[kwlug-disc] MX Linux - is it good to install on a laptop

Fri Apr 16 00:03:59 EDT 2021

I forgot to mention, that 256G mSATA SSD mentioned below -- I use that as
my /home for my primary Linux which is Mint.
Why do this?
Well, if Mint stops being my primary distro for whatever reason, I don't
have to deal with re-installing my data/config files and the like.
Makes life easier when you get settled in Linux like I did after playing
with it for some 4-5 months.
I became comfy and confident enough to set things up to suit my own needs
having never used Linux before in my life.

Thanks,

Ron S.

On Thu, Apr 15, 2021 at 7:58 PM Ushe T <ushetaf at gmail.com> wrote:

> Thanks Ron.
>
> I appreciate the pointers and I will also include them in my journey.
>
> Regards,
>
> Ushe
>
> Sent from my BlackBerry 10 smartphone
> *From: *Ron Singh
> *Sent: *Thursday, April 15, 2021 7:49 PM
> *To: *KWLUG discussion
> *Reply To: *KWLUG discussion
> *Subject: *Re: [kwlug-disc] MX Linux - is it good to install on a laptop
>
> Your idea makes sense.
>
> Ushe, this is what I settled for my distro-trialling laptop, which happens
> to be a T420 too:-)
> - T420 with Nvidia Optimus, 16G, upgraded CPU to i7-2670QM, a 256G mSATA
> SSD and a 500G 2.5" SSD
> - Win10Pro64 installed on the 500G SSD as the "primary" OS(100G partition)
> - Mint 20.1 next on a 100G partition,
> - The remaining 300Gig used to do bare-metal installs of whatever to play
> with
>
> I find bare-metal installs to be the best way to really put a distro
> through it's paces.
> I had some issues trying the Deepin distro in Virtualbox 6.1-ish and
> justdecided to do bare-metal installs for trialling.
>
> Weekly, I blow away something(the "whatever") that I no longer care for
> using the program called GPARTED. I have done this dozens of times with
> nary an issue, GRUB does not whine at me for doing so...yet.
>
> On an aside, I use MX in a USB stick(Live with Persistence) for dealing
> with issues on Windows and Linux installs.
>
> Ushe, check this link for the T420 Hardware Maintenance Manual here:
>
> https://support.lenovo.com/ca/en/manuals/um006438-hardware-maintenance-manual-thinkpad-t420-t420i
> It is chock full of lovely details about that laptop you have, details
> like the mSATA socket and all that.
>
> Good luck in your journey, you will have a ton of fun playing around.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Ron S.
>
>
>
> On Thu, Apr 15, 2021 at 5:16 PM Ushe T <ushetaf at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>>
>> Thank you all for your input.
>>
>>
>>
>> The following is a thought process I have reached based on your
>> recommendations and suggestions so far.
>>
>> Let me know if it makes sense.
>>
>>
>>
>> The goal is to learn Linux and become better at using Linux on a daily
>> basis. Based on the suggestions provided for a new user. I think I will
>> start with Linux Mint.
>>
>> Which means installing Linux Mint on the Lenovo T420 laptop.
>>
>>
>>
>> At the same time, I am thinking of creating VM and installing MX Linux.
>> As per my understanding MX Linux is solid and good distro with great tools.
>>
>>
>>
>> Regarding Arch. I am thinking that I may tackle Arch Linux using a VM at
>> later stage after gaining some confidence using Linux Mint.
>>
>> I read that Arch Linux requires one to pay attention to documentation and
>> the recommended usage tips throughout its usage.
>>
>> It seems to me that it may take much longer grasp and learn how Linux
>> really works and understanding how all the components come together through
>> Arch Linux.
>>
>>
>>
>> Regards,
>>
>>
>>
>> Ushe
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Sent from my BlackBerry 10 smartphone
>> *From: *CrankyOldBugger
>> *Sent: *Thursday, April 15, 2021 11:56 AM
>> *To: *KWLUG discussion
>> *Reply To: *KWLUG discussion
>> *Subject: *Re: [kwlug-disc] MX Linux - is it good to install on a laptop
>>
>> I started with Ubuntu, and I still use it today.  I've played with Mint,
>> which was also good, but it had some hardware issues in my case, so I did
>> some distro hopping for a while until I settled back with Ubuntu.  But to
>> be fair, Mint is usually hardware-friendly.
>>
>> Fedora is also good, as mentioned by other people in this conversation.
>> If you hope to work with Red Hat in a corporate environment later on, then
>> Fedora is a good starting place.  Until recently CentOS would have filled
>> that same role but it's a fading memory at this point.  You could keep an
>> eye on the many forks that are popping up now, but they might turn out to
>> be a shell game...
>>
>> I also agree that new users should avoid Arch or its derivatives.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> On Thu, 15 Apr 2021 at 11:32, Doug Moen <doug at moens.org> wrote:
>>
>>> Speaking as a long time Ubuntu user who has recently started using
>>> Fedora, I would recommend an Ubuntu based distro for new users. Fedora
>>> lives on the bleeding edge, which is good if you want to be using the
>>> latest versions of everything all the time, but it's bad if you don't want
>>> to be covered in bandaids from the papercuts. You have to learn how to
>>> customize Fedora to get it up to the usability level of the Ubuntu default
>>> install. I am specifically not happy with default, uncustomized Gnome
>>> desktop running on top of Wayland. Ubuntu customizes Gnome to make it more
>>> usable for Mac and Windows users, and defaults to X11 instead of Wayland
>>> because Wayland is not ready for general use.
>>>
>>> Mint is a highly regarded derivative of Ubuntu that fixes some issues
>>> that people have with Ubuntu. It is supposed to be better for beginners,
>>> and fixes some ethical/malware concerns, eg concerning the Snap store. I
>>> haven't tried Mint, but someone previously recommended it in this thread.
>>> https://itsfoss.com/linux-mint-vs-ubuntu/
>>>
>>> On Thu, Apr 15, 2021, at 10:37 AM, Nickle, Brian wrote:
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> I am running Manjaro on my original Pinebook because it is the only
>>> distro that has active support for this device.  I have run into update
>>> issues that I have had to manually fix.  Manjero still requires you to read
>>> the release notes before performing an update. As such I feel it is not
>>> very good for new users not as a daily driver anyway.
>>>
>>>
>>> My  recommendation would be to use ubuntu, debian or maybe fedora as a
>>> new user.  Honestly I think ubuntu has the best mix of good user
>>> documentation application repository for new users.   All this said I would
>>> highly encourage anyone new to linux that wants to truly understand how it
>>> works go through the install of arch in a vm building up the system really
>>> gives you an understanding of how the parts work together.
>>>
>>> My 2 cents
>>> Brian
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>>
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