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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

#391
post #374

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Excellent, I will try it straight away. I'll pay out 75% if it works (as it fixes my immediate problem), and the remaining 25% if it gets merged. I'll email you after my test. I think one possible complaint you might get in the review is that when refreshing is fully disabled in the menu, people won't see new networks come up (e.g. when they had just enabled Wifi, or unsuspended). Maybe a good solution would be to to…

It only stops refreshing if you are hovering the actual SSID list items which in my opinion is the cleanest way to do it, if you want new data you can reclick/rehover the "available networks". The Other option is putting the refresh on a global timer, but that would add magic which isn't clear to the user. Thanks, I will be awaiting your test result!

I agree that logic is sound, but it is also not discoverable to the user:

They might open the list (with the cursor resting on one of the items, or use the keyboard to navigate out of comfort or for accessibility reasons), then notice "oh wait, I haven't actually enabled my phone's Wifi hotspot yet", enable that, and wait forever for it to appear.

That's why I'm thinking something should visually (and non-visually) change so the user can notice.

Maybe even cleaner would be to add a tooltip to the currently-hovered entry? That might work for both mouse and non-mouse use cases, and might even work for screenreaders.

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

#392

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Windows has evolved into the world's highest security risk. MacOS feels like Eye Candy due to its increasingly inaccessible price for people with low resources. So, price and security are the reasons why I switched to Linux.

>price and security are the reasons why I switched to Linux What measures do you take to insulate yourself from desktop Linux's really bad security?

Ha, I have nothing on my machine that anyone would want. Yes, my life is that boring. So no, I keep nothing of importance in the drives, just old memories.

Out of the box, I've experienced less spyware-related issues with Linux. I have enabled UFW, installed ClamAV, closed or blocked communication with some ports. But for the most part, I've not had the same problems that had caused system and browser infections. If anything, the badly designed hardware of the machines and systems that I've built tend to cause the problems, for the most part, not to mention my own stupidity. If I do begin to experience, spy or adware-related issues, I suppose I could look into something like this: https://github.com/pi-hole/pi-hole

Though if things got to the point where I'd need more protection, I'd think about the following:

-Keep system and software updated. -Enable firewall (e.g., UFW). -Use strong passwords and MFA. -Install from trusted sources only. -Encrypt disks (e.g., LUKS). -Use SELinux or AppArmor. -Sandbox apps with Flatpak/Wayland. -Install antivirus like ClamAV. -Disable unnecessary services. -Monitor logs and use tools like OpenSnitch. -Switch to CubesOS (qubes-os.org) but I'm not that paranoid, yet :)

I'm just not too tech savvy, but honestly if anyone had enough knowledge, they'd probably could get into my system. That being said, though I consider Linux to be more secure than Windows, no system is 100% secure, in my view.

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

#393

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree. Yet another "Linux is great! The only issues I had were A, B, C, D, E...". I also use every OS and Windows 11 is still the most hassle free and reliable (at least if you install the IoT version using Rufus). I still have to use X because Wayland has a couple of remaining issues. Also most distros inexplicably use Gnome despite KDE being significantly better. Why?

"Windows is great… you only need to… install the IoT version using Rufus" Oh and tweak 24 settings with these powershell scripts, and better run them after every update to ensure they weren't changed back on purpose. Otherwise, totally hassle free.

Nope. I tweaked one setting via the GUI (to get the taskbar back to the left where it rightfully belongs). Literally everything else I've left as-is. The IoT edition doesn't come with any bloatware and Rufus does a couple of other tweaks automatically.

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

#394

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.

I was doing that on my Thinkpad X220 a decade ago.

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

#395

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>unify the look and feel of mobile and desktop Lol, that's what Microsoft tried 10+ years ago and everybody gave them shit for it, especially Apple fans. Now Apple is "inventing" this again.

Honestly, forced to use a macbook for work and I get incredibly strong "windows 8" vibes from macos. Apple still has pretty incredible hardware, although it's definitely priced with that in mind - but the software has been a constant slog. Change for change's sake, needless shifting in settings/config menus. Weird "we tried to make this similar to mobile" themes in some places but not others. Overly complex os naviga…

In what way does MacOS feels like garbage ? I use it everyday on a +5y MacBook and it’s an absolute blast. Powered on for weeks without reboot, 3x4K 32inch screens, hundred of chrome pages and apps opened and it’s all smooth. Ofc I don’t even hear a fan but the software is amazing for me. It all works, all the time.

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

#396

>I picked CachyOS rather than a better-known distro like Ubuntu because it’s optimized for modern hardware, >First challenge: My mouse buttons don’t work. I can move the cursor, but can’t click on anything. Maybe should've picked Ubuntu? I suspect this is the Linus (tech tips, not Torvalds) strategy of picking up an obscure distro for content purposes. Can't really have an article if everything just works, right

Ubuntu's UI isn't particulates intuitive for people coming from Windows anymore (it hasn't been for the past 13 years tbf). Mint is the best default to advise to someone switching to Linux (it's mostly Ubuntu under the hood, but without the snap nonsense and with a less imaginative UI).

Agreed. As a long time windows user, I never liked ubuntu much (and always had issues with my hardware too). Mint has been amazing for me.

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

#397

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Windows has evolved into the world's highest security risk. MacOS feels like Eye Candy due to its increasingly inaccessible price for people with low resources. So, price and security are the reasons why I switched to Linux.

Getting a macbook is cheaper than it has ever been. You can get a new m4 macbook air for around 750 on amazon. The prices of apple laptops have been dropping every year despite inflation in the rest of the economy....

You can get a dell laptop for like $200.

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

#398

It's a catch 22. The way to make Linux easy to use is basically just to pre-install it and ensure the hardware is compatible. System 76 does this, and charges 3x as much as other OEMs. At this point if I'm a consumer ohh Linux is 3x the price. If you install Linux on a refurbished Thinkpad, most of the time you can get something very nice for 500$ or less. I often dream, if I had money, of buying and refurbishing hun…

If I buy a laptop from Lenovo today, buying it without an OS or with Linux is cheaper than Windows.

Depends on the model.

The vast vast majority of Thinkpads on the US Lenovo website don't even offer Linux.

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

#399

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Windows has evolved into the world's highest security risk. MacOS feels like Eye Candy due to its increasingly inaccessible price for people with low resources. So, price and security are the reasons why I switched to Linux.

>price and security are the reasons why I switched to Linux What measures do you take to insulate yourself from desktop Linux's really bad security?

Hah, good one
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