One Year with ThinkPad and Linux (From MacBook Pro) • Hacker News Board

Re: One Year with ThinkPad and Linux (From MacBook Pro)

#261

Post by rbanffy » Fri, Aug 28, 2020, 5:21 PM UTC

A sweet spot I found is a generic laptop (a good Dell or Thinkpad, with the least imaginative hardware possible so Linux runs happy) and a Mac desktop (can be an iMac or a Mini) for the Mac-ish stuff.

You need to pay attention to what can and can't be upgraded, however. The newest Mini can't have the storage upgraded (you should probably buy it maxed out), but can upgrade the memory to 64GB, so it's cheaper to get the 8GB and then upgrade it yourself. The 21 inch iMac can't be upgraded, so YMMV depending on what you get.

Re: One Year with ThinkPad and Linux (From MacBook Pro)

#262

Post by bryanrasmussen » Fri, Aug 28, 2020, 5:23 PM UTC

cytzol wrote: post #160

bryanrasmussen wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

one of the most infuriating phrases in tech is the mac "just works" one

I feel like that phrase was extremely accurate... before the buggy OSes, awful keyboards, and hordes of security prompts. If you're starting to use Apple devices in 2020 I can see why you'd think that phrase is infuriating, but believe me when I say things used to be so much better!

I started in 2013. I have not noticed a significantly greater number of things just working on it then I have on Windows or Ubuntu over that time period. Maybe it just works for non-programmers.

Re: One Year with ThinkPad and Linux (From MacBook Pro)

#263

Post by sneak » Fri, Aug 28, 2020, 5:24 PM UTC

cleaver wrote: post #247

alexktz wrote: post #61

I recently purchased a 16” MBP despite significant personal concerns over the future of MacOS, being a strong open source advocate and Linux paying my mortgage. I did this ultimately for a few reasons. MacOS lets me run Adobe (Photoshop, Lightroom, etc), Fusion360, has a good terminal (iTerm and zsh unix like shell) and Logic. Mac hardware is still some of the best in the business, no other vendors seem to be able to…

I've certainly been keeping my eyes open for a MacBook Pro alternative. On my last time looking, I thought I'd try to find something with: - retina-like resolution 15" screen - 32GB RAM - slim and light without a flimsy plastic case - good battery life - good trackpad - keyboard home row centred I could not find anything. I couldn't even find something with the first three items. I'm starting to think it might make s…

For some reason (bad software support? tradition?) the PC laptop market seems to simply not care that much about extremely high resolution displays. There are some, but none in systems with the overall build quality of a MBP.

Re: One Year with ThinkPad and Linux (From MacBook Pro)

#264

Post by sneak » Fri, Aug 28, 2020, 5:29 PM UTC

fsflover wrote: post #77

x87678r wrote: post #71

I was looking at larger laptops to run Linux but they aren't cheap so MBP doesn't look such bad value. I want 15in screen with higher than 1080 resolution, 16GB memory, good battery life and there really isn't much less than $1500 from the main brands that will run Linux well. Any suggestions? Otherwise the MBP16 looks not such bad value as I know it'll be reliable.

https://shop.puri.sm/shop/librem-15/

I was going to get one of these but the lack of USB-C charging turned me off from it. It’s 2020.

Re: One Year with ThinkPad and Linux (From MacBook Pro)

#265

Post by lostdog » Fri, Aug 28, 2020, 5:32 PM UTC

JJMalina wrote: post #191

I didn't know about Darktable or Kdenlive, so I'll have to check those out. Peek is awesome for GIF recording. I've been using a ThinkPad X1 Carbon running Xubuntu since 2016. Before that I was using a MacBook Pro. The things I like about this machine/Linux are - It's light - The keyboard is great/better - The battery is really good coupled with the low resource usage of Xubuntu (except when I have Zoom, Docker, and…

I'm on my 3rd X1 (4th if you count my work laptop), and I would be completely happy, except that it's USB-C ports are somehow broken. Both machines have flakey connections to both USB-C docks I've tried, sometimes dropping keystrokes or network packets. It's obnoxious to use, and there's no clear way to debug or diagnose the issue, and sadly I think my next purchase cannot be a Lenovo.

