As part of the What Current OS Are you Running (https://www.chickendinnergaming.com/forum/index.php?topic=416.0) thread, we started mentioning Linux.
As part of my current studies, I'm going through Linux Admin Training. I've worked in many different environments - IBM i OS, Windows (tons of different environments), IBM AIX, and now I'm trekking into Amazon Web Services / Linux.
At this point, I installed and started playing around with UBUNTU and OpenSUSE. Hyper-V is available in Windows 10 Pro... that is now setup on my laptop and I've created virtual machines. Through some of my other training... I will be working with CENTOS and Fedora.
What do you work with and Game with LINUX wise? What troubles have you encountered and what did you do to solve them?
Any input
@trkorecky @retro junkie @Polygon @medataoh ?
Post it up!
On another note, I am kick starting a tech site soon. This is going to be to document many of the new Amazon Web Services Cloud studies / what I learned...etc. This site will also be to document a large range of topics from easy to level III work across many systems. The plan is to make it so that I can search my site if I need to recall that information, but it's also there to allow others to search and view. I'm creating the site in Drupal - I spent the last 4 months learning Drupal and may add some of that knowledge as well lol. I'll create more on this topic later. IF anyone would like to help write some of these documents, I will be game. There will be a standards and requirements for writing the documentation. But I welcome anyone who wants to do this to put their notes out there and also use the repository of knowledge. There won't be much or any of a forum... until Drupal has a better system or I can do an SMF style bridge or anything but Drupal's forum.
Good idea.
Here are just some of the things that come to mind.
Compatibility is a big issue that I have found over the years. There doesn't seem to be any up-to-date lists floating around. Sometimes I have found myself digging through forum's old topics just to answer a question. Or maybe I have not been able to locate a good list in my searches. And when it comes to compatibility, we are also talking about Distro orientation too, not just if it is compatible to Linux. And the item may be compatible with all linux Distros, it is just you need to tinker to find out why the Distro did not pick it up. Sometimes I just do not feel like fiddling and tinkering, so I find a Distro that works for me.
Wacom tablets seem to have a good compatibility rating. I have one on my desktop. I like drawing, so I use paint programs, I like piddling and dealing with graphic stuff. I have Photoshop CS3 loaded up with WINE. And of course GIMP. And I do have Krita and Fire Alpaca on my desktop as well. I have Blender loaded up but I do not have time to mess with it. Maybe when I retire.
I use the office program, Libre, a lot.
Printers are a big issue I have yet to resolve. HP seems to be the friendliest to linux. I usually end up with an old outdated printer. They are the easiest to find that linux has the drivers for. As Canon scanners are friendly also. The all-in-one printers are difficult to deal with when it comes to linux. Linux cannot find the scanner, or that has been my experience.
I don't game on my computer.
When picking a Distro it is either hit or miss trying to sort through the clutter. You can have a fully compatible computer, whether it be desktop or laptop. But when it comes to selecting a Distro, you end up trying and trying until you find one that will work with all of your hardware. The disappointment comes in when it isn't the one you wanted.
I also surf the net. Because of this, at some point I, or a user, will need to upgrade to a newer Distro. A Linux rolling release distribution is the best route to go. You will have a long term support with updates, usually five years, using that same install. Point release Distros, you need to do a full install to get the newer release of updates, usually every six months. If you have brought to life older hardware, as I like to do, at some point you will no longer be able to upgrade to a newer Distro release. Why? Because at some point a newer Distro release may have needs for a bigger faster processor, graphics card, require more power, more ram, etc. You can use older hardware to run linux just fine on an older distribution. But going on the net there might be some sites, like this one for example, in which an older browser cannot access. (Going to a lite weight Linux Distros can resolve this issue.)
Quote from: retro junkie on October 31, 2018, 07:24:59 PM
When picking a Distro it is either hit or miss trying to sort through the clutter. You can have a fully compatible computer, whether it be desktop or laptop. But when it comes to selecting a Distro, you end up trying and trying until you find one that will work with all of your hardware. The disappointment comes in when it isn't the one you wanted.
This is where I would say Ubuntu excels at. I have tons of hardware, both old and new, and so far I have not encountered any issues. I also hear good things about Fedora but I haven't tried it.
