Posts by therobyouknow

Linux Deepin 23: A polished distro from China that Western desktops could learn from

Re: Looks good but

> but it's just another Ubuntu remix, but one whose premium edition costs money.

True. I'm happy to reward those who have put in the time to curate a working solution, in my case fully functional touch screen support, good looking, European, Linux with my x86 Tablet PC. I'm all for open source projects and volunteer run projects - I run several myself out of the enjoyment of altrusim,community and intellectual challenge. But I'm also not against someone forming some form of standard, curating it, and marketing it well as is the case of Zorin. Linux needs that. Some Linux fans seem to overate the virtue of people working out their own solutions; not every wants to do that, or invest the time or indeed is technically inclined. Why shouldn't Linux work well for non-technical folk. You want the year that Linux becomes mainstream Desktop?

I've looked at several other distros and quite frankly they are crap for a polished touchscreen x86 full functionality:

- touch screen doesn't work is broken without means in the settings to correct it.

- styling is dated, bad taste

- styling is superficial

- UI oddities like 2 on/off buttons one for standby, looking at you, Mint.

Re: Looks good but

> > Answer: Zorin OS. Which is not a version of Deepin, but rather its own OS.

> No it isn't. It's a very elderly version of Ubuntu with a bunch of GNOME extensions pre-loaded, and about 20GB of freeware preloaded as Flatpaks.

Yes you're right of course. What I meant by "its own OS" was that it wasn't derived from DeepIn nor related to it.

> It's not bad. It's pretty, it works -- arguably better than plain GNOME -- but it's just another Ubuntu remix, but one whose premium edition costs money.

It works very well for my specific real-life scenario: "extend the useful life of a x86 touchscreen tablet PC that doesn't official support Windows 11, with full touchscreen functionality and with the ability to use common apps.". Result: All boxes ticked, superb machine Panasonic FZ-G1 MkIII : like a iPad with built-in ruggedness with much more capability and flexibility. Battery could be better though. On Zorin (Linux) Less than 2GB RAM in use compared to Windows ~3.9Gb out of the machine's 4Gb. Fan runs quieter too.

That to me is how I view any Linux or any software: what can I apply it to, use it for, in terms of a real life useful scenario.

Whether or not it has Gnome, this version or that, Wayland, K this, G that or flatpak, snap etc or whatever under the bonnet is only important to me to focus on getting that real life use case working, not the virtues of these things for their own sake.

Re: Wrong: "A polished distro from China that Western desktops could learn from" - why? Zorin OS Pro

"I tried zorn honestly I take exception with it mostly because they charge and what is get is mostly free stuff and a experience that could be better on a free distro."

I get that, because they charge, which some aren't going to like ideologically. But I also feel they should be rewarded for their work developing and curating a polished-but-still-highly-functional operating system, because maintaining a distribution or any open source project requires time and effort.. One which works very well for touchscreen x86 tablet PCs, like my Panasonic FZ-G1 MkIII.

Zorin offer a free version as well. I'm not 100% sure, but believe Zorin OS Pro can be user-built for free.

Moreover paying is going to happen somewhere along the line: for the hardware itself and in several cases - the software - the OS - Zorin OS Pro, or Windows license and some apps. Some are not willing to pay for an OS, so why are they willing to pay for the hardware?

The difference to me is the business practice and ethics around that payment. With Microsoft there are privacy and security concerns, as well hardware support. Not so it would appear with Zorin - and it's still Linux underneath.

I think Linux on the desktop needs some kind of commercial input, through Zorin and Ubuntu, which incentivise polished-but-function systems. Why do we have to excuse ourselves for half-baked rough round the edges experiences, just because it's Linux? Many of the other Linux distros are, frankly, poor in UI. In those UI is just superficial variation, people in gaming chairs getting excited about a style of window manager to my mind. What's with the funny extra sideways on/off button on Mint? Most of them I've tried and they are woefully poor with touchscreens, unlike Zorin which works very well on touchscreen (with a few one-off tweaks).

But I get the concern about paying. Some so-called open source projects, they are really vauxpen open source. I would side with those wary of payment when it comes to things that call themselves open source DevOps, frameworks, libraries but aren't. If I look at those kind of projects and it's supported by one vendor and their website page has "Pricing", then I'm hesitant.

But for an OS, no, I'm less hardline when it comes to paying. I paid for the hardware and I see the OS as part of that so I'm more open to paying for someone who has done a good job there. But at the same time I'm a big believer in open source projects supported by diverse foundations, like Linux, Apache, js.org etc.

Re: Looks good but

"It would be nice to see a nice European version of the same as it definitely looks very nice."

Answer: Zorin OS. Which is not a version of Deepin, but rather its own OS.

