Linux distro hopping

[Munkus]

I've had some time to kill while in Zoom meetings on my work laptop, so I've been playing around with Linux distros on my main desktop. Such a mind-numbing number of options when it comes to Linux. I've been daily driving Pop! OS for the past week, mainly because of its out-of-the-box compatibility with nVidia cards. Most games work great, either in native Linux mode or via Steam's Proton layer. Next up I'm going to try Manjaro, simply because the name sounds like something Ragers would like.

Anyone else play with Linux?

 

[oap]

Quite a few distro's are better with nvidia cards now. Been using linuxmint for a while now and most of my steam library will run using the proton compatability option.

 

[ugly]

I run Linux Mint.

I never did much distro hopping. I picked Mint because I was a long-time Windows user and the interface felt familiar. It's never really given me reason to change.

The only issue with Mint is that it does move at a slower pace since it runs off of the Ubuntu LTR. But usually just sticking with the Kisak Mesa PPA will get you new enough video drivers. And most of my hardware is old enough that getting needing the latest kernel isn't an issue.

I made a bunch of scripts to mostly automate setting everything up. So if I did change distros, I'd need to re-learn a bunch of stuff and figure out some of the basics of the package management.

I did try Manjaro KDE. It seemed alright, but I never really dug into it much.

I also gave Garuda a try. Like Manjaro, it is also based on Arch, but has a lot of gaming stuff pre-installed.

Pop_OS I think I only tried on a live disk. Again, it seemed fine.

It's more just that I find Mint to be really solid that I don't feel the need to move around.

 

[GSGRUNT]

I ran Linux(Fedora or Ubuntu) as my daily driver for years.
Some games(probably MSFS) wouldn't work well so I switch back to M$. Now that wsl2 with GUI is so good I don't miss full Linux much.
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/tutorials/gui-apps

 

[Munkus]

I discovered something that many people already knew. Distros are basically all the same under the hood. The main difference being the packaging managers. And you can change your desktop environment on any distro. For example, you can run Pop! OS and install Cinnamon DE, tweak it a bit, and it looks exactly like Mint. Same with KDE or xfce.

Running Lutris I can play just about anything since I don't do multiplayer. Of course I have to dual-boot with Windows to play my XBGP games. Still, it's fun to play around in Linux. It's brought back the joy of computing for me.

 

[Lazy8s]

I quit distro hopping a few years back, mostly Debian based distros and Gnome, always Gnome.

I always learned something new, but it got to the point where I was downloading, installing, setup etc, but never ‘drove’ it for more than a couple of weeks before moving on to the next.

I did run Fedora for some time, and liked it, and Gentoo was my first attempt at “building” my own with my own home rolled kernel.

I just didn’t have the time or desire to keep trying new and hoping for one that would hook me to use it for a couple of years.

 

[ugly]

I ran Linux(Fedora or Ubuntu) as my daily driver for years.
Some games(probably MSFS) wouldn't work well so I switch back to M$. Now that wsl2 with GUI is so good I don't miss full Linux much.
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/tutorials/gui-apps

Gaming has changed so much within the last 2 or 3 years. At this point, I expect almost every game to work. There are still some issues, for sure. But, particularly with Proton on Steam, I'm at the point where I just buy a game without even looking up compatibility beforehand.

Running Lutris I can play just about anything since I don't do multiplayer. Of course I have to dual-boot with Windows to play my XBGP games. Still, it's fun to play around in Linux. It's brought back the joy of computing for me.

Yeah, from my point above about most games being compatible, the multiplayer is a big caveat. Like you, I don't really do multiplayer, so those types of issues are something I haven't experienced.

As for the 'joy of computing' part, I agree with that. There is something fun about coming across problems and solving them. I do wish that Linux was where it is now, back when I was in high school and had more free time. Because there are occasional issues, and it cam be frustrating when you have to solve them and your time is limited.

For example, I just bought a 165Hz monitor. Apparently, Chromium-based browsers don't play nice with high refresh rates when using multiple monitors with different refresh rates. There may be a solution, but it's going to take a bit of time to dig into it.

As for the gaming side, sometimes playing games on Linux (more when using Lutris than Steam), there is a bit of nostalgia for that late 90s, early 2000s vibe where you buy a new game and it doesn't quite run the way you expect it to, so you need to dig in to tweak a few things to get things working right before you can really enjoy the game. It was all a part of the process back then.

