes I want to use the computer, not configured it. And Ubuntu was always needing configuration.

Re: From OS X to Ubuntu

#199

Post by hhandoko »

saghm wrote: post #15
hhandoko wrote: post #10

> If you know f.lux, RedShift is an alternative to it for Linux. Good to know there's an alternative, but to clarify: f.lux is available on Linux as well (the statement makes it as if it weren't, just not open-source).

I think due to the closed-source nature of f.lux, RedShift is in the main repos for more distros than f.lux, making it easier for new Linux users to install.

That's a good point, thanks. I was looking at it as an Ubuntu user :)

Re: From OS X to Ubuntu

#200

Post by jabajabadu »

developer2 wrote: post #104
timtadh wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Linux laptops: buy pre-installed. If you want linux and you want to be sure everything is functional, AND you don't want to devote lots of time to a "project" buy a pre-install. Dell Developer Edition laptops (XPS 13, 15) make great laptops. I hear good things about system 76 and purism as well. Save time. Support having good laptops and good drivers. Buy pre-installed. Paying the "windows tax" and installing a Linux…

>> Linux laptops: buy pre-installed. The fact that hardware - though much improved in the past 15 years - is still a crapshoot on Linux, particularly when it comes to laptop hardware, is so frustrating. Windows will work on practically any combination of hardware. OS X will work on any hardware it is permitted to operate on. Linux is the only consortium of operating systems that still suffer from the inability to "ju…

Great point. I had two laptops with pre-installed Linux. Both were not even cross-update compatible. Video driver of my System76 laptop broke after the first major Ubuntu update. XPS 13 Developer Edition failed to hibernate the very fist time I closed the lid. WTF? Both laptops cost well over $1k.
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