"Zorin OS is the alternative to Windows and macOS designed to make your computer faster, more powerful, secure, and privacy-respecting." - https://zorin.com/os/

Zorin OS Pro has additional themes resembling, macOS and Windows.

Re: Wrong: "A polished distro from China that Western desktops could learn from" - why? Zorin OS Pro

"Excellent - one question: how does it fare with snap application upgrades? I notice that flatpack and snap are both enabled as is appimage and wine for windows apps. Quite a zoo of things to manage during upgrades."

One for the https://forum.zorin.com/

Friendly forum, including to newcomers. Their collective knowledge would be among the best places to ask your question. And when I come across your observations, I'll certainly join in on finding out about solutions.

I'm looking into upgrading from Zorin OS Pro 16 to 17 and ensuring my device works the same. Some initial self-inflicted glitches that I'm ironing out and I'll post my experiences on that forum.

Wrong: "A polished distro from China that Western desktops could learn from" - why? Zorin OS Pro

Deepin? Not all "Western desktops" need to learn from it.

See: Zorin OS Pro. "Western Desktop" - from Ireland. Very polished. Works beautifully on tablet PCs too.

No affiliation, incentive or referal benefit to me. A happy (one-off) paid user of Zorin OS.

Switzerland to end 2024 with an analog FM broadcast-killing bang

Re: Digital AM - Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) - can't censor radio like internet

Yes, it DRM hasn't taken off.

Among reasons suggested here, I'd say there's another: commercial incentive/pressure.

Just imagine, a community radio setting up a low power digital AM transmitter (DRM), the range would be much further than they would get with FM (where they are restricted by Ofcom in terms of tranmission power). Shrewd community stations get planning permission to plonk their antennas on top of tall buildings in their community. Shrewd stations, also apply for a license in an area where there is high population density. Both of these maximise audience.

But is over the air still relevant today, with good bandwidth internet on mobile meaning radio has converged with mobile? (another example of convergence of computing with telephony). I'd say it could be relevant today, particularly vast continents in Asia and Africa where internet coverage may not be continuous. Also the censorship reason. But also, unless there's another application for the AM bands (SW, MW, LW) then why not use it for this. DVB/DTV Digital Television over the air will be phased out so I understand, as Freely takes hold. That spectrum is potentially lucrative for mobile network band expansion. AM band? Not aware of other potential uses, so why not modernise with DRM.

Digital AM - Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) - can't censor radio like internet

I really wish Digital Radio Mondiale was supported by more widely known manufacturers and broadcasters.

Being AM, it can be long range.

Modern codecs mean that decent quality audio can be achieved over really small bitrates. If using the Opus audio format it's license free.

Being original radio over the airwaves, it cannot be censored like the internet can. Something to consider with current conflicts around the world.

There are some "pirate" radio stations like Radio Caroline that have invested in increasing their coverage over AM: https://www.redtech.pro/radio-caroline-increases-coverage/

Instead I would have thought they should be promoting Digital Radio Mondiale, perhaps a partnership with Raspberry Pi / supporting vendors to provide a DRM HAT module to make the receivers abundantly available.

Apple lifts the sheet on a trio of 'scary fast' M3 SoCs built on a 3nm process

Re:Screw Zorin (with apologies).

+1 thank you for reminding me of that option with the open core. I'll look at that when the time comes too!

Linux is twice as efficient in memory than windows I've found.

8Gb works fine on my MacBook Air 2015 11". When support for macOS Monteray runs out end of 2024 (I think), I'll be putting Zorin OS Pro Linux on it. It's a dinky, tidy little machine for some web dev and general purpose. Fingers crossed there will be driver support for it for when I do put that Linux on it though.

Success with Zorin OS already experienced by me on a Windows tablet: 2gb out of 4gb RAM in use with Zorin OS Pro, compared to Windows 10 Pro 64bit on same machine using about 3.5Gb out of the 4gb RAM. Panasonic Toughpad FZ-G1 MkIII. Nearly twice as efficient in Linux then. Everything works well now on Zorin - touch screen, pinch to zoom, brightness controls - after a bit of research on their forums. I'm sure getting my money's worth out of this one, hopefully well after Windows 10 expires in 2025. It's a rugged machine, great for general use, fan whines like a mosquito but nice apart from that.

Zorin OS Pro is perhaps the most clean, tidy good looking Linuxes out there. None of this weird off/on and standby buttons, or rough edged iconography, everything is bright clean and simple.

No affiliation, incentive or referral to me.

I have 24Gb and 32Gb machines too, but love to get the most out of my older hardware for when I don't fancy taking the more valuable stuff around some places.