QuoteI also surf the net. Because of this, at some point I, or a user, will need to upgrade to a newer Distro. A Linux rolling release distribution is the best route to go. You will have a long term support with updates, usually five years, using that same install. Point release Distros, you need to do a full install to get the newer release of updates, usually every six months. If you have brought to life older hardware, as I like to do, at some point you will no longer be able to upgrade to a newer Distro release. Why? Because at some point a newer Distro release may have needs for a bigger faster processor, graphics card, require more power, more ram, etc. You can use older hardware to run linux just fine on an older distribution. But going on the net there might be some sites, like this one for example, in which an older browser cannot access. (Going to a lite weight Linux Distros can resolve this issue.)
Yeah, now that the web and cloud are dominating the computing space, you need a machine that can run all of that code properly. It's not the distros' fault, but the software creators who use the latest code to run their programs.
Honestly, I feel we need to move away from 32-bit. Once that gets completely deprecated, older machines shouldn't be hit as hard and should be able to use the latest distro keeping them running longer. I believe Ubuntu is already doing this and MacOS is also in the process. iOS is completely 64-bit now if I'm not mistaken. Don't know if Windows will be able to do it but they should. It's time.
I've been playing with OpenSUSE a bit in another VM. I didn't have issues installing it in Hyper-V. It seemed a bit more intuitive... but I'm having issues right now in VirtualBox. I don't think I have things setup right and I haven't been able to get beyond the LVM (Linux Volume Manager) portion. This is server software... not the desktop software.
I didn't have issues with UBUNTU server either. In fact, I'm using this and CentOS in my certification studies as we speak. I need a few more rounds of go around with OpenSUSE... but no time for love Dr. Jones.
So far, UBUNTU server has been very intuitive.
SO... I had to take a detour on certifications I was taking. I acquired the Amazon Web Services Cloud Practitioner and Solutions Architect Associate. I Am back to Linux studies... currently going for Linux+ / LPIC1, LPIC 2, and then will be going for the Red Hat Certified System Admin. The goal is to finish these up in the next 6 weeks to get back to AWS certifications.
With that... I am back to playing around with Ubuntu and Centos Server. OpenSuse has been put to the side.. but right now, I'm working on the differences in the package managers.
Is anyone playing around with Linux OS's right now?
Right now, I'm hoping to take my 1st Linux exam in 2 weeks. I'm a bit behind... but working through some stuff right now.
For those running Linux ... how much do you know your environment variables and commands? DO you stay mostly in a GUI... or are you running the command line?
I used to mess around with command line but I have grown very lazy. Haven't used it in years, GUI only now. :-[
There has been that occasional program install that needed command line. But that too has been way back there.
I try to use both. I, too, get lazy and want to just use the GUI but I force myself to use the Terminal since I never really learned it as well as I should have at this point. I got to keep fresh in case the GUI ever crashes on me.
Quote from: CreepinDeth on April 10, 2019, 04:15:21 PM
in case the GUI ever crashes on me.
Hey! Don't say things like that! Bad vibes there! :o
(rubs hand across desktop) Be nice. Big bad man didn't mean anything by that comment. :-\
LOL I really do need to get back into it.
LOL... I'm still working with Ubuntu and Centos... though I'm hearing these certs may be more based on straight Debian.
At work... we are starting to work with Suse or SLES... Suse Linux Enterprise essentially. I'm trying to get hands on with this. I've worked a lot with the Windows OS, some Windows Servers, I lead the IBM i Operating System - iSeries group, I've worked a bit in the IBM AIX Operating System - a Unix variant.
If you want, as I go through my studies... I Could do a couple write-ups (posts) here and there providing notes on how to do certain tasks... if you think that would be of benefit.
I use to love Debian. Depending on GUI spoils. Those write ups could be a refresher course. :nerd:
Quote from: retro junkie on April 10, 2019, 11:36:14 PM
I use to love Debian. Depending on GUI spoils. Those write ups could be a refresher course. :nerd:
@retro junkie I'm getting ready to start posting some basic refresh stuff. I hope to have that by the end of the weekend... just going to start basic command line.
