Thinking on switching to linux
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This isn't exactly what I recommend. Only in the case the hardware is bleeding edge, as in, it was released less than 6 month ago, then check in which Kernel version it starts to be supported, as well as check the Kernel version shipping with the distribution you are interested in installing. Distro Kernel version >= Kernel version where the driver starts to be included, no problems. Otherwise, check a distro that has more frequent upgrades.
Things to check: GPU, CPU, WiFi chip, Ethernet chip. In windows you can find the information in the device manager. On Linux (e.g: test with a live USB) the command
lspci
with display the information.A common case would be: I am interested in Debian because I heard it's the most stable, will my AMD 5070XT work with that ? Probably not very well, better Check Ubuntu non-LTS or Fedora.
I am not recommending op to modify the Kernel from the Linux distro, just consider this point in choosing the distro.
Even on older kernels, if anything hardware like GPUs will benefit more from running newer drivers than a newer kernel, ie. AMD cards from GCN1 up to present-day RDNA3 are actively being supported by Mesa and the dev branch generally tends to have more optimizations especially for newer cards but also older ones as well, than the latest stable branch.
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An alternative is to bind mount the appcompat folder from your linux steam into the steam library on your windows drive.
I really hope Bazzite manages to smooth out the last few snags and use cases for dual-boot so that I can recommend it to more non-techy people without needing to explain stuff like this or the unintuitive process of importing installed windows games into Lutris.
Maybe we're now at a point where it's a good choice for more techy people to use, and that adoption will mean more work gets done on it.
I installed it because I wanted to see how well it would run games. But, I haven't actually played many games on it, not because they don't work (they work great), but because I've found it's so good at everything else too. It made it easy to get around to some projects I'd been putting off.
My machine plays all kinds of fairly recent games extremely well, but Microsoft is ditching Windows 10 support in less than a year, and has decided this machine doesn't qualify for Windows 11. I bet there are lots of other people in the same boat. Bazzite doesn't have to be perfect, but if it can be better than throwing away your old machine, there could be a lot of people switching soon.
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You'll need an original iPod, iPod Mini, or iPod Video or Classic for Rockbox compatibility. iPod Touch is just an iPhone without the phone, so it's locked into iOS.
It’s a 120 GB Classic
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Remmina for Remote Desktop, awesome piece of software.
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AMD drivers: use the built-in MESA drivers that include the official AMD support.
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Gmail: ProtonMail for the service, Kmail for the desktop client.
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Chrome: Firefox, or Librewolf if you care about privacy.
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Office365: LibreOffice for full FOSS or OnlyOfficr for less freedom but more comfort.
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iTunes: depends entirely on what you use it for, but I buy my music mostly off of BandCamp these days.
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MuseScore: MuseScore
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Norton: Why were you using Norton in the first place? It's practically a virus itself. If you need an antivirus on Linux, you might want ClamAV/ClamTK for something that runs locally only, or Microsoft Defender for Linux.
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Py-Charm: Py-Charm, VSCode, Vim, Kate/KWrite
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Remote Desktop to iOS: I got nothin'
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Star Citizen: Star Citizen
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Steam: Steam
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VPN: Wireguard
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Windows Games: install locally using Wine and then add to Steam as a non-Steam game to use Proton for better support.
Windows 10: run it in a VM if you still need it, or keep it on a separate SSD and dual boot into that.
Nice list. Why KMail over Thunderbird, I wonder?
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It’s a 120 GB Classic
Then it'll support Rockbox. I would recommend flash-retrofitting it for long-term reliability if it hasn't been retrofitted already, though, the spinning rust is a known weak point on older iPods.
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Nice list. Why KMail over Thunderbird, I wonder?
Kmail is simple and to the point, and at least in my experience is easier to set up. Bonus, if youre on KDE, it integrates very nicely.
It's also more performant than Thunderbird.
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I'd recommend Lutris over Heroic both because it runs locally where Heroic is Electron, and because Lutris allows community-based native Linux ports for games where applicable, eg. for Ultima VII: The Black Gate + The Forge of Virtue, Lutris gives you the option of installing that game with Exult instead of DOSbox, for Tomb Raider and Tomb Raider II, you have the option to install those with OpenLara, for Doom 1 and 2, you have the option to install those with ZDoom, etc.
Also, at least for DOS games where you don't have the option to install a community-based modern port, you can use native DOSbox as a runner instead of Windows DOSbox as well through Lutris.
Hey, points for Lutris! Thanks for sharing!
I've had issues in the past installing stuff with Lutris, although for advanced scenarios like using community engines and stuff, that's really cool. I definitely have both installed on my machine for different reasons. Lutris handles EA / Origin stuff pretty well. (Titanfall 2 and Sims 2 Ultimate run beautifully on Linux, truly glorious!)
Electron annoys me as well, but I will say that I appreciate how Heroic hooks into GoG APIs.
It handles auto-updates, cloud saving, play time logging, that kinda stuff that made Galaxy decent and had a degree of convenience-parity with Steam.(Maybe Lutris does this too now?)
For a complete newbie , I'd say Heroic has a bit of a smoother and expected ramp to just "Download game and run." But if you want more control, Lutris definitely has more options!
I also can't recommend Bottles enough for other games that aren't from distribution platforms. Shockingly simple.
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Hey, points for Lutris! Thanks for sharing!
I've had issues in the past installing stuff with Lutris, although for advanced scenarios like using community engines and stuff, that's really cool. I definitely have both installed on my machine for different reasons. Lutris handles EA / Origin stuff pretty well. (Titanfall 2 and Sims 2 Ultimate run beautifully on Linux, truly glorious!)
Electron annoys me as well, but I will say that I appreciate how Heroic hooks into GoG APIs.
It handles auto-updates, cloud saving, play time logging, that kinda stuff that made Galaxy decent and had a degree of convenience-parity with Steam.(Maybe Lutris does this too now?)
For a complete newbie , I'd say Heroic has a bit of a smoother and expected ramp to just "Download game and run." But if you want more control, Lutris definitely has more options!
I also can't recommend Bottles enough for other games that aren't from distribution platforms. Shockingly simple.
Even for Doom3, both vanilla and BFG, and RTCW, Steam version included, Lutris allows you to install native community ports for those pretty easily too.
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