Linuxiversary... One Year With LinuxMint.

Time flies when you are having fun and it certainly seems this year has been a great one for me in terms of computing. Exactly a year ago today I decided enough was enough and I left the Apple world behind after being an avid fan for over 20 years.

The build up had been coming for a few months – actually a few years previous I had ditched my iPhone for an Android handset - and the 13th July 2020 marked my first full day using Linux as my main operating system. 

I had dabbled for many years on and off, having an admiration for Linux. Early 2020 saw me switch to Linux Mint on my MacBook Air as a main OS, but that glowing fruit logo bugged me.

So I sold my beautiful slim and lightweight 11” MacBook Air and replaced with a rather large and chunky Dell Latitude E5410. Specification wise both laptops were similar – especially after upping the RAM in the Dell and swapping out the old hard drive for an SSD. My road to full time Linux and the final nail in leaving the Apple ecosystem had began.

It has been an amazing year. I have really gotten to grips with Linux. It is hard to learn a new way of doing things after 20 years but it soon felt natural. I am by no means a Linux expert, but I had enough knowledge to get me going and each day I learnt more and the last year has been fun.

It has been a fairly easy ride with only a few minor hiccups along the way which required me to learn how to overcome these - but at least it gave me even more knowledge.

In February 2021 I swapped my large Dell for a slimmer ThinkPad X201 – once again similar specs, just smaller.

I have never been happier. Linux is a great alternative. The mid 90s saw me venture into Windows which I didn't enjoy and I very quickly swapped to MacOS. I have never been a fan of Windows (to put it lightly), so there really was only one way out of the Apple world for me and that was via Linux.

I have modest needs when it comes to computing. I don't play games on my computer and only use it for web browsing, writing and  as well as picture, music and minor video editing and my 11 year old ThinkPad more than copes with my needs.

Linux is truly where I want to be and it is hard to believe I have been using it full time for a year already. Here is to many more happy years as a Linux user.

Check out my YouTube channel for portable and older gaming as well as tech videos, including ThinkPad X201 running Linux video.

Also check out my review of the ThinkPad X201.

Written by Simon Royal. Follow me at twitter.com/simonroyal

A Month Since I Switched To Linux

Four weeks ago I made the full switch from Mac to Linux. I have played with Linux on and off for years but had always gone back to using macOS. I think some of this was because I had the hardware to do it. However this time I made the big leap. I sold my Mac and bought a Dell laptop. There was no going back. Breaking free from Apple's walled garden approach has been a breath of fresh air in my tech life, but how has the transition from a platform I had used for 20+ years to uncharted waters gone?

Hardware wise, everything went fine. I’ve had no issues setting up and using Linux Mint 20 Cinnamon on my Dell Latitude E5410. All internal hardware works perfectly, any external drives or USB attachments work too – such as USB 3D audio stick, Bluetooth adaptor and spare WiFi adaptors – all work without having to fish around for additional drivers or services. I had one Bluetooth adaptor that was recognised by the system but failed to work. Not a huge problem just a small annoyance, but this was due to the chipset in it. My other works fine, so I am OK. Even my wireless printer – which I hadn’t give much thought about – just was there ready to be used.

One issue I had when I first started was keyboard shortcuts. My hands had gotten so used to Apple+Q etc that I had to keep reminding myself to use the Ctrl and Alt key instead, something that happened very quickly to my surprise.

A side point, I did take off the Windows key on my keyboard and remove the Windows logo from it. It bugged me seeing that little flag there each day.

Software wise, everything went fine. I checked software before I transitioned and minus a few Apple only apps I was already using cross platform tools, which I carried on using in Linux. I have had no issues day-to-day getting what I need done, which is mainly browsing, emailing, social media, music conversion, image editing and transferring files to and from my Android phone and to external backup drives.

The only stumbling block was finding a video editing tool that was easy to use that could take on the small tasks I needed to edit my YouTube videos before uploading. I have an intro I needed to drop in about 10 seconds in to my videos and I liked to snip sections out through videos, just to make them tidy (I have a habit of saying ‘um’ and rambling a bit off topic). I had intended to use OpenShot, but it is a highly unstable piece of software that also caused audio artefacts. So I switched to Kdenlive, which was much more sprightly, stable and no audio issues. Within an hour of installing it, I had gotten used to it and performed the editing I needed.