Crappy thing is.. I've been studying for these certs to get ahead at work... and be ready for technologies we are going to. Now, the company is changing their direction ??? :)) so... we may not be basing in Linux now and doing something else straight in the cloud for our ERP system SAP. I'm still getting the certs for myself and my knowledge... and to have them. But man... lol... come on now.
I passed the 1st part of the Linux+ / LPIC 1 exam. I am taking the next exam Thursday to finish.
Again.. I plan to post some of my notes... just command line stuff you can do and what not. It's fairly helpful if studying... OR just trying to learn new stuff.
ANND as of a week ago... maybe 2... I am LPIC 1 and Linux+ certified. Woot.
Checking up with everyone... what are you doing with your current Linux installations?
I haven't booted Linux since I got my Mac mini and my Mac pro. I was thinking that I might need to look for some more up to date hardware with a HDMI out put for my next Linux machine. I have really enjoyed this HDMI on my mac mini. (spoiled now) :))
I haven't had a chance as well. I wanted to use it for emulation but the deeper I go the more I realize Windows has the better software support.
I will return eventually. I like to show love to it when I can. Open Source needs more love.
@retro junkie and
@CreepinDeth That's what we need... an open source topic. Good suggestion! Start one up :)
Were you having issues with HDMI out on Linux?
The forum seems a bit upset that I'm replying to an old topic, but it's just going to have to deal with it 8)
I jump into Linux every once in a while to mess around, but for the most part I haven't made it a primary OS over Windows. I'm generally held back from going all out by primarily gaming on PC and graphics development. Would have to reboot into a Windows partition for most multiplayer games and it's hard to program DX12 on a system that doesn't support it. I do have some old laptops laying around that I've installed various distros on (typically some derivative of Arch as a standard Ubuntu install is a bit heavy for them), and I do have an old 32-bit netbook that I had Gentoo up and running just for "fun". I'm considering installing some variation of Linux on my laptop and hacking in a Vulkan path for my side project renderer since I don't typically play games on it and mostly use it for development from the sofa, so we'll see if I give it a shot after I tear it apart for a few upgrades (re-paste the CPU and GPU, more RAM, swap the HDD for an SDD, solder in a new power port).
I do agree with CreepinDeth that 32-bit should've died out at least 10 years ago now, though I unfortunately don't see it changing for a while thanks to all the low powered single board computers -- I'm running a Raspberry Pi Zero as a Pi-hole DNS sink plugged into the back of my router and that only supports 32-bit and I know many of the other SBCs run similar chips. Thankfully most of the larger RPis run 64-bit.
@trkorecky - Maybe I need to change that as posting in any topic is always welcome. ;D
you know... I never thought about that
@trkorecky --> Direct Access 12 support in Linux. Are they working on it?
I have been working heavily in Centos 7 and a couple other variants at work... working with Ansible and figuring out how to deploy settings ...etc... to hundreds of on floor machines over the world. I am working to accomplish the Red hat Certified System Administrator... and a few other certs before the end of the year. We are starting to move process from Microsoft based systems and more into Linux based systems. Part of it is to start moving away from Microsoft licensing. Red Hat licensing for various services are pretty expensive now as well. That's partly why we are looking into Centos... but ... that brings complexities as well in the support realm if we ever needed it.
Quote from: BLUEVOODU on August 17, 2019, 10:50:14 PM
@retro junkie and @CreepinDeth That's what we need... an open source topic. Good suggestion! Start one up :)
Were you having issues with HDMI out on Linux?
@BLUEVOODU Just saw this. No I was not having any issues with HDMI. I just did not have any hardware that had an HDMI out.
I have been recently pulling out a couple of old laptops and installing some of the up to date Linux distros, Zorin and Bodhi.
@retro junkie have you tried CentOS 8?
Quote from: BLUEVOODU on December 25, 2020, 09:56:40 AM
@retro junkie have you tried CentOS 8?
@BLUEVOODU I know that Linux is Linux, but there are those flavors that are just not appealing to me. And CentOS is one of them. I have tried it several times over the years. The flavor of a linux distro is mainly in the feel and overall execution of the OS. And due to the fact that I use older equipment, some distros just do not fair very well.
