Re: Founder of Gentoo Daniel Robbins: "I actually try to avoid using Linux on the desktop"

On 2024-12-18, CrudeSausage <crude@sausa.ge> wrote:

Le 2024-12-18 à 05:59, RonB a écrit :

On 2024-12-17, CrudeSausage <crude@sausa.ge> wrote:

Le 2024-12-17 à 15:25, RonB a écrit :
>

Getting the hardware to work as it should from the moment you're done
installing the operating system. A fresh installation of Windows does
that. Linux comes close, but you will inevitably be forced to find
workarounds for some of your hardware. On this PC in particular, there
is no way to get the fingerprint reader to work, you won't get the audio
to play at its highest potential volume, and you won't be able to use
any of the advanced trackpad gestures. Apparently, it's possible to get
the reader by overwriting the firmware and doing a bunch of other
complicated junk in Arch alone, but there is no remedy for the sound and
none of the desktop environments do too well with simple gestures like
two-finger flick to the left or the right to go back or forward on
webpages. They give you lots of gestures to do tons of other things like
switching virtual desktops, but the most basic thing seems to elude them.

>
Your "experience" with Linux doesn't match mine. When I moved to Idaho to
help care for my wife's aging parents, we traveled light. I had a laptop
but I wanted to use a desktop. I bought one at the second hand store without
a hard drive. I ran that computer on a Live Linux Mint USB for about two
months, install took a couple minutes. Try that with Windows. Get back to me
with your results.

>
Part of enabling hardware encryption on Windows requires you to use
Windows To Go in much the way you would Linux on a LiveUSB stick. It's
doable, but Microsoft doesn't give you a direct way of creating such an
installation the way that Linux does. I'll say this much: I do believe
that you ran a live Linux environment for months rather comfortably and
that the installation took little time. That's definitely a strength of
the operating system.
>

As for fingerprint readers, specialized GPUs, etc., I can't say one way or
the other. I don't use fingerprint readers (even where I have them), nor do
I care about trackpad gestures. I get rid of tapping on my trackpads and
want to use them for two things, moving cursor and scrolling.
>
As for sound, your problems with it are not mine. I guess there are
advantages to using business machines as opposed to gaming machines. No
issues with sound on my computers. No Arch ever needed.

>
The sound chip uses something called Dolby Atmos in Windows. Without it,
the sound is no different in Windows than it would be in Linux. With it,
the volume is augmented and you can set it up for the type of sound you
are using. It increases the sound without causing crackling and it is
definitely a feature people aren't likely to want to sacrifice. As for
the fingerprint reader, the issue stems from the manufacturer doing
nothing to open its hardware for open-source developers. However,
manufacturers have no obligation to support Linux and they aren't
compensated in any way if they decide to.

 
Maybe my computers don't have this "Dolby Atmos" because I can't tell any
difference between Windows and Linux when I play music on the same computer.
I know I don't have any crackling (as it would drive me nuts).

>
You would have to have this exact machine to see the difference in sound
quality between Windows and Linux. Windows is louder and demonstrates
the full potential of the speakers; Linux sounds good but it quieter.

I do have the exact machine as I've tested when dual-booting on the same
computer.

I realize that a lot of people like the fingerprint reader, but I saw how
these could be used to steal your identity (right when they first came out)
and I decided I never wanted to use them.

>
I agree that it would be trivial to get into the machine of a user if
logging in requires nothing more than a fingerprint. I mean, you can
just force his finger onto the reader and away you go. It is, however,
very convenient if there are protections on every component you use. For
example, I have a password to log in but I also have one to open the
BitWarden vault, I then require a password/one-time password/key/key
password to enter my e-mail, and that's without mentioning that the
whole drive is protected by hardware encryption. If you can simplify
some of it through the use of a fingerprint, you will.

I'm thinking more of stealing your fingerprint for other uses.

Yes my wife does update when she's informed that one is necessary. This is
just Windows being Windows. Microsoft's updates suck.

>
I can't say that I like them either, but 11's are definitely better than
10. The fact that it essentially reinstalls the operating system on big
updates is a bonus for me since it cleans out the crap. It's obviously
much slower than a Linux one, but I don't dislike it.

 
I've updated Windows 11 a couple times and do think, generally, it's better
than Windows 10. So I'll give you that. Still take way too long, though.

>
For me, Windows 10 was worse than 8 or 8.1. I truly do feel that while
the 8.x line was a mess, it performed well since the code was no worse
than 7 which was stellar. 10, however, is the result of Microsoft
deciding to make more use of the things people hated about 8.x and
presenting them differently. Obviously, there were going to be a lot of
issues. Had 11 never come to be or if my hardware were such that I would
have to make the decision between using Linux or sticking to 10, I would
gladly just use Linux. I hated 10 that much.
>
< snip >

I don't know much about any of these versions of Windows as I basically quit
using Windows when XP was going to be updated to Vista. I really don't like
any of them.

--
“Evil is not able to create anything new, it can only distort and destroy
what has been invented or made by the forces of good.”  —J.R.R. Tolkien