# If you're even thinking



## Ringel05 (Dec 18, 2018)

About leaving Windows behind this video should help you out.  This is Linux Mint 19 (Cinnamon), the video shows just how similar it is to Windows and how easy it is to migrate to Linux, how modern, stable and user friendly Linux Mint is.  
Note: the video narrator goes into more depth towards the end of the video using simple commands in Terminal to make some changes, despite his claim that you will have to occasionally use Terminal none of that is necessary unless you want to learn it.  He's just an example of how techies forget what it's like to be a non-techie.......


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## Marion Morrison (Dec 18, 2018)

Ringel05 said:


> About leaving Windows behind this video should help you out.  This is Linux Mint 19 (Cinnamon), the video shows just how similar it is to Windows and how easy it is to migrate to Linux, how modern, stable and user friendly Linux Mint is.
> Note: the video narrator goes into more depth towards the end of the video using simple commands in Terminal to make some changes, despite his claim that you will have to occasionally use Terminal none of that is necessary unless you want to learn it.  He's just an example of how techies forget what it's like to be a non-techie.......



It's minty-fresh!

(To cover up the hacking up of tarballs)

I'm just kidding people. It's a stable and very user-friendly OS. For all I know, could be the easiest one to go to if you want to ditch Windows.

Me, I'm a nerd, and it's too simple for me. I've been entrenched in the more terminal stuff for a while now.

I started with Ubuntu, which is quite Mint-y actually.


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## Montrovant (Dec 18, 2018)

Windows is still the way for gaming.  Linux just has too many issues.

I actually have other problems with Linux Mint, too.  There are sometimes browser issues as well as video playback problems.  I haven't tried Mint 19, though.

Of course, being free helps offset that.


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## Marion Morrison (Dec 18, 2018)

Ringel05 said:


> About leaving Windows behind this video should help you out.  This is Linux Mint 19 (Cinnamon), the video shows just how similar it is to Windows and how easy it is to migrate to Linux, how modern, stable and user friendly Linux Mint is.
> Note: the video narrator goes into more depth towards the end of the video using simple commands in Terminal to make some changes, despite his claim that you will have to occasionally use Terminal none of that is necessary unless you want to learn it.  He's just an example of how techies forget what it's like to be a non-techie.......



Which desktop do you recommend? Picking your desktop in Linux is very important. It pretty much is the whole experience.


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## Marion Morrison (Dec 18, 2018)

Montrovant said:


> Windows is still the way for gaming.  Linux just has too many issues.
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> I actually have other problems with Linux Mint, too.  There are sometimes browser issues as well as video playback problems.  I haven't tried Mint 19, though.
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> Of course, being free helps offset that.


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## Marion Morrison (Dec 18, 2018)

For internet browsing and email and stuff? I'd highly recommend Linux. It's very secure. You can harden your kernel fairly easily and other assorted tricks to make it even moreso if you so choose.

Not much need to worry about browser-jacker sites either. They just don't work on Linux.

Pop-Ups on Linux? Pfft. Lemme knock on this here desk, never had any.


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## Ringel05 (Dec 18, 2018)

Marion Morrison said:


> Ringel05 said:
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> > About leaving Windows behind this video should help you out.  This is Linux Mint 19 (Cinnamon), the video shows just how similar it is to Windows and how easy it is to migrate to Linux, how modern, stable and user friendly Linux Mint is.
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I use Kubuntu, it's more configurable besides I like the Plasma Application Dashboard over the traditional "Start" Menu.  I also use Terminal more for certain things like update/upgrade, it's faster than using the graphical interface.


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## Ringel05 (Dec 18, 2018)

Montrovant said:


> Windows is still the way for gaming.  Linux just has too many issues.
> 
> I actually have other problems with Linux Mint, too.  There are sometimes browser issues as well as video playback problems.  I haven't tried Mint 19, though.
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> Of course, being free helps offset that.