For some reason I am just so fascinated with getting older hardware to run with a modern distro and make it usable. That is the reason I love Bodhi. Zorin is not bad, good distro, but Bodhi will make something like, my desktop, a Lenovo ThinkCentre M58e 7298 become a modern workhorse even though it is about 12 years old. I will purposely purchase old hardware and make it usable. My Lenovo desktop I purchased for $30 with no hard drive. Sometimes I get that itch to go onto ebay looking for something old with no hard drive, no memory, grab it up and make it usable. I have no idea why I find that so satisfyingly fun and fascinating.
I used to really enjoy doing that. Now I just don't have a lot of time to tinker with that anymore. I do a lot of spinning up and down instances in the cloud... but not so much physical machines.
I was more thinking of CentOS for drivers and what-not that you were having issues with drivers. Ie Give it a shot and see if you are able to get by the HMDI issues.
Quote from: BLUEVOODU on December 25, 2020, 04:56:32 PM
I used to really enjoy doing that. Now I just don't have a lot of time to tinker with that anymore. I do a lot of spinning up and down instances in the cloud... but not so much physical machines.
I was more thinking of CentOS for drivers and what-not that you were having issues with drivers. Ie Give it a shot and see if you are able to get by the HMDI issues.
@BLUEVOODU I don't think you fully grasp the situation. The issue with the HMDI is the hardware is so old that it does not have the output for HDMI. If I had hardware new enough to have the output there would be no issue. I use old stuff.
@retro junkie ah yes. I read it / remembered it wrong. You don't have an output for it yet. Yes - you need to get on that ;D
I used to take even odd bits of hardware (ie an old box That was used as an internet filter)... old school pieces that had basic hardware. I would find a few pieces... put it back together, and would use It for something just to see if I could get it to work. I just haven't done that for a long time.
I'm about to take the plunge again. I'm going to force myself to use Linux as my daily OS along with linux native apps. I'm going to stay with Zorin and eventually move on to Arch Linux as the end goal. I'd also build a PC around it.
I'll have a Windows PC if there is ever that off chance something does not exist on Linux but not before I try every avenue. I think it's going to be fun. ;D
@CreepinDeth building a rig around Linux is fun. It has been a long time since I did that. Not only is it a learning experience, but also satisfying using the end product when you're done.
@CreepinDeth That's awesome! I'm thinking about doing that with a cheaper Linux build at some point. I've been heavy into Linux in the server realm over the last 2 years. I've used Linux for a long time... but I'm talking in the DevOps Engineer space. It's been a lot of fun with sprinkles of frustrating challenges.
I am very curious how this progressions goes for you. Keep us up to date on what you find that you like and do not like. The same for the apps realm if you don't mind AND relating to experience versus Windows. It looks like MATE Gui is available for Arch. That's a decent desktop Gui. Ever think about trying CentOS or Rocky Linux builds?
I'm thinking of a couple new Linux topics to post up to try to keep the Linux topics going.
@BLUEVOODU - I don't know much about CentOS and don't know Rocky Linux at all. I decided on Zorin because it seems to have the closest experience to a windows desktop (even moreso than linux mint) and is based on debian/ubuntu without actually using ubuntu.
I was thinking that I might create tutorial videos for people who want to convert over from windows. That's another reason I went with a debian based distro since the apps are easily installed through the app "stores". It's also gaming friendly.
I'll probably look at Red Hat distros as I get more experience, but for now, I'm treating this as a project from someone who just wants an OS that is stable and works "out of the box" so to speak compared to windows.
@CreepinDeth zorin is a very good excellent choice. My Daughter and I have used it for years and it is very user friendly. And you are right it does give a very windows like experience. Or rather it gives a very intuitive interface, which lowers your guard for the unknown, and offers a lot of familiarity for the average user.
Looking forward to your updates.
Greetings from Zorin OS!
I finally got my spare PC going and installed Zorin on it. Enjoying it so far. Feels much cleaner and minimalistic than Windows. Haven't done much yet. Just getting it all setup with software that I might need. ;D
So I had to switch from Zorin OS over to Pop_OS. Turns out Zorin 15.3 is based on Ubuntu 18.04, and since I also plan to game on this machine, makes it too old for my needs. It's actually a nice OS and if you don't plan to game it's solid.