And for when those earlier M silicon macs fall out of macOS support in years to come, there's Asahi Linux. Though Apple can do a good job supporting hardware. MacBookAir case in point - mine came out 2015, Monrteray apparently support ends in 2024 - 9 years.

Need a decent dining spot in Ottawa? Microsoft suggested a food bank

The Elgin Street Diner in Ottawa

is the best place to go.

It has been going for years. I knew it when I worked at Nortel over there in the late 1990s.

A Nortel colleague enthused: it never closes! Not even at Christmas, apparently. It runs 24 hours.

The kind of place you could have a Chicken Shop-date style atmosphere along the lines that Amelia Dimoldenberg does with interesting guests on YouTube. Very cool. I would definitely recommend. Rave reviews. Long may it continue.

(no affiliation, incentive or referral. Just wanted to bring this to your attention).

After giving us .zip, Google Domains to shut down, will be flogged off to Squarespace

That's a shame.

Google Domains are a bit more keenly priced. But with the sale to Squarespace I'm concerned about the 12 months price honouring.

I'll stick with joker.com for domains, they've been going for over 20 years.

No affiliation.

BT is ditching workers faster than your internet connection with 55,000 for chop by 2030

Re: "AI to take over in customer services"

Really brilliantly wrritten down to earth covering all bases comment. Thank you!

Mozilla says 80 percent of Google Play's app safety labels are inaccurate

Google drive permissions are too wide and coarse. Fixing those would solve a lot.

For example for an ebook reader app to access books on your Google Drive, the only option available is to modify/delete all your files as well as just read access.

I've raised this issue here.

https://issuetracker.google.com/issues/204692011

Apple's M2 MacBook Pros, Mac Mini boast more cores, higher clocks and bigger GPUs

Re: Yeah, thanks for pointing that out. As a heads up to everbody else.

Indeed and thank you.

Successes so far though:

I've been lucky with my Windows 10 Pro 64bit desktop: I have a Startech USB32HDPRO USB to HDMI which I have attached a 3rd 1080p monitor to. This works when the same machine is booted into Ubuntu 20.04 and was used a lot with that, using DisplayLink linux drivers. Now more recently on 22.04 and works on that but need to use it for a bit longer to check for glitches. Running off a USB 3 hub.

Also using 2 USB32HDPROs on a Dell 7220 tablet running Windows 11 to give me 2 additional external displays on top of the 1st external one via the USB-C. Running off a USB 3 hub.

And on a Dell Latitude 5491 for 1 additional displays in addition to 2 via machine's hdmi and usbc port - that with usbc to hdmi adapter.

And further back I have used the USB32HDPROs with a 2015 11inch 8gb i7 MacBookAir to add 2 external displays in addition to one via the machine's thunderbolt 2 port. Running off USB 3 hub.

My hope would be when the time comes to get perhaps an Air that I can reuse these USB32HDPROs on that, DisplayLinks Apple Silicon driver. The USB32HDPRO device is DisplayLink certified and one of the beefiest I think in terms of its own internal graphics hardware and video RAM. So these coupled with the positive reddit reports is encouraging. No affiliation by me I should add!

A 15 inch MacBookPro 2016 I have has 4 thunderbolt 3 ports and I've used three of these to drive 3 external displays via 3 of Apples own thunderbolt to HDMI adapter, so I wonder if these would work with Apple Silicon Macs too.

So with all our comments there's a fair bit of success and potential success along with some difficulties which is all the more informative for future purchase decisions. Thanks!

Extra monitors possible with Certified DisplayLink USB to HDMI from Sonnetech and Startech

This perhaps more useful for the lower end Mac Book Pros and Air.

Sources - Sonnetech's own website and reddit.

Though there will be some overhead of these addons in terms of memory and cpu. So I suppose going for the higher RAM selection is worth considering.

There may be limitations and glitches too, worth studying DisplayLink Apple Silicon driver release notes.

Bringing the first native OS for Arm back from the brink

Heartwarming still going. Props to enthusiasts. Dave Allison multithreading, C++. Sibelius.

When x86 PC adoption accelerated while Acorn became no more, it was sad for RISC OS.

I remember discussions on comp.acorn newsgroups. Newsgroups/usenet were the original social media AND decentrantralised. Mastodon et al is usenet 2.0, a progression of that.

Despite that decline, enthusiasts kept it going, as your article links to. And with the advent of the Raspberry Pi, bolstered this movement, though that is not the only modern ARM platform it can run on, so I've read.

It's not my daily main driver though. But long may that continue. Choice is good. And these days choice is a bit more recognised, with niche hardware such as ZX Spectrum Next, Commander 16. Add to this with more mainstream such as Android, iOS, Ubuntu capably doing jobs that Windows does.

