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Commercial company's need to make money. And sometimes that makes us dependent on them. Ignorance helps them enormously while a cheap solution is sometimes right around the corner if you dare to experiment. Read on.........
Last year November I was getting really annoyed with my computer.
I bought my system in 2018 (so 6 year old) and it runs Windows.
From powering up to the moment I can actually do something with it, takes several minutes. Well to put it exact: about 3-5 annoying minutes. And shutting down sometimes even took longer. That is not the worse part. Sometimes, while working, the computer slows down so much that it is unworkable.
A lot of that is because the computer is updating Windows and several programs in the background. And at the same time my virus scanner is doing its work. All that takes time and slows everything down.
Another thing was, that Windows informed me, that I would not be able to run Windows 11 on my computer because it was too old.
So time to buy a new machine right ???
Well, I decided to try something else first. And man am I glad that I did.
Linux dual boot
As I was going to buy a new computer I first made a backup of all my data.
That would make it easy to transfer all my texts, schematic's foto's etc to my new machine.
Then I took the plunge and installed Linux on my old machine. I made it dual boot so I could always fall-back to Windows.
I installed Kubuntu. This is a special version of Ubuntu Linux with the KDE desktop. It has the most look and feel like Windows. That would make the switch easier.
And from that moment on I started working with Linux. And of course I had the safety net of a dual boot system, so I could switch back to Windows anytime.
And I never did.
I never went back to Windows !!!
All the programs I need are available under Linux. To name a few: Office (LibreOffice), the Gimp, Thonny, Fritzing, Arduino IDE, Audacity, Cura, Prusa slicer, Firefox, Chromium (a Chrome clone), Discord, VNC viewer, Kicad etc.
My Epson Ecotank ET-2814 printed immediately and it's scanner was also direct recognized and worked flawless. Same for my external harddisks, USB sticks and communication with ESP's and Raspberry Pico's over USB.
Next to that: my system starts within 2 minutes and shuts down within a few seconds. No annoying updates in the background forcing me to restart. Virus-scanner ??? No sir. Linux is a very safe operating system and there are almost no viruses around. And yes: there is a virus scanner if that makes you feel safer.
So, I did not buy a new computer and happily work with my crusty old system.
At this moment it is fast enough to be my daily workhorse but eventually it will break down due to its age. And I already have an idea on what my new computer will be.
Actually I have already discussed it this year on this weblog.........
For now:
All glory to Tux !!!
So if you own an old computer and think about getting a new one: try Linux first. You may get pleasantly surprised.
Till next time
Luc Volders