If you use ever Chrome or Chromium you need Peppermint Flash to watch videos.  It's in the Software Repository.  I've never had browser or playback issues with any browser I've used except with Chromium and certain sites (Amazon Video, Comcast)


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## Montrovant (Dec 18, 2018)

Ringel05 said:


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The Firefox I use on Mint occasionally has issues.  And VLC doesn't always work well in Mint for me.  I believe both use different versions in Mint than in Windows, although I'm not 100% sure of that.


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## Ringel05 (Dec 18, 2018)

Montrovant said:


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VLC is very, very, very sensitive meaning your CDs/DVDs need to be super clean.  Warm water and dish soap, rinse the disc first than using your fingers rub the disc with soap to get off stubborn grime.


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## Ringel05 (Dec 18, 2018)

Marion Morrison said:


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New _Steam Play_ that allows people to play many Windows games on Linux.  

How to Play Windows-only Games on Linux with Steam Play - It's FOSS

Make sure Steam is updated then follow the instructions.  Trying it out now.


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## Marion Morrison (Dec 18, 2018)

Ringel05 said:


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I haven't used Steam since Half-Life 2.


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## Marion Morrison (Dec 18, 2018)

Ringel05 said:


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That's KDE Ubuntu. You should explain the different desktops to people.


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## Ringel05 (Dec 18, 2018)

Marion Morrison said:


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Only if they're interested which is why I'm currently focusing on Mint for Windows users, don't want to confuse people who are unfamiliar with the fact Linux has multiple distributions to choose from.  Think; "typical user"........
Oh and I know it's KDE.


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## Marion Morrison (Dec 18, 2018)

Ringel05 said:


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I doubt anything would be against the rules if you provided a link.. Do NOT quote me on that.

It's a free, secure  OS that doesn't track your every move. 


Probably around 15% functionality may be lost unless you really need those niche programs.

Web, email, forums, business: Usually no problem.


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## iamwhatiseem (Dec 18, 2018)

Montrovant said:


> Windows is still the way for gaming.  Linux just has too many issues.
> 
> I actually have other problems with Linux Mint, too.  There are sometimes browser issues as well as video playback problems.  I haven't tried Mint 19, though.
> 
> Of course, being free helps offset that.



"Linux has too many issues to be a gaming computer"..... just sayin...The Steam Machine is Linux.
It isn't Linux per say that has the problem, it is that there just isn't any real reason for developers on both sides (game makers and linux) to develop a proper foundation for it. Yet.
 Linux would make an ideal game machine, due to it's much less demand of memory, and he ability to process 1's and 0's faster with less resources than Windows.
 Not to mention Linux's proven CGI capabilities over Microsoft... (all Pixar movies are produced with Linux)
  Linus has the muscle and the speed to be better than MS at gaming. But besides Steam, no one has yet gave it a proper go.


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## Ringel05 (Dec 18, 2018)

Linux Mint 19 download.  There are three different versions, most Windows users will want Cinnamon 64bit unless you have a very, very old computer. 

Download - Linux Mint

Burning the download to a thumb drive (USB Stick) is simple;

Create the bootable media — Linux Mint Installation Guide  documentation

Installing or trying it on Win10 is relatively easy, first click on:
Settings
Recovery
Advanced Startup
Use a Device
EFI USB Device

Once you click on the EFI USB Device it will automatically reboot from the USB stick.


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## Ringel05 (Dec 18, 2018)

Marion Morrison said:


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I still use it on occasion, more so now that I may be able to play many of my Windows games via Steam on Linux.


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## Ringel05 (Dec 18, 2018)

iamwhatiseem said:


> Montrovant said:
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How to Play Windows-only Games on Linux with Steam Play - It's FOSS


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## Montrovant (Dec 18, 2018)

iamwhatiseem said:


> Montrovant said:
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I don't blame Linux for the problems with games, but it is the current reality.  I've had plenty of issues trying to play games on Linux, eventually I just gave up and stuck with Windows for games.  There simply aren't enough Linux users for game companies/distributors to see it as financially viable to make Linux versions.


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## iamwhatiseem (Dec 18, 2018)

Ringel05 said:


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I have done that actually. My son has Steam. So I installed it on my Mint laptop and have played several games. Not all of them work, especially the heavy-graphic games. But quite a few do work and work well.