Switched over to Pop_OS since they are still supporting 32bit libraries that are required for Steam and automatically installs the latest Nvidia drivers for you if you happen to have one of their graphics cards. So far, so good. It uses Gnome so it has a lot of the aesthetic features of Zorin. I'm enjoying it so far.
Zorin is a solid OS. My Daughter still uses it. I had to look up POP. I have not heard of it. But of course I have been out of the Linux scene for a while. Looks good.
Pop!_OS is a relatively new distro. It's only been around for like 3 years I think? System 76 (the developers of Pop!_OS) also make hardware that is tailored with their distro. It's actually really nice hardware.
https://youtu.be/IGEoXH-zUyM
@CreepinDeth - Interesting... I have not heard of this one. So this is more on the bleeding edge that has more up-to-date drivers that you need? If I am understanding this right... it would be more on the Fedora side of the Red Hat equation?
I will check this one out.
@BLUEVOODU - I don't believe it's that bleeding edge. System76 still does a lot of testing before they release updates (and sometimes hold them back a few days, if necessary) but because they also cater to gamers, they try to make getting drivers and other libraries easier and automatic.
They are Steam/WINE/Lutris friendly.
So now I might jump back to Zorin OS. Version 16 has just been released and the developers are claiming it's now much more gaming friendly. It honestly looks pretty good.
I was already thinking about dual booting Zorin and Pop!_OS. Pop for gaming and Zorin for daily driver. Might not have to anymore.
Zorin OS 16 (https://blog.zorin.com/2021/08/17/2021-08-17-zorin-os-16-is-released/)
@CreepinDeth is there a difference that you are noticing between using Windows and linux for gaming?
Quote from: retro junkie on August 19, 2021, 08:26:04 AM
@CreepinDeth is there a difference that you are noticing between using Windows and linux for gaming?
There are a ton of differences that mainly involve the OS and how you go about playing games that don't have official Linux ports. However, once they run, there's not much differences. I'll try to outline a few.
Official Linux PortsThe only official ports that I've tried so far are the latest Tomb Raider trilogy games (Tomb Raider (2013), Rise of the Tomb Raider & Shadow of the Tomb Raider.)
They run pretty well and don't need much tweaking. However, I learned about CPU Governors trying these out as I got a message from the game saying that my CPU is not set for Performance which could cause issues. So I installed CPUFreq and I can switch it on the fly from the desktop.
Overall though, it's as simple as installing Steam and then installing the game. It's good to go just like on Windows.
Windows version on LinuxSteam has come a long way to have Windows versions run on Linux. You do have to set in the preferences that you want to use Steam-Play and select the version of Proton you want to use and you're usually good to go. Proton is a WINE compatibility layer that has been modified by Valve to help games run on Linux. There is also Lutris which helps you play games that are not acquired through Steam but I haven't tried that yet.
I've played Doom (2016) and even the original DOS Tomb Raider from 1996 and both ran with no fuss. I have yet to try out more but, so far, it's been fairly painless.
I did try Batman Arkham Asylum but that one requires some tweaks to Proton to run. Don't feel like doing that right now though.
There is currently a site called Proton DB (https://www.protondb.com/) which is a database that lets you know which games work with Proton and those that still need work from Valve to become playable. Valve is looking to have 100% compatibility by the time the Steam Deck releases.
If I can think of anymore, I'll post them.
Linus over at Linus Tech Tips started a challenge to make Linux their daily driver for a month. Part 1 is out.
https://youtu.be/0506yDSgU7M
Thread resurrection time!
I've been using Zorin 16 for the past couple of years now. It's been a pleasurable experience and have not felt any need to jump back to a Windows machine for daily general use.
However, I'm planning on jumping over to Fedora. I don't need to be bleeding edge but I do occasionally update hardware whenever there is a good sale so I would like to have a distro that eventually gets support for it within a few months and not years. There's also some gaming software that I would like to use (eg. MangoHUD) that doesn't seem to play well with Ubuntu based distros.
@BLUEVOODU Are you still using Fedora at all? Any tips or things to think about before I make the plunge?
