I've used linux distros for a variety of tasks in the past but am finally committed to moving my primary machine to it. This is mostly used for games, writing, development, and web browsing. I've selected Manjaro as my distro.

Anyone have any tips or suggestions? Software to install. Things to keep in mind. Cool things to do you couldn't on windows?!

:tux:

  • Shinji_Ikari [he/him]
    ·
    3 years ago

    Keep your dual boot for niche things but revel in never needing it.

    Tips for Manjaro, familiarize yourself with Arch Wiki, its an amazing resource for more things than just arch, but particularly useful since manjaro has the arch base.

    Biggest tip? Just learning to phrase a google query right to find your answer quick.

    edit: Ricing is fun and teaches you things but rest assured it will eventually get boring. I like to focus more on a simple setup that gets out of my way. But going overboard on customization is a lot of fun, then your next install you know what you want/use and what you don't

      • Shinji_Ikari [he/him]
        ·
        3 years ago

        I'm a little evil and have been hanging out in windows a lot the last 6 months or so, but it was originally for an embedded project I was working on, then a DAW I was using, then I got lazy and my ubuntu install is on a spinning disk and my arch install on an ssd has barely anything installed not for programming so I just kept installing games in windows.

        Since I'm fucking with computers all day anyway, I rarely want to do actual computing at home and mostly just use my desktop for games so it really didn't matter to me.

        But I fell off the wagon and started playing war thunder again and my good flight stick config is on ubuntu so i'm back baby.

          • Shinji_Ikari [he/him]
            ·
            3 years ago

            Yeah, if i'm just browsing I've got my thinkpad with arch and i3 installed so most of the time I'm in a native linux world.

              • neo [he/him]
                ·
                3 years ago

                I have the X201 with an i7, but I don't use it. It always ran pretty warm with the fan humming, but now it'll shut itself off from overheating under moderate-heavy workloads. I tried to disassemble it to reapply thermal paste but this particular model is kind of a mess to get into, and I ended up breaking some of the plastic on the chassis instead during my attempt to take out the keyboard.

                I think the x230 with the keyboard mod is the sweet spot for this "old" style thinkpad, but I never owned one :(

              • Shinji_Ikari [he/him]
                ·
                3 years ago

                I keep around an R50 from 2004 that still says IBM on it for fun. Its got a big 4:3 display and the keyboard light and lasts a couple hours on battery life, but it has a 32 bit processor so it dual boots debian and windows XP. Its nice to play with occasionally or bring to a LAN party for broodwar but I never got into the real thinkpad hobby.

                I've got a 4th gen X1 carbon that I adore due to how light it is and how long the battery lasts. The keyboard is also stiffer than other thinkpads of the era so its nice to type on. its like 5 years old at this point and hasn't shown any sign of age yet. Thinkpads are neat because they're built so well they usually outlast their usefulness by a big margin, leaving you with a machine that isn't useful for much anymore.

                  • Shinji_Ikari [he/him]
                    ·
                    3 years ago

                    I bought this guy new on a really good black friday sale and thought ahead and spec'd it to be future proof and so far its working out. I skimped on the SSD thinking I'd upgrade it later but never needed to.

                    I don't think I'll need a new personal laptop for another 5 years or so, but I'm secretly hoping we get a crossover episode between the M1 Macbook air and the Carbon. I recently had to replace my wive's 9 year old macbook pro and after considering our options, we found a deal on the first iteration of the M1 air and grabbed it. I was very surprised how nice it was and despite daily heavy use, she charges it once every three days. If I could have a trackpoint + 20 hour battery life and nice linux hardware support I'd be pretty happy.

                      • Shinji_Ikari [he/him]
                        ·
                        3 years ago

                        I find it really nice to stay on the keyboard for minor adjustments of the mouse, or for browsing where you hold middle click with your thumb to scroll.

                        I should check out the pinebook again, I really don't need a computer though so it'd just be a toy for me mostly.

    • Wildgrapes [she/her]
      ·
      3 years ago

      That's the plan. Windows for random games that aren't working in linux or are already setup on windows and saves don't port or something.