Switch to Linux

[Quintavious V]

Hey everyone! Im a windows user and have never used anything else but I keep on hearing about linux and I was like hey lets give it a shot! So i wanted to know

- How is linux better than windows?

- do I need a windows VM to game on linux? If so, how? (i have a laptop, 1060 6GB mobile, i7 8750H)

 

Thanks everyone

[suedseefrucht]

I'm not an expert but I used Ubuntu some years ago.

There is not just 1 linux. There are many distributions like Ubuntu, Debian, LinuxMint, Raspberry Pi OS, ...

They all look different.

 

Using Ubuntu many thinks are like Windows. You have an explorer, files, a desktop, ...

The updating system is different. You can install updates when you want.

Playing DVDs is not that easy because linux is free and so it doesn't has a licence to play DVDs or Blue-Rays.

Ubuntu boots and shuts down pretty fast compared to windows in my experience.

If you have a dual boot system or you boot from USB, windows cant see linux but linux can see the windows files when not encrypted.

In linux there is not one admin user. There is root. As a user you can become root to run stuff but you are not always root.

In linux you do a lot more stuff using the command line than using windows.

 

[Bombastinator]

32 minutes ago, Quintavious V said:

Hey everyone! Im a windows user and have never used anything else but I keep on hearing about linux and I was like hey lets give it a shot! So i wanted to know

- How is linux better than windows?

- do I need a windows VM to game on linux? If so, how? (i have a laptop, 1060 6GB mobile, i7 8750H)

 

Thanks everyone

-how is it better?

It’s a question of control, mostly.  With Linux you have a lot more control.  There are upsides and down sides.  Aside from the cost and availability advantages of Linux, The most important up side is you can do stuff in Linux you can’t in Windows. The most important downside is you can do things in Linux you can’t in Windows.  The result is you can do more but you have to know how to do it which means there is a lot more learning involved.  Linux is less stupid proof than Windows. It’s vastly better if you know what you are doing but you also have to know what you are doing. If you put the time in to figure out how things work it can be a lot more powerful.  If you don’t and try to just use it anyway frequently it’s just a mess. 
 

-do I need a VM? Depends on what you are doing.  For 95% of stuff, no.  That 5% of stuff is generally brand new games though.  If someone has bothered to write a wine wrapper for a PC program you can just run it.  A VM is not needed.  The thing is someone has to write that wrapper.  As an example of the control of Linux if you want to write that wrapper yourself you can.  You can then upload it and the rest of the world can now use that wrapper.  This is how wrappers happen.   Steam writes a lot of them.  If you have a steam account and there’s an icon for Linux you don’t need a VM.  A VM would only be needed for the steam games that do not have the Linux icon.  If all the games you play are on steam and have the Linux icon you won’t need a VM and will see no difference gaming except some stuff may run faster

[Donut417]

1 hour ago, Quintavious V said:

Hey everyone! Im a windows user and have never used anything else but I keep on hearing about linux and I was like hey lets give it a shot! So i wanted to know

- How is linux better than windows?

- do I need a windows VM to game on linux? If so, how? (i have a laptop, 1060 6GB mobile, i7 8750H)

 

Thanks everyone

Better is more of an opinion. 

 

However with Linux you can update the whole setup OS, Drivers and software with like Two commands on the CLI. Its hugely customizable. Dont like the desktop environment? Then change it. Want to test out newer Kernels? You can install several and switch between them. 

 

Gaming wise, there are games on Steam that WILL work in Linux. With Proton it will add additional games that will work. Using Wine will add more. Then there is the option for VM's or dual booting. 

 

Linux can also be an A hole at times. In some cases you WILL need to use the CLI to make things happen. In some cases installing drivers for hardware can be meh. Some times you have to find work arounds or things just dont work. Not all hardware has Linux drivers, so its best to try a Live CD first.  

[CWALD]

Linux is Better for a great number of reasons. My top reason is that it uses a lot less resources then windows, This means that your 10year old laptop that can't run Windows 10 any more can still be used for everyday tasks just by opting for a different OS.

 

Linux has what are called distros. These are like flavours or types. Its kinda like if Microsoft was updating XP, 7, 8.1, and 10, all at the same time so that you could freely choose your favourite except there are hundreds of them. If your primary goal is gaming I would recommend trying Pop OS, its based on Ubuntu which is also a very popular choice and that is based on Debian which is fun if you know how to set up everything from scratch. Mint is also a popular choice as its desktop environment is a bit more like windows. Mint is also Debian based.

