News Before Windows 10 goes EOL, I'm testing three alternative Linux distros to save my 6-year-old laptop from the landfill

[flatroncom]

After your switch, try using the XFCE desktop as your main GUI.
It'll save space, memory, processor usage, and it'll do the job for
most general purpose computing on a tired laptop.

 

[Alex/AT]

But Y? You can just continue running 10, or if drivers are available, go 11 with a little registry hack on install.

 

[TomDarais]

I think you be much more satisfied over the long run on an Arch system if you try EndeavourOS rather than CachyOS. I run EndeavourOS on several systems, including old laptops (Panasonic Toughbooks, mostly)and it is very stable. After installing, just type "yay octopi" at the command prompt to install Octopi, a graphical pacman/yay package manager that is 100% compatible with Pacman. That will give you access to Arch packages as well as the AUR (Arch User Repository). Cachy is great, and perhaps more cutting edge, but my experience was I'd encounter system glitches now and then and I couldn't rely on it. EndeavourOS has not been that way, and because it's Arch I still get the latest packages. Plus, EndeavourOS will let you do an install using the BTRFS file system. With BTRFS installed, Timeshift will let you take advantage of BTRFS journaling to do backups as often as you like, including or not including the home directory. Good luck! Tom D.

 

[das_stig]

If your doing a Win-2-Linux review, then you have failed to include a major feature.
Windows users are tied to their OneDrive storage and Linux has little or no support.
Yes their is Google drive, but your average user may have financially invested in OneDrive extended storage , doesn't want the hassle or time to download from OneDrive and upload to Google or any other alternative.

 

[razor512]

Sadly there aren't many good linux options for many laptops. While it is pretty easy to get basic hardware support, often it is a degraded experience. For example, reduced driver support, where for even some integrated graphics solutions, you may not have full hardware acceleration. This is especially hard on some of the older laptops using the Intel U series CPUs, where on windows, you can easily handle 1080p and 1440p content on youtube, but on linux, you are often stuck with 720P with occasional dropped frames and high CPU usage.

Outside of issues like that, often you give up your ability to properly use the laptop speakers. For example, most laptops will use a lot of DSP to make the speakers sound right. The end result is under a linux distro, the audio ends up being tinny and flat. And for some that use additional proprietary features such as some laptops with "beats" audio where they effectively add 1 or 2 additional speakers that are tuned for 75-250Hz. Often those speaker drivers will not output anything without the proprietary drivers, leaving just the main stereo speakers with no special DSP effects.

Simply put, there are tons of proprietary solutions used to mitigate some of the limitations in many laptops.

One solution I wish there was more attention for, is testing older laptops with windows 11 using the various compatibility bypass methods, and seeing how well they can adjust settings to improve performance and reduce the memory footprint.

 

[Loadedaxe]

If your doing a Win-2-Linux review, then you have failed to include a major feature.
Windows users are tied to their OneDrive storage and Linux has little or no support.
Yes their is Google drive, but your average user may have financially invested in OneDrive extended storage , doesn't want the hassle or time to download from OneDrive and upload to Google or any other alternative.

This isn't a problem at all, I’ve installed Linux Mint on my 6700K and can access OneDrive just fine through Chrome. It works no differently than the native app.

Honestly, there’s no compelling reason to stick with Windows anymore. Linux development has come a long way, and with Microsoft seemingly abandoning its core user base, the Linux community is stepping up and making the experience more streamlined than ever.

In a way, this is a good thing....Microsoft may be sinking its own ship. Time will tell.

As for building a new PC, I’m not about to drop $2,000 on one. Sure, I can afford it, but that’s not the point. Just because you can doesn’t mean you should.

That mindset has been lost in today’s "replace, replace, replace" culture, and it's getting out of hand.

My PC works just fine, even with Windows 11, they keep blocking it so I went to Mint and cancelled my Office 365 subscription. Downloaded all my files off one drive via web browser and switched to Google drive.

 

[mikiem]

Typically I would select Grub, but Systemd-boot was selected by default. Why? I used Grub in the end, but a Windows user would have an issue here.

Systemd-boot / gummyboot **may** be easier to set up, and as necessary fix UEFI & Secure Boot, especially if dual booting Windows.

 

[SomeoneElse23]

NOT judging, I'm lazy & OS agnostic -- the only reason an OS exists is to run the software I want/need -- but the main differences between 10 & 11 is Microsoft removed some stuff, broke some other stuff, and changed some cosmetics. Some stuff, e.g., Notepad & Wordpad, can just be copied over. Some things now require a 3rd party app. And there a small industry developing/selling apps to revert the cosmetics to look & feel like Win10.

MS also added a ton of extra "metrics", aka, tracking, to win11.

Check out what pihole can do for you, including show you how much tracking it blocks for you.