Some challenges though: I read that it is still a single-core OS in that it doesn't take advantage of multi-core ARM chips.

Also the co-operative multitasking is not in keeping with pre-emptive multi-tasking operating systems which are the mainstream. Wonder where Dave Allison who worked at BT in Belfast is these days, I used EasyC++ which his brilliantly written GUI library. It actually had multithreading and a form of pre-emptiveness that sat on top of RISC OS, a mix of inline ARM assembly inside C++. His expertise could perhaps be used here in progressing RISC OS Kernel.

Porting the OS to C++ might also benefit from Dave Allison's expertise. Well, they did it with Sibelius music notation software, which was originally for the Acorn ARM series computers, Archimedes, Risc PC. It was a killer app for the platform. It was written in ARM assembly and got ported to mac and Windows, so wonder if the same could be done for RISC OS itself.

Nice smart device – how long does it get software updates?

Agree with many here. wish I was better at electronics, law, take on big guys, mini factories

If I was better at electronics, I would hack things to make them last longer. Repair things that went wrong. Much like Dave Murray 8 bit guy on YouTube restoration videos and others.

Wish I was better at law, because home grown gadgets and devices and hacked ones are technically feasible with the right skills (see above). But while there's a lot of skill and community support for the technical side, not so much for laws legislation that goes with such devices. We need to be masters of electronics and law.

Further to the above. I'd love to see mini factories making this stuff in every town and city. People producing the stuff, repairing,hacking making new things- as masters of electronics and law and any other discipline needed to make it happen.

Because right now, as the article suggests, and to echo many commentators on here, big corporations can suck with support, such a disappointing business model to get us to want to keep buying too soon.

In praise of MIDI, tech's hidden gift to humanity

Re: MIDIFS Korg M1 and Acorn Archimedes, Risc PC ARM computers

@heyrick I've started putting my ARM assembly code for MIDIFS here: https://github.com/therobyouknow/midifs

I'm working through my code archive so I'll be looking to add more code files as and when I come across them and understand what they are.

So far the file I've added appears to contain the algorithm for representing the data in 7bit form, from 8bit bytes as described.

Re: MIDIFS Korg M1 and Acorn Archimedes, Risc PC ARM computers

Thank you. I'll put the source on github.com/therobyouknow as soon as I can.

Would be interested in your C code for the module too!

Re: MIDIFS Korg M1 and Acorn Archimedes, Risc PC ARM computers

+1 upvote. True dat. Agree.

It needs to implement the RISCOS File System indirections/hooks/APIs. That's an approach to OO polymorphism.

MIDIFS Korg M1 and Acorn Archimedes, Risc PC ARM computers

I still have my Korg M1 Synthesizer after many many years.

As a synth, one could adjust the playback of its sound oscillators (PCM samples), using ADSR envelopes filters etc. These adjustments were stored as small records of parameters, often generally called "patches" on synthesizers. They weren't the PCM samples themselves, but settings that described how they were played, but more on that later!

I wrote a librarian tool to download and store these parameters records on a computer and to be able to send them back. Which meant I could make many more patches than the synth's memory could store.

I used the M1's MIDI SysEx specification for data dumps and receives, in the manual to implement the program. A curious thing of SysEx is that the data itself could only occupy the 7 bits of each byte, not the top bit which was reserved for control bytes. So a routine to convert a fully 8 bit patch file to a string of bytes only using 7 bits was required of me to write.

I wrote the librarian in ARM2 assembly on an Acorn Archmedes A310, using RISC OS SWI system calls drive the MIDI interface podule I fitted connected to the Synth. The SWI calls were provided by a ROM containing a RISC OS module on the card itself. It worked fine, very rudimentary and was of great help to me when my Korg's battery used by the battery backed RAM storing the patches, needed replacing. I could dump back the whole factory set of patches, combi patchs and songs.

I'll put it on my github, therobyouknow at some point.

Later I worked on a GUI running in RISCOS where the Korg M1's memory was shown as a file system, each file being a patch and folders to group them too. I called the idea MIDIFS, following the RISC OS naming convention of using the prefix FS for any kind of file system like ADFS or RAMFS. I used EasyC++ which was a brilliantly written GUI library from Dave Allison who worked at BT in Belfast, which included some form of multithreading and pre-emptive multitasking, which was more advanced modern alternative to RISCOS's co-operative.

Interesting note for the Korg M1, it had a PCM card slot for factory made sample ROM cards. In 2018, WaveRex came out from a company called Synthastix. This is the exact same form factor as a regular PCM card and can be used standalone with the M1 like the usual factory made ones. BUT, you can connect it to a PC or Mac and with their app download your own samples to it, via USB, to then then use it standalone as said. It's actually a microcontroller with flash memory inside. Amazing innovation after more than 30 years since the M1 launched. No affiliation benefit or referral to me.

