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I replaced Windows with Linux and everything's going great

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Re: I replaced Windows with Linux and everything's going great

#21

Post by yoldshaddup »

raw_anon_1111 wrote: post #14
toddmorey wrote: post #9

Commercial OSes (both Windows and MacOS) now feel so insanely agenda driven, and the agenda no longer feels like anything close to making the user happy and productive. For Mac, it feels like Apple wants to leverage what came out of VisionOS and unify the look and feel of mobile and desktop--two things no one asked for. For Windows, it feels like ads for their partners and ensuring they don't fumble the ai/agent tran…

Come back when I can run Linux on a laptop that has 12+ hours battery life, runs fast, that’s lightweight, quiet and doesn’t cause infertility from the heat when I put it on my lap…. Using an x86 laptop in 2025 is like using a flip phone 6 years after the iPhone came out. Of course if you are a gamer, ignore everything I just wrote.

[dead]

Re: I replaced Windows with Linux and everything's going great

#22

Post by throw-qqqqq »

arcfour wrote: post #13
rsyring wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've been running a Linux desktop for about 13 years. There are still "moments" where you have to work on it and it can be more opaque than Windows/Mac. But you have the control to do what you need to do, which is one huge factor for me in Linux's favor. I moved my immediate and mostly non-tech family to all run Linux including an aging relative who needed a locked-down Firefox install to keep her from falling victim…

I have been using desktop Linux for about the same amount of time and the way I see it now, even on the occasion where I have to troubleshoot something weird (which has maybe been one or two times in the past few years), it doesn't sound any different from the issues people are having with Windows and Mac these days—and at least I can fix it!

> and at least I can fix it!

100% this!

I wrote this in another thread: https://news.ycombinator.com/context?id=46120975

> Openbox does everything I need it to. I don’t want Mac or Windows, they both suck in ways I can’t change. Sure, Linux can be rougher, but at least I’m not helpless here. I can make the changes I need, and the software is generally less broken IME

Re: I replaced Windows with Linux and everything's going great

#23

Post by freedomben »

arcfour wrote: post #13
rsyring wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've been running a Linux desktop for about 13 years. There are still "moments" where you have to work on it and it can be more opaque than Windows/Mac. But you have the control to do what you need to do, which is one huge factor for me in Linux's favor. I moved my immediate and mostly non-tech family to all run Linux including an aging relative who needed a locked-down Firefox install to keep her from falling victim…

I have been using desktop Linux for about the same amount of time and the way I see it now, even on the occasion where I have to troubleshoot something weird (which has maybe been one or two times in the past few years), it doesn't sound any different from the issues people are having with Windows and Mac these days—and at least I can fix it!

Yes exactly. When I had a Mac for work, I had to tinker with that thing just as much if not more so than I do Linux. To windows credit, it was the best of the three when it came to not having to tinker to get what I want, but the lack of ability to configure it in a way that was comfortable and preferable was more limited and difficult, so there were annoyances I had to just live with. The point at which they started injecting ads into my desktop experience was a dark day and the day I said goodbye

Re: I replaced Windows with Linux and everything's going great

#24

Post by Kapura »

I installed a dual boot on my gaming machine last year when the Win10 support ended, and I have also had basically no issues. Something something HDR in certain video games is the biggest complaint I have, which is not all that important and will be higher priority for developers in future as more gamers leave the sinking Windows ship.

Microsoft has really, really fucked up windows 11, and ultimately abandoning it is the only recourse the consumers have.

Re: I replaced Windows with Linux and everything's going great

#25

Post by greenavocado »

If you need Windows these days just install virt-manager and load the version of Windows you need.

It's really fast and lightweight (my laptop stays cold at idle while running the Windows VMs) with all the HV enlightenments for good computational efficiency.

Installing and using the virtio drivers is key for many useful features such as memory ballooning, fast networking with low computational overhead, and virtiofs which is used to mount a virtual drive in the Windows guest in a way that it's not a "network" drive.