 

[mikiem]

One solution I wish there was more attention for, is testing older laptops with windows 11 using the various compatibility bypass methods, and seeing how well they can adjust settings to improve performance and reduce the memory footprint.

Older laptops [& maybe PCs] *may* have an issue with Microsoft preening older drivers from their database. Upgrading 7 or 10 to 11 is safer than a fresh install because it will try to migrate existing drivers when newer versions are not in their database, applying compatibility settings. It also doesn't hurt to make a copy of Windows\ System32\ Driverstore\ Filerepository\ -- it's protected so you can only copy while running that copy of Windows. If a component isn't working, update the driver in Device Mgr. searching the copy of that folder. You can perform an easy compatibility check booting to a Windows To Go drive you created with Rufus. On 1st boot it will only use drivers Microsoft has in its database. If after checking Windows Update anything's not working, you can add drivers you find online, in that saved folder etc., and if you get everything working you're good to go. If not, there's still hope setup will migrate the drivers successfully, but have an image backup handy in case. RE: memory management, Win11 will work with only 2GB, but you can turn off stuff like animation, &/or use 3rd party tools to stop unneeded/less needed background processes/services.

 

[USAFRet]

MS also added a ton of extra "metrics", aka, tracking, to win11.

A lot of that has been backported all the way back to Win 7.

 

[mikiem]

90% of the problem of comps getting compromised, is the person using the comp, not the software.

Good biz practice is to not throw away money. Sure you can spent $ on devs to develop state of the art zero days, but why bother when phishing is easy/cheap & works. That said, there Are still people out there developing sophisticated malware -- that 10% you mention.

 

[mikiem]

Honestly, there’s no compelling reason to stick with Windows anymore.

In some cases software & hardware support. The more people switch to Linux the better the chances that support will improve, but we're not close to there yet.

 

[Ogotai]

but why bother when phishing is easy/cheap & works

i meant the scam and theft type things... not the legit side of it... thats where comps get compromised...

and with the phishing side. it is getting harder and harder to tell the difference.. hence.. dont click on a link on for your bank in some email, phone, or type out thje url for your bank directly in a separate or new window

 

[Ogotai]

Honestly, there’s no compelling reason to stick with Windows anymore

yes there is... games for one.. and the bigger part, i cant see my mom or wife using linux, its just not gonna happen, mom is a little old, and still asks help to do something she just did a week ago...

until using linux is 99% exactly like using windows... most, will probably stay with windows...

 

[Loadedaxe]

yes there is... games for one.. and the bigger part, i cant see my mom or wife using linux, its just not gonna happen, mom is a little old, and still asks help to do something she just did a week ago...

until using linux is 99% exactly like using windows... most, will probably stay with windows...

True, but we’re way further along than people give credit for.
I’ve got Linux running on my main rig, and between Proton, flatpaks, and wide hardware support out of the box, it’s honestly getting much better the it was even a year ago.

Many should at least try it. I digress, but people forget..... Windows didn’t exactly “just work” in its early days either. Driver issues, software crashes, and internal OS bugs were a nightmare all the way up through XP. It took Microsoft nearly 12 years to get their act somewhat together, and even then, it wasn’t flawless.

The “we’re not there yet” argument is getting weaker, devs are targeting Linux more, and the user base is steadily growing. The more people keep parroting that line, the longer it’ll take. Chicken and egg .....

Meanwhile, sticking with Microsoft is starting to feel like an expensive and futile attempt to hold onto a platform that’s actively working against its users and locking things down, pushing ads, data mining, and turning basic OS features into subscription bait.

It's not just about software anymore, it’s about giving up control over your system and your privacy. At some point, people have to ask, what are we actually staying for?

Oh wait, gaming ....

 

[pug_s]

Is it just me, but this laptop has an 8th gen Intel CPU which should be compatible with windows 11, right?

 

[Loadedaxe]

Is it just me, but this laptop has an 8th gen Intel CPU which should be compatible with windows 11, right?

should

 

[USAFRet]

Is it just me, but this laptop has an 8th gen Intel CPU which should be compatible with windows 11, right?

Yes it is...
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/w...pported/windows-11-supported-intel-processors

 

[Ogotai]

True, but we’re way further along than people give credit for.
I’ve got Linux running on my main rig, and between Proton, flatpaks, and wide hardware support out of the box, it’s honestly getting much better the it was even a year ago.

Many should at least try it. I digress, but people forget..... Windows didn’t exactly “just work” in its early days either. Driver issues, software crashes, and internal OS bugs were a nightmare all the way up through XP. It took Microsoft nearly 12 years to get their act somewhat together, and even then, it wasn’t flawless.

The “we’re not there yet” argument is getting weaker, devs are targeting Linux more, and the user base is steadily growing. The more people keep parroting that line, the longer it’ll take. Chicken and egg .....