Zorin OS 16.2: Shapeshifting desktop to help the Linux-wary feel more at home

touch tablet PC support among the best

I find Zorin OS Pro works well on a touchscreen tablet. Minimal user experience (UX) rough edges IF the macOS/Apple like desktop theme and "Use system title bar and borders" in Chrome settings, if you are using Chrome. https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/mutter/-/issues/1603

Using that Apple/macOS like desktop theme means that the onscreen keyboard interferes miniminally app launcher so that apps that are filtered as you type in search will show mostly. With the other themes, either the keyboard or launcher in those is obscured by the other.

And for Chrome, enable that "Use system title bar and borders", so that you can drag Chrome windows around by the title pane. Otherwise the drag doesn't work.

It can be hit or miss with password entry to unlock screen and password entry to connect to a WiFi. The onscreen keyboard is available but typing doesn't always register in the password entry box. I haven't solved that and will contact Zorin.

Brightness controls don't work, again I'll contact Zorin.

But apart from that, among the best. My machine: a Panasonic FZ-G1 mkIII toughpad tablet PC, x86-64, 4Gb RAM, SSD.

I've already tried Mint, Elementary and Ubuntu. Mint had similar onscreen keyboard and launcher obscuring issues but didn't provide a theme that reduced these issues like Zorin does. Elementary was hopeless with the touch screen gestures: the settings for the number of fingers didn't match the actual. Ubuntu might fare better out of those 2 and closer to Zorin, with the Chrome setting but I moved on after some difficulties to Zorin and fixed the issues I could so far on that. Perhaps going back to Ubuntu to try these might have a positive outcome.

It's really great that Zorin is taking user experience (UX) / usablity really seriously with a Linux distribution. Rather than before that where maybe the usual thinking in the community is to make a virtue out of expecting people to fix it themselves and almost suggest that people are lazy for not wanting to tinker. If Linux is to have its year on the desktop (or tablet) then usablity does have to be taken seriously. Not half baked lip service: "it can do that a bit. But I'll go back to my gaming chair with it on a desktop and enthuse about various windows managers". Er, no actually. Expecting real life end use cases to just work is reasonable and benefits everyone. People have limited time and need that for getting real work done.

And tablet touchscreens with Linux is not a niche. Er, hello?! Apple, Android and Windows tablets show there is sizable market for such form factor. The 2 key benefits that a touchscreen enabled Linux like Zorin brings is that unlike Android, Apple and Windows support is not subject to their respective manufacturers. The other benefit, particularly compared to Apple and Android in particular is that running Linux enables the tablet to be a fully functional multipurpose machine. It can be used e.g. for dev work.

With older x86-64/amd64 touchscreen tablets not officially supported by Windows 11, the opportunity with Zorin OS Pro can be favourable for the above 2 reasons, as well as for the environment and the wallet.

Why I love my Chromebook: Reason 1, it's a Linux desktop

Re: You use GIMP?

pinta-project.com worth a look on Linux. Similar to the excellent Paint.NET bitmap drawing program/image editor. The easiest to use I would say.

Re: I'll be buying a Chromebook

Sorry to hear about these issues. But myself I've not seen these so much.

I have a Dell 7220 Rugged Tablet running Windows 11. 16gb 256Gb SSD quad core intel.

It's been pretty solid these last few months since owning it. I think there were a few glitches at the beginning about a few months ago when I started using it but no such issues since then. It doesn't like non-Dell hubs being plugged in on boot but I can cope with that.

I use it for dev work - Ubuntu WSL2 with ddev and xdebug, works as good as my mac and Ubuntu set ups.

That said, I really love Zorin OS Pro (based on Ubuntu, with 16.2 based on 22.04), which I run on another tablet x86-64 PC, a Panasonic FZ-G1 MkIII toughpad tablet. The best Linux experience I've had with a touchscreen tablet because minimal rough edges. There are a few niggles but overall it's actually usable as a touchscreen rather than a half-baked nod to it. Couple of tips: use the macOS/iPad theme provided and switch on "use title bar and borders" in chrome to be able to drag its windows around: https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/mutter/-/issues/1603#note_1530687 The brightness control doesn't work yet so the screen isn't as bright as it could be and I'll be raising an issue with Zorin to see if they can help or research it myself. But apart from that - good!

Zorin OS Pro is smashing! nice to be able to settle on something rather than make a virtue out of distro hopping which takes time away from getting real work done.

Juno offering Linux-powered tablet PC for pre-order

Re: Save money, buy a 2nd hand tablet PC & install Zorin OS Pro Linux with macOS style desktop.