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## iamwhatiseem (Dec 18, 2018)

Montrovant said:


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  There was a company that gave a good try to build Linux Games...trying to remember the name of the company... I had several of their games and they were great. (Keep in mind this was prolly 10 years ago). Railroad Tycoon was one of them. Civilization was another. The company of course went out of business.


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## Montrovant (Dec 18, 2018)

iamwhatiseem said:


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The Civilization games are still being made.  Probably with a different company.  I have one of them on Steam (I think it's III) but haven't tried it yet.  I've got so many games sitting around in Steam (and GOG, and Origin, and Ubisoft, and Twitch) I have yet to play, I don't know why I bother ever buying any.


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## Ringel05 (Dec 19, 2018)

Where's Blie?  We need a dissenting voice, someone to tell everyone how bad Linux is.........


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## Montrovant (Dec 19, 2018)

Ringel05 said:


> Where's Blie?  We need a dissenting voice, someone to tell everyone how bad Linux is.........



I think the Linux distros I've tried are bad for the average casual computer user, if that helps.


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## Ringel05 (Dec 19, 2018)

Montrovant said:


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Generally it's not the distro's fault but the fault of the hardware manufacturer.  It's not the OS programmer's responsibility to write drivers for every piece of hardware in existence, it's the vendor's responsibility.  Heck even Microsoft doesn't write drivers for everything.  Other than a couple of printers that weren't HP I've never had an issue with Mint or Ubuntu.  
One other issue is many of the "store" brands (Cheap Walmart computers, etc) have hardware that is specific for Windows and nothing one does can get Linux or any other OS to work properly on it. 
Generally the most compatible brands are Lenovo, Dell, Acer and many HPs.  Brand new (with Win 10 installed) could pose a problem due to the newer hardware and specific drivers that Linux programmers haven't caught up with yet but again that's more often brand specific.


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## Montrovant (Dec 19, 2018)

Ringel05 said:


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Yeah, I'm not saying Linux is bad, but there are compatibility issues that I don't think the average user would be willing/able to find fixes for.  I've spent many hours trying to find answers to various issues with Linux, mostly involving compatibility, but I doubt most people would be willing to do the same.  It doesn't help that there are so many Linux distros, making potential help more diluted.  Also, too often Linux users seem to expect a decent amount of knowledge when giving answers to questions, which won't help a former Windows or Mac user with little computer savvy.  Well, there are also too many Linux users that seem to have a stick up their asses about how much better they are for not using Windows or Mac.


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## iamwhatiseem (Dec 20, 2018)

Montrovant said:


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It all depends on the user.
To the average user... email, internet browsing and social media - Linux will never give them a problem.
My 82 year old Mother has been using Mint for over 10 years on two different PC's. No issues.
But if you have lots of peripherals - you are going to have to do some digging.
And BTW - most of the hardware you are talking about - itself runs on *nix.


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## Montrovant (Dec 20, 2018)

iamwhatiseem said:


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I wasn't talking about hardware.  

There are often software compatibility issues with Linux.  Games is the example I'm most familiar with, but it's certainly not the only one.  

It does depend on what the user wants to do on the computer.


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## there4eyeM (Dec 20, 2018)

In a small, low powered with W7, would you recommend installing "mint" to replace the os, or always boot from a key?


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## iamwhatiseem (Dec 20, 2018)

there4eyeM said:


> In a small, low powered with W7, would you recommend installing "mint" to replace the os, or always boot from a key?


Personally, I would boot from the USB and try it out and see if you like it.
After that I would install it to dual boot, where you choose which OS you want to boot up. That is easy to do with Win 7 and there are numerous follow along youtube tutorials step by step.
That way you still have all of your Windows stuff anytime you want it


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## Montrovant (Dec 20, 2018)

iamwhatiseem said:


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Just remember to keep your hard drive space in mind when you create a dual boot!  It's very annoying when you find one or the other boot partitions is too small.


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## iamwhatiseem (Dec 20, 2018)

Montrovant said:


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Nah... that's just for people who have 170 hours of 1080p porn on their machines.