A small niggle with emailing, though more Thunderbird's fault than Linux itself. I used to use Thunderbird a lot and didn’t realise it was officially retired and only community supported. I had issues with it connecting to my Google mail servers and not wanting to send emails at times. However, using the Gmail web interface is a great alternative until I find a better email client.

Overall I am loving Linux. It is a strange feeling not to know an OS inside out. After using a Mac for 20+ years there wasn’t anything I didn’t know how to do, but with Linux its a huge learning curve, and I have had to ask my Linux guru friend more times than I would have liked or Google a few ‘how to’ issues. This will pass with more using and I am already feeling quite confident in Terminal.

Linux is far more newbie friendly than it has ever been. It is a clean, easy to use, bloat free OS that doesn’t get in the way of what you need to do. Even updates just sit patiently waiting for you to install them when it is convenient rather than popping up and getting in the way of work or waiting til you want to shut down and then installing.

I am embracing my new direction and my new non-Apple hardware. It is the best move I made since ditching my iPhone for Android a few years back. 

I can only look forward to using my computer how I want and learning Linux more and more each day.

Written by Simon Royal. Follow me at twitter.com/simonroyal

You Can't Do That In Linux! Oh Yes You Can.

I’ve been a Mac user for over 20 years and outside of the professional world using one at home would be met constantly with ‘you can’t do that on a Mac’.

I got used to it. While it wasn’t as true as people made out, the computing world was more geared towards Windows, especially when it came to small software and shareware. I remember trying to find Mac tools that could flash items to Nokia phones in the 90s and it was impossible.

Fast forward to now and Apple is huge and popular and there are far more macOS counterparts of Windows tools.

But with a recent move to Linux I was waiting for the ‘you cant do that in Linux’ to start, but it seems Apple aren’t the only ones who have become more popular over recent years, displacing Windows as your only option for a desktop operating system.

I found that most of the software I was using on my Mac - Blender, GIMP, LibreOffice, HandBrake, Reaper, Audacity, VLC- was also available for Linux and in some of the cases were available on Linux before a Mac port was created.

The move from Mac to Linux was painless. I haven’t found anything I haven’t been able to perform and even the Mac only Apple apps have great alternatives that often perform better and offer extra features.

More commercial packages are becoming available on Linux, with big names realising the potential of supporting it – although it seems Adobe aren’t doing so yet.

Even gaming on Linux has an edge over macOS, with more Linux ports of popular Windows games available than there are for macOS.

So the ‘you cant do that’ no longer hold water not only for macOS, but also extends to the world of Linux.

If you have the tech knowledge, want more freedom or fancy a challenge, you could break away from Microsoft Windows and macOS and use an open source operating system.

Written by Simon Royal. Follow me at twitter.com/simonroyal

From Mac To Linux... I Think I Am Ready

I have really given the move from macOS to Linux Mint serious consideration over the past few weeks. I had a previous blog entry and even an article on LowEndMac expressing my loss of interest in Apple recently. This has been a gradual thing, that has been ramped up lately.

I’ve dipped in and out Linux for years, but now I am eager more than ever to play with the penguin.

First step is familiarising yourself with the linux environment, something I am quite OK with but further time will increase my knowledge. Using Mac operating systems for over 20 years you get very comfy, so switching is going to be a little weird. Just the little things like keyboard shortcuts that have come natural for years will be different.

Luckily Linux isn’t too dissimilar to Mac, in the keyboard shortcut area and many others it is a hybrid between Windows and MacOS.

The second step - and a very important one - is to ensure whatever you use your computer for can also be achieved in Linux. So I made a list of the apps installed on my Mac and started checking them through.

Here is a list of my apps:

Android File Transfer, Audacity, BBEdit, Bean, Blender, Burn, Chrome, Cyberduck, DropBox, Etcher, GIMP, Handbrake, iMovie, iTunes, Photoshop, Reaper, VideoPad, VirtualBox, VLC, XnConvert, YouTube To MP3.

Here is a list of apps that have exact versions for Linux:

Audacity, Blender, Chrome, DropBox, Etcher, GIMP, Handbrake, VirtualBox, VLC, XnConvert, YouTube To MP3.

So I just needed to sort the rest of them out.

Android File Transfer is a Mac only app for copying from Mac to Android. This isn’t needed in Linux as most of the time it is just drop and drag.