That's great! +1

Do you get any text on the screen about it being Unsupported though? I read that somewhere. If not, that's great too!

Re: WHAT?

Yes I certainly agree that it could be done with an Android or iOS tablet for that end-use outdoor building site.

However 2 things that make a Linux touch PC distinct from those iOS or Android:

- the Linux touch PC is a general purpose device. For example, I have also used mine for programming and development. Though I reckon I could find some apps for Android or iOS that provide some kind of development environment but at the moment I wouldn't think that Android or iOS are the primary daily driver to develop on.

- much less obsolescene. iOS and Android devices are more exposed to support and software updates on their hardware stopping at some point, determined by their hardware manufacturers. Not so much the case with Linux: x86-64 is a major target platform on several distros as far as I can see. IA32/i386/32bit x86 still supported by some distros too. This support is helped by the relative fewer permutations of x86 hardware compared to many variations of ARM based platforms.

These are appealing for the environment, avoiding landfill, as well as the wallet, especially in current times.

Don't get me wrong, I appreciate and use all of these platforms very often. I also appreciate a single device that can have many uses.

Save money, buy a 2nd hand tablet PC & install Zorin OS Pro Linux with macOS style desktop.

With Linux, there aren't so much rigid hardware requirements as Windows 11, so the options for 2nd hand hardware is much wider. Save money, good for the planet, reduce e-waste, enjoy the intellectual challenge of setting it up AND get something genuinely useful for real life end-use cases.

Mine is a Panasonic FZ-G1 MkIII Toughpad x86-64 tablet PC and runs, as boot options, Windows 10 64bit or Zorin OS Pro Linux with macOS style desktop - the best touch experience I've seen so far with Linux on a touchpad. Minimal UX rough edges or missing functionality. With Windows 10 on the way out, the Linux option will extend its useful life. It runs quieter and uses less memory too.

I can do dev work on it, use it as a TV (iPlayer etc.) and its robustness means I can take it places where I won't be so worried about it getting damaged, because it's built well.

Re: WHAT?

Mine was great for going up scaffold on a building site, strapped to my arm.

For reading resident's comments on building works to relay them to the foreperson and chartered surveyor as we look at the work in progress.

It's a Panasonic FZ-G1 MkIII Toughpad x86-64 tablet PC and runs, as boot options, Windows 10 64bit or Zorin OS Pro Linux with macOS style desktop - the best touch experience I've seen so far with Linux on a touchpad. Minimal UX rough edges or missing functionality. With Windows 10 on the way out, the Linux option will extend its useful life. It runs quieter and uses less memory too.

Another practical real life end-use case would be ambulance workers, I've seen. They may use Panasonic or Getac perhaps.

You thought you bought software – all you bought was a lie

Re: switch to an OS OS

+1 Agree about the difficulties.

I help an older relative with their phone and have given Windows laptop tuition.

Teaching them is a gift. It shows me, as an IT professional, how rubbish the UX is on these *commercial* devices, let alone Linux. Things like: UX affordance is inconsistent, notifications screen crowded, navigation and sense of place within the phone not obvious and so on...

Computers have a long way to go for usability.

Re: Implicit in the article, but not explicitly stated:

+1 agree.

Sh*t name! GIMP! I mean FFS! G-this, K-that. Nerdy geeky name.

Difficult overrated program. I'm not one of its many fans it might be obvious to say. Leave them to it. Good for them.

Fortunately there are decent alternatives:

https://www.pinta-project.com/ - ALL desktop platforms - Linux Windows and Mac. This tool is in rude health, enjoying new developer contributions. And open source.

and https://getpaint.net/ - for Windows. Windows Store app of the year 2022. So easy to use.

Both free. But you can donate including through the Windows Store.

Both apps are similar and I think Pinta project draws on influence from getpaint.net

Also there's Serif Affinity Photo. No subscription. Windows and Mac. Much cheaper. Can work with PSD files.

Re: @Ian Johnston - Implicit in the article, but not explicitly stated:

Or use pinta-project.org (download) on Linux or mac, or the excellent paint.net (download from Windows store or from getpaint.net) on Windows. Both are related projects. Easy to use.

Why should people have to learn an unnecessarily difficult UI. Excuses because it's open source are wearing thin.

Re: It's a long article, but I've been using Linux since 2000 as a total replacement for Windows.

+1 upvote on finding an OS that works for you.

Or Zorin OS Pro Linux.

Zorin OS Pro Linux, is the most polished Linux I've ever used in terms of UX.