@CreepinDeth - man... there are good replies here and I missed them entirely since 2021. Sorry about that!
That last Linus Tech Tips video was great btw. They always have awesome content.
Right now... I'm using the more stable Rocky Linux. I'm not sure other people would classify it as a user's OS or not. This OS is known for stability. I believe it takes some tweaking, but upon review, it's good for gaming and content creation as well.
I've really been enjoying using it. It's more of an enterprise feel... but give it a shot. Why not? Find out what you like and don't like. It's downstream from RHEL (Fedora based... etc). You can use several different desktops with it - whether you want gnome, kde, mate... etc. A colleague at work ended up installing KDE... which is not my favorite, but I know many others like it.
There are a couple I want to try... but time has been soaked up by work and life... life stages are interesting for sure. However, I also want to dive into Kali and some of its uses for testing. I've wanted to do this over the last 5 years, but work and studying has taken most of time there. I'm just going to pull the trigger at some point. Of course, I'm looking at a potential masters next year... tldr, just trying to prep for the next 15-25 years.
Let me know if you get it and how you like it!
I'll look into Rocky Linux. Seems promising. I might just have Rocky on one PC and then Fedora on another.
I'm pretty excited about it. I think I'm going to purchase a Radeon RX 7600 for this rig so that I have all AMD hardware for Linux.
Quote from: BLUEVOODU on August 30, 2024, 10:07:47 AMThere are a couple I want to try... but time has been soaked up by work and life... life stages are interesting for sure. However, I also want to dive into Kali and some of its uses for testing. I've wanted to do this over the last 5 years, but work and studying has taken most of time there. I'm just going to pull the trigger at some point. Of course, I'm looking at a potential masters next year... tldr, just trying to prep for the next 15-25 years.
Wow, good luck on getting your masters. That sounds awesome!
Thank you
@CreepinDeth - I'll let you know how it goes if I do.
Did you end up purchasing the RX 7600 and start using Rocky and/or Fedora? If so... how's it going?
@BLUEVOODU Haven't jumped on the Fedora train yet. I did not pick up a 7600. I'm now contemplating if I should hold out for the new GPUs that are supposed to be coming out later this year/early next year.
I'm still undecided on which flavor of Fedora I'm going to install. A part of me is interested in the Atomic versions, so I'm thinking Fedora Silverblue. I just upgraded my wife's PC so I have an old Intel machine now that I might just use for testing each distro out.
Tomorrow is my last work day of the year. I'll have two weeks off and will be using this time to try out Fedora Workstation and probably one other distro. I have two old Dell XPS machines that can not be upgraded to Windows 11.
I'm going to see if I like them as well as try to do some very basic development. I've been wanting to teach myself to code again and I think this will be a good time and I hear good things about Linux being developer friendly.
I'm also going to bust out my Raspberry Pi that my wife got for me a few years ago and tinker with it.
NICE
@CreepinDeth ;D
I'm now on vacation as well. What a year ... it's been a busy one. I hope you have a wonderful vacation time!
So it sounds like you're going to have a lot of fun! :happydance: What's in the agenda and what are you starting with 1st?
Quote from: BLUEVOODU on December 21, 2024, 09:34:15 AMI hope you have a wonderful vacation time!
Thanks, you too!
Quote from: BLUEVOODU on December 21, 2024, 09:34:15 AMSo it sounds like you're going to have a lot of fun! :happydance: What's in the agenda and what are you starting with 1st?
First on the list is to install Fedora and then give it a proper test drive to see if I like it. If I do, I'll dive in fully and start using that machine to code a little bit. If I don't, then might try another Ubuntu distro for it. I've read that Ubuntu is actually the distro that is used by the Android Open Source Project so might even just use that.
After Christmas I'll be updating some of my laptops and might install Elementary OS on one of them or if I really like Fedora, install that on it as well.
I'm also thinking of trying an Arch distro but not sure yet. I think I'll keep it simple for now.
I was hoping to turn one of these old machines as a file server but Christmas has my wallet tapped at the moment. Will be buying some hard drives later and then installing a Linux server or TrueNAS. I picked up a COMPTIA Networking book for cheap and plan on teaching myself some of that as well. I was I had a whole month off, lol. ;D