 

[andino]

For example, I just bought a 165Hz monitor. Apparently, Chromium-based browsers don't play nice with high refresh rates when using multiple monitors with different refresh rates. There may be a solution, but it's going to take a bit of time to dig into it.

I ran multi monitor setups for a while a few years back. Even on Windows, all the monitors had to be the exact same refresh rate. It was suggested that all the monitors be the same make and model for me to run them in SLI too. So I had to buy 3 of the same to get the ultra wide screen that I wanted.

Don't know it that has changed in the last few years but it was a PITA...

 

[Munkus]

Gaming has changed so much within the last 2 or 3 years. At this point, I expect almost every game to work. There are still some issues, for sure. But, particularly with Proton on Steam, I'm at the point where I just buy a game without even looking up compatibility beforehand.


Yeah, from my point above about most games being compatible, the multiplayer is a big caveat. Like you, I don't really do multiplayer, so those types of issues are something I haven't experienced.

As for the 'joy of computing' part, I agree with that. There is something fun about coming across problems and solving them. I do wish that Linux was where it is now, back when I was in high school and had more free time. Because there are occasional issues, and it cam be frustrating when you have to solve them and your time is limited.

For example, I just bought a 165Hz monitor. Apparently, Chromium-based browsers don't play nice with high refresh rates when using multiple monitors with different refresh rates. There may be a solution, but it's going to take a bit of time to dig into it.

As for the gaming side, sometimes playing games on Linux (more when using Lutris than Steam), there is a bit of nostalgia for that late 90s, early 2000s vibe where you buy a new game and it doesn't quite run the way you expect it to, so you need to dig in to tweak a few things to get things working right before you can really enjoy the game. It was all a part of the process back then.

Yep. I like the fact that Linux doesn't have many guard rails to keep the user from completely hosing the OS. It's so flexible that tinkering or running the wrong command can literally wipe out the OS without an "Are you really REALLY sure?" warning. Honestly, Windows has become so dumbed-down as it tries to appeal to novice users that I'm bored with it. Sure it "just works" but where's the fun in that?

 

[ugly]

I ran multi monitor setups for a while a few years back. Even on Windows, all the monitors had to be the exact same refresh rate. It was suggested that all the monitors be the same make and model for me to run them in SLI too. So I had to buy 3 of the same to get the ultra wide screen that I wanted.

Don't know it that has changed in the last few years but it was a PITA...

I was kind of expecting problems like that because I remember hearing about those types of issues.

But it has been suprisingly easy to deal with. My secondary monitor is a 1080@60. Everything else seems to work fine, except Vivaldi. Moving windows is smooth. Firefox is smooth. I even have a version of the old Opera 12 from like 5+ years ago, and it scrolls silky smooth.

I should probably test base Chromium to see if it isn't just an issue with Vivaldi. But there is a bug report open for high refresh rates in Chromium: https://bugs.chromium.org/p/chromium/issues/detail?id=1200167

Although those people seem to be having issues with a single monitor. If I disable my secondary monitor using xrandr, then Vivaldi works perfectly smooth.

Yep. I like the fact that Linux doesn't have many guard rails to keep the user from completely hosing the OS. It's so flexible that tinkering or running the wrong command can literally wipe out the OS without an "Are you really REALLY sure?" warning. Honestly, Windows has become so dumbed-down as it tries to appeal to novice users that I'm bored with it. Sure it "just works" but where's the fun in that?

I remember a few months ago Linus Tech Tips did the Linux test and he ran into the ''Are you really sure you want to do this" issue with apt. He got made fun of because it was the really serious one where they actually make you type out something like "I am sure I want to do this". And it wiped his whole install. People made fun of him for that, but I remember doing the same thing when I first tried Linux.

As a long-time Windows user I think most people think of themselves as a 'computer expert'. But you're really a 'Windows expert' and when you switch to Linux, you're still a Linux noob. There is a lot of knowledge and similarities that carry over. But, at the same time, you're still just a beginner. I know I had a few times where I was kind of bullheaded about things because I assumed I was super-smart and could figure out whatever I wanted. Oh well, I guess that's what Timeshift is for.