The macOs desktop style works best on my Panasonic FZ-G1 MkIII toughpad tablet x86-64 PC. Touch screen gestures work perfectly, pinch, flick to scroll. And provided you enable "Use system title bar and borders" in Chrome settings.https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/mutter/-/issues/1603#note_1530687 chrome windows can be dragged around normally.

I've taken this tablet PC strapped to my arm, several stories up on scaffolding on a building site to discuss snagging issues: there's a real life actual purposeful end-user use case for you. Zorin OS Pro (and Windows 10) both deliver in that scenario. I could not tolerate struggling with Linux quirks way up high on the outside of building.

And geeks discussing in their gaming chairs about which window manager or distro is better than the other is irrelevant to most people who are end users. The virtue of making people feel lazy that they don't "get into Linux" and tinker so it's their own fault doesn't cut it anymore. People have lives, kids, responsibilities so are time poor. A competent end-user ready OS out of the box is rightfully demanded.

So, thank you Zorin OS Pro. In light of Windows 10 EOL 2025, I'm warmly encouraged end user-friendly Linux distros like Zorin (and Ubuntu which works well also Mint if that floats your boat) will extend the life of hardware beyond that date and avoid a premature grave in landfill.

On Office suites. Agree, no need for Microsoft Office a lot of the time. I don't have it. LibreOffice works so well and backed by reputable Document Foundation, as Open Office backed by Apache also reputable. Not so sure about OnlyOffice, given it's apparent geographic origins (correct me if wrong) and particularly in current times. Also Google Docs works brilliantly for office docs and is the best in collaboration. Office 365 equivalent is clunky by comparison.

Re: Implicit in the article, but not explicitly stated:

Agree. Rule: if you can't easily get it out, don't put it in.

truth aggregation. Time v money. Subscription? ownership matter? books/music

Comment-bait indeed.

Impact of this article depends on all points being true, which they are I'd say. But pragmatic reality is they're not all true at the same time, for all software. When you see it like that, the impact of the article falls apart.

Time and money are interchangeable; one pays money to save time or spends time to save money. That can sometimes roughly fit using commercial vs Foss. I think if we had one without the other, neither would be as good; they keep each other on their toes. Both, if done right are good.

I use lots of both. E.g. beyondcompare on mac, Windows and Linux. Mind gems FDFF on Windows. Ardour for music.

And what's wrong with paying people for software. People have living expenses etc, shouldn't they be rewarded for their work. As for Foss, equally valid movement people volunteering but they also seek some kind of reward or recognition if it's not money.

Ownership. No, you don't own the software. So what?! You've paid for some kind of unit of someone's time making the software.

This article seems to have lost the concept of the value of work to make something.

Books and music CD and vinyl. You don't own the music on those either. You bought a ticket to a concert or theatre show. Do you own the show or part of it? No. Is it necessary to do so.

The word subscription conspicuous by it's absence in the article. Think Adobe CC. Or Webflow. But subscription not necessarily bad. Some open source projects use it like ardour. Ask them why. And perhaps the subscription concept reinforces this article's main point but not quite in the way intended. Subscription after all is upfront about one renting software, not owing it, rather than a lie by deception. Product becomes a service.

Thunderbird is coming to Android – in K-9 Mail form

Supported folder depths of Thunderbird differ between mac and PC versions

In my attempt to tame my emails to some kind of organisation, I use nested folders at some depth.

My IMAP email provider supports it, and it works well on Thunderbird on macOS. But on Windows, Thunderbird wont show some sub-sub-folders.

My suspicion is that, internally, Thunderbird is relying on the host OS's filesystem for storing the folders. Windows is more limited than Unix/Linux for folder path length.

Curiously, em Client on Windows doesn't have this same issue with my folder structure, which leads me to think they've chosen a better way to implement handling of subfolder depth and tested this more rigorously.

Add SMS Backup+ and MailDroid folder creation please?

Great news!

Hoping for these things too:

SMS Backup+ works very well backing up SMS text messages to a gmail account, once you've set your gmail account to accept "less secure" logins - which you can do temporarily. Taking this under the thunderbird's wing could ensure further support, as well providing backup to email services other than gmail.

MailDroid feature to create IMAP folders to file emails in is handy, some other clients don't have this even though the email provider will support it.

Battle of the retro Unix desktops: NsCDE versus CDE

Nortel/BNR

I remember using these at Nortel/BNR in the mid 90s to build SDH fibre optic equipment embedded software in C/C++.

Nortel/BNR

I remember using these at Nortel/BNR in the mid 90s.

Ubuntu 22.04.1: Slightly late, but worth the upgrade

Hoping for improving x86 touchscreen tablet support over time

I'm hoping that there will be improved touchscreen support over time. I'm not sure we're there yet with fully workable support on many x86-64 Linux distros.