 

Playing games nowadays is easier then ever and constantly improving. With a distro that has all the prerequisites installed (like Pop OS) you can literally just install steam, install your game, and click play. If your game is not on Steam then it is likely on Lutris which is great for games on linux. Not all games are working this way, a big exception is games that use EasyAntiCheat such as Fortnight. Alternatively a ton of games don't have any extra dependencies because they can run natively in linux such as Minecraft, Civilisation, KSP, etc.....

[Bombastinator]

One way to differentiate the three major OSes is by learning curve.  The steeper the learning curve the higher the functionality once the curve has been climbed the better the view, but the bigger pita it is to climb the slope. MacOS has the shallowest curve. Windows is medium, and Linux is the sharpest.  The steeper the curve the more powerful the OS is at the end, and the more confusion there is at the beginning.  If you get to the top of the curve with Linux, yes, it is best.  Until you do though it can be a bear.   There have been various attempts to make Linux more Mac like.  Android is one.  Android is actually a Linux.  Ubuntu is another. Ubuntu retains all the Linux power under the hood, they just painted it up pretty. The result is a thing only a slightly greater pita to deal with than Windows, but if you want to dig into it you can.

Edited August 20, 2020 by Bombastinator

[Sandro Linux]

On 8/20/2020 at 11:48 AM, Quintavious V said:

Hey everyone! Im a windows user and have never used anything else but I keep on hearing about linux and I was like hey lets give it a shot! So i wanted to know

- How is linux better than windows?

- do I need a windows VM to game on linux? If so, how? (i have a laptop, 1060 6GB mobile, i7 8750H)

 

Thanks everyone

It is open source, is way more customizable, lets have deeper control of your system and is unix based. You will not need a windows vm for most games 

[Bombastinator]

Linux is free, and can be made to run on older hardware, so upgrading a computer becomes “never”. 

The upside of Linux is you can get at all of it so it becomes fantastically customizable. There is no “we don’t let you mess with that.  You do it the way we tell you to”  If you know what you are doing you can do a lot more with it

 

the downside of Linux is you can get at all of it so it becomes fantastically customizable. There is no “we don’t let you mess with that.  You do it the way we tell you to”  If you don’t know what you’re doing you can mess things up really bad.

[KarsusTG]

On 8/20/2020 at 5:48 AM, Quintavious V said:

Hey everyone! Im a windows user and have never used anything else but I keep on hearing about linux and I was like hey lets give it a shot! So i wanted to know

- How is linux better than windows?

- do I need a windows VM to game on linux? If so, how? (i have a laptop, 1060 6GB mobile, i7 8750H)

 

Thanks everyone

Linux is not 'better' than windows.  It has strengths in some places windows is weak and weak in some places where windows is strong. 

 

There are four main reasons for you to be on linux, IMO.

1. You are a developer and don't want to deal with the headaches of windows.  Linux is simply waaay better for a developer if just for the stability alone.
2. You want more control of your own system.  Linux will give you complete control of everything, for better or worse.
3. You need a server are you are setting up a remote box for that purpose, this is where most linux boxes are in actuality.
4. You need to learn Linux for IT/job purposes (servers, development environments, etc) in which case jumping in with both feet would be my recommendation.

That laptop will struggle to push a robust vm, but you can easily download virtual box and play around with a few distro's to see what you like. 

 

Fedora is typically the goto for developers as CentOS and RedHat are what the commercial companies use, but all three of those use Wayland which isn't compatibly with Nvidia cards without a lot of tinkering and hoops.  Even then it is often up to chance. 

 

I typically recommend Mint / Ubuntu for someone just getting started.  I ran MX linux for many years on my desktop, but I don't recommend it for laptops, especially if you need to it actually be a laptop because it typically has terrible battery optimization. 

 

If you want to run Linux and still game, I HIGHLY recommend you delete windows from your computer all together and go with an ubuntu/mint derivative and just use a shadow service, or similar.  POP_OS can be great if your games are mostly supported by Linux, but the truth is Nvidia puts almost no effort into linux drivers, and that is even more true for their mobile drivers.  