Meanwhile, sticking with Microsoft is starting to feel like an expensive and futile attempt to hold onto a platform that’s actively working against its users and locking things down, pushing ads, data mining, and turning basic OS features into subscription bait.

It's not just about software anymore, it’s about giving up control over your system and your privacy. At some point, people have to ask, what are we actually staying for?

Oh wait, gaming ....

that being said, Loaded.....

can you see your parents or maybe grand parents using any disto of linux ? i cant... even i had difficulties with linux, the one distro i actually like is Mint... but even then, for example, in regards to network speed using the bulit in NICs, im getting about 600mbit down, on a gigabit network, but switch the same comp to w10 ( or even 7 ) 950 min...

 

[Alvar "Miles" Udell]

True, but we’re way further along than people give credit for.
I’ve got Linux running on my main rig, and between Proton, flatpaks, and wide hardware support out of the box, it’s honestly getting much better the it was even a year ago.

Many should at least try it. I digress, but people forget..... Windows didn’t exactly “just work” in its early days either. Driver issues, software crashes, and internal OS bugs were a nightmare all the way up through XP. It took Microsoft nearly 12 years to get their act somewhat together, and even then, it wasn’t flawless.

The “we’re not there yet” argument is getting weaker, devs are targeting Linux more, and the user base is steadily growing. The more people keep parroting that line, the longer it’ll take. Chicken and egg .....

Meanwhile, sticking with Microsoft is starting to feel like an expensive and futile attempt to hold onto a platform that’s actively working against its users and locking things down, pushing ads, data mining, and turning basic OS features into subscription bait.

It's not just about software anymore, it’s about giving up control over your system and your privacy. At some point, people have to ask, what are we actually staying for?

Oh wait, gaming ....

The same exact argument can be applied to Mac.

 

[alrighty_then]

6 year-old laptop? That's a good life lived. Recycle and move on!

 

[razor512]

6 year-old laptop? That's a good life lived. Recycle and move on!

The issue is even after 6 years, CPU requirements have not increased enough for it to be a bad experience. Even 7th gen Intel CPUs. For example, a core i7 7700HQ benchmarks higher than many than many lower cost CPUs that are fully supported by windows 11.

It is hard to swallow needing to buy a new unit if someone has an older laptop that is well maintained, and is not providing an unacceptable user experience.
This is especially the case if someone uses their laptop for more basic things like media consumption, web browsing, and basic productivity work.
Basically if you are not doing anything extremely demanding (gaming, video editing, etc.) it is hard to justify some of the upgrade requirements.

 

[palladin9479]

Sadly there aren't many good linux options for many laptops. While it is pretty easy to get basic hardware support, often it is a degraded experience. For example, reduced driver support, where for even some integrated graphics solutions, you may not have full hardware acceleration. This is especially hard on some of the older laptops using the Intel U series CPUs, where on windows, you can easily handle 1080p and 1440p content on youtube, but on linux, you are often stuck with 720P with occasional dropped frames and high CPU usage.

Outside of issues like that, often you give up your ability to properly use the laptop speakers. For example, most laptops will use a lot of DSP to make the speakers sound right. The end result is under a linux distro, the audio ends up being tinny and flat. And for some that use additional proprietary features such as some laptops with "beats" audio where they effectively add 1 or 2 additional speakers that are tuned for 75-250Hz. Often those speaker drivers will not output anything without the proprietary drivers, leaving just the main stereo speakers with no special DSP effects.

Simply put, there are tons of proprietary solutions used to mitigate some of the limitations in many laptops.

One solution I wish there was more attention for, is testing older laptops with windows 11 using the various compatibility bypass methods, and seeing how well they can adjust settings to improve performance and reduce the memory footprint.

Just do Ubuntu (or derivative that pulls from the same code base) with and it'll work. I have an old Acer ROG laptop that I installed that on as an experiment.

ASUS ROG Model GL551 Series GL551JW-DS71
1TB HDD (replaced with 1TB SSD)
16GB Ram
Intel Core i7-4720HQ
Nvidia GeForce GTX 960M

It had that Intel + nVidia optimus graphics setup where it uses the Intel IGP most of the time and then the nVidia 960M kicks in for 3D games. That actually worked perfectly fine and I could use the nvidia-smi tool to see when the iGPU and dGPU were working. Even used wine/winetricks + dxvk to load a bunch of DX9/DX11 Windows games and they worked great.

 

[Loadedaxe]

The same exact argument can be applied to Mac.

100%

 

[Mr Majestyk]

Funny how my TPM enabled 2.0 PC which MS said did not qualify is now running Windows 11 problem free for 2 months and gets all updates despite their bogus claims. I used Rufus and a custom austounattend.xml file to make bootable usb and installed Win 11 on a reformatted NVME ssd.

I might try Linux though for my now 9 year old Laptop.