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## Montrovant (Dec 20, 2018)

iamwhatiseem said:


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## Archit Roy (Apr 17, 2019)

We all know that Linux/Linux Mint is very great for codding and simple work, I also recommend this platform for these purposes but never forget that Linux is not for gaming, we cannot do that type of gaming which we can do in windows.


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## Marion Morrison (Apr 17, 2019)

iamwhatiseem said:


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I don't dual boot anymore. Install OS to entire USB or SSD and use platter drives for storage.

For a small, low-powered machine, I'd recommend Lubuntu.


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## Natural Citizen (Apr 17, 2019)

I'm thinking about GNU on my old Getac. The problem is that I just don't trust the intel processor in it, I never was able to get a patch for it.  Unsupported, apparently, that's the main reason I stopped using windows,and android, too many computer manufacturers don't support their hardware after a few years, it's ridiculous.

That intel processor pretty much left a back door on the users, millions of them, pretty much every computer using the processors.

I've been using apple products ever since, a least they resolve those problems.  Thogh, I donlt particularly care for Mac. I mean, even a screnshot, you have to push three diferent keys, how stupid is that. Andpicture viewing is romper roomish as heck, you cant even flip through your photos without pushing a series of keys, it's amateur.


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## Marion Morrison (Apr 17, 2019)

Natural Citizen said:


> I'm thinking about GNU on my old Getac. The problem is that I just don't trust the intel processor in it, I never was able to get a patch for it.  Unsuported, apparently, that's the main reason I stopped using windows, too many computer manufacturers don't support their hardware after a few years, it's ridiculous.
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> That intel processor pretty much left a back door on the users, millions of them, pretty much every computer using the processors.



Bah, the patch robs you of CPU power. Forget the patch. I ran those things for years with no problems like that.

PS: What's a "Getac"?


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## Natural Citizen (Apr 17, 2019)

Marion Morrison said:


> Bah, the patch robs you of CPU power. Forget the patch. I ran those things for years with no problems like that.



That you know of. How would you even know if the flaw in the procesor that left the backdoor open to bypas your security was even being maniplated?  It's a big risk.


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## Marion Morrison (Apr 17, 2019)

Montrovant said:


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I got real lucky and had an A1 tutor for Linux.

Ended up not using the same distro or desktop he does, I love this install, everything worked right out of the box.

Yeah, the newer one is NOT like that.

Damn shame..I can't even repeat it with a fresh install because all the updates that I got are gone now. I can clone it, though.

Wish I hadn't said that. Now I want to strip a cloned one down of all the accumulated junk and clone it.


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## Bleipriester (Apr 20, 2019)

Ringel05 said:


> About leaving Windows behind this video should help you out.  This is Linux Mint 19 (Cinnamon), the video shows just how similar it is to Windows and how easy it is to migrate to Linux, how modern, stable and user friendly Linux Mint is.
> Note: the video narrator goes into more depth towards the end of the video using simple commands in Terminal to make some changes, despite his claim that you will have to occasionally use Terminal none of that is necessary unless you want to learn it.  He's just an example of how techies forget what it's like to be a non-techie.......


He also forgets you can throw all your Windows programs away.


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## Ringel05 (Apr 20, 2019)

Bleipriester said:


> Ringel05 said:
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You must have missed my opening sentence........ 
"About leaving Windows behind"

An intelligent person would have understood........


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## Bleipriester (Apr 20, 2019)

Ringel05 said:


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And that´s the entire point.


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## Ringel05 (Apr 20, 2019)

Bleipriester said:


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Okay.......  You figured that out all on your own or did you have help?


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## Bleipriester (Apr 20, 2019)

Ringel05 said:


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You didn´t understand. Mint is certainly a decent OS. But if he lacked it, if he only had Freedos, he would use it to avoid Windows.


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## Ringel05 (Apr 20, 2019)

Bleipriester said:


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Okay.  Kinda like stating the obvious though.....


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## Bleipriester (Apr 20, 2019)

Ringel05 said:


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Yeah. But is it a point? I don´t think so.


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