BBEdit is just for code writing and editing, which can be accomplished by using Sublime.

Bean is just a simple word processor which can be achieved with anything, such as 

OpenOffice or LibreOffice. Burn is a CD/DVD burning software which I haven’t found a direct alternative for but won’t be difficult. (Editor's note: K3B is probably the best DVD writing app on Linux). Cyberduck is an FTP client which I can use FileZilla for.

Reaper is a music production suite, which has a Linux version but it is an experimental version.

VideoPad is a video editing tool for combining various videos and addition effects and transitions, this looks like OpenShot will cover this.

The three main stumbling blocks are iMovie, iTunes and Photoshop.

iMovie looks like it will also be covered by OpenShot too, iTunes can be substituted for Clementine.

So the final one is Photoshop. This is a big no no, there is no Photoshop for Linux and nothing really matches the Adobe behemoth. The closest you get is GIMP, which is a fantastic image editing program, but not an exact match. You could possibly install a version of Photoshop using WINE, but that is a complicated and very straight forward process.

So it looks like from a software point of view I am all sorted. The move from Mac to Linux should be a painless process and I can do everything I do now.

The final step is picking the correct hardware. As much as I have fallen out of favour with Apple, I do love my MacBook Air. It is a tiny, thin, lightweight, 11” workhorse and the thought of using a huge chunky black plastic machine again does not thrill me. Also, my Mac might be 8 years old but the hardware in it is still decent - and more powerful than some of the budget new laptops on offer now.

So I would be sensible to either dual boot Linux Mint alongside macOS on my Air or go for broke and wipe off macOS altogether. The latest Mint should swing along very nicely on an i5 with 8GB RAM and 256GB SSD. Alternatively I could try and find a non-Apple device that looks like my MacBook Air, but that would require spending money and why do so when I already have a decent laptop sitting here.

The next few weeks will be a great experience and a huge change in direction for me. I am sure there will be a few bumps in the road along the way, but nothing that cant be sorted out without too much stress.

Wish me luck.

Written by Simon Royal. Follow me at twitter.com/simonroyal

Another Dip In To Linux... Could It Be For Good?

I have had an on-off relationship with Linux over the years, dipping my toe in to various distros and then back to my Mac and macOS. In 2018 I even gave Linux a good run for six weeks (leaving my Mac aside), but eventually I caved and went back to macOS.

My distro of choice is LinuxMint, a superb sleak, cleaning looking version of Linux that is gorgeous to look at and easy to use - as well as being superb stable.

I have used a Mac for over 20 years and once a hardcore Apple fan, but over the past few years I have become a user rather than a fan and even ditched iOS a few years back.

With the announcement of BigSur - the forthcoming new release of macOS - and the fact that my beloved MacBook Air wont be receiving it, it has started to put the nail in my Macs coffin. While it will be good for a while just yet, it does make me wonder what my next computer will be.

It certainly won’t be a Windows machine as I detest Windows. A ChromeBook doesn’t fit my needs and I cannot justify spending a fortune on another Mac. So I have two choices, I stick with my current 8 year old Mac or I start seriously looking in to my interest in Linux.

I installed LinuxMint 20 ‘Cinnamon’ in a VM on my Mac this evening and instantly I felt at home. I remembered why I loved LinuxMint so much. It feels like a Mac/Windows hybrid in terms of look. Start menu and task bars being reminiscent of Windows, but with the window handling of macOS.

The thing that has stopped me moving away from my Mac to Linux is software. While software has come a long way and I do use a lot of free, open source, cross platform packages which are easily found on Linux, there are some mainstream packages which I have struggled to find good alternative for.

Being a Mac user you fall in to the habit of adopting Apple ways and I have used iTunes for music management - such as MP3 converting, album organising and ID3 tag editing. This is something I would have to switch from.

Other than that it is pure habit that has kept with macOS. After so long, I know it inside out and what to do if - on the rare occasion - it goes wrong. While I am fairly up to speed with Linux it is still a little daunting delving in to the nix world and if a problem was to arise I would be out of my comfort zone - and I don’t like that.

But with my MacBook Airs life running out, this could be the push I need to further develop my Linux skills and perhaps start a new chapter in my computing life.

Written by Simon Royal. Follow me at twitter.com/simonroyal