I don't think the touchscreen tablet is an edge / fringe / non-mainstream form factor. After all, iPads and Android tablets have been sold for years now and are quite popular. It does puzzle me as to what people believe a normal mainstream use of Linux should be. See also: https://forums.theregister.com/forum/all/2022/05/31/the_cynics_guide_to_linux/#c_4468084

My answer for use cases of Linux would be: be able to use it for anything that any other OS is used for. Not just sitting in a gaming chair at a desktop one-upping others over what K-this or G-that windows manager they're using! Not just year of Linux Desktop but year of Linux on everything that the end user wants. I used my tablet pc running Windows strapped to my arm going up scaffolding once to collect information. I don't want difficulties with the UI in that situation.

Some distros claim their OS can do anything that other OS can do: https://www.pclinuxos.com/?page_id=2 If this is equivalent to how Windows supports touchscreen tablet then that would be a good start but I would be doubtful of that one.

Explaining Computers did an encouraging video of Linux Mint, based on Ubuntu, regarding touchscreens https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UaCwLjIf3sU But when I tried this out for myself on my FZ-G1, there are still some rough edges: launcher needs to stay onscreen when typing on onscreen keyboard. Onscreen keyboard needs to not be overlapped by launcher. Onscreen keyboard needs to be draggable. 2 finger scrolling doesn't work. Onscreen keyboard size setting needs to be the same at login as it is when logged in.

Sick of Windows but can't afford a Mac? Consult our cynic's guide to desktop Linux

Re: Touchscreens, Windows drivers (via headless ReactOS?), raising bugs and improvements.

No worries @Peter Gathercole thank you for the input. And to others on here with their experiences of touchscreens on Linux.

Re: Touchscreens, Windows drivers (via headless ReactOS?), raising bugs and improvements.

@Peter Gathercole

"I think that your usage case might be a little different than most normal users."

That's one usage case I have.

"Linux really can work as a daily driver as more and more people are finding out."

I have 2 other use cases: I also run Ubuntu on a Desktop and a notebook computer/laptop. I use these for programming quite a bit. So it would be a daily driver for me, too. Along with macOS and Windows.

Touchscreens, Windows drivers (via headless ReactOS?), raising bugs and improvements.

For Touchscreen PC tablet support, I'd be interested to know which Linux distros support this the most.

My machine with touchscreen is a Panasonic Toughbook tablet PC, FZ-G1 mkIII

Ubuntu supports some things, but not others. I had found that there was no pop up keyboard at login for password. Meanwhile, other support missing. However, on the plus side, support for built-in mobile SIM cards started working after some more recent updates. Docking stations sockets not so lucky though.

One key thing would be Windows driver support. I'd suggest one way to do this would be using ReactOS open source Windows clone OS, but running it headless somehow, without the UI, to not have to deal with 2 different OS UIs and stick with the Linux desktop experience. Investment of resources would be needed into ReactOS and also developing a virtualisation program that utilises PCI passthrough Vt-d IOMMU - if available on the hardware.

Also, I find it hard to raise bugs, feature requests on Ubuntu, hard to find where to enter them. LaunchPad takes one through lots of documentation links and one seems to have to know about the linux subsystem in question to raise the issue, not always possible by an end user.

I think the above are more important things to think about rather than superficially comparing the look of Linux Desktops and whether it uses Gnome or K-this or G-that, which seems to attract a lot of discussion.

We sat through Apple's product launch disguised as a dev event so you don't have to

Multiple monitors support - 3 external plus mac's own built-in? With Displaylink?

The standard Apple default multiple monitor support on M1/M2 machines is less than previous models like the 15 inch 2016 mac book pro I have.

With my mac book pro, I can connect up 4 displays via an adapter into each of its usb-c ports. In my case I have 3 external monitors attached.

The new M2 MacBook Air has 2 USB-C ports but only supports one external monitor as default standard. The new MacBookPro M2 supports 2.

However, I am looking to move with the times and get an Apple Silicon mac, M2 etc.

I'm hoping that DisplayLink USB-to-DVI or USB-to-HDMI can help here with extending the number of external monitors possible. I also have a MacBookAir 2015 11 inch. With 2 USB-to-HDMI adapters and that Air's own mini display port, I can connect those 3 external monitors to it.

Fortunately, DisplayLink does support Apple Silicon, so this is encouraging though without testing, I would not know if it supports 3 monitors, but I would expect it to.

I agree with another poster about the closeness between MacBookAir and lower end MacBookPro specs.

https://forums.theregister.com/forum/all/2022/06/06/apple_wwdc_2022_the_m2/#c_4471965

On that basis, Myself I would get the MacBookAir provided the multiple monitors is supported.