[Mark Kaine]

On 8/29/2020 at 1:11 AM, KarsusTG said:

You are a developer and don't want to deal with the headaches of windows.  Linux is simply waaay better for a developer if just for the stability alone.

Keep reading stuff like this but I'm curious - so you can program a game that will run on Windows no issues only using "Linux" and whatever other programs you need to do the actual work (unity,unreal, your own engine,etc)?

 

 

Serious question, I guess it's possible on the other hand I always think"good luck with that lol" if I read this or similar comments.

 

 

OT: I already use Linux, it's called android, the only usable version of it (I don't like typing commands, I don't even like physical keyboards) my dream OS is android with *full* windows compatibility (drivers,apis,etc) as I think just as "Linux" the way windows is operated is hopelessly outdated (keyboard/ mouse/ security through obscurity/ etc)

[Beerzerker]

From personal experience Mint and Peppermint are two distros that are alot like Windows and has plenty of features you can use.
Both are easy to get started with if coming from Windows, like anything else it takes getting used to but worth it, esp for the price.

However know as some have already said there will be instances it won't work properly with certain hardware pieces, I'm running Peppermint ATM since Mint doesn't run my Radeon VII card, it defaults to CPU rendering mode but Peppermint picked it up and just ran with it.

I tried Ubuntu and although it's OK it's not really what I wanted - Since I'm not really "Linux savvy" it was a bit much to me.

[TheCoverUp]

1 hour ago, Mark Kaine said:

my dream OS is android with *full* windows compatibility

you almost described what google says chrome os is going to be in some time...... 

[reka]

On 8/20/2020 at 1:48 PM, Quintavious V said:

Hey everyone! Im a windows user and have never used anything else but I keep on hearing about linux and I was like hey lets give it a shot! So i wanted to know

- How is linux better than windows?

- do I need a windows VM to game on linux? If so, how? (i have a laptop, 1060 6GB mobile, i7 8750H)

 

Thanks everyone

Close to your specs, with 1050Ti being the only difference.

 

I wouldn't say switchable graphics work the best on Linux, in fact it's the only reason I dualboot between Win10 and Arch. Especially if you play any competitive games, or games with 3rd party AC like CSGO, you won't like it at all.

 

Apart from that, everyone has their own plus/minus on Linux. I love how it doesn't try to mine data out of me, open source nature is just great. It won't treat me like a 12 year old, and once you get used to terminal, it's just too good to switch back.

I tried CSGO on Arch, it wasn't really a nice experience - avg 80fps, while I get around 300 with the same settings on Windows. But, I've heard Pop!_OS does a great job on Linux gaming since 20.04 LTS, I've never tried it though.

 

[Nayr438]

4 hours ago, Mark Kaine said:

Keep reading stuff like this but I'm curious - so you can program a game that will run on Windows no issues only using "Linux" and whatever other programs you need to do the actual work (unity,unreal, your own engine,etc)?

I mean apart from unreal engine in your list, yes. We have compilers and cross-platform SDK's that allow us to compile for Windows, Linux MacOS, IOS, Android, etc...

As long as your targeting OpenGL or Vulkan, you can target any OS that supports it.

Also Unity has a native Linux build that supports cross compiling.

 

With that said, If your coming from something like Visual Studio, prepare for a massive learning curve.

[Mark Kaine]

3 hours ago, TheCoverUp said:

you almost described what google says chrome os is going to be in some time...... 

Yeah... I know...  (tho full windows compatibility?)

But is chrome OS really open like android? I mean the openness is obviously one of it's biggest strengths...

 

I'd really like trying out chrome OS, maybe I can install it on my laptop, that would be nice, the windows install on it is currently completely broken anyways, thanks to 2004 update!

[Mark Kaine]

4 minutes ago, Nayr438 said:

I mean apart from unreal engine in your list, yes. We have compilers and cross-platform SDK's that allow us to compile for Windows, Linux MacOS, IOS, Android, etc...

As long as your targeting OpenGL or Vulkan, you can target any OS that supports it.

Also Unity has a native Linux build that supports cross compiling.

 

With that said, If your coming from something like Visual Studio, prepare for a massive learning curve.

Ah, I see kinda figured it's mostly a compiling thing, thanks for the explanation!

[TheCoverUp]

11 hours ago, Mark Kaine said:

tho full windows compatibility?

yes in some time or you could do it now with qemu and online guides..

