this post was submitted on 31 Dec 2023
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https://www.linuxmint.com/
Time to use something better boys
I tried. I finally wanted to switch away from Windows and installed mint. Spent about 3 hours trying to get my headphone jacks to work with some mildly obscure tools and commands but no dice. Then I managed to destroy one of my partitions by trying to Mount it but it gave me an obscure error. Searched the forums and found NTFS fix, well turns out I accidentally had turned the partition dynamic when moving it to a larger drive. NTFS fix didn't like that and promptly destroyed the file table. I lost a buch of data. So back to the cruddy Windows then...I'm not tech savvy enough, which is sad.
If you've never, ever used Linux before and are not confident about its tools, it's almost always better to use a fresh machine. NTFS and Linux really don't mix well, for example.
Haha, yeah, as I've learned. I'll try again when I build a new machine. I really like the overall look and feel of Mint.
It's been a few years since I used Mint, but I enjoyed it. Most of the Debian-based distros are very similar, actually. All are decent for beginners. If not Mint, Pop is another good option.
Also Zorin
I installed Zorin on my wife's (=no prior Linux experience) laptop something like 2 years ago. Considering the fact that she still uses it almost daily, I'd say you're right.
Personally, I dislike some of the custom stuff it has over the more standard desktop environments, but I do think it's great for usability in that it feels Windows-adjacent.
Just boot it off a thumb drive and take it for a test drive.
Use Ventoy if you want to test multiple distros.
I did that prior and decided I like it, so I did a proper install. I just didn't try the sound jacks and didn't notice one of my drives not mounting.
Well, valve plans on bringing steam deck os to desktop eventually.
Backups before doing anything else with partitions (or OS in general)
Yes, all the important stuff was backed up naturally. Still lost some, I'd say "nostalgic old files" It just happens when you have large drives you can't just back it up without paying lots.
mint will be stuck on xorg for the foreseeable future.
if you want something with similar workflow to windows, KDE distros are pretty good nowadays.
Mint will use xorg as the default session until 2026, where it is projected that wayland will solve most if not all of its showstoppers.
Mint's cinnamon DE is built off of Mutter, GNOME's compositor, so all it means is that Mint will be doing the same thing that it has always done, been what GNOME could have been if it hadn't reinvented itself.
Mint is a workflow extremely similar to what most users have experienced on Windows and specifically caters to Windows users or users coming from proprietary operating systems.
2026 is a hell of a wait though considering new drivers and software will start targeting wayland in that time.
It is, but Mint has always prided itself on adopting new technology late once all the dust has settled. Besides, it's just for Wayland being the default (and most likely deprecating the X11 session), a usable wayland session for cinnamon will most likely be available come 2025.
There's always POP!_OS going in hot with their COSMIC compositor, so people who want to adopt wayland can do so when POP!_OS does and still have that "Ubuntu(TM) experience minus Canonical" distro.
If you want to see a hell of a wait, you should check out RHEL's deprecation timeline.
Why does it matter? What user really cares if it's Wayland or x11? Software is about solving problems for the user. Mint is far superior to Windows.
Sent from KDE with x11...
because its unmantained and will not get new features anymore, i dont expect new software and hardware to support it going forward.
sent from gnome and x11!
It doesn't need new features and I'm pretty sure any bugs, vulnerabilities will still get ironed out. We both know Wayland will kill x11. The point is, considering we are both using x11, why should a new person from Windows need it now?
In a few years, my position would be different, but for now, mileage varies and many face use cases it doesn't yet cover. X11 is mature and mostly just works.
Depends on their hardware. I use 4 monitors at:
It works better on Wayland. Other users could be in a similar situation.
iirc, you can't use FreeSync with multi monitors on Xorg as well
because its dying soon, no need to go all in on it now.
neither of us will be using it. its already dead if your hardware doesnt include nvidia.
No one is going all in, and once distros retire it, it's dead. Jumping before distros because you have a rush of blood to the head isn't particularly helpful.
My hardware has no Nvidia, but getting screen recording on Wayland was a royal pain in the backside. Functionally, x11 just works better for me right now. When they iron this stuff out and make it effortless, great, but until then, the software still needs maturing.
my point is that this kind of issue will be ironed out anyway and its looking like its gonna be sooner rather than later.
i dont mind if you are already invested in using xorg and its working out for you (hey, i do too). i just dont see much reason to go into linux for the first time as a noob with it in mind at all.
They don't need to think about display servers. Just update and it will resolve itself. You're overcomplicating things and scaring people away from Linux.
thats what i said.
except recommending unmantained software is bound to cause issues for a layman user, regardless of what it is.
Do you have evidence it is unmaintained?
Last commit years ago?
it needs bits and bobs to keep working as is. last commit is an indicator but not a great one by itself.
it aint getting new support, and security patches are taking their sweet damn time. compare that with projects that support wayland. also take a look at what a lot of xorg devs have been working on.
my point this whole time is that a distro stuck on it will start to reflect that.
i feel like this isnt going anywhere so have a nice day.
To me mint was always the closest to what I wanted as a Windows user. I still user windows most of the time now but whenever I use Linux, it's mint.
Zorin is another good one
been meaning to try this one
how stable is it?
I find it stable but admit I use macOS and Windows as daily drivers still
My last attempt to get games working on Linux did not go well, but I am hopeful the kinks will be sorted out by the time Win10 starts getting dropped.
I game exclusively on Linux these days. I haven’t had an issue that I couldn’t solve so far aside from shitty anti cheat software that doesn’t play nice.
I play single player almost exclusively, so that isn’t much of a problem for me.
I think my hardware might have had something to do with it, was trying on a somewhat older laptop. Most games would not launch even with Proton and even most Linux native games did not work even after a fair bit of troubleshooting. I get that some people might not have problems but I believe problems still remain widespread.
Oh yeah, definitely.
Still, I think you should try with better hardware when you can.
Any differences will not be significant.
Get a Steam deck. Holy hell I love mine.
I'd rather not have to upgrade hardware that can run the games I want to play perfectly fine, hoping for improved support (or at the very least a straightforward way to tell specifically what the problem is). Though once Win10 ends it's not like there's going to be an alternative to Linux anyway since Win11 has strict requirements for new stuff.
What are the specs of your machine?
It is a ThinkPad E15 (the one I was trying at least)
I thought you said better
https://archlinux.org
no, they said better
https://hannahmontana.sourceforge.net
Perfection.
Well both are good choices, but for new linux users coming from windows - Mint would be way easier to get started with.
Why mint over Debian, Alma, Rocky… or heck, Ubuntu?
Just give em Fedora. Seems to get people good mileage from newb to netadmin
Would you wish SELinux on a beginner tho
Jesting apart, it’s admittedly a solid option. Sticking to a mainstream distro is typically what I recommend, regardless of which one. Most of the debates surrounding distros are pretty silly to begin with, IMHO, considering most differences boil down to which package manager and init system they use, and their set of default software and configurations.
Personally I would pick Mint over Alma/Rocky as I am less familiar with RPM based distros than DEB based distros, I would recommend Mint over Debian as it is easier to get working with gaming, Ubuntu is great, but I won't recommend snaps to a new user.
Linux is linux, no matter the distro! It's not by arguing which distro is better that the year of the linux desktop will happen!!!
Dunno. I’m not convinced the “year of Linux desktop” will ever happen. Granted, I now mostly use it for work, so I’m not up to date on the latest, but…..
Neither of Microsoft Office competitors will be replacement, even WPS.