Re: I replaced Windows with Linux and everything's going great

#26

Post by greenavocado »

raw_anon_1111 wrote: post #14
toddmorey wrote: post #9

Commercial OSes (both Windows and MacOS) now feel so insanely agenda driven, and the agenda no longer feels like anything close to making the user happy and productive. For Mac, it feels like Apple wants to leverage what came out of VisionOS and unify the look and feel of mobile and desktop--two things no one asked for. For Windows, it feels like ads for their partners and ensuring they don't fumble the ai/agent tran…

Come back when I can run Linux on a laptop that has 12+ hours battery life, runs fast, that’s lightweight, quiet and doesn’t cause infertility from the heat when I put it on my lap…. Using an x86 laptop in 2025 is like using a flip phone 6 years after the iPhone came out. Of course if you are a gamer, ignore everything I just wrote.

Besides the 12+ hour battery life which is only achievable with ARM processors, everything described can be accomplished easily for the typical slightly above average computer user with Kubuntu today.

I installed latest Kubuntu on my old 2015 MacBook Pro and it runs ice cold now when playing YouTube videos with Firefox whereas before it ran hot even with a Mac fan control app

Re: I replaced Windows with Linux and everything's going great

#27

Post by iwanttocomment »

I hadn't run desktop Linux in several years now. (I've run it server-side for decades.)

Out of the increasingly loud outpouring of support for desktop Linux over the past year, I went ahead and installed some distros to get back in on the action. I came to four conclusions:

1) You can play games on desktop Linux now other than Tux Racer. Cool!

2) There's less weird X11-wrangling. Thank god.

3) It's otherwise still pretty much the desktop Linux I've always known and felt mildly annoyed by.

4) The current versions of Windows and macOS have gotten to be so unbelievably annoying for no good reason that a mildly improved desktop Linux now actually seems far less annoying than the mainstream options do.

Good job, Microsoft and Apple, for giving us the year of retreating in disgust to the Linux desktop.

Re: I replaced Windows with Linux and everything's going great

#28

Post by raw_anon_1111 »

mecsred wrote: post #19
raw_anon_1111 wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Come back when I can run Linux on a laptop that has 12+ hours battery life, runs fast, that’s lightweight, quiet and doesn’t cause infertility from the heat when I put it on my lap…. Using an x86 laptop in 2025 is like using a flip phone 6 years after the iPhone came out. Of course if you are a gamer, ignore everything I just wrote.

You mean the framework Ive been running for the past 4 years or so?

You mean the same ones that consistently get bad reviews for being hot, with poor battery life, heavy and sub par screens?

https://community.frame.work/t/fw-16-review-the-good-the-bad...

Re: I replaced Windows with Linux and everything's going great

#29

Post by raw_anon_1111 »

greenavocado wrote: post #26
raw_anon_1111 wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Come back when I can run Linux on a laptop that has 12+ hours battery life, runs fast, that’s lightweight, quiet and doesn’t cause infertility from the heat when I put it on my lap…. Using an x86 laptop in 2025 is like using a flip phone 6 years after the iPhone came out. Of course if you are a gamer, ignore everything I just wrote.

Besides the 12+ hour battery life which is only achievable with ARM processors, everything described can be accomplished easily for the typical slightly above average computer user with Kubuntu today. I installed latest Kubuntu on my old 2015 MacBook Pro and it runs ice cold now when playing YouTube videos with Firefox whereas before it ran hot even with a Mac fan control app

So everything but good battery life is achievable on a portable device?

“Besides that, how was the play Mrs. Lincoln?”

This isn’t 2015… ARM Macs have been out for six years

Re: I replaced Windows with Linux and everything's going great

#30

Post by Majestic121 »

p4coder wrote: post #15

How do you do taxes in Linux? Install a windows VM? I don't want to use the web version. With Google docs being good enough, I don't really need windows for anything else. Last time I checked, the tax software didn't run under wine.

Where do you need windows to do your taxes? Is this a US thing?
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