 

[TheCoverUp]

19 hours ago, Mark Kaine said:

I'd really like trying out chrome OS

I had written a guide for that using brunch..

[Nayr438]

23 hours ago, Mark Kaine said:

Yeah... I know...  (tho full windows compatibility?)

I don't know where this person gets that idea.  ChromeOS has more support than normal Linux Distributions, So I could see developers potentially targeting it.

Any windows support however will come from Wine, same as Linux.

 

12 hours ago, TheCoverUp said:

yes in some time or you could do it now with qemu and online guides..

If your using qemu, your not adding compatibility. Your adding a emulation layer, which is no different than using something like VirtualBox or VMWare.

The closest thing to running Windows applications on Linux comes from Wine, which is a translation layer.

[TheCoverUp]

15 minutes ago, Nayr438 said:

If your using qemu, your not adding compatibility. Your adding a emulation layer, which is no different than using something like VirtualBox or VMWare.

The closest thing to running Windows applications on Linux comes from Wine, which is a translation layer.

you know how chrome os works right? chrome os is basically just linux kernel and a browser. the android support is through a stripped down version of android in a container and there is linux app support as there is a stripped down version of debian running in a container in a virtual machine called termina. thats how chrome os works. and that's mostly going to be how windows apps are going to work too in the future but for nowthe first way it is going to roll out is a complete installation using something called parallels desktop.chrome os has always used virtual machines and now even the android apps are going to use virtual machines in the near future. 

 

27 minutes ago, Nayr438 said:

I don't know where this person gets that idea.  ChromeOS has more support than normal Linux Distributions, So I could see developers potentially targeting it.

Any windows support however will come from Wine, same as Linux.

It is going to happen ..... thats where he gets his ideas.....you can see how windows support is giong to happen here but for now It is only for the enterprise

[Nayr438]

2 minutes ago, TheCoverUp said:

you know how chrome os works right? chrome os is basically just linux kernel and a browser. the android support is through a stripped down version of android in a container and there is linux app support as there is a stripped down version of debian running in a container in a virtual machine called termina. thats how chrome os works. and that's mostly going to be how windows apps are going to work too in the future but for nowthe first way it is going to roll out is a complete installation using something called parallels desktop.chrome os has always used virtual machines and now even the android apps are going to use virtual machines in the near future. 

 

It is going to happen ..... thats where he gets his ideas.....you can see how windows support is giong to happen here but for now It is only for the enterprise

I don't know how ChromeOS works and I personally don't care. My point is still valid however, Its running through a Virtual Machine. So it's not Native support, its a emulated environment.

ChromeOS also can't ship a stripped down version of Windows without Microsoft agreeing to it. Somehow I find this very unlikely.

So no If there is any Windows support, it will more than likely be through Wine, which on its own brings legal problems.

[TheCoverUp]

and one more thing It isn't a normal linux distribution.....It is made to run on specific hardware only and if you want to install it on your pc you have to use the chromefy script or brunch.....to use on every other pc you have to use chromium os based oses...

 

[TheCoverUp]

1 minute ago, Nayr438 said:

I don't know how ChromeOS works and I personally don't care. My point is still valid however, Its running through a Virtual Machine. So it's not Native support, its a emulated environment.

ChromeOS also can't ship a stripped down version of Windows without Microsoft agreeing to it. Somehow I find this very unlikely.

So no If there is any Windows support, it will more than likely be through Wine, which on its own brings legal problems.

nope definitely never wine .... you really think google is going to be ready to do that? It will maybe create a new solution by itself but never in a million years do I think google will start using wine.

 

[Nayr438]

4 minutes ago, TheCoverUp said:

nope definitely never wine .... you really think google is going to be ready to do that? It will maybe create a new solution by itself but never in a million years do I think google will start using wine.

Yes, they have already been working with Valve to make sure Proton works in there Linux environment. Steam is also supposed to be coming as a native ChromeOS App at some point with Proton support still baked in. Proton is nothing more than a pre-configured Wine environment.

[Donut417]

5 minutes ago, Nayr438 said:

Steam is also supposed to be coming as a native ChromeOS App at some point with Proton support

Why? Chromebook have little to like no storage. Unless the option to Stream from a gaming PC on the network is the solution.