Re: One Year with ThinkPad and Linux (From MacBook Pro)

#266

Post by p_l » Fri, Aug 28, 2020, 5:32 PM UTC

matt-attack wrote: post #149

zdragnar wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am glad that you like your macbook, but your experience has been very different from mine. It has the worst WIFI radio in a laptop that i have used; one area of my house is basically off-limits to it despite every other Wi-Fi enabled device i own working there (phones and several laptop brands). The fancy metal case isnt properly grounded- I get occasionally a slight tingling /shock from it when I have it plugged i…

If you use the charger extension that had the third prong, I’ve found that tingling to go away.

Now, if only grounded cable outside UK plugs was available more than speaking magical white crows...

Re: One Year with ThinkPad and Linux (From MacBook Pro)

#267

Post by comex » Fri, Aug 28, 2020, 5:32 PM UTC

cma wrote: post #255

alexktz wrote: post #61

I recently purchased a 16” MBP despite significant personal concerns over the future of MacOS, being a strong open source advocate and Linux paying my mortgage. I did this ultimately for a few reasons. MacOS lets me run Adobe (Photoshop, Lightroom, etc), Fusion360, has a good terminal (iTerm and zsh unix like shell) and Logic. Mac hardware is still some of the best in the business, no other vendors seem to be able to…

My experience: External displays of variable DPI unusable without a paid app like switchresx. Suspend always drains the battery if using any kind of usb or microscope drive. Endless hacks to finally get it to fully hibernate when closing the lid. Updates break it over time and a new way has to be figured out. x86 support suddenly thrown away in new updates, decimating game libraries. Out of date OpenGL and heavy push…

> App notarization that was promised to just be used for security now being used for iOS related business punishments, bleeding into the desktop.

Source?

Re: One Year with ThinkPad and Linux (From MacBook Pro)

#268

Post by se32point1 » Fri, Aug 28, 2020, 5:32 PM UTC

robertoandred wrote: post #253

se32point1 wrote: post #189

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Counterpoints for Linux: - Compose key blows your "ABC - Extended layout out of the water." It's more powerful than anything else. - ... I never really use my XPS 13 without a charger, because I don't really travel around much, but it also has USB-C like all the "cool stuff." I would imagine with some tweaking I can get better battery life but I know it does last a while on standby. - You won't get mainstream-mainstr…

And how do you scroll in any axis, swipe, zoom, 3D touch, etc with a mouse? There are plenty of things you can't do.

... In all fairness, I use a trackball, where I can scroll in any axis. Zooming, of course, can be done with a keyboard. I'm not even sure what 3D touch is.

Re: One Year with ThinkPad and Linux (From MacBook Pro)

#269

Post by se32point1 » Fri, Aug 28, 2020, 5:33 PM UTC

Lio wrote: post #259

se32point1 wrote: post #189

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Counterpoints for Linux: - Compose key blows your "ABC - Extended layout out of the water." It's more powerful than anything else. - ... I never really use my XPS 13 without a charger, because I don't really travel around much, but it also has USB-C like all the "cool stuff." I would imagine with some tweaking I can get better battery life but I know it does last a while on standby. - You won't get mainstream-mainstr…

I have a Dell XPS13 Developer Edition. I like it but the trackpad is the weak point for me. An external mouse is not the solution to that. I haven't wanted to use a mouse since 2006. I much prefer the trackpad on my 2014 MBP to any mouse. For me it's worth it for the gestures alone. Each to their own I guess. Edit: The good news is that the trackpad support is improving constantly especially with Wayland.

Agreed on the Wayland point. Wayland isn't particularly usable yet, but we can keep hoping that it gets better. For now, there are some GNOME extensions or applications like fusuma.

Re: One Year with ThinkPad and Linux (From MacBook Pro)

#270

Post by biztos » Fri, Aug 28, 2020, 5:34 PM UTC

alexktz wrote: post #61

I recently purchased a 16” MBP despite significant personal concerns over the future of MacOS, being a strong open source advocate and Linux paying my mortgage. I did this ultimately for a few reasons. MacOS lets me run Adobe (Photoshop, Lightroom, etc), Fusion360, has a good terminal (iTerm and zsh unix like shell) and Logic. Mac hardware is still some of the best in the business, no other vendors seem to be able to…

I'm glad it worked out for you. I so much wanted to love the 16" MBP but in clamshell mode I can hear the fan at least 80% of the time, and if I do anything at all involving the Xcode simulator the fan kicks up high enough I can't hear myself think. When open the fan's not so bad but it would fry my legs like an egg even through jeans.

I look forward to going back to my old 13" which has an SD slot and MagSafe and all the rest, even though it'll feel crazy slow. The 16" is, for sure, a beast when it comes to performance, but I have found the downsides to be significant.