Elementary is quite nice on HiDPI until you use apps which need other graphics toolkits...
The Linux world should really get together and bang out a solution for the hiDPI problem that is consistent across X servers and window managers.
Switching from macOS: The Basics
31–40 of 610 posts
Re: Switching from macOS: The Basics
#32Unfortunately, no Photoshop, no go
You can use programs like Wine to run Windows applications. That makes switching a bit less painful, at least.
Re: Switching from macOS: The Basics
#33So I went to their main page to download an ISO to give it a try in a VM.
They hid the download button really well: You have to type in "0" into the "how much you'd like to pay" field for the "Purchase" button to change to "Download".
I mean I understand that open source projects need funding. But if you want people to try your niche OS at least make it obvious how to download it. Ask for money later after people had to chance to try it out.
I only typed in 0 because I know that "trick" from other websites. If I hadn't known I would have just left the website and would possibly never return.
Re: Switching from macOS: The Basics
#34Yes, the Elementary team has been doing great work for years. Sad that it's all parallel to the efforts of the larger GNOME Desktop project. I don't know how much code gets shared between the two, but I cringe to think that Elementary is dragging along a suitcase full of patches! Some of their apps are forks, while others are written from scratch to fit their design (UI/UX/simplicity) goals. I think their decision to…
> would any security-conscious person NOT recommend Chrome? Would any security-conscious person DO recommend a browser made by an advertising company for datamining purposes? Firefox is a much better choice for the privacy/security-aware individual.
But privacy != security. Chrome implements the most security mitigations compared to all other browsers.
Re: Switching from macOS: The Basics
#35I'm long term Linux user and I played with Elementary sometime ago. While just after installation everything is great and beautiful, it changed shortly when I need to install apps outside the ecosystem. Experience gives you feeling I could compare to using old-java application on Windows 10.
Re: Switching from macOS: The Basics
#36I appreciate them capitalizing on people looking to switch. I think they could have done a better job of describing how to switch instead of talking about what people love. I think it would have been better for them to talk about some main sticking points, like how to get out of the ecosystem (say iTunes or Photos). Either way, nice to see the competition stepping up and capitalizing on the situation.
While I agree, I can also understand why they would want to give people coming from macOS an impression of what they can expect from the switch in terms of apps, etc.
"Exiting the ecosystem" is a guide crying out to be written though.
Re: Switching from macOS: The Basics
#37How does this compare to Ubuntu Desktop? Why would I use one over the other? I ask as somebody who used to use Ubuntu a few years ago, and wants to switch back to Linux in the next few months.
It's a distribution based on Ubuntu 16.04 LTS, but with customized default applications and desktop. It's more Mac-like, simpler, but because of that also has significantly less customization features.
Re: Switching from macOS: The Basics
#38The software is there, but what about the hardware to go with it? The only laptops comparable to Macbook Pro hardware quality and battery life are the Dell XPS series and the Thinkpad X1. I feel there is a serious shortage of good laptops with linux pre-installed that the non-technical user can pickup and start using.
How about the Surface?
Re: Switching from macOS: The Basics
#39I'm really hoping this is just a phase. Hoping that Apple will reduce prices of new laptops and we'll be back to normal.
Right now everybody is using Macs. Walk into the Bay Area coffee shop, you see Macs everywhere. I love that.
I build desktop software for Macs (focuslist.co). My apps are prettier than any others. They are easier and faster to use. This is the reason why people pay me $5 while they can get the job done with paper and pen.
This is thanks to Mac as a platform. Mac developers don't want to just get the job done. They want to get the job done while winning an Apple Design Award. That's why Mac apps are the best.
Take Mac away and high quality desktop apps will go away. We'll have to endure multi-platform Electron stuff. Ugh.
Re: Switching from macOS: The Basics
#40Check Solus instead https://solus-project.com/
I've been using Solus on my laptop for almost a year now and I must say, for everyday use, it is quite good. I'm not sure about using it as a dev machine. But if you just want to browser the web, listen to music, and occasionally write a document or something, it's very stable. I don't think I've ever seen it crash. Also, it's very easy to install and is definitely one of the best looking linux distros around. That and elementary.