 

[andino]

The older you get the harder it is to switch too. I tinkered around with Linux Servers a few months back. Got PO'ed that it didn't do the thing that I wanted it to do and just went back to Windows Server. I didn't have the time to do it and Windows did it the way I wanted out of the box.

I still from time to time spin up a VM of ubuntu and play with it. Try and fail to do some Docker stuff and then put it away for a bit. LOL

EDIT: I don't fail so much. I know what I am doing. I just set it up and then look at how easy it is in windows. And then I just go back to windows....

 

[ugly]

Yeah, that's true about it being harder to change as you get older. That's what I meant a few posts up about wishing I was able to switch back when I was in high school and had more free time.

I don't feel like I got some massive benefit in life because I switched to Linux. I did it because I wanted to do it. And, once you switch to Linux you can start typing it as "Micro$oft". Really makes you cool on the internet.

Windows is fine. It worked. I had a bunch of software I liked and was comfortable with. I was always sort of curious about using Linux. Gave it a shot a few times and just gave up.

I think I sort of fell into the Gabe Newell panic with the talk about how Windows 8 was going to turn into a walled garden. I think the final straw for me was one of the first big Windows 10 Fall updates broke my system. So I decided to dive into Linux.

It is a bit time consuming. While there is a lot of software that is multi-platform, there will still be a bunch of software that you need to find alternates for. And it is difficult to change your habits. For as much as people say they hate Windows, one thing that almost every Windows user does when they switch to Linux is try to make it work identical to the way Windows did.

I dual-booted for a while, but that can be difficult because you know you can probably just do something quickly on Windows instead of having to learn it on Linux (not that Linux is necessarily more difficult, but there is stuff you have to figure out). Then for a while I would mostly use Linux, then switch to Windows only for gaming. But once DXVK started working well, and eventually Proton got going, I really haven't had the need to use Windows. Maybe once a year I'll boot it up just to check something if I'm troubleshooting a hardware issue.

 

[Munkus]

I'm on Linux now pretty much full time, but I do have to switch over to Windows for some games. Example: I can't use my XBox controller with Stray on Linux for some reason. Works fine in other games though. Troubleshooting things like that on Linux is a royal PITA.

 

[ugly]

I'm on Linux now pretty much full time, but I do have to switch over to Windows for some games. Example: I can't use my XBox controller with Stray on Linux for some reason. Works fine in other games though. Troubleshooting things like that on Linux is a royal PITA.

How are you using your controller? Wired, dongle or Bluetooth?

I had issues with Bluetooth with the XBox One controller. It might have had something to do with the cheap Bluetooth dongles.

I switched to using the old Microsoft Dongle. It has worked almost perfectly with the xone driver.

And wired is usually fine.

I think the only game I had issues with was Mable.

You can always try using something like Qjoypad and map the controller to keyboard keys.

 

[Munkus]

How are you using your controller? Wired, dongle or Bluetooth?

I had issues with Bluetooth with the XBox One controller. It might have had something to do with the cheap Bluetooth dongles.

I switched to using the old Microsoft Dongle. It has worked almost perfectly with the xone driver.

And wired is usually fine.

I think the only game I had issues with was Mable.

You can always try using something like Qjoypad and map the controller to keyboard keys.

I'm using a wired XBox One controller. I tried Bluetooth as well. Both Linux and Steam recognize the controller just fine, and other games work well. Just Stray refuses to see it. Oh well.

 

[metroidfox]

I've been using Fedora since Gnome 3 launched, and been using it as a stream release.


In terms of choices, I'd argue the real ones are the fundamental differences between software management (not just package managers, but things like SELinux, or whatever SUSE uses). Otherwise the software is the same.



Honestly with WSL it's kind of removed the need for me to run a dedicated Linux machine.

 

[Trunks0]

I use Ubuntu MATE on s 2009 Macbook at work. Was being recycled and in nice condition. So I popped an SSD in it, dumped more ram in, cheap new battery off Amazon and put Linux on it. It ran Win10 alright... but MATE has been considerably faster overall. Win10 isn't as good on old hardware as it used to be. I have it mainly just to keep me comfortable working in Linux.

I rather like Linux. It's come along way in the last 10yrs or so imho.

 

[Munkus]

Update on the controller issue. I was able to get it to work in Steam games by disabling Steam Input in the game properties. Not sure why that works, but it does.